I live in Utah, the lakes are still frozen, andI wont be able to get my boat out till about end of april when all the snow melts in the mountains where my boat is. So right now its shore fishing till then, unless one of my friends uses his boat. I am not new to fishing asI must have potrayed, I love to go trolling, and fly fishing. Which brings me to another question I've seen bass flies in Cabelas catalog (Cabelas is ten minutes from my house) do they work at all. I have no idea how to work a crank bait or how to tell it apart from a deep crank. I need to know the difference betweenpoppers, crankbaits, and all the other types of baits. And I need to know how to work them and when to use them. I am grateful for all the help so far espcially from chuck7. thnx guys.

I live in Utah, the lakes are still frozen, andI wont be able to get my boat out till about end of april when all the snow melts in the mountains where my boat is.Hey Jake...to be honest I've never fished out west. I'm not sureof your structure or anything. I wouldtalk tothe owner of your local tackle shop..that is what I did when I moved to Florida. I saw al those mounts in his shop and knew someone knew something.So right now its shore fishing till then, unless one of my friends uses his boat. Well you should have fun experimenting with various lures lures. IF...you can fish a white Rooster Tail I believe you will have successs. That baby works everywhere. Cabelas has them. I generally buy 10 at a time. I've been in some local friendly tournaments. I've won over 3/4th and Rooster Tail was the reason. Lot's of fish.WARNING!!!When using Rooster tails the hooks are small so keep a very tight line until your bass is caught. I've lost a 12pounder once .When the bass comes to the top to jump you still must keep theline tight. I felt sick.I used to observe bass in a fish tank and the bass are generally on the bottom most of the day. Let that Rooster fall to the bottom as well as any other bait and reel in just enough to keep that blade going ....that should catch bass for ya. I am not new to fishing asI must have potrayed, I love to go trolling,{ I've caught bass trolling on rattle traps and diving crank baits}and fly fishing.{Caught them on large bugs in lily pads}Which brings me to another question I've seen bass flies in Cabelas catalog {I've only caught them on big poppers with a fly rod}(Cabelas is ten minutes from my house)WOW I'm jealous..I'm 30 min. from Bass Pro.do they work at all. I have no idea how to work a crank bait or how to tell it apart from a deep crank. I need to know the difference betweenpoppers, crankbaits, and all the other types of baits. And I need to know how to work them and when to use them. I am grateful for all the help so far espcially from chuck7.Thanks Jake. I'm getting fired up just talking with ya. Your questions have primed me up for this season.

CRANK BAITS....
First ..they have lip less crank baits..this is your rattle trap. From my experience crankl baits with long lips are tough on spinning reels so I use long lipped crank baits with bait casters only. The lipless crank baits{ Rattle traps} are ok with a spinning rod. They offer less resistance when retrieving and are used to keep them near the bottom{Where lots of fish stay} If you see a school of bass feeding on the top ..cast this lure past the school and try to keep the lure about 3 feet off the surface { I've caught 23 bass once doing this with a Rooster Tail in 15 minutes.I'm telling the truth|..your rod tip should be bent with fish. Also, if you don't have a depth finder use your Rooster Tail or rattle trap as your depth finder..I've done it for years. Simply cast your lure . AS soon as it hits the surface count 1000- 1 1000-2 1000-3 etc. { Technique is called count down}until your line is slack. That is a very close estimate as how deep you are fishing. In the morning using that techniques I try to fish somewhere in the middle. { I have a depth finder now}Example if the water is 10 feet I'll fish 5 .1000s. They are moving more looking for food. Rattle traps are good on open deep water. They also make floating rattle traps. I don't use them .

Lipped Crank baits.. I like them . The size of the lip controlls the depth that they will dive. Since I believe most of the time bass are on the bottom and I fish deep pits.I buy long lipped crank baits. I think they take a heavy toll on my reel gears so I buy kind of slender ones. Actually with a boat I've taken many lures off the tree branches and experiment with those first.Then if one works I'll buy it. Most of my tackle has been pulled off of trees. Having a small boat enables me to get into places just like that. I have friends who take shallow divers and troll arond brush piles. These dive only about 2 feet.{ Minus One Crankbait} That is very effective.

Some folks also call flat fish and weedless spinner baits crankbaits. If ya got structure....those weedless crankbaits are great. I don't like alot of junk on mine though. Just a simple willow or colorado blade is enough. Fish just slow enough to turn the blade. 99% of your fish should stay on using crankbaits.

Poppers.....You must of used small poppers while fly fishing.Bass poppers are just 3 times the size. They do work in shallow water. Just cast...wait a few seconds...twitch it slowly and pause for a few seconds and SLIRP !!
wait one second and raise the rod tip up.

Down here if I was in a tournament I'd have 2 rods. One for flipping a worm and in the early hours a nice spinning rod with a 3/8 ounce Rooster Tail or white weedless spinner bait if too weedy. If it was not tournament but for fun...I'd fish a white Torpedo Top Water instead and 'Walk the Dog' { Meaning twitching the Torpedo from side to side to give it a consistent look} That is my favorite way to catch fish.

Well ...you have certainly got me going .I've got just the place to work on these techniques too.
Chuck7

Just go here and read up. If you have any more questions, just google search it.

http://www.bassresource.com/fish/tipsindex.html

If you have any more questions, just google search it. Pat


Actually I've enjoyed answering the questions. That is why we are here. I saved the site you brought up my friend. I love talking about the different aspects of fishing and hunting.
Chuck7

I suggested the site b/c I didn't think anyone would want to go into detail over every type of lure. lol Too many for me to list...

Pat
I understand that Pat. I do like hearing from the guys on here though. Some lures work and some don't . I hate wasting money and if someone on here talks about a lure that is a real killer I wan tto hear about it. When fish are not biting I pick lures off the trees in which shore fishermen have lost. I try them all and keep what works. The others I sell for 1.00 a piece at our annual yard sale. Honestly; last year a man came and said, "I'll give ya 50.00 for them all.".I said sold.
Chuck

Dang, that's one of my old secrets. If I'm on a lake and not doing so well, I tend to look at the shrubs and trees along the banks to see what different types of lures people are tossing (and losing). Now with Fireline and other braided lines, the tree usually gives way first...which equates to not so many lost lures these days.

I have a few trusty lures that have yet to fail me, and boat many types of fish. It's this lure right here:

http://www.basspro.com/servlet/catalog.TextId?hvarTextId=15667&hvarDept=100&a mp;hvarEvent=&hvarClassCode=7&hvarSubCode= 7&hvarTarget=browse

I rock it with the Watermelon Pearl 90% of the time. My favorite setup to use it with is a 6½' medium rod for open water...7' for tossing it in slop/lilly pads. I've boated a few muskie's on a quick retrieve, and hundreds of bass/walleye/northerns twitching it.

Oh, forgot to mention. I've tried many different brands of the lure I mentioned above. Those BPS lures have such a better movement than all others I've tried...including Bass Assassins. They just get it done, period.

I have a few trusty lures that have yet to fail me, and boat many types of fish. It's this lure right here: Pat

Pat ..I've never used one of those rubber jerk baits before. Is the hook sticking in the rubber or outside of the rubber.? And...if it's outside th erubber how does it keep from getting hung out?
C7

PS ...Ok here is the info These baits feature erratic action that resembles a fleeing shad. The soft body keeps fish hanging on longer and the hook slot makes it easy to hookset. 10 pack.

OK Pat..I'll buy some.I do come across lily pads at times. Are these lures supposed to sink slowly or float?

Chuck, they are designed to sink slowly. However, if you bring some finishing nails, or 1" cuts of metal clothes hanger, you can add weight without affecting action and it will kill the bass.