3/25/2023: Friends Larry (lenahorse) and Graham fished with me today from 9 AM to 12 noon, then Graham had to leave, and larry and I fished on until 4:15 PM. We caught about 30 in the morning and 70 more in the afternoon: 93 sandies, 4 short hybrids, a yellow bass, a crappie, and a very fat 22 1/2 inch hybrid. We used silver and pink/white bladed Mepps #4 spinners. Larry caught the big hybrid on the pink/white Mepps. We never found a huge school of fish - just a series of small groups on several different structures. Most of the fish were caught in about 20 fow fishing straight down on the bottom. We caught a few casting and retrieving including the big hybrid. Here's Larry with his big hybrid:

Nice post and fish. Good job as always.

A friend texted me Saturday that he wanted to black bass fish on Sunday. I told him I would pick him up at his dock at noon. We fished for a little over an hour and then we switched to sandbass. With the weekend boat traffic and some wind yesterday, there was some chop on the water. That's when I found out he was hungover and wasn't feeling well. After 30 minutes, I took him back to his dock, dropped him off and headed back out. I saw some fish in 21 - 23 FOW on Long Ridge east but they didn't seem all that interested in my Mepps. I then went to Long Ridge west and found some good schools of fish roaming in 23 FOW. They didn't seem interested in the horizontal presentation but were very receptive to the vertical presentation. I used what Bob Maindelle calls slow smoking tactic but I used a Mepps #4. The schools would come in waves and the timing was very predictable. I didn't get any hits on the fall. They hit aggressive when I was cranking straight up off the bottom. I caught 16 pretty quick and then I came in so I could finish watching the Dell Match Play tournament.

What is his slow-smoking tactic?

3/27/2023: I took TFFer Ron (Airborne82) out this morning at 8:30, and we stopped at 2 PM still catching fish. We caught 154 - all white bass. The main objective was to teach Ron how to catch them with a Mepps #4 spinner. He copied my technique right off and started catching fish. By the time we stopped, he had the technique down. We caught fish at Saint Annes West, Saint Annes Drop-off, Crappie Island Flats, Pole Dance Point, and Long Ridge. We found the most fish at Crappie Island Flats in 20 fow where we stopped because there were numerous gulls and loons sitting in the water. No fish hitting the surface but plenty on side-scan. Also, plenty of fish at Pole Dance Point showing up well on side-scan in 12 to 18 fow. Likewise, we found a good school on side-scan at Long Ridge in 24 fow. We caught them steadily there until we hit our target number of 153 then came in. Ron used silver-bladed Mepps, and I used both silver and white/pink-bladed Mepps. Most fish were caught vertically jigging and lifting the Mepps on the bottom.




This is my sonar zoomed down. Not the best example. But the bumps on the bottom were fish. Most of the time they were all the way across the screen at Long Ridge.

From Bob’s post in the Trading Post section. https://texasfishingforum.com/forums/ubbthreads.php/topics/14672064/1

Slow-Smoking - Water temperatures 55-62F: When fish are very aggressive (potentially chasing bait all the way to the surface) and are seen throughout the entire water column on sonar, drop the slab to bottom and crank it at least half way up through the water column at a moderate, steady cadence, about 1 handle turn per second. When you feel a bite, resist the urge to set the hook and just keep reeling. The fish will hook themselves. If you are using LiveScope and you see a fish chasing your bait, it is CRUCIAL that you keep right on reeling until the fish overtakes the lure and hooks itself. Do not speed up, slow down, hesitate, stop, or in any other way change the cadence of your retrieve while you are being chased.

That's a good description. The rate of retrieve will vary slightly depending upon the equipment you are using and the mood of the fish. The only difference was that I was using a #4 silver Mepps Aglia. I'll try to get some screen shots posted later today on what my electronics were showing.

I have watched/read on your Mepps technique, but have not seen anything on your vertical presentation.. is the method similar, let it hit the bottom, real 5-6 turns, and let it sink back down? I just recently moved to Cedar Creek and have been out fishing about 5 times with not much luck. I am new to hybrid/sand bass fishing, especially on this lake so any advice is appreciated. Love reading your posts and hope to being catching half as many as you soon.

Geeseranger; welcome to the forum. You should see the fish on your electronics. Raise your spinner at a slow steady pace until you have reached a depth above the fish. It is important to use a tool that attracts the fish to your boat like a thumper or a splasher. The technique works best when you pull your lure through 10 or more feet of fish that have stacked up under your boat. Check on U-tube for videos on how to use these tools. It may sound strange to use noise to attract the fish but it is a game changer for improving your catch rate.

The first pic is from my Humminbird on the console. The other 2 pics are from my bow mounted Garmin. The Garmin shows what the schools looked like as they passed by. There were some larger schools but I didn't have my phone beside me to get a picture.

I would let the Mepps fall to the bottom and then crank it straight up about 6 time with just enough speed to get the blade spinning. If I didn't get bit, I would just let it fall back to the bottom and repeat the process.

Welcome. Where are you on the lake? If we can coordinate it, I'm sure we can get together and fish. I'm sure others would do the same.

I am in the Gun Barrel area off one of the coves. I would love to get together and go fishing. I have a-lot to learn it seems...

I'll shoot you a PM with more questions.

geeseranger: My verticle technique for cold water (winter-early spring) fishing is different from warm water (late spring-fall) fishing. For warm water, I locate fish on structure down on the bottom in 20 to 28 fow and park the boat directly over them. Drop the #4 Mepps down to the bottom, point the rod toward the line, and crank the Mepps up 6 to 8 cranks of the reel. Start at medium speed and adjust to the speed that works best - gets the most strikes. That speed can vary day to day. For cold water, the fish are finicky and will not chase the bait very far. So, what works best is drop the Mepps #4 to the bottom, leave a slight bit of slack in the line, jig the Mepps with the rod tip 2 to 4 times sharply but only move the rod tip about 6 to 8 inches, then immediately lift the rod up about 3 to 4 feet just fast enough to make the Mepps spin. Or move the Mepps sideways with the rod tip 3 to 6 feet. Keep repeating until you feel the bite, which can be very light - then set the hook. I keep my eye on the sonar screen so I know there is fish under me. Making a little noise definitely helps bring and keep fish under the boat. I use my foot mostly to tap the boat floor. I don't have a splasher, but friends do and they work well. Sitting still as I do, I am not having much success with the thumper. I don't use it except in 27+ for or if I am trolling or drifting. I have taken a lot of folks out and demonstrated the Mepps technique and would be happy to take you out as well. PM me and we'll try to set up a date.