So I was just doing a little spring cleaning on my boat, and it got me thinking about my on-boat tackle system. The system is my way of coping with the hundreds of tackle manufacturers out there and the thousands of choices in lure selection, which could all too easily lead to hours just trying to figure out what bait to use on a given day. Years ago I started sorting all my lures by type, and this evolved into a much more specific system. It’s 4 basic steps to stop the insanity.
1. Take all your baits from either your tackle box or bass boat and lay them out where you can see them.
2. Identify your favorites, and set them to one side. Put anything new and untried into another pile. Finally, take the ones you don’t use and the ones you have used and do not like OUT of your tackle box, or OFF the boat, and set them aside.
What to do with the stuff you don’t use? Well, unless I am attached to it I get rid of it. I use Ebay all the time, which has the added bonus of giving me cash to try new, experimental baits. I also set stuff aside to trade with friends, or to give to friend’s kids to start their tackle box. Just because it does not work for me, does not mean it might not work for someone else.
3. Start breaking down the remaining lures into types: crank baits, jigs, swimbaits, soft plastics, top-water, jerk baits, etc. The next step is to organize those into specific groups by running depth, by size and color ( or however you decide).
It’s easiest to start with your favorite baits - the ones you use 90% of the time. Take jigs, for example: I fish a lot of jigs. It has to be one of my favorite baits, but if you were to look on my boat you would never guess this is the case. I only have one Plano jig box, and I usually only have four colors. Why? These are my confidence colors. I do three types of jig fishing: deep structure fishing, shallow fishing, and flippin’. I don’t need ten brands and 50 color combos. I won’t preach one weight, size, color or any of that - this is going to vary between anglers, and everybody’s got their favorites - but I will say to limit yourself to whatever works best for you.
This system ensures that when I pick up my rod, no matter what bait is on it, I am not hearing that little voice in the back of my head saying, “are you sure?”
4. Finally, create a place in your tackle box, or a container on your boat that just has new stuff. I have a separate box on my boat labeled “new baits to try”. I will usually try new baits when I am fun fishing, and at that point, decide whether I am going to spend more time with it. If you find a winner, trade it out for something that has not been performing.
That’s it. As an example of how I have applied ‘the system‘, here’s a look into my crank bait boxes: I like to keep a good supply of just a handful of baits.
- Norman DD 22’s & 10’s - an older, proven bait
- Luhr Jenson Speed Traps
- Lucky Craft LV 500’s
- Specialty Tackle Junior D’s and Big Bites
. . . And that’s it.
When you think about it, what do you have to lose? Try this system, and who knows, the tackle weight off your boat may even save you gas and make your boat faster.
Recent Comments