# Big or Small?



## melo123 (Jan 29, 2010)

I've heard that big in the Spring is better for prespawn/spawn bass but i've also heard that smaller is better what does everyone else think?


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## SeanStone (Sep 8, 2010)

In my opinion it depends on how early we are talking. If you were to go out tomorrow I would recomend using something on the small side and fish it slow. In another month it may be a different story, as the water warms up I start to use larger baits and retrieve them a little faster than I would with water temps in the 40's. Thats not to say that there aren't exceptions.


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## Pigsticker (Oct 18, 2006)

IMO its more about what size bass ur looking to catch? I always start BIG and hope I have the patience to stick with it all day long. When your fishing partner is beating you 12 to zero but his 5 fish creel is only 6 lbs its tempting to downsize to his lure. Though I've caught big bass on Beatlespins and Little Cleos and other assorted small lures I'm convinced the big girls want to expend as little energy as possible on their meals. So I try and stick with magnum flukes, 10" ribbontail worms, giant sluggos, 3/4 & 1oz jigs, lipless cranks & spinnerbaits, spro frogs, big Zara Spooks, lucky 13's, 8" lizards, big buzzbaits, big Jitterbugs and assorted larger Rapala and other brand cranks. You'll still catch a fair share of peanuts on these lures. 
If ur after numbers just start small always. You'll still get into some pigs on occasion if n right body of water.
Like mentioned I'd dial more into weather & season and try hard to fish appropriate lure, presentation & area.
Think about this though. Before this springs bass eggs hatch the only minnies of any kind around r last years hatch so they're a year old and not small. Once spawn is over the water is warming, metabolism is speeding up and the shallows r full of tiny minnies. Most try and match the hatch and throw their biggest spinnerbait prespawn then downsize it post spawn.
I'm gonna try and stick to these principles this year and not resort to putting on a senko for some action.


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

im a tournament fisherman so im mostly concerned about getting a limit of keepers in the boat before i worry about getting a stud. however, in my experiences, if you find something that is catching keeper size bass consitently, no matter what it is, at some point your going to get a kicker fish more times then not. the only adjustments you might make is a slight depth change. if you find a pattern that is successful (7 to 10 keepers during a short period of time (4 to 6 hours) and its on a small bait, if you stick with it, at some point you will likely get a kicker fish. ive rarely had success in changing the size of my bait mid tournament in order to catch a bigger fish. i have however adjusted the depth at which i was fishing and that has made a difference before.

in a tournament last year, my partner and i caught 15 keepers, all 1 to 1.5 lbs. it was getting close to the end of the day and we knew we needed a kicker to give us a chance to win, we went to a spot that we had caught most of our fish and we simply backed off the bank a tad, we caught 2 3lbers in 30 minutes and won the tournament by .5lb.

just remember, that all ive said is really in reference to ohio, it can be difficult to get a successful pattern going in ohio, you dont want to abandon it because your catching 1lbers, sometimes the pattern of 1lbers is the right pattern. its a different ball game in other areas of the country.


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## V-MAX200 (Oct 16, 2007)

melo123 said:


> I've heard that big in the Spring is better for prespawn/spawn bass but i've also heard that smaller is better what does everyone else think?


Try both and let the fish tell you what they want.


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## skycruiser (Aug 7, 2009)

I've been out 4 or 5 times this year and right now small and slow seems to be key. can't go wrong with an 1/8 or 1/4 jig head with a twister tail and fish it slow or slow roll it. They aren't in the mood much to chase. It's important to note that this is just been small ponds because the water levels are too damn high at most of my spots right now


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## Rod Hawg (Jan 13, 2011)

I just go out with big slow moving baits and go from there. Works for me. Just whatever you do. At this time of the year in March you need a slow moving presentation. I wouldn't recommend you going out with Topwater(duh) but I would try to use a Whacky Rig( what I use) this time of the year. Just give it a bunch of slow pumps and jerks. Let it sink for around 15-45sec and then jerk a little bit.


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## Tokugawa (Apr 29, 2008)

Match the hatch. Most forage is larger after surviving the winter. After the spawn, when there are fry around, then smaller lures are closer to the forage size. Later in fall, the forage is a bit bigger again.


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