There is definitely a prevailing belief with bass anglers that BIG BAIT = BIG FISH! Just wondering what you guys think, but me personally, I think there is too much emphasis on this. I'm NOT saying a humongous swim bait is not a good choice to target a lake record, but I have seen time and time again where small fish (I'm talking some NOT even keepers hit large baits), and I have most definitely had the opposite occur. I've landed many fish over 8 pounds, and even DD fish on "smaller baits".

The reasons this thought has occurred is I recently fished FALCON, and was AMAZED at the small fish killing bigger baits. The voracious nature of a bass is perhaps one of the things that makes this creature so intriguing. After seeing ONE POUND bass hit large lures, I believe there is NO BAIT too big. I just think there is too much emphasis on "BIGGER IS BETTER". Seems like many anglers do not see the potential for a trophy on more a finesse style bait, and they underestimate the potential of a large catch.

It's an age old question. Sometimes I eat a huge meal and sometimes I snack. I don't think fish are any different.

There are a lot of variables at play here. Time of year, the lake, fishing pressure etc... In general fish no doubt tolerate downsizing more than upsizing. When you are after an old sow though that has seen 100 5 inch senko's every day of her life, I do think a big bait can give you an edge at the right time of year.

Fish over 10lbs eat less often and prefer larger meals. Predatory instinct will cause them to eat smaller forage but in general, they target the big stuff. Gizzard shad, perch, crappie, small bass, etc

When bait fish are schooling at the surface (or anytime that you can see them) I try to match the size of my bait to the size of the bait fish. Good fishing!

You say this like it is a certainty. Do you have any data or other type of solid proof to support your claim? I understand the logic, a fish wants to consume as many calories as it can while expending as few as possible. Eating one big thing takes a lot less energy than eating 20 small things. However, if you don't have any data to support your claim, it is purely conjecture.

Since most fish are "wall eyed" . . . eyes sort of looking left and right, then no mirrors to gauge their own reflected size or any way of knowing their own age, my guess is maybe big fish do "learn" just a bit from hitting too large forage and bouncing off of them.

I guess figuring out they can't get something in their mouths is what eventually orders the size of what fish eat as they mature. So, they are attracted to things they can eat, size-wise, what they can swallow.

On these large swim baits, friend Sam has started throwing these and he has had a lot of bass trail behind as he reels his swim bait in. He can see them in the water. Many never get around to biting, not yet with the still cold water here in Texas, but they did bite well recently on a trip to Mexico.

But, I wonder if what the trailing bass is thinking, what little they do, is what is this other fish up to? Is he chasing food? If so, I think I'll tag along to see what has him on the move. I suppose at some point after large fish are sort of "turned on" to the action of seeing a fish doing something other than paddling in place, it decides the large swim bait, itself, looks like a target meal and takes a shot at it.

It seems to work. Carl up in N.J. migrated over to large realistic looking swim baits last season. He catches less fish ow . . . but they are much larger.

Brad

In my experience, there are times and situations where the big bait big bass thing is true. I fish pretty much only for big bass and I bet I use a big bait about 50 percent of the time. I don't know about objective data but that's just my general thought. Of course define big bait- I'm not talking about a 12 in swimbait the size of a 1 lb trout here, just extra large squarebills, 10-12 in worms, over 6 in swimbaits, large bulky jigs, etc..
Just yesterday I was at a private lake known for big bass- I started using a 6 in senko trig, caught too many little ones, then switched to a 12in zoom mag worm and caught several big ones. Late in the day I switched back to the senko and caught the biggest one on it, so who knows!
I always think they bite because of feeding, guarding, or reaction/reflex and pretty much only those three reasons. I guess I think about big or small baits for big ones with the idea of what type of strike I'm trying to get.

Dude has caught two sharelunkers and a buttload of fish over 10 on big baits. I'd tend to take his comments as better than pure conjecture.

Just sayin....

So you agree with Jaret, or you don't?

It's fishin', man. There is no exact science to it. If there was, we'd all bring in 30lb. bags every time out. You play the logical percentages.

Ask Big Bass Dreams what he thinks about big bait=big fish he only makes his living selling products and taking people on trips teaching them the way of the big swim bait, but look up his videos and it can make you a believer!

Catching big fish doesn't make you a biologist. His post was about the consumption habits and predatory behavior of bass. He says "fish over 10 pounds eat less often." There is no way you could observe or prove this simply from angling, so I'm just hoping he has some data to back it up if he's going to make these claims.

Just sayin....

You will find you can learn a lot of useful information on this forum if your willing to take the time to do so, information including tips and tricks, scientific studies, general attributes, spawning activities, locations as well as the basic feeding habits of LMB are all just a few clicks away. For some it is easy and only a matter of asking questions and engaging with other members in thoughtful discussion and participation, most of the knowledgeable people in here are happy to help out. For others it may be a bit more difficult and may require unplugging a keyboard resulting in more reading and less typing......... Just sayin.

There are dozens of articles based on biological study that reference the feeding habits of LMB which are also just a click away.

http://www.jimporter.org/articles/article59.shtml

[Quote] Adult bass have a diet that consists of mostly other fish, such as threadfin shad, gizzard shad, bluegill, golden shiners, smaller bass, etc. They are basically opportunistic feeders that consume whatever is most readily available at the time. Frogs, salamanders, snakes, mice, turtles, and even birds are among items that have been found in bass stomachs. Our fishery biologist friends further tell us that "adult largemouth bass do not feed continuously. Once a meal is ingested, the bass may not feed again for hours or days, depending on the size of the prey that was eaten. In general, larger bass eat larger prey, so the time span between meals is usually longer. [Quote]

Wait...you want someone to actually do their own research instead of just typing " I hope you have data to back up your claims "

Interesting concept.

A number of the SALs have been caught by crappie fishermen on crappie gear. . .light line and tiny jigs mostly. . .there is definitely something to using a VERY discreet bait to not spook a big girl.