When the bass won't bite...

[steelhead_fishn]

Last night I went out, and saw bass surfacing and moving through the shallows in the area I like to fish. I was thinking hrmm, it's gonna be a good night.. I threw everything I had at them, and the only thing I got any action on was a 6 inch salted worm(red and maroon). I hate it when I can see the fish but they wont bite! Does anyone have any techniques for bass that don't seem to be up for biting that they want to share? Could the weather have been causing this? It has been hot here for the last week, and recently it's started clouding up with thunderstorms, then it gets hot again.

Thanks
Jeff

[Grits]

Sounds like you were doing the right thing by trying everything you had. If you can see the bass and they aren't taking food imitations then you will have to get an anger strike out of them. Did you try a buzz bait? Bass hit these not because they are food but because they are ticked off at them. Plus keep in mind if you can see the fish they can probably see you. Neutral colored clothing and keeping a low profile can help also.

[Jellyhead]

Here's what I do. If I can see em' and they won't bite. I go weightless. If they're busting baitfish shallow try a little 4" soft jerk bait like a slug-go or a slimy-slug, and just let it sink weightless, and start twitching it back. Or I'd throw a senko (see my tech post) or a large flipping tube. All weightless. Smelly jelly the heck out of the baits you're throwing too.

Good Luck

[birdhunter]

Two words: Hula Popper

A small one, not those huge things that look like a pom pom. I'm talking tiny. 2" - 3" tops. White underbelly, yellow skirt, green w/ black spots on top - you know what I'm talking about! Just take a little hula popper across the surface where those fish are. I swear, bass can't seem to resist it. I love these things! Let it sit for a while when you first get it out there. Then try a couple of different retrieves. Vary the speed, alternate directions and keep a low profile. Should work out great. Remember, small is good. I see too many people throwing huge 8" plastics and giant crankbaits at bass. Sure only really big fish can take really big lures, but really big fish can also take smaller topwaters just fine. Best of luck.

[rob allen]

Let's not forget about split-shotting..

If you haven't tried it it's an absolutely deadly method....
her is how...

tie on a straight shank worm hook about 1/0. attatch a split shot about 24" up the line. Then rig a 4" finess worm on the hook. I recomment "magic worms" or "seducers" both are avaliable at fishermens marine supply.
fish this at various speeds till you find what the fish want, usually very slow.. fish it on a light, sencetive but fast action graphite spinning rod.

[THE REEL HEY_YALL]

Ya know I'm going out on a limb here, but throw LIVE BAIT next time.

If you can see the bass, then they have been watching you for 10 minutes before you've seen them images/icons/grin.gif

If using tackle, go weightless, or go small Rat'L Trap, rapala shallow runner, or topwater, and please don't use that ugly thing called a hula popper images/icons/tongue.gif images/icons/tongue.gif images/icons/tongue.gif

I love topwater lures, but I think those are the "stupidest" looking things in the world. I know they catch fish, but I'd much rather throw a torpedo instead or a Zara Puppy. Real men can walk-the-dog images/icons/cool.gif and a real man can do it fast with a tight pattern images/icons/tongue.gif

The split shot method works as well.

Drop your line down to 6# and drop your offering size down, big time if they aren't biting. When in doubt, cupcake your lure size, not a cake.

4" anything, but start off using a curly tail worm or a lizard. Renegade makes a great 4" worm that's got a purple body and a hot pink tail.

Also, when in doubt, use small lures for panfish as well: beetlespin, etc.

Or you can use a small standup jig.

Clearwater conditions, live bait, or small size is key.

[birdhunter]

Ouch redneck.

Try fishin your live bait over here in Ory-gun.

You may catch more fish, but you'll also land a hefty ticket.

Hell, if you can see 'em, why not just snag 'em. images/icons/wink.gif Dupont spinners might work well too. For those that aren't familar, that is a Southern method of "hookless" fishing. Trinirtotoluene is the best color to use. images/icons/wink.gif

I still stand beside my topwaters anyday.

I'd be willing to bet you bought at least 3 crates of those banjo minnows, huh Redneck? images/icons/tongue.gif

Otherwise the rest of your advice is pretty good. I'm just wondering where it's coming from. It isn't often the Redneck is right on. Oh I get it now, how long did it take for Bill Dance to respond to your e-mail?

images/icons/grin.gif BH images/icons/grin.gif

[Jellyhead]

Hey BH,

I forgot about live bait. I don't know where you read that that's illeagal. I used to carolina rig a whole nightcrawler on a double hook rig, inject the crawler with air to keep it off the bottom, and absolutly lay waste to the fish in hagg. But, I haven't done that for years. I've gotten into such an artificial rut that I usually don't even consider bait.

I bet you gotta nice collection of Jitterbugs too images/icons/grin.gif images/icons/wink.gif images/icons/grin.gif

[birdhunter]

Wasn't even going to respond to this one, but.....regs say that "Live fish may not be used as bait except live nongame fish may be used in the ocean, yadda, yadda, yadda." I was thinking about shiners, chubs and minnows for the live bait thing. Forgot all about our friends the worm, frog and grasshopper. Go right on ahead and fling that live bait.

Jitterbugs........ images/icons/rolleyes.gif

[THE REEL HEY_YALL]

Speaking of ***** poppers, jitterbugs are kinda cool to do a small vibration shake with on top of the water. Where it's not really moving much, just have a slight crack addiction twitch to it images/icons/cool.gif

LOL..not often when I'm right on images/icons/tongue.gif Hey, bassfishing is right on when you've done it for 21 years. Remember, we don't have huge salmon and steelhead to tempt us back home; we have cousins images/icons/shocked.gif

Like I said, a ***** popper is dam (got around the filter there images/icons/tongue.gif ) ugly lure, but it does catch feeesh. It's all up to whatever you've built confidence and comfortability in that works.

Oh yeah, and luck doesn't hurt either when fishing a popper, right BH images/icons/wink.gif muh ha ha ha

Geez, looks like I'm going to have to place a couple thousand dollars order in to All-Star to get outfitted for bass again images/icons/rolleyes.gif Just when y'all thought it was safe to be on your warmwater lakes images/icons/wink.gif images/icons/wink.gif

.....rollin' down a backwoods, tennessee by-way, one arm on the wheel. holding my lover, with the other......

[THE REEL HEY_YALL]

Shiners and "minners" I didn't know were illegal to use for bait out here, or at least down there, etc. but the variety of live bait moves on and baby frogs work absolutely great, and you can tell PETA that I said that. I knew a guy once that used live snakes as bait and had at least 3, 9#'s in his livewell.

See we call nightcrawlers (and dates) wigglers back in L.A. (lower Alabama). There is a nightcrawler type worm what the elder fisherpeople call a Redworm. It doesn't have the sparratic movement like a "wiggler" and it has a reddish tint to it. I know, an ingenius name. images/icons/grin.gif

Well, the redworms destroy the wigglers when using live bait for bass. I don't know if they are sold out here or not, but when I go home for Thanksgiving, I'll pick up several hundred or thousand and start my own pet shop. I think I'll call it
"We've Got Worms". - dumb & dumber

Seriously though, I'll start up a farm of those guys up and then ship them to y'all from WA, just in time for the pre-spawn.