(Editor's note: The following is the latest installment in a series of fishing tips presented by The Bass University. Check back each Friday for a new tip.)
Most anglers prefer to slow down when cold-water bass become lethargic, and that’s often a necessary “evil,” but California native turned Georgia resident Jared Lintner always tries to provoke a reaction bite first. He knows that a dropshot, a Ned rig and tube will catch fish, but given the choice he’d rather cover water with a tailspinner or a blade bait. He said it’s like fishing a lipless crankbait, just deeper, and it catches loads of fish.
“You can feel it really well and plain and simple, it gets bit,” he said. “It’s mimicking what those fish are on, meaning baitfish or little shad. Heck, even big shad.”
He said that the key to this is changing your retrieve until you find the one that they want on that particular day or at that particular hour. It might be jigging or “just winding” or slow pauses or quick snaps. Sometimes fish will want it slower in the morning, and then react better to a livelier action as the day progresses.
One of his favorite tailspinners is the Jackall Deracoup in 1/2- or 3/4-ounce sizes. He’ll fish the lighter one down to 40 feet, and the heavier one in 40 to 60 feet of water. One of the things that distinguishes this lure from other tailspinners is the little plastic sleeve over the rear eyelet that prevents line from wrapping around it and fouling up the lure’s action. For blade baits, he likes the Jackall Knockin Jaw, which is designed to move more water than traditional blade baits, along with the Jackall Keeburn.
How does he choose which one to throw? He typically has both varieties in several colors and sizes on the deck of his boat, but as a general rule, when it’s overcast and/or windy he prefers the tailspinner, which “creates more havoc in the water and draws fish from a distance.” When they ignore that, or start to slow down on it, he’ll go to the blade bait. The tailspinner is also better in brush piles, especially the Keeburn, which has dual double hooks rather than trebles. He said that despite having four hook points instead of six, it still has an incredible hook up ratio.
His favorite way to fish both lures is to throw them beyond a point or rock pile (“Don’t grenade those fish.”) and then let it fall on a “controlled line,” since many of the bites will come on the initial fall.
Anglers are all over the map on what sort of rod to use for these presentations, utilizing everything from medium-light to heavy actions. Lintner employs a 7’3” medium-heavy Daiwa Tatula. “I feel like I can feel the bait, (and) I can control the bait….” he said. He fears going too light, in which case “you’re bringing a knife to a gun fight.” He spools his reels with 10- to 18-pound Sunline Sniper fluorocarbon. “Fourteen is kind of my go-to.”
If you want to learn some of the Lintner’s other tailspinner and blade bait secrets, including how he uses his Panoptix to maximize the bite, check out his full on-the-water video, available only by subscribing to The Bass University TV.
