I will list these baits in the order of having caught the most fish on them. Like many of us I have no choice but to start with the soft plastics. The invention of the plastic worm has to be the best invention of all time to the bass fisherman. Without a doubt the plastic worm has caught more fish than any other lure ever. At least for me it has. I learned to fish the worm during the late 1960's and into the 70's. I have used it all over the Southeastern United States in water as deep as 35 feet to as shallow as 6 inches and everything in between. Water temperature of 58 degrees is when I start using the worm in the spring and I have used it in water up to 102 degrees on the surface. I will use the soft plastic all summer and into the fall until the water falls back to about this point of 58 or so degrees.
The weedless worm rigged Texas style is my preferred style of worm fishing. depending on the water depth I will use a slip sinker somewhere between 1/16 of and ounce and 1/4 ounce. I tend to carry two worm setups with me on each outing. A light rig using 10# test line and a heavier rig using 14-17# test lines. On any given day the fish will tend to show a preference for one or the other. In the heavy cover I will use the heavier rig to muscle the fish out. If the cover is light I will use the lighter rig. Always use the sharpest hook you can afford and try to keep that hook sharp. This will make the hook set much easier. I also like to use worms with two different contours. I use a skinny worm on the light rig and a bolder contour on the heavy rig. I switch back and forth until I find the combination the fish are liking and then I will stick with what is working best.
These soft plastics now come in a rainbow of colors. Try sticking with a few of the best sellers in your area. I always carry a few of the following colors which are hard to beat. Blue, green, black, red and purple. Fish each until you find the one the fish in your lake like the best. There are also the more recent colors like watermelon seed and others, made by mixing two colors into one worm or by adding glitter into the plastic mixture.
Another version of a soft plastic bait is the lizard which I fish in heavy grass and weed beds. I fish the lizard with as light a weight as I can get away with and still be able to cast the bait. I always use a large and heavy duty hook with a lizard. Big fish love this bait and the heavy hook helps hold the big ones. I use a 5/0 or a 6/0 hook and my favorite lizard size is 6" long. Because it is used in heavy cover 17# test is the recommended line size as a starting point. The lizard works best when it will fall slowly after coming off of a lilly pads or some grass. This is when the strike comes most often.
The last soft plastic I use on a regular basis is the soft jerk bait. There are many different brands and styles available. I like one that has a slot for the hook to ride in. This is a bait that I only recently began to love. I use no weight at all other than the hook I select. Usually a 4/0 offset wide bend hook is what I use with a 7 foot heavy spinning rod. I use 14-17# test lines and make fairly long cast. I start moving the bait at once and keep it into the grass or right along the edge of the grass for best results. I like a light colored bait so I can see the lure as it is jerking back and forth on the retrieve. Many strikes are in plain sight as I keep the bait near the surface. When you see or feel the strike set the hook and hang on.
My second favorite class of baits is the spinnerbait. I like the standard style wire frame baits that weigh from 3/16 of an ounce and on up to 1/2 ounce. The most balanced all around weight for most situations is 3/8 of an ounce and cast with 14-15# test line. I use casting equipment with a short 5'-6" rod so I can make a slight underhanded cast keeping the bait low to the water with a gentle or no splash landing. My casting reels are left handed retrieve models so I can start reeling as soon as the lure hits the water. I use three basic retrieves when using the spinnerbaits with willow leaf or Colorado blades. On the surface of the water with the rod tip helping to control the depth I run the bait just a few inches deep. This will leave a small wake behind the bait. My second retrieve is the slow roll which will keep the bait 2-4 feet below the surface and the third is a deep retrieve running the bait along structure along the bottom. Piers, post and stumps fields are my favorite spots for fishing the spinnerbaits but I have used them with great success in the fall in big flats and in the back of feeder creeks when bass are chasing the shad. If I had to only have a few spinnerbaits I would start with 3/8 ounce baits in white, chartruse and with willow leaf blades in silver and gold. I may mix in a few buzz baits for running on the surface. When the grass is not too heavy or when targeting open structure use a trailer hook setup. I always use the Side-Striker trailer hook. With this trailer hook all the fish has to do is just look at the bait and it's caught. I'll end up here today and continue later with more on crank baits and top water selections next time. Good fishing and be safe.
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