When the water is cold, you very well may catch the biggest bass of your life. Besides perhaps a swimbait or a jig, a hard-plastic jerkbait is one of the best bets for a personal best. One of the biggest reasons jerkbaits excel in cold water is the bait stays in the strike zone for long periods of time. Suspending models can be paused for up to a minute to entice sluggish bass. A jerkbait also imitates the baitfish that typically die-off in large numbers in cold water.
Your retrieve cadence is key, so experiment with your pattern of twitching the bait until the fish tell you what they want. As you figure out how quickly the bass want the bait worked, you can actually cover a good amount of water with this technique as well.
Jerkbaits are most effective when the water temperature is below 55 degrees and visibility is at least 2 feet. Here are some other key guidelines to effective jerkbait fishing.
Where to fish a jerkbait?
- Steep banks on the main lake
- Points at the entrances of spawning pockets
- Anywhere you see suspended baitfish on your electronics
- Try and figure out what type of rock or bottom composition the fish are relating to (i.e. bluff banks, chunk rock, gravel, mud) and focus there. Transitions between different types of rock are often best.
Equipment
- Baitcasting reel with 6:4:1 gear ratio
- 10- to 12-lb. Vicious Elite fluorocarbon, depending on desired depth and cover. The lighter the line, the deeper depth the bait will reach.
- MHX SB812 baitcasting rod by Mud Hole Custom Tackle. Has an X-Fast fast action with medium power.
- I like a 6’9” jerkbait rod with a fairly short handle so clothing doesn’t get in the way when working the jerkbait. The short handle also helps prevent wrist fatigue.
- For baits, my favorites are the Megabass Vision 110 and the Lucky Craft Pointer.
Colors
- On sunny days, use more neutral colors with transparency.
- On cloudy days, use gold and brighter colors with more flash and color.
You can fish a jerkbait with the rod tip pointed either up or down. I fish it with the rod tip down, so I use a shorter rod to eliminate hitting the water with the rod tip. Your stature must also be considered for rod-length selection. The rod guides are crucial in rod efficiency and need to be set up specifically with the flex of the rod tip. That’s the benefit in custom rod building. I use a custom rod that I built myself on an MHX blank. As a matter of fact, I build all of the rods I use.
Learn everything you need to know about the benefits and satisfaction of custom rod building at www.mudhole.com. For more about Elite Series Pro Brandon Lester, visit www.BrandonLesterFishing.com or www.Facebook.com/ProAnglerBrandonLester.