pre-spawn bass

[sweetwater]

Would you guys throw those now or later? What would be a good technique to try now? I may be going Sunday and its going to be cold so I figured I would need a slower presentation like a jig or jerkbait.

If I could find a 45 degree sloped clay bank with some sun shining and a little wave action going on with it I wouldn't hesitate to throw a Bomber Model A green crawfish crankbait on it or something similar.

[enrhb]

Listen to " sweetwater's" advice. It's all about the water temperature. They like the 50's to 60's range. So before the water reaches that range the bass will start moving from winter areas to a spawn area. Staging on points visible and underwater points on the way to spawn areas. Not all bass spawn at the same time. Some bass have farther to move from their winter vertical edges to spawn areas those are the ones you will find staging on points along the path to spawn area. Other bass will need to only move a short distance from deeper water to a hard bottom spawn area. They seem to have been in the 20 feet range the last couple of months according to what I have seen and friends of mine have reported. So that would be a good range to start from and follow a path to nearest hard bottom spawn. They are catchable right now. Try the Alabama rig in the cooler water. I can refer you a friend of mine forum article with pictures that have been catching bass all winter on the A-rig.

[GobyPuck]

Right now...your jerkbait over humps, underwater points, along rip rap, over brush piles. Fish it slow, I like a double jerk followed by a long pause. Also I pinch a small split shot on the front treble to make it suspend with its head down, I even like it to sink very very very slowly almost suspended. My favorite color is clown in clear to lighly stained water, I don't fish 1 in dirty water.
Also a crankbait around rip rap that gets alot of sun with a little wave action is deadly this time of year. Colors range from what water color your fishing but I love a red craw in stained water and a green chartuese craw or brown in clear water.