Bronze Back, Smallies or Smallmouth Bass it matters not what you call them, they are just great fun to catch. You can find them in rivers, lakes and ponds. They will bite on a lot of different types of bait from live to artificial so in this article we are going to look at the four most properly used baits. Of the four, three are my personal favorite.

Crawdads

This one is my favorite when I am hitting the river to fish from the bank for a quick trip. For this type of smallmouth fishing I prefer the live ones and if I can get the soft shell ones the better. I have never missed to catch two to three pounds with this setup but like all live bait it is difficult to fish with and difficult to obtain. The artificial lures are not as effective but you can catch fish on them in lakes and ponds.

Hellgrammites

This one I have not personal used but I have been told it is a killer for bass. Both the live and artificial are hard to find.

Bait Fish

This is another of favorite baits. Bait fish such as minnows, shad and sculpins are very effective but like the crawdads, live bait, is not as easy to use but really can’t be beat. Artificial lures are much easier to use and very effective. They are not hard to find like the hellgrammites. Some of the best in the artificial lures are the KickTail minnow, Repala, the Zara Spook and the Wally Diver.

Worms

Worms, the go to bait for any type of fish and are great for smallmouth bass. This is another of my favorite. Live worms rigged on a set of gang hooks is very effective. Artifical worms are just as effective as live worms and are hard for smallmouth to turn down.

As I said at the beginning there are three that I use for smallmouth and have the best luck with.

Happy fishing and be save.

William

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