CaliForNia delta
hydrilla, etc. There are unique occasions when i will use 50# braid; but not in the summer. i would do this in crystal clear water or in open water applications vs. heavy cover like tules, moss, hyacinth, pennywort or weeds. i always use a double Palomar with braid, unless i’m using a straight shank worm hook for punchin’, then i will tie a snell; other than that i always tie a double Palomar for braid.
BUZZBAITS
i’ve caught several fish over ten pounds on a buzzbait; so it is a favorite too. i can cast and retrieve it more quickly than frogs. it is easy to throw. it is not as weedless as a frog; but with a buzzbait, i can make three casts to every one cast with a frog. The buzzbait excels at making noise and is good in spawn and post spawn situations, when the bass don’t want anything coming through their house. They don’t think twice; they just strike. They are just biologically programmed to protect their home, to protect their nest. i like white or white and chartreuse. a bright red Merthiolate reddish/ pinkish color also seems to get them to react. it irritates them and it is easy to see. loud colors seem to get more reaction. i also like brown, black, red/black at certain times and June bug. i stay away from clear skirts on the delta, because of the murky water. For a trailer, i like a black lizard on a black buzzbait. it gives a large profile. Sometimes, i will run an orange trailer on a red or black/red buzzbait or a Swimming Senko, grub or Strike King rage Craw. it just depends on how active the fish are and how big they want the bait. i think anything that adds action helps. i have gone down to a fluke that is split down the back on a white/chartreuse buzzbait. That will add four-inches to the bait. i fish a revenge single blade clacker – metal on metal. i bend the wire to flatten the head, so it rides higher. i always run a Siwash trailer hook with a keeper on it. i continue to see people fishing without a trailer hook, but i won’t do it. i have used a double
buzzer, at times; but i don’t think they cast as well and it is just one more thing to get in the weeds. Ninety percent of the time i fish a ½-oz buzzbait with a large trailer, because it reels quicker and gets more baits. i use the same gear on a buzzbait as the frog.
CHUGGERS
i like a Pop-r or rico when i’m fishing a chugging/ spitting bait. it emulates a small fish and is especially good when the bass are in a spawn/post spawn stage, when they are being protective of fry and feeding on fry. Something spitting may get the water out there three or four-feet and that is something that bass that are in a protective mode are not going to want around their nest or their babies.
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