Building My Tacklebox

[Fishslayer88]

i did really good on the rapala x rap last year green back with a white belly it caught everything (really good for white bass too)

i also like to keep some salty craws around usually 2 inch pumpkin seed brown or green.

and my favorite lure of all time for bass is the zara puppy green with black spots and a white belly

[RSBreth]

I think you've got plenty of good advice to mull over, but if I was limited in what I could carry...

A walk-the-dog topwater (Sammy, Gunfish, Spook)

A popper (I like the XCaliber Zell Pop)

A compact spinnerbait (not the little tiny ones)

Some shallow and medium diving cranks (I like the Bober 4A, Strike King Series 3, Norman Middle N)

A good floating jerkbait (my new favorite is the Rapala Flat Rap)

I like a 1/8th or 3/16th finesse jig,

and for plastics - a finesse worm or slim "Senko" like worm - especially for wacky-rigging

some 4"or 5" grubs in a couple of colors

and a fluke-type soft jerkbait.

Pretty much my regular tackle for river Smallies.

[karnivore]

Thanks for all the advice fellas! Couldn't take it anymore and went out on a creek close to my house...caught 7 of these...no smallies, but fun nonetheless!

[Mitch f]

Classic spotted bass, the frying pan is a good place for that one! oh wait....thats a different thread. These guys obviously taught you too well! Great job! nice fish!

[eric1978]

Classic spotted bass, the frying pan is a good place for that one! oh wait....thats a different thread. These guys obviously taught you too well! Great job! nice fish!

He's down in Joplin...no need to fry 'em down there. Not a bad little fish there! What'd he eat?

[karnivore]

I caught all of them today on a weightless fluke. There was a a big hole under a rope swing that i basically dead-drifted/twitched it through. I was surprised how aggressive they were hitting it. It was a lot of fun today...I needed it!

[eric1978]

This winter is unreal. That's not exactly typical for the first week of February. Wow. Well kudos to you for striking while the iron's hot.

[drew03cmc]

Hey, it was my pleasure meeting you, your kids and your fishing buddy. My wife said I was yapping like a nerd! The nerve of her!

Anyway, eric is spot on. Build your box over a period of time. Start with a few key baits from each catogory, soft plastics, cranks, spinnerbaits, buzzbaits, stick baits, and top water. Yeah, that can fill a box right there. But just get one key color to start and then build from there as you gain confedence in the bait and how to work and when to use it and where to use it.

I think we can skip a lot of the how, where and when for now. I don't think this is your first rodeo. So lets take a look at soft plastics. As you have seen, they can take up a whole isle. But to simply put it a couple is all you need to start. As has been said, flukes, tubes, worms and craws all work great in the waters of this area. I personal toss 3in craws on a standing jig head, 6in worm texas rigged, and some grubs here and there. On the craws, I seem to do better on the green pumpkin color. The 6in worm...doesn't seem to make a big difference...I have caught them on about any color you toss. I would get on pack each of the craw and tubes to start. There are many manufactures so you will just have to look to see which one catchs your eye and your budget. Same with the standup jigs or any jig.

There are a ton of cranks on the market too. I am a fan of many and carry many. But to start, again as stated, Wigglewarts are very good. I like a fire tiger or phantom craw. Rebel craws are a good choice also. Corndawg has a Rebel CrankR that is about the ugliest color of blue metal flake you have ever seen and it will produce everytime! I have a few baits that are of a chartreuse and purple that are really good producers. Remember what I told you about the water column when you start to choose a bait.

When you venture to the buzzbait and spinnerbait section, if you haven't used them before, hit the $1 bait section. Most bait shops have new bait for only a buck that you can learn on without fear of loosing some of those $5+ baits. I am a fan of the hammered willow leaf blade on the spinnerbaits and sometimes even some colored blades.And with just a couple of easy modifcations, these $1 baits will work just as well. I mean the fish doesn't know how much you paid for it.

Topwater baits are a lot of fun! Jitterbugs, crazycrawlers are couple of my favorites. I certainly don't dismiss the tiny torpedo's either. Those can be just killer!! Rember on thing about top water plugs...it dosn't matter one bit what paint scheme is on top of the plug...it is the belly that matters most. The fish can't see the top side. And don't forget the old standard Devil's horse. Made by Smithwick, it has been a producer for over a half century.

Stickbaits for smallmouth and largemouth can be very deadly. My go to is a Rebel CD 7 Gold/Black. Another guy I float with was using a Cotton Cordell bait last year that I wouldn't have thought would be very good. But wow what action it had. I really liked it and saw quite a few fish caught on it.

And any rate, if you would like to meet back up in Joplin next weekend, we can hit the plug section this time and see what we are all talking about. We can speak more of the where, when and how and what are some of the best applications.

Chief likes to talk a lot, so let me summarize this stuff. The lures I fish are pretty simple. On my spinning rod, L action, I throw everything from 2.75" Yum Craw Papis in green pumpkin, Rebel Wee Craws, Rapala F5s in silver and some 1/8oz inline spinners. On my casting rod, I throw 3" soft craws in the same color on 1/4oz jigheads, Wiggle Warts, 3/16-1/4oz spinnerbaits and Jitterbugs. I like to keep things simple.

If you fly fish, #2 poppers, #6 sneaky petes and streamers from #2-10 in your basic colors will work.

[Guest]

#1 Watermelon/red finesse worm and 1/8oz shaky head

#2 Bitsy tube (green pumpkin)with 1/8oz insert tubehead

#3 wiggle wart (green/orange belly)

[Ham]

Less is more. You've gotten plenty of good advice. Lot's of ways to skin this cat. You'll find the ones you enjoy using the most.

At this point, I'm not really looking for any additional lures. I am always fine tuning stuff.