Never Get Skunked - Micro Swimbait Tips For Early Season Bass

We're back on Lake Berryessa for a quick evening fishing trip. Fresh off the jerkbait and fluke video from a few days ago, we're back to see how many bass we can catch! Matt hopes to pick up where he left off so he's brought a variety of jerkbaits and topwater options. Of course nothing goes to plan but he adapts and has an awesome evening fishing with finesse swimbaits!

Spring bass fishing is all about adapting to changing conditions. One day its beautiful, the next day its snowing. One day you've got the lake to yourself, the next day there are boats everywhere. If you find that your fish have shut down, look no further than a tiny swimbait like the 2.8 keitech to save the day! These little baits are incredibly adaptable and get bit by everything that swims. Trout, crappie, and even trophy bass, have no problem gulping them! 

Hopefully you enjoyed today's video as much as we did. We were met with challenging conditions but were able to adapt and overcome. Below is a breakdown of the exact equipment we were using and a few bonus baits that are worth trying if your fish are already conditioned to the Keitech. All of these baits go directly to Tackle Warehouse where you can see close up photos and detailed descriptions of each item. 

The Baits In order Of Appearance... 

Topwater- Showerblows 105 (Half Mirror Wakasagi): http://bit.ly/2zIkqUH

Soft Jerkbait- Zoom Super Fluke (Electric Shad): http://bit.ly/2aqys0H

Swimbait- Keitech Fat Swing Impact 2.8" (TW Ghost Shad): http://bit.ly/2ab7s8v

Swimbait Head- Dirty Jigs 1/8 oz Guppy Head 1/0: http://bit.ly/2nyUJRS

Other Great Finesse Swimbaits... 

-Damiki Armor Shad 3": http://bit.ly/2KtPDAT

-Megabass Spark Shad 3": http://bit.ly/2XcLZk4

-Jackall Rhythm Wave 2.8": http://bit.ly/2m78LM9

Matt's Finesse Swimbait Combo...

Rod- Shimano Expride 6'10" ML: http://bit.ly/2osaj3q

Reel- Shimano Stadic FL 1000: http://bit.ly/35Bufnb

Line- Sunline Asegai 10 lb Braid: http://bit.ly/2OR5i2j

Leader- Sunline Sniper 7 lb Fluorocarbon: http://bit.ly/2p7fxju

Mid-Priced Finesse Swimbait Combo... 

Rod- Shimano Zodias 6'8" ML: http://bit.ly/2jOUXAO

Reel- Shimano Ultegra 1000: http://bit.ly/2nfApml

Line- Sunline Sniper Fluorocarbon 8 lb: http://bit.ly/2p7fxju

NEW Tactical Bassin Apparel... 

TacticalBassin Reaper Hoodie: http://bit.ly/2TwBWs7

TacticalBassin Shadow Hoodie: http://bit.ly/2FVD9Rs

TacticalBassin Sun Shirt: http://bit.ly/2TvFMBD

TacticalBassin Hooded Sun Shirt: http://bit.ly/38cVi9G

Amazing Underwater Bass Fishing Footage of Tim Catching a BIG Spotted Bass!

Let's head underwater to watch as Tim fishes for a BIG Spotted Bass with a variety of baits and talks us through what is happening! Want to learn how to catch these big bass? Watching bass behavior underwater is the fastest way to become a better fisherman.

Time on the water has always been the most efficient way to become a great angler. Now that we can head underwater with a GoPro and actually watch the fish's movements and behavioral patterns the time involved in becoming a great angler is shorter than ever before! These videos are more than entertainment. They're a first hand look at the mannerisms that we can't see from the surface.

This particular fish is actually a bed fish. This is a giant female Spotted Bass and she's ready to defend her nest at all costs. Watch how the behavior changes from one bait to the next as she works aggressively to push and carry them away from the bed before finally consuming the baits to stop them. Bed fish of any species can be very aggressive but even in this situation, nothing compares to a Spot.

Tim uses 3 different baits to approach this Spotted Bass...

2.8 Keitech: http://bit.ly/2ab7s8v

Revenge Dart Hedz: http://bit.ly/2cHMZbm

Dirty Jigs Football Jig (Supermat Brown): http://bit.ly/2d0iJbd

Yamamoto Double Tail Grub: http://bit.ly/2db9w1p

6" Osprey Tournament Talon (Reverse Hitch): http://bit.ly/2bqsLS0

Need the gear to throw these baits? Here is what Tim was fishing with for this bass:

Keitech Combo...

Rod- Dobyns 742 Spinning Rod: http://bit.ly/29OVnDa

Reel- Daiwa Certate Spinning Reel: http://bit.ly/2hjRZXg

Line- Sunline 6 lb: http://bit.ly/2p7fxju

Jig Combo...

Rod- GLX 893C: http://bit.ly/2gqziwT

Reel- Shimano Aldebaran 50: http://bit.ly/2fdX1Uy

Line- 50 lb Sufix 832: http://bit.ly/2ae93Ji

Leader- 15 lb Assassin: http://bit.ly/2h4LNjm

Osprey Swimbait Combo...

Rod- 7'6” Expride Heavy: http://bit.ly/2nTq9FL

Reel- Chronarch MGL 150: http://bit.ly/2n8DghB

Line- 65 lb Sufix 832: http://bit.ly/2ae93Ji

Leader- 25 lb Sunline Assassin: http://bit.ly/2h4LNjm

Tim's Sunglasses for Sight Fishing- Eye Surrender: http://bit.ly/2glE3eN

Camera Used- GoPro Hero5: http://bit.ly/2iwZqqU

Spotted bass are amazing predators. They're smarter than largemouth and stronger than smallmouth. What they lack in size they make up for in aggression and in recent years, giant spotted bass have began dominating fisheries across the country, especially lakes like Bullards Bar, Lake Berryessa, Lake Shasta, and Lake Oroville. If you have the opportunity to experience Spotted Bass fishing you need to take the time to try it!

Underwater Footage | Big Spotted Bass Crushing Swimbaits and Jigs!

This Spotted Bass is ready to fight! We positioned a camera below the surface to catch the drama as it unfolds. The bass repeatedly goes on the attack! It viciously eats swimbaits and jigs without abandon. Spotted Bass are amazing predators. They're more aggressive than largemouth and more powerful than smallmouth. This bass is a perfect example of Spotted Bass aggression! 

In case you're wondering, this bass is spawning. Its a 3-4 lb male and is defending its bed. You'll notice though that where a largemouth will sit on its bed and a smallmouth will spin around in circles, a Spotted Bass will actually go on the offense. It rises toward the surface to meet its foe and will not stop until the job is done. 

Baits In This Video...

6" Osprey Tournament Talon (Reverse Hitch): http://bit.ly/2bqsLS0

Dirty Jigs Football Jig (Supermat Brown): http://bit.ly/2d0iJbd
Yamamoto Double Tail Grub: http://bit.ly/2db9w1p

Dirty Jigs Clausen Compact Pitchin Jig: http://bit.ly/2hAIyCV
Sweet Beaver 420: http://bit.ly/29W3RZW

Matt Allen Swimbait Head: http://bit.ly/29RrTYN
Skinny Dipper Swimbait: http://bit.ly/2bf1uEn

Revenge Darter Hedz: http://bit.ly/2cHMZbm
Keitech Fat Swing Impact: http://bit.ly/2ab7s8v

Osprey Swimbait Combo...
Rod- Dobyns 806H Champion: http://bit.ly/2aivwYX 
Reel- Shimano Tranx 300: http://bit.ly/2kYsvRw
Line- 80 lb Sufix 832: http://bit.ly/2ae93Ji
Leader- 25 lb Assassin: http://bit.ly/2h4LNjm

Jig Combo...
Rod- GLX 893C: http://bit.ly/2gqziwT
Reel- Curado 70: http://bit.ly/2apmDJt
Line- 50 lb Sufix 832: http://bit.ly/2ae93Ji
Leader- 15 lb Assassin: http://bit.ly/2h4LNjm

Small Swimbait Combo...
Rod- Zodias 6'10" Medium: http://bit.ly/2cgmMAe
Reel- Chronarch MGL 150: http://bit.ly/2n8DghB
Line- Sufix 832 20 lb: http://bit.ly/2ae93Ji
Leader- 10 lb Assassin: http://bit.ly/2h4LNjm

Its amazing what can be learned from watching underwater bass fishing. Leave a comment and tell us what you learned from this underwater video. 

Crazy Underwater Video!! | Freediving With World Record Bass!

We teamed up with world renowned freediver, Paul Young, to get footage of the World's biggest Spotted Bass in their natural habitat! Watch and learn as we study these schools of fish.

Its amazing to think that you can literally dive underwater and come face to face with spotted bass that are bigger than the world record bass. They're down there, they just haven't been caught yet! 

Huge Thanks to Paul for sharing this amazing underwater fishing video with us! If you'd like to follow Paul's exploits you can see him here:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hubbcap77
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/hubbcap77

View fullsize

Want to shoot your own underwater video? Here's what you'll need:

The Camera: http://bit.ly/2iwZqqU
The Housing: http://bit.ly/2kyPQbn
The Filter: http://bit.ly/2lqsczo

Getting to watch underwater video like this is an amazing way to learn about bass behavior. Whether your lake has spotted bass, largemouth bass, or smallmouth bass it really doesn't matter. The behavior patterns are similar enough that you can gleen knowledge by watching these fish in their natural habitat. 

We were fascinated to see the giant bass breaking away from the schools and using shadows from cover, trees, grass, etc. to conceal themselves. We can definitely put that to work the next time we're trying to figure out where to fish!