Color is the final factor. With deep running lures it is a
very important issue. The amount of available light and
clarity of the water have a great impact on what colors can be seen at
greater depths. As the Earth rotates and the sun's position
in the sky changes you will need to change colors of your lures to
compensate for the difference in available light.
Once you select a crankbait the retrieve is generally
straightforward. Unlike a spinnerbait the retrieve of a
crankbait cannot be varied to a great degree. It is a lure
that is designed to be retrieved swiftly and attract fish that are very
actively feeding.
For deep water bass that are less active the jig and pig combo is a
great lure choice. Many fisherman prefer to use a plastic
worm in these situations. In my opinion this is a matter of
personal preference. Both lure are very effective and should
be fished in very similar manners.
The key concept to remember when using these lures is to keep your
retrieve slow. You are actively pursuing fish you know are
not very active, your choice of lure indicates this. You
therefore need to try and keep your lure directly in front of target
fish for as long as possible. Just a little bit of movement
is sufficient to entice a strike.
When retrieving either of these lures it is important to use the drop
technique. Unlike a crankbait you do not retrieve a jig and
pig with a steady constant retrieve. You allow this lure to
sit on the bottom and twitch the rod to lift it off the bottom several
feet. This is the key moment of the exercise. The
majority of the strikes you will get will be as the jig is sinking back
to the bottom. You need to be keenly aware of what is
happening to your jig in these instances. As we discussed
before we are actively fishing for Largemouth Bass we know are not in a
very aggressive mood. You must therefore pay special
attention to notice any change in your line that indicates a
pickup. They will not aggressively strike this lure as they
would a fast moving crankbait. The Largemouth Bass will pick
it up in its mouth and then decide whether to swallow it or spit it
out. You need to take this decision away from the bass by
setting the hook immediately after pickup.
To get the full "Bass Fishing Lures" article you'll need to download it here.
