Blade bait-What’s your water temp when they start to shine?

[creekchub]

I am up here in the Northeast water temps finally got down to 55- but I still have not seen that blade bait bite pick up yet....... I’m guessing it needs to be cooler water? What water temps do you start to see that bite really pick up and stay steady?

[basscat21]

I throw it year round, I had a couple time this summer it worked real well in 25ft. I lkie the Molix 1/2.

[Somata]

Low 50s is a good start here, but the bite really seems to take off when it dips below 50. Its about my favorite time of year...love throwing that thing. Buckeye Jiggin Blade in 1/2oz is my fave. I throw the gold a lot...feel like it does better for the cloudy days that roll through in the late fall.

[e-tec]

Just above the temperature where the baitfish start getting stunned from the cold. That usually happens around 39-44F depending on the amount of current.

[PaRiverRat]

Just above the temperature where the baitfish start getting stunned from the cold. That usually happens around 39-44F depending on the amount of current.

^^this^^ blades will catch them year round, but they are money during this time frame

[plbass]

Upper 40's - lower 50's. seems best.

[LennyB]

55 degrees is prime Lipless Crankbait and Jerkbait (fished slow) on the flats time. The blade bait starts shining when the those fish move off the feeding flats and head to where they are going to winter. That is usually low 50's all the way down to ice-up in those wintering areas.

[Grahamb]

Good video from Seth Feider where he walks through what baits he uses for smallmouth as Fall water temps fall. He says blade baits from 48-42.


https://www.wired2fish.com/fall-fish...allmouth-bass/

[jigman51]

Good video from Seth Feider where he walks through what baits he uses for smallmouth as Fall water temps fall. He says blade baits from 48-42.


https://www.wired2fish.com/fall-fish...allmouth-bass/

Good video.

[creekchub]

TTT........
what’s your go to weight size - I use 3/8 a lot last fall and winter it seems like every time I went out the wind blew and 3/8 ounce was not enough weight couldn’t feel the bait in that wind -you like half or three-quarter ounce weight better?

[basscat tyler]

I throw 1/2oz 99% of the time. This is typically in 15’ or less. I usually start throwing them once the temps get around 45 or less. Caught fish on them today in 6-8’ of water. Water temps were 36-37 degrees

[creekchub]

That’s interesting you were catching them shallow I only seem to catch them in water deeper than 12 feet.That’s interesting you were catching them shallow I only seem to catch them in water deeper than 12 feet -Sounds like when it gets super cold they can excel in the shallower water!

[basscat tyler]

Well shallow is a relative term. Where I was fishing is a small stream with an old mill dam. So it’s a little reservoir. 8’ is the deepest water around. This “reservoir” is maybe 10-15 acres. Most of it is less than 5’ deep. So we were fishing “deep” in this particular body of water. Technique still works. I tried a 1/4oz blade and never got a bite. 1/2oz started hitting fish right away

[itsahog]

Are the Molix worth double the money than a Cabela’s or other blade baits? Just curious, what do you use?

[basscat tyler]

I use the Do It mold for blade baits and make my own. I’ve bought some in the past, but you tend to lose quite a few (or at least I do). I had bought some from amazon a couple of years ago and they worked well. Fairly cheap too

[Greenwing1]

What retrieve do y'all like best? Never used blade baits but after reading this, I need to try some.

[Ben Danbleume]

Got a buddy that throws a blade during spawn...

[Squire]

there is a pattern in August on my lake in Virginia where bass will become more pelagic and follow the large bait schools around that the Stripers are hammering. I fish blade baits and Carolina rigged Yamamoto d-shads under the schools. The bass basically are eating the dying baitfish. I have expanded that pattern and now like to fish under any school I see arches thrashing thru. Blade baits work well. In a FOM Tx on Erie in a late September, our pattern was blade baits on the rock shoals outside of Presque Isle Bay (Erie Pa). We caught everything that swims, from Smallmouth, largemouth, drum, to very many very large walleye. We were catching 40lbs (5 biggest) of Walleye every day and even had locals quizzing us because they were not getting much activity trolling......my biggest lesson in fishing is never allow yourself to stuck inside the box when it comes to techniques and locations....

[ZethKinnettFishing]

Whenever the bass start going deep I start throwing it regardless of temp. I do keep it in mind year round however for spotted bass when I see them feeding on tiny shad a blade bait or tail spin works great. Where I am now there are no shad. The bass don't go shallow then deep. For the most part they just go out deep 50-60'. This year this happened around the 57 degree water temp range. Current temp is 57. So I am now throwing the blade bait. The bite sucks regardless of what I'm throwing now and I love a blade bait. Binsky!!!

[ECobb91]

Just caught my first couple blade bait bass last weekend. Water temps were cold (in a jon boat without electronics so no idea the actual temp) but air temps were 18-35deg that day. Cold enough in the morning where after 5 casts the guides were so frozen you had to clear the ice out of the guides because you wouldn’t be able to cast more than a few feet. They were wrecking that bait too. All I did was let it hit bottom, then stroke the bait up with the rod, and let it fall back on slack line. No idea if that’s how they’re supposed to be used but it worked.

the odd thing was that once the sun came up and the guides weren’t freezing, they stopped eating the blade bait and were eating a swimbait. Never got another bit on it the remainder of the day