What do you want to master? 2024
billmac reply :
What are the lures you think you should be using but just don't have experience / confidence in?
I've spent nearly all my life fishing smallies, trout, and pike in shallow rivers, wading and canoeing. 99% of the time I was using spinners or jig and spinners. Some rapala floaters and buzz baits for pike. I'm a short cast, shallow water kind of guy, and I like to keep moving. I have a friend who's go to lure is a zara spook, but I've never had a great deal of confidence in topwaters. So I know I need to work on that. I'm not a great jig fisherman, so I need to work on that too.
What are the lures you think you need to use more?
Mobasser reply :
Probably 25yrs ago, I quit carrying lures which didn't work for me. I narrowed it down to 6 baits in different colors/ sizes for bass fishing. I'm positive this has caught me more fish over the years. The one bait I'm always trying to improve on are jigs. It's a bait you have to fish with and gain confidence in. Then, stick with it
billmac reply :
Mobasser: Agreed. I think confidence is a much bigger factor than color, size, etc.
RyneB reply :
chatterbaits and jerkbaits. I dont want to master them, I just want to have enough success them to gain some confidence.
IgotWood reply :
Yup, I’ve really cut down the on the tackle I carry. I have a few baits that I consistently do well with, in a few different colors. Occasionally I’ll buy a couple of new baits, but I don’t beat the water with them. Fish them a few times and if I don’t do well, it goes in an giant box in the garage.
One bait I really want to spend time with this year is the jig. I’ve fished them plenty, but I can’t say that I’ve ever gotten on a solid jig bite. I feel confident every tine I tie one on, but I rarely seem to get bit on it.
primetime reply :
I just want to be able to always catch fish, find fish, and even better...When I find them, like yesterday, I do not spend 6 hours catching 1 13" bass, and missing the 2 good blowups I had on a Hollow Frog.
I really need to get better at casting accuracy and skipping baits into bushes etc. I spend the last year focusing on Saltwater/Brackish water canal fishing and only Bass fishing a few times a month, but now that I am back into it, I realize my casting is way off and that is more important imo than the bait on the end of the line.
Nothing more frustrating than trying to skip a soft bait or frog into bushes, under trees, and getting backlashes with braid, or having the bait smash the water too loud cause you are not throwing at the right angle.
I guess Fishing is not supposed to be easy. I don't feel so bad, I broke out the ultralight for half hour and they wouldn't touch the little Yamamoto IKA which is usually like candy to smaller bass, bluegill etc..
Lets hope tonight is better. I think I like Night time fishing better anyway. When its good, its usually really good and stays that way for a few hours....
Dorado reply :
Jigs and jerkbaits
scaleface reply :
What I would really like to do is go to a clear lake and do some of that deep water video game fishing like Chris Zaldain does .See bass on the electronics , drop a lure down and then watch them come up to the lure . That would be neat .
A-Jay reply :
What do you want to master ?
My Electronics - application & use.
A-Jay
CroakHunter reply :
Power plant lakes.
billmac reply :
I'm glad I'm not the only one not super confident with jigs.
Electronics are a whole other story. I have almost zero experience with fishfinders and now I have one.
Columbia Craw reply :
On 2/18/2019 at 1:18 AM, A-Jay said:What do you want to master ?
My Electronic - application & use.
A-Jay
Bingo!
fishwizzard reply :
Topwater for me. I *know* that it is effective but I *feel* like it's never going to work so I rarely tie one on. There is a great pond by my house for learning them on, tons of grass with a few inches of water on top. I need to just leave everything else in the car until I spend an hour or so with the popper each trip.
Harold Scoggins reply :
On 2/17/2019 at 9:33 PM, Mobasser said:The one bait I'm always trying to improve on are jigs. It's a bait you have to fish with and gain confidence in. Then, stick with it
On 2/17/2019 at 10:19 PM, IgotWood said:One bait I really want to spend time with this year is the jig. I’ve fished them plenty, but I can’t say that I’ve ever gotten on a solid jig bite. I feel confident every tine I tie one on, but I rarely seem to get bit on it.
On 2/18/2019 at 2:06 AM, billmac said:I'm glad I'm not the only one not super confident with jigs.
I see this often on here and was wondering if patience plays a role. I've fished jigs for many years and my best results have always come from a slow presentation. I've observed many anglers getting frustrated fishing jigs and it appeared that they were almost always trying to work them too fast. Don't give up on them, the bite sometimes seem far and few between, but most of the bass I've landed with jigs have been quality catches.
junyer357 reply :
For me its not a lure per say, but a technique. Im working on akipping baits. Its what i have been practicing and woking on since christmas.
MN Fisher reply :
This year I'll be learning something new...pitching/flipping/punching. I never had a setup that I was comfortable in casting into heavy growth with. Now I have the Fuego on a Heavy rod, loading it up with 50#braid. This will be a learning experience for me and I hope to do well with it.
Munkin reply :
Electronics as it is tough for me growing up as a shallow river fisherman. Growing up if you needed to know the depth you just looked over the side of the boat or stuck a rod down in the water, that is how we knew the depth.
Besides that it is the chatterbait which is giving me trouble. I have had days where I am catching them on a single Colorado spinnerbait and a swim jig so I switch to a chatterbait and nothing. This is my focus this year as I do not plan on traveling to places that fish deep.
Allen
Heartland reply :
What do you want to master? Quantum Physics, Evolution, Black Holes, and Wiggle Warts.
Hawkeye21 reply :
Jig fishing.
Bankbeater reply :
Jerkbaits and my electronics. I’ve slowly been gaining confidence with jerkbaits but I don’t think I used my fish finder more than a couple times last year.
Bass_Fishing_Socal reply :
Call me crazy, I think I bought about 50-60 Jigs for this year mostly cheap brand range from 1/16 - 3/8oz. I want to master dragging/hoping jig without snagged.
WI_Angler1989 reply :
I plan to dedicate a lot of time this year to learning, improving and gaining confidence in:
1) Dropshot
2) Ned Rig
3) Soft Jerkbaits
4) Wacky Rig
Half the battle with the above presentations is just USING them more. I've dabbled, but never put enough time in.
But I'd say the biggest thing I want to improve on isn't a lure, but canoe tactics. I need to improve in navigating the river, finding opportune places to fish, and to do it all safely.
blongfishing reply :
For me, it's the same lure I keep writing on my "fishing goals" list every year. Jigs!! I know, it's arguably the most versatile lures made but I just don't have confidence I guess. I catch five fish (give or take) every year on a jig but I wanna be able to throw it and have no doubts. I think the best thing for me to do is bring nothing but my jig rod and jig box on the boat one day and gain confidence.
Aside from lures, one thing I wanna focus on learning is grass lakes. Upstate SC doesn't have grass lakes nearby. This fall I will be moving on to college fishing and I think that it will be essential for me to learn grass lakes. Guess I gotta make a few trips to grass lakes this summer!
Bluebasser86 reply :
Dropshot for sure. One of the most popular finesse techniques out there and I just can't get the hang of it. I can catch some doing it, but if I switch to a Ned rig my catch jumps exponentially. It's starting to make sense though.
HeyCoach reply :
I think I only caught 8 bass all of last year.
I’d like to be able to skip a jig with my baitcaster and be accurate when I cast or skip a Senko with my spinning rod.
gilkeybr reply :
Last year my goal was getting more confidence jig fishing, which I did. This year i'd like to roll that confidence over to the T-rig. Also, I got away from spinner baits the last couple years after having them as one of my go-tos when I first started fishing. I'd like to work on that again.
But, my main goal for fishing this year: Catching a SMB out of Lake St Clair. If I don't get that done (skunked the last two years) then i'm moving out of Michigan...
Largies4Life reply :
My top 3 would have to be Ned Rig, Drop Shot, and Shakey Heads. We all can see the pattern here, I'm not great at finesse fishing! I love to throw a wacky rig around, but never branched out from that because it always worked for me! I got all the right gear for these techniques for Christmas, so I'm ready to try these out as soon as these giant icebergs melt off the lakes up here in the Midwest...
Quarry Man reply :
jigs and texas rigs, I can't catch fish on em
jrwerner310 reply :
On 2/18/2019 at 9:41 AM, WI_Angler1989 said:I plan to dedicate a lot of time this year to learning, improving and gaining confidence in:
1) Dropshot
2) Ned Rig
3) Soft Jerkbaits
4) Wacky Rig
Half the battle with the above presentations is just USING them more. I've dabbled, but never put enough time in.
But I'd say the biggest thing I want to improve on isn't a lure, but canoe tactics. I need to improve in navigating the river, finding opportune places to fish, and to do it all safely.
I would agree. but im going to swap out the dropshot for jig fishing
primetime reply :
On 2/18/2019 at 12:45 PM, Bluebasser86 said:Dropshot for sure. One of the most popular finesse techniques out there and I just can't get the hang of it. I can catch some doing it, but if I switch to a Ned rig my catch jumps exponentially. It's starting to make sense though.
I thought I was one of the only people who can't stand the drop shot. I seem to get line twist and think I work it too quickly. I also fish it too fast, I don't like leaving it in one place for some reason...Although I like using the Ned rig and my favorite is just taking a small TRD or worm, fluke, and putting a split shot in front of it. I feel like I can work it like a shaky rig, carolina rig etc...
The few times I had success with the drop shot, the fish seemed to be mostly smaller, and when I would take out a finesse rig, I seemed to do just as well.
Too many rigs to master....I guess the drop shot is now the Tokyo Rig, Wacky Rig is Neko Rig, Jika rig....I just like throwing soft baits with some weight somewhere on the equation.
The Ned rig or slider rig still catches fish just about anywhere, plus I can fish it quicker which I like. Drop Shots require patience. If I need to focus on patience and working slow....I will throw a jig or big worm and this way I know my strikes will be better quality...Most of the time.
I probably fish too fast in general...Maybe I need to focus on slowing down. I shake a drop shot too much which catches smaller fish for sure. The guys who can deadstick a dropshot seem to get bigger fish.
Boomstick reply :
On 2/17/2019 at 10:09 PM, RyneB said:chatterbaits and jerkbaits. I dont want to master them, I just want to have enough success them to gain some confidence.
Same here, especially chatterbaits. I never seem to get anything on a chatterbait in areas I know people catch them on chatterbaits using the same size, color and trailers as I do, but I attribute a lot of that to me throwing a different lure, say a spinnerbait on after a while of not getting anything as well. I don't fish too many jerkbaits as well, but I plan on fishing more jerkbaits this year as well.
I still plan to improve my dropshot fishing, a carryover from last year. But late last year I also found a few areas with solid cover that I can fish as well, so I plan on doing some more jig fishing. And of course, morning topwater fishing too (last year, on chemo I was just too tired to get up early).
Tennessee Boy reply :
I want to gain confidence in fishing deeper. I rarely fish over 25ft but I know there are fish down there. I can see them on the fish finder taunting me.
microotter reply :
I don’t think that I have ever caught a fish on a lipless crankbait–which is weird bc crankbaits and topwaters are my confidence baits. I also have never tried a ned rig. Those techniques are on my list this year. I think the ned rig may work well for me. I wade fish a lot of shallow water.
billmac reply :
There's nothing easier to use than a crankbait but I've never caught many fish with them.
Dorado reply :
On 2/19/2019 at 7:15 AM, microotter said:I don’t think that I have ever caught a fish on a lipless crankbait–which is weird bc crankbaits and topwaters are my confidence baits. I also have never tried a ned rig. Those techniques are on my list this year. I think the ned rig may work well for me. I wade fish a lot of shallow water.
Ned rig is a killer shallow water lure. So are Finesse tubes and my favorite to use sight fishing. Try it, you won’t regret it!!
WI_Angler1989 reply :
On 2/19/2019 at 4:09 AM, jrwerner310 said:I would agree. but im going to swap out the dropshot for jig fishing
Nice! The sad part is that I've had all the tackle to do the 4 that I want to improve on. I've just continually fallen back into those same old go-to's.
Catt reply :
What do you want to master?
Getting away from the house! ????
jrwerner310 reply :
On 2/19/2019 at 9:30 AM, WI_Angler1989 said:
Nice! The sad part is that I've had all the tackle to do the 4 that I want to improve on. I've just continually fallen back into those same old go-to's.
I always fall back on my finesse fishing. Mostly the Ned rig and the weightless Texas. I fish from the bank mostly and want to improve those along with jigs and maybe crankbaits as well. That will be my big focus this coming spring.
TBAG reply :
Jigs
thinkingredneck reply :
Fly, finesse, particularly Ned and hair jig.
Drew03cmc reply :
I have never really tossed chatterbaits, so that's number one. Number two is probably to improve my frog fishing.
Fishes in trees reply :
I've fished for many years & tried nearly every "new" technique that came down from the different "experts" that I either read about or met. So I got lots of gear. Last year I fished 10" worms ALOT. Tungsten weights helped the learning curve quite a bit. I got confident enough that I didn't feel that I was missing hits and that I could throw it in different places and feel like if there was a fish there, it would probably bite it.
This year, I don't know. I keep a good ned rig in the boat all the time, but I seldom fish it. I have a Loomis drop shot rod that I need to remember to keep in the boat. I bubba drop shot frequently but I seldom pick up the finesse version.
So there be 2 things to work on. Last year I feel like I neglected my whole reaction bait game, mostly to focus on 10" worms. Improving my reaction bait game in general, and my spinner bait game in particular, is in the plans this year.
Mobasser reply :
My wife may want to fish with me this spring. I would love to master her getting ready faster. I can be ready to go in 15min. It takes her foreverrrrr!
MN Fisher reply :
On 2/27/2019 at 11:21 AM, Mobasser said:My wife may want to fish with me this spring. I would love to master her getting ready faster. I can be ready to go in 15min. It takes her foreverrrrr!
Slowpoke - once I have the trailer assembled and the canoe on it. When I want to go - 5 minutes to hook it up and drive away. Since I'll be storing it in the locked garage, I never have to remove anything from it.
Mobasser reply :
On 2/27/2019 at 11:23 AM, MN Fisher said:Slowpoke - once I have the trailer assembled and the canoe on it. When I want to go - 5 minutes to hook it up and drive away. Since I'll be storing it in the locked garage, I never have to remove anything from it.
I'm no slowpoke! My wife likes to take her time, but I'll get her moving
MN Fisher reply :
On 2/27/2019 at 11:25 AM, Mobasser said:I'm no slowpoke! My wife likes to take her time, but I'll get her moving
Cattle-prods work wonders. ????
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