Author: Mike Iaconelli

Tailspinners are for Right Now!

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Tailspinners are for Right Now!

Last time we talked about blade baits. This week we’ll talk about a forgotten lure — the tailspinner. Do you remember the Little George from back in the 70s? Well, that style of lure will still catch ‘em in the winter. The difference is that we now have a modernized version made by Molix. It’s called the Trago Spin Tail. There are three things that make this lure the best, in my opinion. The first is that, like the Trago Vib Blade Bait, it has a flat head. This gives it stability on the fall or retrieve and makes it […]

Heavy Metal Blade Baits In The Winter

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Heavy Metal Blade Baits In The Winter

OK fish-heads, it’s getting cold and that means water temperatures in the 40s. When that happens I grab my box of metal blade baits before I head out to the water. They give me exactly what’s needed to generate reaction bites from lethargic winter bass — vibration, flash, finish, size and depth control. My favorite is the Molix Trago Vib Blade Bait. It has a flat nose which keeps it level on the fall but with a little bit of wiggle, and it has three line tie holes on its back so it’s really easy to change the action of […]

The Braid Trick for Spinnerbaits

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The Braid Trick for Spinnerbaits

I know we don’t think much about spinnerbaits at this time of the year, but they do sometimes work when there’s a long warming spell and the bass become more active. And, it won’t be long before spring comes along in much of our country so it won’t be long before a spinnerbait is one of our go-to lures. As good as they are, spinnerbaits have a problem. When you tie monofilament or fluorocarbon line to an open loop in front of the bait the line sometimes slips down the wire and fouls everything up. Your bait runs crooked, on […]

Winter Water Jerkbaits

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Winter Water Jerkbaits

One of the best winter lures in the whole world is a suspending jerkbait. Now, when I’m talking about winter conditions. I’m talking about water temperatures below 50 degrees all the way down into the 30s. That’s right now in most of our country. I use two models depending on the depth of the water I’m fishing. In water that’s less than 8 feet deep I go with a short bill Rapala Shadow Rap. If the water’s deeper, maybe up to 15 feet, I’ll go with a long bill version of the same lure. They both have an internal, fixed […]

Early Winter and Jigs

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Early Winter and Jigs

OK, guys, here’s the deal: It’s getting to be winter. The air temperature is no better than 50 degrees most days and the water temperature is around 55 degrees in much of the country. That’s not nearly as cold as it’s going to get but it’s still cold and the bass know that winter is right around the corner. Now, to be honest, you need to fish all through the water column right now. There are days when they’re deep and days when they’re shallow. Nevertheless, it’s a rare day when you can’t catch them with a jig, and I’m […]

So You Want a Giant This Fall

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So You Want a Giant This Fall

Fall is a great time to go bass fishing. The weather is cool but it’s still comfortable, there are fewer recreational boats around and the bass are feeding like crazy. It’s also a great time to catch a giant, maybe the biggest one of your life. If you want to catch one like that, though, you have to use the right lure. Here are my three very best fall baits for giant bass. But here’s the thing — one of them isn’t necessarily any better than the other. It’s about which one will best match the hatch. The first one […]

Understanding Fall Bass Movements

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Understanding Fall Bass Movements

This blog is going to be mostly theoretical. Instead of talking about lures and tackle we’re going to look at how bass move as the fall season comes and goes. The reason for that is that we can catch a ton of them at this time of the year if we can find them. No matter all of what I say today, however, it’s important to keep one thing in mind: The fall is about BAITFISH!!! MATCH THE HATCH!!! I want to start with a brief definition of fall. The air temperature is dropping. The water temperature is dropping. The […]

Rapala Shallow Shad Raps for This Fall

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Rapala Shallow Shad Raps for This Fall

Last time we talked about soft plastic jerkbaits because they look like baitfish. This time I want to talk about a Rapala Shallow Shad Rap for the same reason — everything’s shallow and something that looks like a minnow will catch them. But that doesn’t mean they jump in the boat. Let’s face it. Fall fishing can get tough. When that happens I switch my presentations to something a little different. In my world that means I downsize my lures and make absolutely sure they’re the same size as the forage. I’ll talk a little more about that in just […]

Soft Plastic Jerkbaits and Fall Bass

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Soft Plastic Jerkbaits and Fall Bass

Some things just go together. They make a team. And that’s definitely true for soft plastic jerkbaits and fall bass — largemouth, smallmouth and spots. Now’s the time when bass are moving shallow to take advantage of easy feeding on baitfish. So, when you think about it soft plastic jerkbaits are a natural. They look exactly like the real thing, they’re easy to rig, they’re affordable and they catch fish. I’m going to share a few tips about how to rig them and make them even more effective than when they’re fished in the usual way. I developed these modifications […]