In-Line spinners are a wire, threaded through a lead body, or weighted beads, with a loop in the end to tie line to, and a hook on the other end. A rotating spinner is in front of the body and spins on the retrieve, sending out vibrations through the water that bass can detect from considerable distances..

The hook can be dressed, or plain. They are usually cast out and allowed to sink to the desired depth, then retrieved near cover. They are especially effective on active, feeding fish. Popular models are Mepps, Panther-Martin, Blue Fox and Rooster Tails. These are one of my favorite lures to use. I am partial to Rooster Tails. Another variation on this design is the rear mounted spinner, such as the Little Suzy and Little George lures.

A crank bait comes in several designs. The most common is a hard plastic, or balsa wood body that resembles a pregnant perch. They are painted to match various baitfish and crustaceans. They have a plastic lip at the front that imparts a violent wiggling motion to the lure on the retrieves, and sometimes makes them dive rapidly, depending on the design. They are usually fished deep near structure, and are simply cast out and retrieved. Other types have minnow, or thin shaped bodies, or even look like a boomerang (Lazy Ike), but they all work the same. They work best on schooling bass. The most well known of these types of lures is Rapala. Other models are Heddon, Fred Arbogast, Tom Mann, and custom lure makers.

Jerk Baits are a relatively new phenomenon. They are a minnow-shaped, floating body with several treble hooks on them. They have no action on their own, but must be jerked to each side, in a technique called walking the dog. They create a surface commotion that drives bass insane at times.

They resemble a struggling animal on the surface, irresistible to a hungry bass. Soft Baits are the king of all black bass lures. The most common is the ubiquitous plastic worm. If you could only have one lure for bass, this is it.

Plastic worms have accounted for more bass than all other baits combined, including live bait. They are simply soft plastic worm-shaped molded lures. They are usually rigged Texas style, with a special hook piercing the head, back out and back into the body, with a slip-sinker on the line directly above it. This is the most weedless lure there is. It can be fished right through the heaviest cover. They can also be rigged Carolina style, with exposed hook points for special situations. There are crawfish, and other shaped models, but the worm is by far the winner. They come in every color/combination there is. They work everywhere, anytime of the year. They are cast out right into heavy cover and allowed to sink to the bottom. Then, they are retrieved sssssllllooooowwwwlllyyy, with short, light jerks of the rod tips.

If there are bass around, they will bite these. This is as close to Can’t-fail as it gets. They can also be flipped, and jigged in special situations. The biggest marketer of soft baits is probably the Zoom Lure Company.

Now we come to 2nd most fun way to catch bass. Top Water lures are just what the name implies, a plastic lure that floats on top of the water. Most have a cupped head, or lips attached that makes a loud splash, or pop, when jerked. This attracts bass from great distances, and incites them into a murderous rage at times. They are cast out near cover, and retrieved in short jerks, with pauses in-between. When a bass hits, the water will literally explode, with the bass often coming completely out of the water in heart-stopping leaps. Top Waters are most effective in the shallows, in the morning and evening. Popular models include the Chugger, Popper, Crazy Crawler, Jitterbug, and my favorite, the Billy Bass. There are other types with a veritable arsenal of treble hooks on them, shaped like thin minnows, with spinners on them such as the Devils Horse, and Tiny Torpedo. They are all deadly.

And in closing, I’d like to just mention my all-time favorite way to catch any fish....fly fishing. Fly fishing is way beyond the scope of this article, but there are many great books out there on fly fishing for bass by such greats as Skip Morris, Dave Dahlberg, and a great website at www. flyanglersonline.com, with my good friends J.Castwell, Lady Flyfisher, Richard Komar, and some of the most expert Anglers on the planet.

If you haven’t considered fly fishing, give it a try. You’ll be hooked for life.

Happy Fishing

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