Every so often I think about a lure that everyone who want’s to catch a bass should know about, and so it is with the David Fritts designed Rapala DT Thug. It’s a small balsa crankbait — 2-1/2 inches long with a weight of 3/8 of an ounce — that’ll dive to between 4 and 8 feet on a normal retrieve. It has a hard, wide wobble, is hand tuned and comes in 15 colors. I don’t care where you live or where you fish you can match the local forage with one of them. What really makes it special, […]
When anglers think about fishing a tube they usually think about dragging one along the bottom while looking for smallies or, in some situations, flipping and pitching them into heavy cover for largemouth holding tight. But when I think about fishing a tube — at least some of the time — I think about snapping it. It’s a super efficient technique when you want to target deep bass that have seen every crankbait and every jig that’s ever been made. Snapping isn’t a hard thing to do. Just cast it out with a fairly long cast, let it fall to […]
I’m frequently asked about using spinning or casting tackle. Anglers want to know what they should be using when they go fishing. The answer, of course, is that there is no answer. You can catch bass with either type so you should always use what you feel comfortable with given the way you fish and your level of experience. I will, however, tell you what I use — when and why. If my lure weighs less than 1/4 ounce I almost always go with a spinning outfit. Lighter baits are easier to handle with spinning tackle. You can cast them […]
When I’m talking about big worms I’m talking about ones anywhere from 8 to 12 inches long. And, in my case I even have some custom ones that are around 15 inches. All my worms, other than the custom jobs, are made by Berkley. I have used their Powerbait Power Worms exclusively for years. The reason is that most big worms are round. Power Worms have a flat side on them that’s about a quarter of their circumference. That’s just enough to let me rig them with the flat side down. That gives them a more natural action and a […]
In many waters, summertime bass fishing means deep bass fishing, and deep often means 20 feet down or more. Getting bass to bite at that depth isn’t so much of a problem. We can do that. I mean, they still have to eat. The real problem is getting something down to them that looks realistic, something they’ll bite. I do that with the Molix Mike Iaconelli Lover Spoon. Over the last few years — maybe six or eight — structure spoons have come into vogue, and for good reason. They get down quick and, if they look like a dying […]
Tackle storage isn’t the sexiest topic we can talk about. Nevertheless, it’s important. Knowing what you have with you and where it’s at can mean the difference between catching bass and not catching them. I’ve been frustrated with ordinary storage boxes for a number of years. They work OK for some things but little things can be a problem. The dividers slip up and terminal tackle like small hooks, split rings, snaps, swivels and nail weights get mixed up and end up in a jumbled mess. The result is that you don’t always know what you have and, even if […]
I love to drop shot but I don’t love line twist, and that’s one of the biggest problems with drop shotting. That’s too bad because on tough days a drop shot is one of the most effective ways to put one in your livewell. With that in mind, I set out to solve that problem. That shouldn’t come as any surprise to those of you who know me or who have followed my career. I tinker with everything and, thanks to some first-class professional sponsors, some of my modifications actually make it to fruition. The VMC Spinshot Hooks are in […]
It’s the postspawn all around the country and with that comes a topwater bite. The thing is, though, sometimes a noisy, splashy topwater plug runs them off rather than fills the livewell. When that happens I go subtle. That means I reach for a Berkley HAVOC Subwoofer. It’s a unique bait in that it has a short (4 inches), fat body with a classic cut tail that’ll move a lot of water when you crank it fast. And, you can do that with this lure because of the way the body is designed. It not only has a fat, shad-like […]
I have to make a confession here. I hadn’t thought about Rapala’s Original Floater in forever — until recently. I had them, for sure. I’d just been using other baits. But then something happened that reminded me of why I should put a handful of them in my boat. I was fishing with another pro angler who was wearing me out with a floating jerkbait. His was made by another company. Nevertheless, watching him I was reminded of my Original Floaters. The next day I fish with them. The butt whoopin’ stopped. They’re good baits. They’ll catch bass from early […]
You don’t hear much about them anymore. I really don’t understand that because they’ve been a staple in my fishing since 1998. It’s true that there are new plastic designs coming out every day, if not every hour. But that doesn’t make any difference to me. I never leave home without a few sacks in my truck or in my boat. I’m talking about a simple, old-fashioned 6-inch lizard. There’s a good reason for that. They catch fish. Some guys think it’s because they look like the real thing. Other guys say they look like something alive no matter if […]
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