Loud, fast and full of hooks, that's my kind of lure. Lipless crankbaits. Even though these baits are a fast moving, aggressive lure, they are one of the first moving baits that I pick up in the spring and one of the last ones I put down in the fall. In fact the cooler water of the spring and fall are when I seem to have my best days for numbers and size of bass on lipless crankbaits. Cast them out and crank them in, that's about it right, NOT! These rattling, vibrating baits don't take any special techniques to use them properly, but there are some things that you can do to up your number of strikes. Making multiple casts to the same spot will often trigger extra bites.
Whether I am fishing a point, log jam or even just a single log, I like to make several cast to the same spot, the first cast or two will get the bass's attention and by the third or forth cast it's curiosity will get the best of it then the fight is on. Mixing up your cast retrieve is another trick that can be very effective. Reel a few casts in fast then reel a few slow and every once in a while stop the bait just for a second this will often trigger a reluctant bass into biting. Another retrieve that has worked for me is what I call the rip and stop, use the rod to jerk the lure very fast about two feet then reel up the slack line and rip it again.
What ever retrieve you are using the best fish catching tip that I can give you is at the end of every cast, just before you lift the lure out of the water to make another cast, stop the lure for just a second. Many times fish will follow the bait and strike at it as you are pulling it out of the water, this is a good habit to get in to with every lure you throw but seems to be even more affective with faster moving baits like lipless crankbaits. There are a lot of different brands, shapes, sizes and colors of lipless crankbaits, ranging in price from $1.99 to $15.00 and in size from 1/8 ounce to 1 ounce.
Like with every thing you should experiment to find out which sizes and shapes work best for you. The brand that I prefer is Cordell there lipless crankbait is called the “Super Spot” and thankfully it is one of the lesser priced brands. As far as size, I rarely use any thing other than the ½ ounce model. I am not sure if there is another style of lure on the market that is available in a wider range of colors and fancy life like paint jobs. Since these lures are strictly a reaction strike type of bait, I don't believe the elaborate paint jobs will produce more bites. I have tons of different colored lipless crankbaits but have found through the years that I always seem to be the most successful with one of the same four colors, gold, chrome, chartreuse or white.
I think a lot of people avoid lipless crankbaits because they take one look at them and think they will be snagged up every cast, but these baits are surprisingly snag resistant. These lures are designed to go through the water with there nose down and tail up so that the body of the lure comes in contact with any objects first and protects the hooks from many potential snags.
If you are fishing in shallow water and are snagging often, then simple speed up your retrieve and stop the bait less. No matter where you are fishing as long as the water has thawed out it is a good time to try a lipless crankbait. Until next time keep your lure wet!
|
