If you're new to bass fishing, you'll soon learn that perhaps no other species of freshwater fish comes with such a large line up of effective lures. There is a reason for this vast selection: Bass are legendary for having a wide range of tastes but a picky palette when it comes to water and weather conditions. There are thousands of excellent lures available at sport and fishing tackle shops, and bass are known to hit on all of them, depending on environmental factors. To help keep all these lures straight, they can be broken down into five general types of lures.
Soft Plastics
Soft plastic worms have been around for a while, but they aren't the only shape that is effective in this material. You can also use soft plastic grubs, frogs, crayfish, insects and mice. Soft plastic lures remain one of the most effective lures for bass fishing. They come in hundreds of color combinations and often feature built-in flavor and scent enhancements. A bass fisherman with a tackle box stuffed with soft plastic worms and other species can't go wrong.
Spinner Baits
Spinner baits don't look anything, really, like a fish but they mimic the action that bass love. Spinner baits feature small spoons and other flashy gee-gaws at the front end, and a strong wire body that supports a colorful plastic skirt and a large hook. Spinner baits are particularly good for goading a large bass to come out of tree stumps.
Jigs
Jigs look like smaller versions of spinner baits, but without the long wire body. Jigs also feature colorful skirts and are attractive to all sizes of bass. A hot combination is created by jabbing a piece of frog pork rind on the jig hook. Start throwing this deadly due at likely stick ups and other prime bass covers and prepare for the good results.
Crank Baits
Crank baits often look more like real schooling fish, such as shad and minnows, which bass prefer especially in larger lakes where schooling shad are typical. They come with spoon-like "mouths" that create an interesting action pattern in the water, or spoonless and more natural looking. Crank baits come in many sizes and color patterns to match the preferences of the bass at any time.
Poppers
Poppers look like the "Modern Art" version of crank baits. They look somewhat like real fish, but they are usually very brightly colored and the "heads" are scooped out to form a concave surface. This concave depression makes the lure buck and pop across the top of the water and entices many bass to take a stab at feeding on what appears to be an injured shad.
References
- "101 Secrets of Bass Fishing"; Roland Martin; 2008
- "Bass Angler's Almanac"; John Weiss; 2002
- "Critical Concepts: Largemouth Bass Fundamentals"; In-Fisherman Staff; 2002
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