Does anybody else find themselves throwing soft plastics more often than hardbaits? 2024

dh88hms reply :

These days I find myself throwing more soft

plastics than hard baits. I'm interested if other

members are doing the same?

Raul reply :

Quote
These days I find myself throwing more and more soft plastics and hard baits less and less. Interested if other members are doing the same.

Uhhh..... nope. :-?

Bassin for Walleye reply :

** edited **

I don't pay attention, I just throw what I think

will work.

grimlin reply :

Because it's cheaper....lol

Shad_Master reply :

I tend to use moving baits (chatter baits, spinner baits, crank baits, etc.) to find the fish (cover water) and then switch to a soft plastic to work the area. The one exception is when fishing visible brush piles - I will generally always use either a soft-plastic or a jig.

P.S. ran this through spell check - hope the grammar is okay

Sam reply :

50-50.

Start with RICO and buzzbaits; then throw spinnerbaits; go to crankbaits; and finish with plastics with spinnerbaits and crankbaits thrown in.

Depends on the time of year, water depth, water quality, water temperature, tides, raising and lowering of the reservoirs, and if there is wood along the shore or in the creeks for starters.

When fishing the Potomac I throw spinnerbaits, trick worms and Senkos, with a crankbait thrown in for good measure.

roadwarrior reply :

Geez...Everybody happy?

No, I fish hard baits and soft baits about the same

amount of time. I think I prefer hard baits for "fun",

but soft plastics and jigs are (generally) more effective.

K_Mac reply :

Yes. I would include a jig and craw as a "soft" bait. This time of year a jig, worm, Senko/knockoff, or creature get far more attention than any thing else.

Grey Wolf reply :

No.

florida strain reply :

I used to, but now i tend to use more hardbaits when i can.I think it is because i like to experiment more with them, and learn to use them efficiently.

DRhodes reply :

Of course, I throw them 75% of the time

Nice_Bass reply :

If a football jig and hollow swimbait count, then I throw some form of soft plastic 75%+ of the time.

Smiths.R reply :

I throw soft stuff WAY more than hard. I throw buzz baits quite a bit, but otherwise, it's almost all soft stuff.

I.rar reply :

i throw plastics 80% of the time mainly because they are cheap and i fish in snag infested water.

bwillis reply :

I almost always throw plastics rather than hardbaits because I have more confidence in them and it's quicker to change them out if the one I'm using isn't working. I do want to use more hardbaits this year than last year.

Shane J reply :

I throw soft plastics or jigs/plastic trailers about 90% of the time. The biggest exception, is spinnerbaits. I rarely use cranks anymore.

OH-bass614 reply :

the first time i tied on anything beside a nightcrawler it was a bomber flat a in firetiger and on my first cast i caught a largemouth thats what hooked me when i was probably 7 or 8 so for a few years i slung crankbaits almost every summer day in a pond behind my house then i picked up a work and started catching more fish a ive started to get away from hardbaits but im trying to phase them back in.

Red reply :

I almost never throw hardbaits, aside from topwaters and spinnerbaits. I have them, and they are nice, but I never catch crap on them when I do use them. I am considering getting rid of them so I can get more plastics!

JaxBasser reply :

I fish plastics about 95% of the time. I will tie on a spinnerbait every now and then but that's about it.

dh88hms reply :

Thanks for all of your responses, I appreciate it.

Blue Streak reply :

Soft baits most of the time because that is what works around here.

SirSnookalot reply :

The conditions dictate what I use, this year lots of high weeds and floating grass so I'm fishing soft baits weedless. Clean water I prefer hard baits.

snuffy33 reply :

About 90% plastics this year. I fish in so much slop cranks get fowled before I retrieve them 5'.

Primus reply :

It depends on time of year, fish location, cover and fish activity but I would say 50/50 for me over the course of a season.

In the ealy to mid spring I tend to rely a lot on jerkbaits, rattlebaits, spinnerbaits and various types of jigs more than the soft baits.

During the spawn soft baits account for the majority of the fish.

Postspawn through summer crankbaits are my go to lures with some topwater fishing when conditions allow. I break out the soft baits when they are not hitting cranks but on most outings I can catch fish on my arsenal of cranks that run anywhere from the surface on down to about 18-20' or so.

During the mid to late fall I throw a lot of cranks (especially lipless) & jigs until the water temp starts getting below the mid 40's.

This is a brief summary of fishing preferences throughout the season but really my presentations are dictated by what the fish are telling me that day and I'll do whatever it takes to put in fish in the boat even it means if I have to fish slow with senko's, dropshots , shakyheads etc. if need be.

Catt reply :

Winter, Spring, Summer, or Fall

Morning, Noon, or Night

Texas Rigged Gene Larew 7 ½ Salty Ring Worm Cinnamon Pepper Neon/June Bug Laminated (Camouflage).

Mustad 3/0 Straight Shank Denny Brauer Flipping Hook

3/16 oz. Bullet weight (painted black)

Berkley Big Game 15# Mean Green

fishfordollars reply :

nope

cccsguy reply :

Quote
i throw plastics 80% of the time mainly because they are cheap and i fish in snag infested water.

me too

KC Bass Fanatic reply :

Plastics 75% of the time. If you count hollow body frogs that goes up quiet a bit.

Dave P reply :

This year it's probably been 80-90 percent plastics.

David Rangel reply :

Yes; Years ago I only used crank baits, and now I'm so interested to improve my soft bait knowledge, and I'm about 90% on plastics.!!!!!

0119 reply :

Yes Id say 90% soft plastics. When I use hard baits its nearly always a topwater or a waking crankbait. Here its impossible to fish anything that is a bottom bouncer, too much exotic weed growth.

WanderLust reply :

I would say yes...

Typically I use a crank to locate and then switch over to:

1) weightless senko

2) Tube

3) Jig

basser223 reply :

I would say 70 percent of the time

wisconsin heat reply :

i try to use harbaits but you cant skip a crankbait- plastics are also way more versitile, i just tie on a 3/0 hook and grab a pocketful of varied plastics, and down the bank i go.

iceintheveins reply :

I fish soft baits a little bit more than hard baits, but I use both every trip. If I'm not finding bass or sure where they are at I will use hard baits, and I ALWAYS have a topwater on during morning and evening twillight periods. If I'm sure bass are in the area though I'm generally using plastics. Probably about 60% plastics and 40% hardbaits for me.

bassfisherjk reply :

That's pretty much all I fish with,except some topwater stuff.

Nebraska Bassin reply :

Before I learned to catch fish on a T-rig, I almost exclusively used hardbaits and swore that I'd never use plastics. Now it's almost exactly the opposite. I'll still throw hardbaits, but they're very rarely the first lures out of the tackle box.

bassbum85 reply :

I throw alot more soft plastics than hard ones. On a boat i start with crankbaits and then switch if it doesn't work

tnbassfisher reply :

I do.

I don't have as much experience throwing hard baits as I do throwing soft plastics. Therefore, I see a lot better results when doing so.

I need to learn to "step out of my comfort zone" so to speak, and throw hard baits more or I will probably never be very productive with them.

Goose52 reply :

Finally took the time to sort my "catch log" for this season. I've caught 374 fish so far - 198 on soft plastics, 174 on hardbaits (mostly lipless cranks earlier in the season). So - 53% soft plastic, 47% hardbaits.

Now that summer is here, other than trying some deep cranking with crankbaits and heavy spinnerbaits, I expect that I will be using mostly soft plastics until the Fall.

It will be interesting to see where I end up at the end of the season - but I expect it will be something like 75% soft plastic / 25% hardbaits.

EastTexasBassin reply :

I fish soft plastics and jigs about 98% of the time these days.

DieselvRR reply :

I just like fishing soft plastics more...

Munkin reply :

I let the conditions decide which I will be using and my favorite bait is the one working that day.

Allen

Steve1357 reply :

Fishing from the bank isn't user friendly for using plugs for me. Or jigs.

Mostly plastics rigged weightless or a topwater and spinnerbait from time to time.

Carolina rigged plastics with 1/16 or 1/8 works good in the deepest water with a 7' rod "lifting" them up as you bring it in.

My latest favorite is the BigBiteBaits "Kreatures"

http://www.bigbitebaits.com/pmknPpprGrenKK.jpg

Almost the shine and green iridescent of local bream and the 4" weightless can be thrown with Abu 5000s...

And the Uncle Josh Sizmic frogs are doing well.

CookieMonst3r reply :

I use soft plastics about 90% of the time and I find them very effective, and a lot easier to change if one's not working.

Big Tom reply :

I have a lot more faith in soft plastics. I haven't quite got around to becoming an adept crankbait fisherman even though it is something that I have been wanting to dedicate more time to in the last couple of years. I am going to try to hit it pretty hard this fall.

Redtail reply :

90% soft for me.

wagn reply :

75% plastics if we are counting jig and pig as well.

Other then that it's spinnerbaits, top water, or a jerk bait.

I very rarely crank in the waters I have around here, just to many weeds.

90x reply :

Throw plastics 99.999999% of the time. I absolutely hate hard baits. They are clumsy and expensive to replace. I enjoy how for just about hardbait there is a plastic that performs equal if not better.

The only exception for me is a jig. I always use a trailer, so i dunno if you can count it.

Soft Plastics are the true king.

Using a zara spook for the first time. However, soon got replaced by a yum money hound. Can go more places and has better action.

VABassin'14 reply :

Yes. Going to start throwing more cranks and spinnerbaits in the near future though.

bassin is addicting reply :

I throw soft plastics or jigs/plastic trailers about 90% of the time. The biggest exception, is spinnerbaits.

biggest reason is i fish from the bank and get hung up too much...plus it's a confidence thing with plastics

Micro reply :

If I didn't own any hardbaits, I think I'd catch as many fish as a I do now. Hardbaits for me are interesting. But I don't think there isn't a soft substiture for any hardbait I have.

NorCalFishinguru reply :

Of course. The main lake i fish is so choked with weeds that you cant even rip a lipless crank through the weeds without getting fouled up.

zerofivenismo reply :

Yep. 90% soft plastics & jigs to 10% hardbaits. Ask me a year ago, it would be the exact opposite. Just stepping outside of my comfort zone to learn something new each year.

B A S S E R reply :

The lake I usually fish has lots of weeds and lily pads so I'm pretty much forced to fish weedless baits.

I am also almost always fishing from shore which limits my choices.

I would say 90% of my fishing is done with soft plastics and the other 10% coming from spinnerbaits and rattletraps.

Hot n Tot reply :

I usually use spinnerbaits for locators, but after finding some fish, I usually slow down and start working soft plastics. If I don't catch anything on spinnerbaits, I typically go to plastics anyway after an hour or so, and start worming areas that I think the fish should be. I seldom use crankbaits and jerkbaits this time of year. I know I'm probably missing out on alot of fish.

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Does anybody else find themselves throwing soft plastics more often than hardbaits? 2024

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