Largemouth Bass Lure Selection

perfect lure” when it comes to bass fishing, with water temperature, water clarity, current weather, past weather, water depth, type of cover, and structures you’re fishing near all being factors to consider.

First to help with lure selection we must understand the largemouth bass and its characteristics. We need to know what to replicate, and where to find them. Largemouth bass are a freshwater fish that feed on smaller fish, insects, worms, snails, crawdads, frogs, snakes, salamanders, sometimes even small birds, and mammals. They are migratory and spawn in the shallows during the spring. Pre and post spawn depths that like to hang out in the 8-15’ range, while during hot summer days they will move into deeper open water. Winter bass generally group in deeper water and don’t move much, but they still do need to eat! 

     Understanding the Largemouth is only part of the puzzle though. Throughout this article, I’m going to talk about some of the most common categories of lures. The best ways to choose a lure to catch largemouth consistently in varying situations and weather. I’d like to start with color because for the most part these rules will apply to each lure. There will be exceptions and I’ll will touch on those too.

Lure Colors:

     When selecting colors for lures, do not worry or focus on finding “the magical super color” It doesn’t exist! Also, there is no need to have every color imaginable! A few select colors for the varying factors is all you need.

Rule of thumb for lure selection: When the water is clear, you want natural looking colors that match the bass’ food source in your location. When water is murky or stained use brighter colors that the fish will be able to see more easily. When it’s bright and sunny, light-colored lures are your friend, and when it’s overcast or gloomy use darker lures. These 4 rules will help you start selecting the proper lure color with ease.

     There is an exception with topwater lures here. Darker color lures in the morning and evenings, and lighter colored lures during brighter weather, but with topwater lures the action and noise play a much larger role then color. 

Lure Categories

     The list of lure categories includes soft plastics, crankbaits, jig, spinnerbaits, swimbaits, spoons, and topwater. I’m only going to touch on a few of these that I believe are the must haves in every angler’s tacklebox. My must haves include spinnerbaits, soft plastics, crankbaits, and topwaters.

Spinnerbaits 

     Spinnerbaits resemble smaller fish, they can be fished in every condition, and are one of the best “search lures” you have in your tacklebox. During late spring, and early summer months to locate bass it’s hard to beat a spinnerbait. Locating bass can sometimes requires covering a lot of water, and a fast lure not only covers water faster, but is perfect for triggering reaction strikes!  During colder months you will want to retrieve the spinnerbait slower, and when it’s cold! (water temp 35-45F) you will want your retrieve to be slow enough that the spinners blades mimic a dieing baitfish. Spinnerbaits are also snag resistant and can be fished near logs, brush, cover, and the other areas bass like to hide.

     The spinnerbaits most prominent feature is its blades. There are 3 types of blades: Willow – long and slender with the least amount of vibration, these are great for clear water and reaction strikes. Colorado – Round shape with the most vibration, they are great for murky water, and during colder weather when the vibration will catch the fishes attention. Indiana – The Indiana blade can be classified as a combination of the other 2 blades. It’s not round, but not slender either. The Indiana blade is great when a medium retrieve speed is needed during warmer or cooling temperatures, and also stained water.

Soft Plastics 

Soft plastics are by far my favorite lures during the spring and summer months due to their versatility. They have multiple options of types including my favorites the worms, tubes, creatures, and craws. The 4 most common types of rigs for soft plastics include Texas, Carolina, Wacky, and Drop shot. Each having their own unique characteristics and preferable usage.

     The Texas rig is probably the one everyone grew up using. It’s a weedless rig so good for all types of cover, and with a bullet sinker added, it’s capable up punching through cover. It’s also an excellent rig for flipping and pitching under overhanging limbs, or below docks.

     The Carolina rig- Similar to the Texas rig but the weight is above the bait, and slides between beads. The Carolina rig is intended to have the weight stay on the bottom and clack between the beads while the bait dances off the bottom. The Carolina rigged is usually fished by pulling your rod about a foot at a time in a side sweeping motion, take up slack and repeat. This is a great rig for a soft plastic salamander or course it will work with other soft plastics too.

     The Wacky Rig- This is one of my favorites to use with my favorite Senko worms! The wacky rig presents the bait in a natural look. The bait sits horizontal in the water, with both ends fluttering while it slowly sinks to the bottom. With a wacky rig you will want to cast out and let the bait sink, then twitch the rod a couple times and let sink again. It’s great for clear water near docks and around vertical structures in the water.

     The drop shot rig- The drop shot although not used as often as the others is a great rig for finesse fishing deep water or when the fish are less active. The principle is the same as the Carolina, although rigged differently. The drop shot allows the bait to suspend above while the weight slowly drags the bottom. The other difference with the drop shot rig is how the soft plastic is placed on the hook. You can simply hook the nose of the bait, or “Texas rig style”, I’ve even seen some others catch fish having a wacky rigged drop shot rig.

Crankbaits

     What tacklebox is complete without an arsenal of different crankbaits. Crankbaits are versatile, cover water fast, and they come in any shape and size imaginable. They do require the correct presentation for consistent success though. Crankbaits are contact lures meaning the majority of the time, the fish will strike after your crankbait bumps into an object and bounces back a bit.

     The crankbaits lip will determine the depth it can be fished at. These are usually shallow 1’-5’, medium 5’-8’, and deep divers that can go 20’ deep. During warmer weather and active fish, a crankbait with a very pronounced wobble is excellent for mimicking an injured baitfish, and during cooler weather stick with a tighter wobble. Some crankbaits even have rattles inside, these are great for stained to murky water while crankbaits with no added noise seem to do better in clear water.

Topwater Lures 

Another one of my favorites, but this one is due to the shear adrenaline rush when a largemouth strikes the lure and you’re able to see it all happening! Once again the selection of topwater lures is abundant! Frogs, poppers, and buzzbaits are the three I would recommend everyone having.

     Frogs are great in early spring (When frogs start moving) but they will work during summer and fall also. They are usually weedless, and perfect for walking across grass and lily pads. Twitching a frog on top of  foliage and then letting it sit for a few seconds is irresistible to a hungry bass.

     Poppers- Poppers are one of the oldest topwater lures and have responsible for anglers landing multiple bass over the years. Poppers are an excellent choice during warm water months with clear water and overcast days. The bait will stick out with the clouded background of a fishes view. To fish a popper, cast it to your target and let it settle briefly. Twitch your rod just enough so the lure “pops” along the surface. This popping action resembles small insects, frogs, or an injured fish.

     Buzzbaits – My cousin got me hooked on buzzbaits a long long time ago when I was just a kid learning how to fish. My grandpa would take us out catfishing at night, and being young and easily bored we would always have a buzzbait ready for some nighttime bass fishing. Buzzbaits can be fished all day too, with early morning and late evenings being a better choice, but nighttime bass fishing with a buzzbait is awesome!  Bass tend to move a bit further with the cover of darkness, so you don’t have to cast to the fish. The fish will come to you. To fish a buzzbait keep your rod tip elevated as the bait hits the water, with a slow and steady retrieve slowly lower your rod tip   

Lure selection can be tough! Especially with all the selections available and the variables mother nature can throw at us. I hope this article was able to help you in your journey of bass fishing. Tight Lines Everyone!

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