Big Baits Get Big Fish

Big Baits Get Big Fish
— by Eric Elshere


Big baits. These lures get a lot of attention these days. There are a ton of different types of baits that you can fish. Our personal favorites are 10’’ BASSTRIX and the 9’’ Osprey. These baits get bit. People think that these baits are too heavy or take too much work to use. This can be true if you aren’t using the right tackle.

To throw these baits we recommend a rod no shorter than 7 feet long. It should be Med. Heavy to extra heavy. You need a good reel that won’t break down on you. When throwing the heavy lures you need heavy line. We recommend at least 20 pound test line. For throwing the 10” BASSTRIX you should use 25 pound line. If you are throwing the 6” or the 8” still throw it on 20 pound test. The 9’’ Osprey is a bit lighter and it can be used on 20 or 25 pound just as well.

When using the BASSTRIX Swim baits you can use them in hundreds of ways. Larry and I prefer to cast it out and bounce the bottom with it. If you see big arches on the bottom, you can rest assure they will bite that bait on


the bottom. If not, try reeling it at a slow to medium speed right under the surface or just off the bottom. When fishing this bait look for a drop off or where they have a good concentration of trout. This will indeed make a difference. The Osprey is a shallow running bait and will sink very slowly. Therefore it can be used around weeds, sticks, rocks, and all other good stuff. We like to throw it around rock walls early in the morning. This is when you will get bit the best. Of course there is the time when you will see the bass chasing the trout on the surface. This is when you can get bit pretty darn easily. Throw past the target and bring it through the area.

When you get bite. This is a very neat time. Whatever you do don’t set the hook hard and upward. Reel as fast as you can and sweep the rod to the side. If you set the hook you will rip the bait out of the basses mouth or skin hook him. When you sweep the rod the hook is in for good. Make sure that you have a good friend by to grab the fish. If not, have a big net right by your side. The bass you hook could be that fish of a lifetime. It was true to Larry and I as we both caught our personal bests at 12# Eric, and 13.8# Larry. Get yourself some BASSTRIX and Osprey’s and hold on. The results are phenomenal.