Bass Fishing ArticlesWhat's That Buzzing Sound? By Jim Crowley One of the most exciting and heart-stopping strikes in fresh water fishing occurs as the result of fishing a buzz bait. The lure in itself is nothing but a wire with a lead head, a prop looking type of blade, a hook and a skirt of some kind. It looks like absolutely nothing in nature that swims. It sure does not look edible. On its best day hanging in my tackle box it looks like a Christmas ornament. (Which my wife will still not let me hang on the tree!) Anyway, this lures ability to call fish from a distance or entice a rather lethargic fish into committing a major life mistake is legendary. The buzz bait also has built in anticipation. Even before it hits the water, we are thinking about the strike, the explosion, the hole left in the water where the lure once was. It’s exciting, primal and exhilarating to the senses. It can also be frustrating due to over reactions on the strike, missed strikes and poor execution. How do we make this lure more effective? As with all jobs, we look at the tools involved and see what we have to work with. The buzz bait itself is often overlooked and one buzz bait works just like any other one is a common misconception. There are buzz baits with flat heads and ones that have bullet shaped heads and those with a bullet shaped heads, I tend to stay away from. Flat surfaces plain easier, faster and more effectively, thus I use one with a flat almost boat hull type of shape. The Strictly Bass Lures (www.strictlybasslures.com) Diamond Buzz has been a favorite of mine for as long as I can remember. Its flat, lift efficient head is actually set below the inline of the lure so that the head and hook ride below the waters surface. This not only gives a quick lift to the lure upon retrieve, it allows the fish to come to the lure instead of up and over a hook of a standard straight inline buzz bait. A more effective hooking area is the result. The most productive set up I have found for fishing buzz baits includes a 7-foot medium heavy rod that has a fast tip combined with a high-speed reel. The new Pflueger Summit bait cast reel has a blistering 7,1:1 retrieve. Why is that so important? Here are several reasons. First, the quicker the retrieve speed, the slower you can reel the lure, while having it stay on the surface. When your not consecrating on cranking the reel so fast to keep the lure moving, you can focus on the lure and areas that could provide a strike. Lastly if a fish misses the lure, it’s easier to quickly retrieve the lure and make another cast to the area where the fish reacted to your buzz bait. A 7-foot medium heavy rod assist in long cast, more leverage on any fish and also gives you the ability to easily pitch the lure to cover that is close by. This is a highly effective way to fish a buzz bait and rarely used by most anglers. Pitching a buzz bait, just like pitching any lure, allows you to cast accurately, quickly and precisely. It works with jigs, and plastics and under the right conditions, is just as effective with buzz baits! For years, I used 17 to 20 pound monofilament line and although that line style and test worked, there were times when the lure did not cast as far as I would have liked, and backlashes were more frequent when it was windy. Over the last several years I have went to braided line. 30 pound braided line has the diameter of 12-pound test monofilament. The braid cast a lot easier, is not affected by the wind as much and if a fish dives down into thick cover, it’s not a matter of, if I get the fish but when I get the fish. Braided line allows me the strength to not have to worry about break offs in heavy cover. Here is another over looked trick that if you do not already do this, will really help you out. In order for the lure to rise quicker to the surface and then give you the ability to reel it slower, so that is stays in the strike zone longer, bend the blades in. We have all cast past our target, like we are suppose to and than reel quickly to get the lure up and running. Not quick enough, the lure is still below the surface passing the intended strike zone and maybe even spooking the fish. Once you bend, or “cup” the blades, merely raising your rod tip will get the lure up and running. Slowly turning the handle on a high-speed reel will keep your buzz bait in the strike zone longer and at a slower speed. This all adds up to not only more strikes, but more consistent hook ups as well. The buzz bait is one of the most exciting big fish top water lures there are. What jigs are to vertical presentations, buzz baits are to horizontal presentations. You may not always catch the most fish, but presented the right way you can definitely put the odds in your favor for a bigger fish. When you focus on that buzz bait coming over that log and it clears the last of the branches, you see the swirl, see the explosion and feel the power of a big fish, there will be no need to ask yourself, what’s that buzzing sound? |