Bass Fishing HomeBass Fishing Forums

Go Back   BassFishin.Com Forums > Serious Conversation Only > Techniques, Strategy & Presentations

Reply
 
Thread Tools Rating: Thread Rating: 6 votes, 4.00 average. Display Modes
Old 07-15-16, 08:12 AM   #1
keithdog
BassFishin.Com Premier Elite
 
keithdog's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: IN
Posts: 8,308
Default Muddy water and worms.

I am wanting to start a discussion about using soft plastics, especially worms, in off colored water. Am I missing the boat? I am particularly talking about straight tailed worms. In water with visibility of less than 20 inches or so I have no confidence in them. Especially stick worms like a Senko. But any straight tailed worm is in the same boat. They have so little action and are so quiet that I can't imagine them being useful in off colored water. Am I wrong? Am I missing the boat?
__________________
Just one more cast, and then some!
keithdog is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-15-16, 09:15 AM   #2
lilmule
BassFishin.Com Super Veteran
 
lilmule's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Buchanan,Tn
Posts: 2,685
Default

They are fat,heavy for just plastic,toss a fair distance without a weight sort of a finesse approach yet displace a lot of water.12 in clarity is good,muddy is 1-2 in a fish can see ten times your sight range underwater so not as muddy to him or it.
Thus a lil color and a spinnerbait bite,and less topwater if under 12in clarity normally but not always.Barkley due to its mud banks is always colored 12 in would be about its best if it hadnt rained in two weeks.At 4- 6in clarity they hit a horney toad(green Pumkin) so fast its hard to get a hookset sometimes.Same worm colors as Ky lake work here plus a few others.Like motor oil,just after a rain.There is also a worm some might call it a swimbait that is built just like a senko with a paddle tail used with a jig head swimbait head etc it can be deadly and no longer or thicker than a senko.
lilmule is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-15-16, 09:32 AM   #3
lilmule
BassFishin.Com Super Veteran
 
lilmule's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Buchanan,Tn
Posts: 2,685
Default

In clear water 2-3 ft visability in any flip situation the fish can visually see the fliper.
Thus light gear a spinning outfit,ten pd green power pro unweighted and a circle hook.Steve constantly outfishes me with that with senkos,making long casts.
Main difference is you think anything under 20 in is muddy,some locales they may react differently to light situations,ut in most areas 20 in visability isnt bad at all actually to clear for a good spinnerbait bite.Kevin Van Dam thinks 11-12 in is about right,we develop habits not always true to intended target but to us and how we do in those conditions.Possiby less movement,possibly more.Whenever we get bit try to emulate that action again and some days want a wiggle or jerk some not.The old saying let the fish tell you is applicable.
lilmule is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-15-16, 09:37 AM   #4
bassboogieman
BassFishin.Com Super Veteran
 
bassboogieman's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Parkesburg, Pa.
Posts: 3,762
Default

Keith, with off-colored or muddy water most guys forget that bass (fish in general) do not see their world as we see ours. Fish can see much better in stained/muddy water much better than us. I forget the exact number but think it is 4-5 times better than ours. So visibility to us of a foot is more like 4' to a bass. Fishing plastic baits like worms Senkos, beavers, etc., to me, indicates fishing cover. So if you can't see a worm crawling along a foot away from a log, a bass can. You can improve the sight distance using baits with chartreuse tails (or baits entirely that color). Easy method is to dip your baits in chartreuse dye, doing the tail end or half the bait. As for Senkos, I love them and use the pumpkin w/chartreause tail (color #903) in stained water and low light conditions. In muddy conditions I fish slow, close to cover and something with a little chartreuse. Last "secret" tip (I hate giving this up) add a rattle to the bait. As to the straight tail worms (Senko excepted, because I usually wacky rig them), not my first choice in dirty water, I want a ripple tail to get some motion. Motion of the lure also improves visibility. You can also wacky rig a straight worm but I prefer doing that with a Senko.

HELLO Roger, good to see you posting!
bassboogieman is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-15-16, 09:12 PM   #5
keithdog
BassFishin.Com Premier Elite
 
keithdog's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: IN
Posts: 8,308
Default

Thanks for the info guys. I guess I am underestimating how well bass see in muddy water.
__________________
Just one more cast, and then some!
keithdog is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-16-16, 06:14 PM   #6
nobass
BassFishin.Com Super Veteran
 
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: clarksville, tn,
Posts: 1,690
Default

I muddy water I fish worms that displace water big saw tail,zoom Mangum. I always use a glass beads a.between the hook and bullet weight make more noise. Also dye like Bruce said. Zenko type I fine.wacky works.better
__________________
the only easy day was yesterday
nobass is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-17-16, 09:27 AM   #7
mikechell
BassFishin.Com Active Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2011
Posts: 464
Default

Although the water I fish is rarely muddy, it is tannin stained to about 12 inches clarity. My bright yellow paddle disappears at about 15 inches below the surface.
In my travels, I often find myself fishing water that is murky or muddy.
My goto lure is always the unweighted, Texas rigged Sticko from BPS. I can pull it through any kind of cover or structure without fear. This allows me to put the lure in the bass' face. For this reason, I don't think there's a down side to the lack of noise. Plus, I think a few slack/tugs on the line produce enough low frequency sound to attract attention ... getting to within sight is the fish's job after that.
My second goto is a (only slightly more noisy) Rapala 5 inch original floater. Again, a few twitches gets the interest, getting to the source of that sound is the bass' job.
mikechell is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-18-16, 06:55 AM   #8
keithdog
BassFishin.Com Premier Elite
 
keithdog's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: IN
Posts: 8,308
Default

I find it odd that often in off colored water, many fisherman prefer to use natural colors, such as watermelon, green pumpkin and motor oil and so on. It seems to me these colors would be camoflauged in that kind of water. Like a deer hunter wearing camo in the woods.
__________________
Just one more cast, and then some!
keithdog is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-18-16, 07:11 AM   #9
lilmule
BassFishin.Com Super Veteran
 
lilmule's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Buchanan,Tn
Posts: 2,685
Default

Green pumpkin is ky lake color yet works on barkley its darkness assists it in colored water,motor oil is for heavily stained water,never use it in any clarity myself.
A fish sees color differently and sees about ten times your distance under water.
Even a camo deer hunter is seen when he moves around,wear wrong camo even more so.
lilmule is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-18-16, 03:54 PM   #10
Captmikestarrett
BassFishin.Com Super Veteran
 
Captmikestarrett's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Accokeek MD
Posts: 3,315
Default

On the muddy Potomac before hydrilla made the water gin clear..like back in the early 80's we used ribbed worms and they worked very well. Just needed a dark color and bingo you have a LGMouth. Ketchum used to make them, then Berkly and then the ribs got bigger and Zipper worms made the scene. Still use the ring worms and when I find them at a flea market I get a few bags.

Capt Mike
__________________
Capt Mike Starrett light tackle guide Potomac River
http://www.indianheadcharters.com
Captmikestarrett is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-22-16, 10:57 PM   #11
Rebbasser
BassFishin.Com Premier Elite
 
Rebbasser's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: San Antonio, TX
Posts: 10,141
Default

Keith, I haven't had a whole lot of luck fishing a straight tail, whether it be a trick worm or senko in "chocolate Milk". Here in Texas after a big rain the water gets like that. I usually go with something that creates a disturbance like a trap or a spinnerbait. For those conditions I would go with at least a curl tail worm.
__________________
It's happened to the best of them: John 21:3
Rebbasser is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-25-16, 01:57 PM   #12
mikechell
BassFishin.Com Active Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2011
Posts: 464
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by keithdog View Post
I find it odd that often in off colored water, many fisherman prefer to use natural colors, such as watermelon, green pumpkin and motor oil and so on. It seems to me these colors would be camoflauged in that kind of water.
"in off colored water, many fisherman prefer to use natural colors"
My opinion and conjecture:
The bait fish, and other prey, don't change colors just because the water gets murky. They aren't chameleons. So why change lure colors?
Fish caught from murky water are, in my experience, much lighter in color than any other water condition. So, the bait fish will be lighter, too.
Predators are on the lookout in murky water. Looking out for danger, since it can sneak up on them easier ... and looking out for food, since it can sneak up on those without being detected.
If you drop something into the water right in front of the bass, it needs to be natural looking ... otherwise, it might be danger.
mikechell is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-27-16, 08:35 PM   #13
3dkicker
BassFishin.Com Super Veteran
 
3dkicker's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: Spotsylvania, VA
Posts: 4,483
Default

I find that with stained water dark worms work very well. But also worms that closely match the water color can catch fish too. If the water is newly stained then we'll find the fish tight to cover. If it stays stained for a couple days then not so much.
__________________
Smitty
www.smittystubes.com
3dkicker is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-18-23, 05:47 PM   #14
senkosam
BassFishin.Com Veteran Member
 
senkosam's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: Hudson Valley, N.Y.
Posts: 713
Default

To quote Mikechell
Quote:
If you drop something into the water right in front of the bass, it needs to be natural looking ... otherwise, it might be danger.
What a crock! Natural is not in a fish's vocabulary - lure action that affects the senses is. Very few lures mimic anything that lives in the water - especially prey. Relating human imaginings to a fish with peas size brain indicates a similar size brain in the angler that insists fish think the same way.

Fish have senses - not sense! Those senses are extremely sensitive to moving objects - animal or lure. The reasons for the strike are many with the reaction strike at the top of the list for many lures. Slower moving lures allow fish time to feel a lure's action over a longer time period and then provoke it to strike. Lures IMHO PROVOKE. To suggest why is at most a human guess and not due to a fish's reasoning.

Experience over many years catching many species and size fish has taught me one thing: good lures never lose their value and what do they have in common? : the combination of lure action, size and shape used in one or many ways. Of course WHEN & WHERE to use a lure is as important as the combination.

Waters vary. Some have little structure changes. Others have many types of fish attracting areas to fish depending on time of year or day. I might fish a spring spawn area in summer depending on the weather. Key is to use lures to find fish to the sides, front or back of the boat. The vertical approach may do fine for fish seen under the boat by sonar, but not at all in shallow lakes.

When members view lures I've made that catch fish as well as those that were bought, what they have in common is their record of catching fish over many years. Some would ask the question: if the lures were so great, why not use just one or a few of the best? answer: having a variety of lures that provoke strikes is more fun in my experience and similar to all of you that have stockpiled a 1000 or more over many years. More importantly, most lures are not versatile in many situations, whether in a lake or in moving water. Knowing the value of different lures in different situations is key.

If you get the chance to fish tournaments in different waters with different partners or just with different partners that know a water better than yourself, don't pass it by. I fished tournaments from my bass boat and from those of other anglers - some more or less experienced than myself. No better a learning opportunity!

Last edited by senkosam; 02-18-23 at 05:58 PM.
senkosam is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Disclosure / Disclaimer
Before acting on the content posted, you should know that BassFishin.Com may benefit financially and otherwise from content, advertising, links or otherwise from anything you click on, read, or look at on our website. Click here to read our Disclosure Policy and Disclaimer.


Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
 
Thread Tools
Display Modes Rate This Thread
Rate This Thread:

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -4. The time now is 11:53 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.7
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
© 2013 BassFishin.Com LLC