never targeted small mouth before - need help

[say_der]

I'll be staying at a resort on a lake with a healthy smallmouth population in a couple weeks. I have never targeted smallies before but am thrilled at the prospect.

I have a decent assortment of topwater baits. That's all I ever use when fishing for largemouth.

What shoudl I add to my arsenel for smallmouth?

Any particular methods for fishing smallies? Or is it pretty much like largemouth?

Would wacky rigged worms work?

Do you typically down size the lure slightly?

Thanks.

[Jim W]

What lake?

[say_der]

Osakis

[HawgTide]

Wacky rigged Senko's are awesome for smallies. Lizards, tubes, Spinnerbaits and Buzzbaits are all good Smallmouth lures. I use the same size lures for Smallies as I do for Largemouths. 3/8 oz Spinnerbaits, 5-7 inch plastics, etc. Some people downsize. Depends on how aggressive they are.

I think the smallies prefer more rocky structure than largemouths. Look for Rocky shorelines, humps or points for smallies as opposed to tree tops and grass beds for Largemouths.

[This message has been edited by HawgTide (edited 06-23-2004).]

[st.crioxfishin]

I agree with HawgTide in the many lures he listed.I'm not much of an expert on smallmouth fishing but my personal favorite would be a tube. I have been fishing the Zumbro River the past few years for smallmouth and have found that a white tube rigged wieghtless works great. Also this summer I was rigging it with a small split shot weight - this might be better for a lake since there isn't any current to help move the tube faster into the strike zone. When the tube falls it has a great action. All I do is cast it out, let it fall for a few seconds untill I think it is in the zone where the fish are holding, then i quick pop it giving it a dying minnow action - I do this about 3 or 4 times then i reel it in and cast it back out again.

This technique worked best for me under low light conditions(overcast days) or in the mornings and evenings, although it could even work on the brightest days. It also worked best around rocky areas.

b. downey