I know a lot of people will say worms,spinnerbaits,jigs,etc.However i want to pitch a relative newcomer- the toad.The toad was designed as a top water bait that can be thrown in the heaviest cover without hanging up.Used this way it is a great lure and some of the explosions are heart stopping.I know many people say the hook-up ratio is poor however using the corkscrew hook that comes with the horny toad and ribbit I find the ratio to be about the same as any other top water lure.
I feel the toad really shines as a subsurface lure.Thats right I think it is a better lure under the surface than it is on top (although its not as fun).Fishing the toad 1.5' to 2' under the water is a great way to catch bass.And finally SLOW CRAWLING the bait on the bottom may be the best way of all to fish this lure.
Finally this weekend I found out that this is a bait made for skipping.Its flat top and bottom make it really easy to skip.I caught a 6+ lb bass using this method.Another thing is it catches larger than average bass.
The plastic worm can be fished at all depths, but more importantly
it's a "true" year-round lure that's effective in a uniquely wide temperature range.
BTW: Not all toads sink, for example the Sizmic Toad floats with a 4/0 hook.
Roger
This is a great thread. I learned something new. I am going to start fishing one on the bottom and skipping docks.
The frog is a versatile lure but I wouldn't go as far as to say it is the most. I lure is only as versatile as the guy holding the rod. I could say that it's a fluke because of the many different ways I fish it. But any soft plastic can be fished like a fluke but will have different actions. They all will catch fish.
ROLO,
Great point about water temp.I live in fl so I wouldn't know about that!
Old zip lure, most fisherman dont use bladebaits. I caught brook and raibow trout, Largemouth bass, pike, crappie, perch, channel catfish, carp, and saltwater fish on this lure. sadly they dont make them anymore.
IMO, the crankbait. It can cover any depth and be a year round producer.
I fish a Texas Rig year round
Winter: Craw Worm with Brass-N-Glass
Spring: Lizard
Summer: Worm
Fall: Creature
Spinner Bait or Crank Bait can not be fished in heavy Hydrilla or Buck Brush
Man, if you had asked me to rank the top 25, a toad would not have made my list.
The Gitzit ranks #3 as my most productive lure of all-time, but #1 as the most versatile. A tube can be fished a number of ways and at any level in the water column. Fast, slow, as a jerkbait shallow and most importantly as a "do nothing" bait which legend has it, what it was originally designed to do. Not only is it VERY effective at any depth, utilizing a number of retrieve techniques, the lure can be fished year-around!
The Senko and Fat Ika are my top two baits, very versatile and fished year-around in this region, but neither comes close to a tube.
Gitzit = Get 'er Done!
In my opinion id have to add my vote to the worm side, theres floating worms, sinking worms, the all mighty texas rigged worm, paddletail worms, carolina rigged worms, wacky worms, and so on, they just seem to cover every type of fishing possible and even give a confidence to anglers of skills
I have to go with a tube. You can flip them, pitch them, throw them weightless, fish them deep or shallow, fish them night or day, muddy water or clear, fast or slow water, winter, summer, green or brown bass, etc, etc. After that I would chose a jig.
QuoteI know a lot of people will say worms,spinnerbaits,jigs,etc.However i want to pitch a relative newcomer- the toad.The toad was designed as a top water bait that can be thrown in the heaviest cover without hanging up.Used this way it is a great lure and some of the explosions are heart stopping.I know many people say the hook-up ratio is poor however using the corkscrew hook that comes with the horny toad and ribbit I find the ratio to be about the same as any other top water lure.
I feel the toad really shines as a subsurface lure.Thats right I think it is a better lure under the surface than it is on top (although its not as fun).Fishing the toad 1.5' to 2' under the water is a great way to catch bass.And finally SLOW CRAWLING the bait on the bottom may be the best way of all to fish this lure.
Finally this weekend I found out that this is a bait made for skipping.Its flat top and bottom make it really easy to skip.I caught a 6+ lb bass using this method.Another thing is it catches larger than average bass.
do u fish it normal t-rig or weigtless?
T-rigged plastics seem to be the most versatle lure.
For me, it would be the venerable worm, with the tube not far behind in second.
Bass109 stated:
QuoteOld zip lure, most fisherman dont use bladebaits. I caught brook and raibow trout, Largemouth bass, pike, crappie, perch, channel catfish, carp, and saltwater fish on this lure. sadly they dont make them anymore.
The best lure for catching multiple species of fish is another way of looking at versatility, as Bass109's post demonstrates. I fish mainly for bass so when I speak of a versatile lure I'm talking about what works for bass. I'm curious what others think is the most versatile lure for catching multiple species.
I normally fish it weightless with one of those hooks with the little corkscrew on them.Zoom makes a weighted version of this hook if I'm crawling the bottom.I prefer the Gambler Cane Toad with the Ribbit a close second.
"All-species" lure is a blade: Silver Buddy, Cordell Gay Blade or Little George. Mepp's In-line Spinner or Rooster Tails are other canidates.
I would have to go for anything plastic that I can t-rig, weightless with a 4/0 EWG. If I had to pick one soft plastic that was the most versatile, I'd pick the GYCB Fat Ika. I can rig it forwards or backwards, fish it in just about any condition of water, and when it is used up, I can save what's left of the body and the skirt and use it for a jig trailer.
#1 most productive lure
Doug Hannon's Answer
Plastic Worm (Texas rigged) It's a long, thin shape resembles the profile of a wide variety of forage in the world of the bass, including earthworms, snakes, eels, and baitfish. Its action is almost entirely dependent on the contours of the bottom; and the rod movements of the fisherman, making it very random. It moves with little noise; the noise that it does make comes mostly from the random clicking of the sinker as it hits bottom. Bright colors and larger size can be used to increase its attracting qualities. Because of its basic resemblance to a wide array of living forage, this lure presents very few negative cues, and is hard for big bass to learn not to hit.
Here is the official answer:
Studies have proven that the plastic worm is the only lure made that a BASS CANNOT REMEMBER!
That is, a bass will continue to strike a worm even after repeated catches, whereas a bass will "turn off" to other lures, spinner baits and crank baits etc. after wearing them out on them. That's why you cannot continue to catch them on your honey hole with the same lure over and over. Bass will stop eating that which will eradicate them. Not true with the plastic worm, however. Although we all know bass will prefer a different bait at different times (i.e. "the pattern") you can always go back to the worm to catch them.
The question was "most versatile"... put me in the corner with the tube throwers.
I'd like to read that exhaustive study that fished every lure against a worm.
GRUB
I gotta go with the plastic worm. I've caught bass in 3 feet of water on a 98 degree day, and bass in 15 feet of water when the high temp was 42.
A shaky head, it catches fish for me when nothing else does.
QuoteI'd like to read that exhaustive study that fished every lure against a worm.
I don't believe that Catt alluded to any specific study, but what he stated about the plastic worm is true.
In fact, in every large-scale, long-term comparison that I have ever read, the "plastic worm" was the undisputed King.
As an outgrowth of their unparalleled success, manufacturers have done many things to the plastic worm.
It all began with a straight rubber worm called the Creme Scoundrel (~1950), but now we've got stick worms (stocky straight worm)
floating worms, shaky worms, worms with ridges, with ribbontails, with paddletails, with tassel-tails, you name it, you got it.
They're not fooling anyone though; any long, slender, cylindrical soft-plastic lure is still a "worm".
During Florida's heyday, I was still living in Jersey but I was a very nosy kid to put it mildly :
With the kind permission of several lodge owners in Florida, I thumbed through "many" registers and photo logs (taking notes).
The story was the same on Lake Lochloosa, Rodman Pool, Salt Springs Run, Lake Jackson, Withlacoochee River, et al.
The plastic worm was the clear winner on every water. I spoke with Chet Westergard, then owner of the world renowned
South Shore Fish Camp on Orange lake. Chet told me that during winter and early spring, minnows were "thee" bait,
but throughout the summer he said, "plastic worms" routinely outfished live minnows! Some things never change
Roger
Every study ever conducted by anyone that compares different type of lures one on one have shown the plastic worm to be #1 for both quality & quantity.
The plastic worm is the only lure made that a BASS CANNOT REMEMBER!
That's why it is still productive even after 57 yrs; long after all the others have been relegated to the bottom of tackle boxes or back of closets.
Quoteany long, slender, cylindrical soft-plastic lure is still a "worm".
If that's your definition of a "worm" then I'll buy that... as long as it includes my tube (and grub).
I'd have to say a jig. deep, shallow, jigging, swimming,open water of heavy cover. It'll do it all
the jig or plastic worm....no dought about it tese are realy versital
#1 for me has got to be the spinnerbait, color and size and the way I fish will vary depending on the season. Of course that would be followed by the tube and worm.