I got the idea for this post from Rich Lindgren's Bassin Blog, where he did a wrap up of his favorite bass baits from the last ten years. It got me thinking about the fishing lures that really have been my go-to proven baits over the last decade. Here's what I came up with (in no particular order):
6" Robo Worm Drop Shot
Staring off with my bubba drop shot rig consisting of a 6" Robo Worm in Aarons' Magic. Always on the same set up for me, I use a 7" custom spinning rod wrapped on a casting rod blank, 15 pound CXX -Line, a Gammi G Lock hook and a minimum of 3/8 oz weight. This is a great bait around docks, tullies and just about anywhere you can throw it. I caught my first bag of 5 bass over 20 pounds on this set up from the back of the boat. This pissed off my pro angler in a tournament on Clear Lake – whatever, it was a shared weight event – sorry you sucked that day buddy!
6" Robo Worm with Darter Head
I know you're thinking 'what the fuck, I thought you were a power fisherman!' Well I like to consider my self a smart fisherman (at times), hence the 6" Robo Worm on a darter head. Like the drop shot, there are times when nothing else fucking works no matter how long you try. This bait has saved my ass on many occasion. Don't always think of this 6" worm as a cop-out, but yet just a way to get the job done and beat the fish. I fish this on a Powell 702 extra fast darter head rod with a Quantum titanium spinning reel and 8 pound P-line flouroclear.
3/4 oz. Football Head Jig
Working our way through, I have a 3/4 once football head jig. Shown here is a Jig Monster Chaos Jig with Little Creeper prototype craw trailer. Where do you start with the jig? Well, I would have to say if I had to pick only one bait I could ever fish period, the jig would have to be it. I have caught more fish in the 5 to 8 pound range on a football head in over 20 feet of water than I can even count. I fish this bait on a Dobyns' 734 fast action rod with 12 to 15 pound Sunline Flourocarbon.
Crank Baits
Picking up the pace a little: when I have to cover water and get the job done these two baits are it! The Norman DD22 and the Lucky Craft LV 500 have become my two favorite crank baits ever (always switching the hooks out with Gammi Trebles). Rocks, docks, banks, grass – they do it all and they flat out catch fish all year long. I fish both on a Powell 754 with either 12 pound CXX on the DD22 and 30 pound Power Pro braid on the LV.
6" Castaic Trout
Remember in the beginning I said the baits were in no particular order? Well I kind of lied, the first five were my work horses. Now I'm moving into the baits that once I pick up I have a hard time setting down. These are not only baits I have confidence in but have just flat out become my favorites to fish.
The 6" Castaic Trout, yes the old $10 Walmart Special folks. The one that you can never find two that match because they are painted like crap and half of them don't have the fin cavity filled when they are made. That's the one. This bait has caught more fish, especially spotted bass, for me than any other swimbait. It accounts for my personal best spot: a 6.64 pounder caught in the last 20 minutes of a Won Bass tourney on Shasta. Now tell me that would not get your heart going – then follow it up with a $800 dollar big fish check and we're talkin'. I fish this bait on either a 795 Dobyns' or a 7105 Powell with 20 pound P-Line Flouroclear.
8" Huddleston
While I'm on the swimbait subject I might as well talk about the old Hudd 8". This bait flat out changed the way soft swimbaits are made. It certainly fucked my head up and got me into throwing true big baits. If you were lucky enough to have fished them before fish in your local waters ever saw one, let's just say that's why its in my top ten of the last decade. Although there are some other great swimbaits out now, nothing will ever change the memories I have on this bait. I fish it on a 8" Powell extra heavy swimbait rod and 25 pound P-line CXX.
River2Sea Frog
Delta, Clear Lake, wherever – there is not anything much better than throwing a frog through the slop in the middle of a 90 degree summer day. Anyone who has ever experienced a good amount of fishing frogs will tell you this bait is down right addictive to fish. My favorite is the 65 series River2Sea in white or yellow headed black. Once I start throwing this bait in shallow water usually the rest of the day is shot. I throw this bait on a Powell 735 Med Heavy fast frog rod with 85 pound Power Pro braid.
Black Dog Lunker Punker
The 6" and 8" wood Lunker punker has pretty much displaced my normal top water box completely out of my boat. This is one of the most mezmerizing baits in my boat to fish. I have more Punkers than ten people need, but when a bait works like this one does you just can't go wrong. There are days when I will literally put every other rod away and just get my net ready because this bait is that good, 'nuff said. I fish this bait on either a gen 2 short handle 795 Dobyns' or a 710 5 Powell with 85 pound braid and a low profile reel. I like the Diawa TDA or the new Tierra.
JSJ Snack Size
The Snack Size Trout in Chartreuse Shad was quite literally made for me you might say. I started making these baits a couple of years ago because no other hard bait on the market did what I wanted it to do. I have more hours behind this bait than any other swimbait I own. I fish it fast or slow and not much in between. The floater is my favorite, because I am addicted to top water. This bait has become my go-to bait in all kinds of situations since I designed it. I fish it mainly on a Powell 710 5 with either 85 pound braid or 25 pound P-Line Flouroclear and a low profile reel.
So there you have it: the ten baits that pretty are always tied on in my boat year round. All have been proven over and over again to be reliable fish catching machines. If there are any of the baits above that you don't own already or have not fished in a while it may be time to pull them back out and give them a toss in your favorite fishing hole.
More Top Ten Tackle Lists on The Wired Angler
Top 10 Swimbaits for 2009
Top 10 Topwater Bass Lures
Top 10 Swimbaits in my Tackle Box
