Keepin’ it simple!

Do Bass fisherman really need all that tackle?

 

 

-Simplicity will catch fish; fish catching increases confidence; and confidence increases fish catching; it’s a nasty little cycle.

I’m a bass fisherman, a serious die hard trying to make it full time bass fisherman.  I have the big truck, the fast boat, 20 rods and reels, and more tackle than I could use in a life time.  Do I need it?  Absolutely not; then why do I have it; because I am addicted to buying it!

 

Most fishermen including myself walk into our local tackle stores and completely lose their minds.  I mean look at all the colors, styles, packages, soft plastics; the list goes on…I honestly believe there is a switch connected between my brain and my wallet.  I walk into the tackle store pull my wallet out and my brain shuts off!  I need one of these, three of those; oh and the new stuff…we are all looking for that one magic bait. The one that will win it all!  Then one of my personal favorites, the guy who walks in grabs all 20 packages of a certain color just so no one else can have it.

 

Sure there is a lot of tackle that we do need; but honestly how many different colors or sizes of the same bait do we need?  Heck these days we have to save some of the tackle budget for things like gas!

 

Like I said before and like you see on TV a die hard bass fisherman will have a rod for every situation; we’ll have the same bait tied on three different rods but in various sizes and colors.  But I can guarantee that by the end of the week, the end of the tournament we have thrown maybe three or four different baits; and when it comes to tournament time probably two baits on two rods.  What is better yet; we have probably thrown one of those baits 75% of the time.

 

Lots of baits catch fish and lots of baits in different colors will catch fish (on the same day and same body of water).  It all boils down to the baits that one gains confidence in.  It’s also true that different seasons call for different baits.  But in my boat year after year you’ll find the same baits in the same colors.

 

What am I trying to get to, well if the past several years and thousands of the dollars in equipment has taught me anything.  It’s to do one thing; keep it simple to keep your confidence.

 

2004 for me was probably my most successful year on.  Why?  Simple; spending more time fishing and less time second guessing my lure selections, color selections, sizes, and the mind games that come with all those lure choices.  It came down to picking just a few baits and a few colors and viola!  Fish catching goes up; confidence gets restored.

 

In the paragraphs below you’ll find a sampling of what I throw most of the time, most of the year, on most bodies of water.  I categorized the baits into four groups; crankbaits, spinnerbaits/buzzbaits, plastics (including jigs), and miscellaneous.  I then narrowed these choices down to one or two sizes and a few colors that will consistently catch fish; season after season.

 

Let’s start with crankbaits, the number of companies, the colors, the sizes, the styles I bet you easily have a 100,000 choices…..I get dizzy just thinking about it.  Within this category I have lipless crankbaits and diving crankbaits.  As far as lipless crankbaits go; I use two colors and one size exclusively.  That being a ¼ oz. Rattle Trap in Chrome/Black and a Shad Color.  This simple size and color selection has caught fish for me from Wisconsin to Alabama; spring through fall.

 

Next the diving crankbait; I focus on (2) depths, 1-3’ and 4-8’.  This may change depending upon the waters you fish but for me these are the primary ranges.  No matter the brand name; I keep the color selection limited to a natural shad, root beer, or something more dramatic like a Chartruese or fire tiger pattern.  Another thing I started doing last year to all my crankbaits is replacing the front hooks with red treble hooks.  I believe this made more of difference than the color of the crankbait did.

 

Spinnerbaits and buzzbaits are an easy one.  I like ¼ oz white, white/chartreuse, or for my dark color selection; purple.  A tandem willow leaf spinnerbait with a gold and silver blade or a silver buzzbait blade will catch fish anytime anywhere; guaranteed!

 

Soft Plastics and Jigs; well here is where you can get lost again.  The market is flooded with styles, sizes, and colors.  For me four baits come to mind; the 7.5 inch worm, 4-5 inch tube, senko, and a ¼ to ½ oz jig.  As far as colors go I like a Tequila Sunrise worm, a Green Pumpkin, Brown, or Watermelon Tube and senko, and my go to jig is a ¼ oz green pumpkin with a hint of orange.

 

As far as my terminal tackle for the plastics; that’s easy; either a 3/0 or 4/0 EWG hook and 1/8 or ¼ oz. bullet sinker.

 

My miscellaneous tackle category includes swimming jigs, creature baits, craws, soft jerkbaits, or topwaters.  My best advice is to stick to all natural colors; greens, browns, etc.

 

I will admit there are certain situations or water conditions that will call for more outrageous baits, colors, and tactics but day in and day out the tackle listed above will catch fish the majority of the time.

 

Simplicity will catch fish; fish catching increases confidence; and confidence increases fish catching; it’s a nasty little cycle.  Have I stopped buying more tackle than I need; of course not like I said I’m an addict!  Could I fish each tournament with one or two rods and boxes of tackle; yes.  Will I?  No, but I can honestly say that by the end of the day most of my fish will have come on one of the few baits I just described.