Secret/tips To Success 2024
DelfiBoyz_One_and_Only reply :
What is the biggest secret or tip you have learned while fishing? For me I would have to say, working baits slowly. When I discovered that slowing way down can get you bites the light bulbs lit up in my head. Before that I was very impatient and would catch fish but would miss a lot of fish too. Once I discovered that, I applied it to everything from crankbaits, to jigs, to spinners and so on..... It was almost therapeutic, as I would almost go into a trance while working my baits slow and would think how my bait looked underwater. I would even imagine fish surrounding my bait and thinking about eating it. It works just try it next time you go out.
What tips or secrets have to experienced? Is there a certain cadence you follow? Secret rig to tip in rigging certain baits? How about a routine you follow when going out?
Jay-
Snakehead Whisperer reply :
On 5/20/2013 at 9:51 PM, Delfi_Boyz said:What is the biggest secret or tip you have learned while fishing? For me I would have to say, working baits slowly. When I discovered that slowing way down can get you bites the light bulbs lit up in my head. Before that I was very impatient and would catch fish but would miss a lot of fish too. Once I discovered that I applied to everything from crankbaits, to jigs, to spinners and so on..... It was almost therapeutic as I would almost go into a trance while working my baits slow and would think how my bait looked underwater. I would even imagine fish surrounding my bait thinking about eating it. It works just try it next time you go out.
What tips or secrets have to experienced? Is there a certain cadence you follow? Secret rig to tip in rigging certain baits? How about a routine you follow when going out?
Jay-
x2. First thing I thought of was fishing slow.
Another thing that I've learned is that junk fishing doesn't usually catch good fish 
I usually do better sticking to a handful of presentations and changing color if need be.
MCS reply :
Same here again slow fishing is the biggest thing I learned. Actually what both you guys have said is what made the most difference to me personally.
JeziHogg reply :
Patience Patience Patience
Nitrofreak reply :
Points
Points are my biggest secret to success, not just above the water line but below.
TNBassin' reply :
On 5/20/2013 at 9:51 PM, Delfi_Boyz said:What is the biggest secret or tip you have learned while fishing? For me I would have to say, working baits slowly. When I discovered that slowing way down can get you bites the light bulbs lit up in my head. Before that I was very impatient and would catch fish but would miss a lot of fish too. Once I discovered that I applied to everything from crankbaits, to jigs, to spinners and so on..... It was almost therapeutic as I would almost go into a trance while working my baits slow and would think how my bait looked underwater. I would even imagine fish surrounding my bait thinking about eating it. It works just try it next time you go out.
What tips or secrets have to experienced? Is there a certain cadence you follow? Secret rig to tip in rigging certain baits? How about a routine you follow when going out?
Jay-
This. I tend to work my baits way too fast, and when I make an concerted effort to slow down...bam I get a hook up. Another thing I learned, and have been putting to good use, is color selection for the water clarity or cloud cover. It's like putting a puzzle together every day out on the water, and it feels great when the pieces start to fit. I credit this to all I've learned on this site, and it's members.
Bankbeater reply :
Fish structure first, and cover second.
Christian M reply :
DOWNSIZING! Learning that I can catch huge bass on 6lb flouro w/a 3"-4" worm or shad dropshotting or shaky heading
Its saved me plenty of times and finesse fishing has become a go to technique.
Forcing myself to leave my comfort zone and learning to use lures & techniques I don't normally use.
Learning that the cover/structure I can't see is just as important as the cover/structure I can.
Hyrule Bass reply :
dont be afraid to try something new.
and just because a certain lure or technique failed you in the past doesnt mean it will always fail you in the future.
catching fish consistently can take time and effort, its not always as simple as chunking and winding.
BassinLou reply :
I just picked this up last week although I knew about it for quite a while. Believe it or not while frog fishing I was not to concerned if I could walk the frog or not. I still caught plenty of nice bass. Last week, I wanted to see what the big deal was on walking a frog. I made some adjustments, and remembered what Glenn said. He said to walk a bait, do it to a beat of an imaginary drum. So that is exactly what I did. In my mind I played a drum, boom...boom....boom and as I looked at the frog it walked with each beat. Icing on the cake was that the bass were destroying the frog. Biggest that day went for 4lbs. Since then all I do is play the drum when I use the frog.
Snakehead Whisperer reply :
Thought of another. It's never a waste of time to re-tie if you see a nick in your line, or just have an inkling that something is wrong there. Finding out there was a weak spot hurts really badly when there's a good fish on the other end.
Also, tungsten weights and line conditioner are worth the money.
Gatorbassman reply :
Jay. I totally agree with you. Slow way down and get more bites.
Grizzn N Bassin reply :
Yup slow down.. I was at my local lake today I was using 3/8 black blue burning in along the shore and pop in off the bottom off the mouth of the cove no bites.. switched to a 1 oz black blue jig.. threw it out off the point on main lake side it 10 seconds after it loaned on bottom.. caughy 6 bass after that in 30 mins.. I uses to starting poping b4 it landed in deep water 15-25... just one of hundreds of things I've learned on here
WRB reply :
You must fish for big bass to consistently catch big bass.
Never use a dull hook or weak knot.
Learn about seasonal periods and bass behavior.
Know all you can about bass prey in the waterways you fish.
LMB/SMB are not true bass, they are sunfish.
Tom
BassWhole! reply :
On 5/21/2013 at 6:56 AM, WRB said:You must fish for big bass to consistently catch big bass.
Never use a dull hook or weak knot.
Learn about seasonal periods and bass behavior.
Know all you can about bass prey in the waterways you fish.
LMB/SMB are not true bass, they are sunfish.
Tom
Hot sun, wild fires, avocado salads and large clear reservoirs with rainbow trout fattened bass make folks type obvious stuff...
derekxec reply :
slow down here too..although when im bass fishing i cant seem to take it slow anymore i get impatient but! when im snook fishing i can reel in so slow that it takes 20 minutes to reel in one cast lol go figure
A-Jay reply :
If you're beating the bank and not catching - turn around, the fish are behind you.
A-Jay
roadwarrior reply :
On 5/22/2013 at 9:32 PM, A-Jay said:If you're beating the bank and not catching - turn around, the fish are behind you.
A-Jay
That's funny and has happen to me. Last spring my partner from Florence and I were killin' 'em
in 5'-8' of water with jerkbaits, square bills and Red Eye Shad. A few weeks later we could not buy
a bite one morning. We saw some friensds just whacking 'em and motored over.
What are we doing wrong? You're casting the wrong way, turn around and cast out to the 2nd channel.
The fish had moved out and the bite had changed. 10" purple worms were the ticket, specifically
the Rage Tail Thumper in Blue Fleck, T-rigged and unpegged. That's all it took to start "Thumpin/ 'em!"
As always, the key is finding the fish.
WRB reply :
You forgot the wine and cheese....On 5/22/2013 at 9:23 PM, reason said:Hot sun, wild fires, avocado salads and large clear reservoirs with rainbow trout fattened bass make folks type obvious stuff...
MDP4BASS reply :
Re-tie your knots!, Slow down, Patience, Stay focused, Have fun, Enjoy where you are at, even if your getting skunked,(most important 1 to me!)
Texfisherman reply :
I'll go with routine.
When my fishing buddy and I arrive at the lake we immediately start looking for deep water 4'-6', close to the shore. The first things that we cast are 1/2 oz spinnerbaits, chatterbaits and wacky-wigged Zoom Trick Worms, in Watermelon Candy. We troll along the shoreline slowly, casting, keeping it in the strike zone, then immediately recasting.
If we aren't getting hit, then we start focusing on points (and marinas, if applicable). We will saturate those areas with many casts, even casting from different angles. This is also when we will start tying on crankbaits of varying depths, and other lures.
If points/marinas aren't doing it, we start looking for cover (like a brush pile) and scanning for anything that might hold bass.
Finally, if after all that, we aren't getting bites, we will try finding deep water and working that, possibly with 1 oz jigs, and other large, heavy lures.
5 Dollar Fishing Game reply :
Keep an open mind. Bass won't ALWAYS do what they "should" do. Sometimes they hit the strangest lures because they are big time opportunistic feeders.
cajunpapi reply :
Keep my bait in the water.
DelfiBoyz_One_and_Only reply :
Just one more tip! Always always always, wear polarized glass when fishing. I can not began to tell you how many times I noticed some cover or a tailing fish with them on. I find lay downs missed by others not wearing them. They don't have to be expensive, I have the ole wal-mart 5 dollar Berkley's.
Jay
joetomlee reply :
The biggest thing for me is of course patience!! That sort of goes hand in hand with working baits slowly, I had the same issue where I would work it too fast and try "too hard" for a long time. Slowing down helped me loads. Sometimes, the fish do like it fast though! Generally when I am fishing unfamiliar waters I will work faster moving baits as a search tool until I get that first bite. Other than that, slow is the way to go.
loodkop reply :
When I started I was told by a wise old angler to keep my mouth shut and my ears open if I wanted to learn anything. I have modified this by adding " ask good questions". One of the many reasons I enjoy this forum is the opportunity to " listen/read" so many experienced anglers and receive quality answers to my questions.
DelfiBoyz_One_and_Only reply :
On 5/24/2013 at 4:05 PM, loodkop said:When I started I was told by a wise old angler to keep my mouth shut and my ears open if I wanted to learn anything. I have modified this by adding " ask good questions". One of the many reasons I enjoy this forum is the opportunity to " listen/read" so many experienced anglers and receive quality answers to my questions.
Come on loodkop! BR is the secret I wasn't going to tell anyone about! That is the all time untold secret! shhhh
Jay-
ColdSVT reply :
two things
first accuracy with my casts. I was lucky enough to fish with a two time classic qualifier and he outfished me four to ome with the same bait and presentation. the only difference was his casts were right on the money where as mine were six to twelve inches off.
second, I learned if you know there should be a fish in a certain place cast in there until you tick it off enough to bite. I have thrown into a spot up to ten times before I got that fish to eat!
PABASS reply :
Ask questions, Bill Dance always told us to ask questions and I do and it normally pays off. I am fishing allot of new waters lately and asking questions, depth, lure type or lure, color has helped me produce fish.
Mike L reply :
Just a few I thought of...
*Clean your hands after touching anything that will get transferred to your soft plastics...
* Shutdown the big motor way before you reach where you want to fish and coast in...
* Keep the trolling motor on, especially in real skinny water if you can. Constantly turning on and off can spook em...
* If fishing from a boat without a carpet, be real carefull about dropping things...
* Scent is not only for soft plastics...
* Don't be afraid to retie often, (I allways retie after the 3 rd catch)
* Always have a bottle [not a can] of Sprite or 7 Up with you, to stop bleeding if a fish is gut hooked.
* Have plenty of ice on board for the live well...
Mike
Tuckahoe Joe reply :
On 5/25/2013 at 7:17 AM, Mike L said:Just a few I thought of...
*Clean your hands after touching anything that will get transferred to your soft plastics...
* Shutdown the big motor way before you reach where you want to fish and coast in...
* Keep the trolling motor on, especially in real skinny water if you can. Constantly turning on and off can spook em...
* If fishing from a boat without a carpet, be real carefull about dropping things...
* Scent is not only for soft plastics...
* Don't be afraid to retie often, (I allways retie after the 3 rd catch)
* Always have a bottle [not a can] of Sprite or 7 Up with you, to stop bleeding if a fish is gut hooked.
* Have plenty of ice on board for the live well...
Mike
Interesting...never heard that before. How does that work?
Mike L reply :
On 5/25/2013 at 2:13 PM, Tuckahoe Joe said:Interesting...never heard that before. How does that work?
If the fish is bleeding, just pour a little down it's throut. The citrus acid act's as a clotting agent and will stop the bleeding.
Mike
WRB reply :
Sure-Life's Please Release Me is formulated to stop bleeding without further harming the basses soft tissue or gills.
Tom
Bluebasser86 reply :
Don't be lazy. It's that time you decide your knot is "good enough" hook is "sharp enough" or cast was "close enough" that you'll miss out on the fish of a lifetime. Never stop tinkering, I'm always looking for a better mousetrap.
Loop_Dad reply :
On 5/25/2013 at 7:17 AM, Mike L said:Just a few I thought of...
*Clean your hands after touching anything that will get transferred to your soft plastics...
* Shutdown the big motor way before you reach where you want to fish and coast in...
* Keep the trolling motor on, especially in real skinny water if you can. Constantly turning on and off can spook em...
* If fishing from a boat without a carpet, be real carefull about dropping things...
* Scent is not only for soft plastics...
* Don't be afraid to retie often, (I allways retie after the 3 rd catch)
* Always have a bottle [not a can] of Sprite or 7 Up with you, to stop bleeding if a fish is gut hooked.
* Have plenty of ice on board for the live well...
Mike
Hey Mike, I too find this interesting...never heard of...And why a can does not do the job?
Bluebasser86 reply :
On 5/27/2013 at 1:25 PM, LoopDad2 said:Hey Mike, I too find this interesting...never heard of...And why a can does not do the job?
The citric acid causes the blood vessels to contract, stopping the bleeding. A can would do the job, but they're a lot harder to seal back up and use again 
Mike L reply :
On 5/27/2013 at 8:37 PM, Bluebasser86 said:The citric acid causes the blood vessels to contract, stopping the bleeding. A can would do the job, but they're a lot harder to seal back up and use again
Yep, Thanks Blue
Mike
SmokeRise1 reply :
From a few different articles I've read, this soda/citric acid trick is not true. Just dropping the injured bass back in the lake is supposed to be better for it than keeping it out of the water and dumping sugarwater down it's throat. Anyone have scientific info on this?
flippin and pitchin reply :
The greatest ability an angler has is to process information and apply knowledge while on the water.
Have options and don't limit yourself or put yourself in a box.
90 percent of the fish are in 10 percent of the water. Find that location (ZONE) even if it takes 7 of your 8 hour day. That one hour may be the fishing experience of a life time.
Never find yourself competing against another angler.
It's possible to have too much stuff and actually impede your choices.
If you don't ask the question, you may never get the answer.
Most 5 pounders are generally about 3 3/4.
Dwight Hottle reply :
Always fish with your best mojo, ie fish with an attitude, be aggresive, think.
Fish big fish water if you want to improve your chances of catching big fish.
When your not catching move or do something different to get your mojo back. Have a plan B, plan C etc.
Learn to master a specific technique and then add some more. Don't be a one horse pony.
Study the guys on bass resource that share their techniques & spend their time helping others. You all know who they are.
Lastly put in the time to get better. It will happen.
Mr_Scrogg reply :
My secret/tip......
Enjoy your time on the water. The second you stop having fun, it becomes work.
Highhawk1948 reply :
Finess Fishing/Charlie Brewer Sliders when nothing else works.
Bankbeater reply :
Slow down and look around. I don't mean fishing, I mean in the boat. You might be passing a small cove or piece of structure that is holding some hawgs, and not even know it.
Sam reply :
Like the couple from Mississippi visiting New York City and asking a local how to get to Carneigh Hall.
The local replied, "Practice, practice, practice."
Sam reply :
On 5/30/2013 at 12:40 PM, bleedingshrimp said:Work your spooks to the cadence of "Jesus loves me". Courtesy of flukemaster.
Bankbeater, a number of years ago on Lake Gaston we encountered a big thunderstorm during one of our club tournaments and the guy who won the tournament told us that he pulled into a cove to get out of the rough water and caught his five fish limit within a half hour.
He also stated that had the weather been nice he would have passed up that cove and that he had never fished it in the past.
Go figure?
Topwaterspook reply :
Fish into the wind.
Downeaster2010 reply :
I started to bass fish when it was in it infancy in New England. At that time we used some selected top water baits, and WORMS.
The club I belonged to all fished worms to a high degree of effectiveness. We were all really experts with the worm. One friend
fished an 8 in Manns worm like we do the Senko's now. He won a lot of tournaments. He simply put the hook through the belly
and out. The worm had a slower fall. Consequently with a 6,7, or 8 inch we all adapted to using that method in open water. In
the brush we still used Texas rig. Over grass or thick veg, we used no weight, but Texas rigged. I was out yesterday while a lot
of other boats near me were having trouble putting fish in the boat. I would have had over 20 lbs at the scale if in a tournament.
And that was just the morning.
Tips:
Don't just assume hooks are sharp out of the package. If not sure put a stone to them. I resharpen all of mine, and keep them
seperate from the unsharpended ones.
Fish a light colored worm on a bright day, and a dark color on a dark day.
Always let the Jig or worm fall until it hits bottom. Many people start to retrieve before the jig makes it to bottom. If I am looking
at a great spot that should hold bass, I will cast a worm out and let it fall to bottom, and wait maybe a minute before I move it. The
bass could be just over at the next stump, and returning to his hole. Like above Patience is key here. Fish no weight in shallow
water, and if deeper got to a 1/8 or even 3/8 weight. I seldom use larger, because a 3/8 sinks pretty quick. Remember the slower
it falls the better. Only use 1/2 in in thick vegetation to get the worm through the top mat.
Almost any bass fisherman can fish open water, but it is another thing when you have heavy weeds or lilly pads. Bass love them
because there are a lot of bait to feed on. I will methodically fish a lilly pad area until I have caught what is there, or pretty sure
nothing else is in it. From that point I pull slowly right into the pads, and methodically fish along where the pads are thick. Most
fishermen will fish the outside, but miss fish in where it is thick. They pass a lot of lunkers, and I catch them. Grass is the same.
In the pads, and grass, cast out to visible holes or just beyond with your worm. Work it back and drop it down in the holes. Some
times those holes you see are slightly deeper, or have a piece of structure. The worm is my preferred bait, but I have a lot of others
that I have total confidence in. Don't get stuck on one bait.
The slower a bait falls the more chance you have that a bass will take your offering. Bass like to hit when a bait is falling. If you
miss or lose a good fish on lets say a black worm, recast with a purple or different color. That fish you lost may not hit the black
again, but can be fooled with a purple, or different color.
If fishing is difficult, drop down in worm size or jig size, the bass might not want a large bait.
Move the boat along only when you are sure you have hit all prospects in the area.
If you fish a downed tree, start at the tip of the tree and work in, then move in on one side hitting everything up to the stump.
This way you don't spook a fish pulling one off the stump and there were four more out toward the tip that are now spooked.
When I fish with a partner, and one of us hooks up, the partner cast to the vicinity of the hooked fish, sometimes catching a
second fish following the first. A lot of times you catch one fish and see 2 or 3 others following trying to get what he's got.
When working a shoreline, bring your partner up on the front with you. One work the inside, and the other just a little
deeper, and maybe two different lures.
After the spawn, and water warms up bass will move to rock piles in the coves, then to offshore ledges. Why is this. It is
because the bait go, and the bass follow. As you know there are always some fish to be caught shallow on shorelines, but
80 pct are on deep rock structure, or vertical inclines. Of course deep is relative to where you live. I have caught small
mouth bass in 80 feet of water, and largemouth in 40. I don't recommend this deep unless desperate.
If you listen to a radio when fishing, and I do a lot. Keep the deep pounding beats to a minimum, and light on the volume.
Learn to walk the dog. A spook will catch big fish, and pull them out of 30 of water. Plus its a blast.
Fish shade side of structure first.
DelfiBoyz_One_and_Only reply :
On 6/2/2013 at 1:57 AM, Downeaster2010 said:I started to bass fish when it was in it infancy in New England. At that time we used some selected top water baits, and WORMS.
The club I belonged to all fished worms to a high degree of effectiveness. We were all really experts with the worm. One friend
fished an 8 in Manns worm like we do the Senko's now. He won a lot of tournaments. He simply put the hook through the belly
and out. The worm had a slower fall. Consequently with a 6,7, or 8 inch we all adapted to using that method in open water. In
the brush we still used Texas rig. Over grass or thick veg, we used no weight, but Texas rigged. I was out yesterday while a lot
of other boats near me were having trouble putting fish in the boat. I would have had over 20 lbs at the scale if in a tournament.
And that was just the morning.
Tips:
Don't just assume hooks are sharp out of the package. If not sure put a stone to them. I resharpen all of mine, and keep them
seperate from the unsharpended ones.
Fish a light colored worm on a bright day, and a dark color on a dark day.
Always let the Jig or worm fall until it hits bottom. Many people start to retrieve before the jig makes it to bottom. If I am looking
at a great spot that should hold bass, I will cast a worm out and let it fall to bottom, and wait maybe a minute before I move it. The
bass could be just over at the next stump, and returning to his hole. Like above Patience is key here. Fish no weight in shallow
water, and if deeper got to a 1/8 or even 3/8 weight. I seldom use larger, because a 3/8 sinks pretty quick. Remember the slower
it falls the better. Only use 1/2 in in thick vegetation to get the worm through the top mat.
Almost any bass fisherman can fish open water, but it is another thing when you have heavy weeds or lilly pads. Bass love them
because there are a lot of bait to feed on. I will methodically fish a lilly pad area until I have caught what is there, or pretty sure
nothing else is in it. From that point I pull slowly right into the pads, and methodically fish along where the pads are thick. Most
fishermen will fish the outside, but miss fish in where it is thick. They pass a lot of lunkers, and I catch them. Grass is the same.
In the pads, and grass, cast out to visible holes or just beyond with your worm. Work it back and drop it down in the holes. Some
times those holes you see are slightly deeper, or have a piece of structure. The worm is my preferred bait, but I have a lot of others
that I have total confidence in. Don't get stuck on one bait.
The slower a bait falls the more chance you have that a bass will take your offering. Bass like to hit when a bait is falling. If you
miss or lose a good fish on lets say a black worm, recast with a purple or different color. That fish you lost may not hit the black
again, but can be fooled with a purple, or different color.
If fishing is difficult, drop down in worm size or jig size, the bass might not want a large bait.
Move the boat along only when you are sure you have hit all prospects in the area.
If you fish a downed tree, start at the tip of the tree and work in, then move in on one side hitting everything up to the stump.
This way you don't spook a fish pulling one off the stump and there were four more out toward the tip that are now spooked.
When I fish with a partner, and one of us hooks up, the partner cast to the vicinity of the hooked fish, sometimes catching a
second fish following the first. A lot of times you catch one fish and see 2 or 3 others following trying to get what he's got.
When working a shoreline, bring your partner up on the front with you. One work the inside, and the other just a little
deeper, and maybe two different lures.
After the spawn, and water warms up bass will move to rock piles in the coves, then to offshore ledges. Why is this. It is
because the bait go, and the bass follow. As you know there are always some fish to be caught shallow on shorelines, but
80 pct are on deep rock structure, or vertical inclines. Of course deep is relative to where you live. I have caught small
mouth bass in 80 feet of water, and largemouth in 40. I don't recommend this deep unless desperate.
If you listen to a radio when fishing, and I do a lot. Keep the deep pounding beats to a minimum, and light on the volume.
Learn to walk the dog. A spook will catch big fish, and pull them out of 30 of water. Plus its a blast.
Fish shade side of structure first.
Good stuff my friend, good stuff.
Jay
BassWhole! reply :
On 5/30/2013 at 12:40 PM, bleedingshrimp said:Work your spooks to the cadence of "Jesus loves me". Courtesy of flukemaster.
Working different lures to Zeppelin songs works for me, now if I could only learn to work a Rico backwards...
Tuckahoe Joe reply :
If you mess up a cast, fish it like you meant to do it. There's been quite a few times where I made an off target cast or clipped something while casting and didn't get much distance or after pulling myself out a tree and still gotten bit on the retrieve. So even if you blow a cast, fish it like you mean it.
JellyMan reply :
Time on the water.
Other than that, rule of thumb is fish abnormalities and structure. When hot, fish slow. When cold, fish slow. spring and fall fish more aggressively. Clear water, natural colors. Dark water, dark colors.
Oh and one more thing, time on the water. Every fisherman finds a systems that produces. Put in time.
Shoop05 reply :
When flippin' or pitchin' be sure to hit the "not so obvious" stuff. So many guys hit the great looking stuff as they should, but I have seen numerous times when bass are caught in an area where there was much better looking cover around.
Also, stay sharp on every cast. Treat it like your last cast and make em' all count. At the end of the day you'll be mentally drained, but it's always worth it!
Bangin' Bucketmouths reply :
On 5/22/2013 at 9:23 PM, reason said:Hot sun, wild fires, avocado salads and large clear reservoirs with rainbow trout fattened bass make folks type obvious stuff...
LMAO This made me laugh so hard. I agree with you so much. SoCal fishermen are ridiculously spoiled with ridiculously sized fish. An "average" nice fish is 10 pounds. Even here in Florida 10 pounders are exciting and rare.
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