RedA Loc: Stow, MA

Has anyone had good results with Big Baits?

I got my 6.3 LMB PB last year on a Bucca BullGill but very little to show from a growing collection of Big Baits - Buccas, Spro Rats, MagDrafts, Ospreys, Huds, Arachi, Antidote, Deep cranks ...

I know that you expect fewer bites but is very hard to commit more time with so few results ☹️

Is anyone getting better results? Maybe in those states that have DDs to pursue?

Thanks,

Chuck56 Loc: Texas

Bass have a small brain. If they are hungry, they will attack anything they think looks edible to them that they can successfully eat. It really doesn’t matter how big the bass is, if it thinks “ time to eat!” , it will try. That is the key. I have caught 1# bass with 12” worms. My p.b. (10.1) was caught with a arashi 5ft square bill. I believe that lure weighs 5/8 oz. not a big bait. I have had limited success with with giant deep cranks , and caught a few on oversized squarebills. But, I honestly don’t like fishing with those giant baits . I don’t like the hard pull from the deep ones, and the oversized squarebills hang up fairly often if you fish them as intended . I usually keep crankbaits to 1 ounce or less. All that being said, I believe if I did tolerate those big baits more I would catch fish, regardless of size. Huge topwater baits , same deal. they are clumsy to fish with in my opinion. They smack the water hard and most likely spook the fish. Once they are spooked, you can forget it. But I believe if I could learn to use the giant topwater baits without making the horrible water contact noise on the cast ,I would catch fish. But I’m older now and since I have had no success with them, I just use what I know works . My topwater lures weigh around 1-1/4 ounce or less. So, in my experience, I have had limited success with the giant hard lures, and I fish mainly here in Texas. So, I would consider less time buying or casting the giant baits, and more time with something easier to work with......My 2cents

nutz4fish Loc: Colchester, CT

RedA... 6+ lb. for anywhere in New England is huge. Well done. I'm not braggin' but my PB for around here ( Connecticut) is 7lb,6oz. And it came after 45 years of fishing effort, and I was lucky at that. That fish ate an 8" golden shiner that came from the same water I caught her in. To your question, the only large artificial bait I have had consistent success( not counting plastic worms ) with is a big Arbogast Jitterbug. To not spook the fish as mentioned in another reply I flip cast with spinning gear, kinda like sideways, almost underhanded, to minimize the surface disturbance, keeping the distance from the water surface as low as possible. Sometimes I get a take on this , mostly at night. Love topwater strikes especially at night when its so quiet.
Large Natural baits do work for me very well within their limitations. I am no longer interested in catching 8 to 14 inch LM bass. Don't catch many bass using 6" bluegills or 10" yellow perch, but they are all quality fish. If I get too bored, I'll toss a smaller Rapalla or something around while the big bluegill is cruising on the other rig.
I have many days when I catch nothing, but that's fine with me. I'm grooving on the egrets, herons , mengansers, frogs , snakes, and things, and on a nice day, workin on my vitamin D.
What blows my mind is when a bass that couldn't possibly swallow the bait eats in anyhow, and I haul it in with a couple of inches and the tail hanging out and the baits head jammed up against its throat. Many of us have seen the sad results of this aggression floating dead on the surface.Now they're just snappping turtle food.
Good Luck with your pursuit of big bass, just remember this isn't the deep South or Cali.