bait help

[Wolfie729]

ok guys I am fishing a small farm pond near my house just starting to really getting into bass fishing its fairly shallow 3-6ft with lots of weeds and the waters not very clear really muddy after a rain any suggestions? the pond is about an acre

[Manxfishing]

I'd try Senko's myself

Wacky rigged with a weedless hook and GP or black

[fiker]

I personally prefer Wacky rigging to Texas rigging like previously said.  If the weeds are pretty think though you might be getting hung up quite a bit.

I'd buy some EWG 3/0 or 4/0 hooks.  (Gamagatsu or any "good" hook)
A package of Yum dingers in one of the green colors.  (Mardi Gras or green pumpkin w/ red flake).  Dingers will hold up better than the actual Senko brand and are cheaper too.
A package of Zoom Horny Toads in white. 

Tie the 3/0 hooks directly to the line.  Texas rig the Dingers.  They  can be fished slowly and allowed to sink. 

The same hook can be used for the toads.  Texas rig them also.  They can be fished across the tops of the weeds. 

Both techniques will require a pretty good hook set.  You have to drive the hook through the plastic to get to the fish.  With the Dinger set the hook quickly.  With the toad wait until you feel the fish and then set the hook.  If you opt for the wacky rig like discussed earlier, the hook set needn't be too hard.  The fish almost hook themselves.

If you bought all this stuff you'd in business for less than $15.

If you can't find the Horny Toads, try just the Dingers. 

[YpsiBass]

I always liked fishing topwater and spinnerbaits on farm ponds.  Farm pond fish aren't used to seeing the lure variety fish on bigger lakes see so you can usually get away with using anything.  As weedy as you say, I'd want to fish a frog or a buzzbait if the topwater bite is on.

[PineLk 49]

Welcome Wolfie!!!

Are you sure bass are in there? If the pond if 3 to 6 ft. deep, chances are that it get froze out in the winter. Usually there wont be enough oxygen to keep fish alive, unless you use a bubbler to keep a spot in the ice open.

But if there are fish in there, nothing is more exciting than seeing a bass hit a frog. Heck... I think I am going fishing now.

There is a wealth of knowledge to be gained on this site and some great people.

Good luck
Dave

[Wolfie729]

Ya im not 100% sure how deep it is seems to run shallow off the exge but might be deep in the middle no one in my family is into fishing so i have been just trial and error so far but thanks for the input this saves me some time im new to this so i will play some more with it. Also colors clear water vs dark and sunny verse cloudy what to choose i always go bright thinking thats a bad idea? As i have only seen caught one smally out there and been there 3-4 times at 2-3hrs a peice used 1 black frog and mostly x raps and some doggin topwaters i think there called and a popper and the one that was caught was by my brother in law on an accidental snag. Not giving up though i know there used to be lots of fish and no one hardly ever fishes it.

[djkimmel]

Smallies in a farm pond is a rare thing unless it is a bigger, deeper farm pond. Farm ponds aren't too inline with smallmouth bass habitat very often.

Do you know what kind of forage is in and around the farm pond: minnows - color of minnows?; bluegills/panfish?; frogs?; large insects?

That can help determine the more productive colors and approaches though I also often keep it simple with farm ponds - green pumpkin/black topwater frogs - the horny toad is good for lots of weeds, and poppers can be good in openings.

Besides the stick worms, a soft minnow bait might be really good too if you like to fish a little more active like a jerk bait.

You may want to alternate between fishing really slow and really fast with lures too to see if it makes a difference.

Have you seen any beds around the edge of the pond? That can give you some idea of how many bass are in the pond along with average sizes.

[Wolfie729]

Havent seen any beds its tough though because the water is very murky and its all see weed as far as i can see havent hardly seen many fish but i think its due to the dark water

[Wolfie729]

Im pretty green to fishing in general so any help on stuff to use when to use what colors videos to watch anything would be appreciated

[Wolfie729]

Anybody?

[Got Fish??]

I'm a pond fisher from way back. I work on grounds that have ponds today. Two years ago. That winter was one of the coldest  in years, i All but one pond froze solid, and I lost all of my fish in those ponds. That had produced  a few 3-4lb bass and many 12"-16" bass. With that said. I use 3 " and 4" green  sinkos and a 2 ot off set hook. No weight. I do use a barrel swivel, then an 8" leader. Hook your warm weedless, cast over the weed beds. Let it sink and pull it  through the weeds slowly. If there are fish in  your pond, that bait will let you  know.

[Wolfie729]

Could you explain this better im pretty ignorant to this not to sound stupid a like a jerk but im not following.

[fuzzygrub1611]

 Lift it then let the bait drop. Dark dirty water means dark lures and baits.

[Wolfie729]

Thanks and i youtubed the offset hook and figured it out do i need a leader or can i tie it?

[bigjc]

You definitely don't want to use a leader in heavy vegitation.

[Got Fish??]

My leader is made from the same line that I have on my reel. It's 8 or 6lb. The swivel keeps your line from twisting and jamming your reel. Use a 2ot  offset worm hook. The point off the hook must be in the worm to make it weedless.