BassFishingOhio.com

Reels

 

You can start bass fishing with almost any rod and reel but if you’re like most bass anglers eventually you’ll will want to go to a baitcasting reel and a medium to heavy action rod, depending on where you’re fishing and the cover you’re fishing.  I do want to say one thing here, some of the best bass anglers I know have never used a baitcaster in their life, so it’s not an absolute necessity but if you’re going to fish heavy cover then you will want the tackle to be able to pull the big bass out of thick cover.   My favorite reel outfit is a Quantum PT 600 reel with a medium heavy rod with 20 pound test Fireline.  There is a good place to use a spinning reel in bass fishing and that is when you fish with small finesse baits.

 

Reel Settings

 

Tie on a practice weight of at least ¼ ounce and press the reel release and watch the line fall to the ground.  The weight should move slowly but steadily to the ground and the reel spool  should quit turning when the weight hits the ground.  If the spool doesn’t stop turning, then you need to tighten the tension control knob usually located on the right side of the reel on a baitcaster.  Once this is done you can make other minor adjustments if needed.  Some reels have an adjustable braking system knob on the left side of the reel and should be adjusted after the tension has been set to avoid backlashes.  Incase the reel you chose doesn’t have a braking system adjustment on the right side of the reel, the tension control should do the trick when set right.

 

Note: When choosing a rod and reel, make sure the reel and rod match.  You don’t want a heavy reel on a light rod or visa versa.  Your local tackle store can help you with your selection. 

 
Rods

 

There are as many different rods as there are people to use them.  If you plan to fish with plastic worms, lizards or craws then you want a rod that is sensitive yet has the backbone to pull the bass from the cover.   There are  graphics rods and fiberglass rods, graphic composite rods which is a combination of graphite and fiberglass which I prefer.  You have the sensitivity you need and the backbone too with a composite rod.

 

Another thing to make sure of is to match the rod with the reel you choose and visa versa.  There is nothing worse than trying to throw an unbalanced outfit all day fishing.  You will get tired much faster and by the days end worn out.  Always get a rod and reel that matches.

 

A graphic rod has sensitivity.

A fiberglass rod has the strength you need to land big fish and to fish cover.

A graphite composite rod has both, sensitivity and strength.

 

Now that you know the three main types of rod, then you have to choose what length fits your type fishing, I prefer a 6 1/2 to 7 foot rod for overall use.  You also need to choose the action of the rod and this varies according to what type bass fishing you do.  If you worm fish then you want a stout rod like a medium to medium heavy.  If you fish a lot of heavy cover then you want a medium heavy to heavy rod.  Even a flippin stick will do for heavy cover.

 

So what rod should you choose, well I would  choose a medium heavy graphite composite rod about 6 ½ foot in length to start.

 

You choose which one is best for your type fishing.

 

 

Line

 

While I use Berkley Fireline from 10-20 pound test on most of my reels, everyone has their favorite brand.  You have Stren, Trilene, Excel, Spiderwire and other brands.  In general you will want to use a line that is between 8-12 pound test but if you plan to fish extremely heavy cover like lily pads then 50 pound test isn’t uncommon on the right reel.

If you line become frayed from fighting fish or abrasive from rubbing on rocks, stumps and etc., then retire your lure above the weak part of the line immediately.

 

Changing line

 

While some anglers change their line only once every few years, I change the line on my reels at least 3 times during the fishing season.  You may ask, “Is that really Necessary?”.  I just have this to say, there is no more of a heartbreaking fishing experience than losing a 5-10 pound bass because of bad line that you failed to replace when you knew you should have done it.  Your heart does everything except fall out on the ground.  A lot of the pros change their line before every tournament they fish.  While you may not need to go to that extreme, line care is a very important step in successful bass fishing.

 
How To Fish The Basic Lures-worms

 

Ok, you have your rod, reel, line and you’re lures so get out there and catch that bass!  Well, let’s learn how to use the lures first then maybe catch a bass.

 

Fishing The Plastic Worm

 

There are many plastic worms you can use and with all these worms are different type tails.  There are straight tails, paddle tails, gator tails, curly tails, French fry’s and many others.  One of my favorite’s is the Zoom 6” SS-Utail.  While there are many ways to fish a plastic worm as there are fishermen to tell you different, here is how I fish it.

First, I believe most anglers fish the plastic worm too fast.  You see people throw in the worm and start reeling before it even hits bottom and reel it back in.  Others throw the worm out then lift the rod tips 8-24 inches at a time and reel in the slack and again, I think that is too fast to fish a worm.  I usually add a 1/8-1/4 bullet weight on the line above the hook and use a 2/0-5/0 worm hook depending on the size of the worm I’m using.  Sometimes I will just add two split shots right at the hook where it is tied to the line.  I throw the worm out and watch it fall.  Most strikes on a plastic worm are on the fall.  If I see line movement, a twitch in my line or any irregular movement at all there is a good chance a fish is on.  If I don’t get a strike or see my line move on the fall, I let the worm go to the bottom and let it set for a few seconds.  Then I raise my rod tip about 6” and let the worm fall again, keeping a very slight tension on my line and reeling up any slack.  I keep doing this technique on each cast.  Now here is where the controversy comes in.  Usually when a bass hits the worm you’ll feel a tap, tap, see you line move or feel a mush feel or pressure on the line.  Once that happens, I lower my rod to cause slack I my line and watch the line, once I see the line moving after the initial jerk or tap, tap or line movement I set the hook.  You will get angler who disagree with my method and tell you to set the hook as soon as you feel the first tap, line movement, etc but I have tried both ways and the way I am telling you works best for me.

Experiment and try different methods but my purpose is to give you a basic way to fish the plastic worm.  Once you learn to fish the plastic worm, you’ll love it and see why the worm has caught more fish than any other lure of bass fishing.