Beginners Guide To Bass Tackle
The sport of fishing sees new members entering into the field all the time. It's hard to say what attracts a person to fishing, especially Bass fishing. However, every year, countless people go out and buy their first fishing rod and reel in hopes of landing a whopper.
I've put together a short List on purchasing your first equipment to begin fishing. You don't need expensive or complicated gear to catch a fish. It's no secret that fishing tackle manufacturers design fishing tackle to catch the fishermen's eye instead of fish. The fishing tackle I used to catch fish all those years ago still catches Bass. Just as good or better than the tackle being pushed on unsuspecting fishermen now.
Fist off, get the notion that fishing gear has to be expensive or complicated to catch fish out of your head. Remember, fish are predators. They're not overly smart and anything that resembles a baitfish gets put on their menu. This point was drove home early in my fishing career. Me and a buddy had been out Bass fishing on a local lake. We hadn't had much success. Back at the boat ramp, an Old Man and a young kid came motoring up. They each had a stringer full of Black Bass.
When they got out, they had a huge stringer of Black Bass. The biggest one was 6 and a half pounds and none were under 2 pounds. I walked over and asked the Old Man what they had used, seeing how my Buddy and I were skunked that morning and we had been using the latest equipment and lures on the Market. The Old Man smiled and showed me his Minnow bucket and said "Why we were using Bass Minnows and Worms"! I also couldn't keep from noticing their very simple rod and reels. They had out fished a couple local Pro's with simple bait and rod and reel set-ups!
The basic fishing equipment you'll need to start catching Bass is a Rod and Reel, line and bait. That's all there is to it. As for rods and reels, your local sporting goods store or Wal-Mart has an excellent selection. I'd suggest a Rod and Reel combo like the Zebco 33 and a matching rod. This should set you back about $25 or so.
Level wind reels take quite a bit of experience and practice to use properly. Spinning reels are not as difficult to use, but you do need to know how to properly cast one or you'll end up with a mess on your hands.
If your rod and reel didn't come with line, then you'll need to get you a spool. Your spincast reel needs what they call a limp line. Both Trilene and Stren make excellent limp lines, just make sure you read the box and make sure it's a limp line. Most lines designed for spinning reels will work well in a spincast reel. Just remember, not all fishing line is created equal and some have specific purposes. If you get a line that is too stiff, it will not work well in your spincast reel.
Don't get complicated with your lure selection. If you're just wanting to catch a stringer of Bass, then live bait is your best option. Most bait stores will sell large minnows. These are generally called Bass Minnows or Bass Shiners. As for lures, keep it simple. A silver spoon such as a Johnson's Silver Weedless Spoon is great. Also, Crappie type jigs work very well on Bass, especially the ones with action tails. Tried and true Rapala floating minnow lures have accounted for countless Bass and other Gamefish.
And that's all you really need to get started Bass Fishing. This set up should cost you less than a $100 and once you have some experience under your belt, you'll find it's pretty easy to outfish the local Pro's. The commercial fishing companies have made it seem like catching a Bass is nearly impossible unless you're using the latest and greatest gear on the Market. Nothing could be further from the truth. Catching Bass is easy and doesn't take a lot of sophisticated equipment!
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Tagged with: bass fishing • fishing • fishing line • fishing reel • fishing rod
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