nedding help

poorboybassfishin · Post by **poorboybassfishin** » Sat Jul 20, 2002 5:15 pm

What is the best way to fish a real clear smallmouth bass lake? I have tried tudes, worms everything and no matter what I struggle bad during the tournaments. Can anyone give me some ideas on how to catch more smallmouth?

JoeMo · Post by **JoeMo** » Mon Jul 22, 2002 4:19 am

Poor Boy- We will try to contact Mike Bailey who hails from Goldsboro. He is on our Pro Staff and is a super guy.

I suspect Mike is sleeping right now after fishing most of the weekend. Give him a day or so and I'll bet he has some tips for you.

Thanks for posting. JoeMo

dansfishntales · Post by **dansfishntales** » Tue Jul 30, 2002 3:06 am

I've got a couple of things I've used for the old bronze back in clear water. One is a 2 inch black Augertail grub/worm on a 1/16 oz. lead head, with a number 4 hook. Ultra light tackle is needed, and a good ability at playing the fish.

Second is another lightweight - a Norman Deep Tiny N. The deep may sound like a joke when you see it, but the fish love them.

Don't know if they will help, but both have saved some of my days, plus the Deep Tiny N won a tournament for me. Very strange color as well - dark green with black tiger stripes. I don't think they make it anymore.

Fellow Bassin' USA Pro Staff Member, Johnnie Crain, says it is the ugliest little lure he has ever seen, but must admit I've caught fish when he has been with me.

Good luck.
Dan

JoeMo · Post by **JoeMo** » Wed Jul 31, 2002 12:53 am

Dan- Many thanks for saving the day. I'm sure those tips will help PoorBoy get some of those NC bass.

PoorBoy- There are a lot more tips where those came from (The Pro Staff). Go to the Home Page and click on Articles and Tips. Believe me, these guys are good.

Thanks for posting. JoeMo

johnnie crain outdoors · Wed Nov 13, 2002 6:12 am

poorboy,
The Deep N Dan just spoke about is a killer, while you may not be able to find one that UGLY, other colors will also work.
My advise may seem a little strange, but when faced with those same clear water conditions on Bull Shoals, Norfork or Table Rock, I will burn a silver bladed, willow leaf spinnerbait across the surface, I try to use an almost clear, pearlesant skirt. Smallmouth will really attack a burned across the surface spinnerbait, ask Kevin Van Dam, he's won some big money with this technique under these conditions. Another thought, try 1/8th ounce brown and orange hair jigs tipped with a very small plastic crawfish and swim it off the bottom. One more trick, Carolina rig a six inch Rapala and use slow pulls of the weight , this works best in deep water. Don't be afraid to look stupid, if stupidity killed, I'd never made it this long. Good luck and stick with Bassin' USA you'll learn a lot. Johnnie Crain Iowa Pro Staff. :p

Scott Johnson · Post by **Scott Johnson** » Thu Nov 14, 2002 4:59 am

poor-boy, try using a strike king rocket shad in a shad pattern.It will give the smallmouth something different to look at.Ihad a similar problem on one of my home lakes untill I used the rocket shad.I also use 3'' grubs in natural colors on a 1/8 oz jig head.Give them a try and good luck. scott

JoeM · Post by **JoeM** » Thu Nov 14, 2002 5:59 am

Hey Scott- Have you used the Rocket Shad a lot? One of my friends who fishes Candlewood Lake (here in CT) regularly swears that it is flat out dynamite for Smallies. I assume you concur.

Johnnie- Those old Norman Deep Tiny N baits have been killers since I was on Bill Norman's Pro Staff and that was one long time ago. There is nothing wrong with old baits. In fact they might work better now because the bass never saw them before.

Poor- You certainly started a great thread here. Keep posting. We appreciate it. Joe

JT_BAGWELL · Post by **JT_BAGWELL** » Thu Nov 14, 2002 6:32 am

Joe,

In reference to the Strike King Rocket Shad I have used this bait a lot and it does produce some decent fish. The bait does have some pretty serious flaws that I personally know Strike King is trying to correct. The main flaw is the hook has a tendency of coming off the lure. A friend of mine was fishing the Rocket Shad in a BFL super tournament a couple months ago and he said that he kept getting good hits but couldn't stick anything. Once he pulled the bait in to examine it, realized the hook was gone. I also used that same bait at that same event but, I never caught a fish bigger than 7" on it.

The second problem is the skirts come off very easily. Although this problem is not a significant as the hook coming off, it is still something that shouldn't occur so easily.

Jeremiah T. Bagwell

jeffohioteam1 · Post by **jeffohioteam1** » Mon Nov 18, 2002 10:51 pm

poorboybassfishin,
I fish the best Smallmouth water in the United States, and I think your problem is not lure selection but the speed in which you are fishing. On Erie you alot of times have to fish your lure with alot of speed, Smallmouth are very aggressive, and they can't stand a streaking lure to go past them. I fish big spinnerbaits alot and a slow to medium retrieve rarely works, but if you speed up, the action picks up. Hope this helps.