Here are some solid bass fishing money saving tips to you catch bass without spending a fortune. Reading magazines, watching bass fishing shows, and seeing what’s out there online can get you quickly shelling out dollars for bass fishing. Bass boats are now costing upwards of 30,000 dollars. Plus, you have to rig your boat up with the highest grade electronics for both the front and the back. Then you hear you need a special rod and reel for every single technique. Each reel also needs a different line spooled up on it. Plus, you need baits and tackle to put on the end of those lines. If you are feeling overwhelmed on where to start, and don’t want to take a line of credit on your home equity to go fishing, this post is for you.
There is a lot of gear out there, and a lot of marketing to drive you all over the place. It’s hard to know what’s best. The old saying is often true, “you get what you pay for,” when fishing. Still though, there is definitely a fine line between cheap and breakable, or quality and durability. Here are some of the best quality low cost items to start you in the right direction for catching bass.
First, you definitely need a rod and reel to start. Most bass fisherman prefer to use a bait casting rod and reel because a bait casting set up can throw the heavier baits better. Oftentimes, a spinning rod and reel won’t cut the mustard for the beefy ½ oz. jigs, and the ¾ oz. spinnerbaits you need for catching a big bass
A solid all-around working bait casting set up starts with a 7’ medium/ heavy action rod
. A 7 foot rod will cast further than the shorter counter parts. With a medium/heavy action you will have enough beef to sling bass out of heavy cover, and it will also provide you a little give for grinding crankbaits along the bottom. There are two rod brands that carry higher quality and lower priced rods. The Shimano Sellus series
and the Abu Garcia Vendetta series fit this bill nicely. These are both quality rods, and are price under $80.00, compared to some higher end rods in the $100–$200 range.
Next, you need a bait casting reel for your rod. There are so many variables in choosing a reel, such as gear ratios, what hand you reel with, and drag systems. Keep it simple. Look at the ball bearing count for determining smoothness, the higher count is typically better. As for gear ratios, a 6:4:1 ratio works perfectly fine for retrieving all kinds of baits.
A good reel to get you casting further and more accurately is crucial for bass fishing. You often get what you pay for with reels. Once you start dropping below the $75 mark on bait casting reels, things become cheap, and you lose out on the quality. For under a $100 there are two bait casting reel brands which can’t be beat. Lew’s
makes some amazing well priced reels that don’t skimp out on quality. Shimano reels
also work really well, and you can find some decently priced models. Give either of these brands a try and you won’t be disappointed.
Next on your list of must haves is fishing line for your bait casting reel. Everyone talks about fluorocarbon and how great it is. They are right, but it is expensive. A good trick to get the most line for your buck is to fill up your reel halfway with a cheaper line from your garage. Then, you can tie a double-uni knot to attach your fluorocarbon line to the old line, and finish spooling it up. This helps you save on using too much fluorocarbon line, and you can get a couple spools filled out of one package of line. Another option to save dollars is to go with a co-polymer fishing line
. These are usually a little cheaper. The co-polymer lines don’t have as much sensitivity, but if you aren’t planning on making a living bass fishing they will work just fine.
For line size don’t get yourself into a tizzy. Go with a 12 pound test line on your bait casting reel, and you can fish the world out of it. A main key is to use a translucent or green color. This way the fish don’t notice your line. Line color makes a huge difference. I remember a day with someone who was using a blue mono-filament line, and I was using a clear line with the exact same baits tied on. The clear line caught double what the blue tinted line did. The best colors in any water clarity are the clear green lines which are extremely hard to see in clear green water, and also the non-tinted translucent lines.
Spending money on baits can get out of control. Here are a couple things to consider for keeping costs down to a minimum. More bass are caught fishing with soft plastics than any other technique out there. Arm yourself with a couple different craw imitations, and some plastic worms to keep the spending to a minimum. These baits always catch bass. When choosing your colors, go with the basic green pumpkin or black and blue. These color combinations always work.
Here are some awesome soft plastics you can fish with confidence that are reasonably priced. The Zoom baby brush hawg
and the Berkley Havoc pit boss
are great craw dad imitations to use. For worms, a Yamamoto senko 
and the Zoom trick worm 
catch some solid bass. All of these baits work almost year round as well. Save some more bucks by going with a lead bullet weight
instead of tungsten, and Texas rig those soft plastics on a 3/0 offset worm hook
. You are in business with these 4 simple bait selections, and you haven’t had to sell a kidney.
Can’t afford a boat? No problem. Do some Shore Fishing for Bass! Bass primarily live in shallow water in the rocks and cover next to the banks you typically can reach from shore. The key mistake a lot of novice bass fisherman make is they don’t move and cover enough water to find fish when shore fishing. Make a cast, walk 10 feet down the shore, and then make another until you find the bass. Don’t forget to make casts right next to the bank before you walk to your next spot. Bass will often sit along the banks to spawn this time of year. Plus, the shoreline offers great cover to ambush insects and creatures that fall into the water from the bank.
When fishing from shore look for banks with a 45 degree angle sloping into the water with lots of cover. Bass are predators, and they love to ambush their prey using rocks and brush as a spring board to pounce. Make casts with your Texas rigged soft plastics into areas like this and prepare to get your line stretched.
You don’t need all the expensive gear to go out and enjoy the sport of bass fishing. Start small, and as your passion grows gradually add more things to your arsenal to try. Now is the perfect time of year to go out and catch some bass. Hopefully, these little tidbits of info on gear selections at an affordable price should help you enjoy the outdoors, and you won’t deplete your children’s college savings accounts.
As Always,
Stay Stoked!
The links above and below in this post are affiliate links were you can pick up baits, rod’s, reels, line, and anything else mentioned in this post. Krakenbass receives a small percentage of the sales through these links. I only use links to baits, and gear I personally trust and know work. I put these links to make them helpful for you, and not for the small amount I make for the sale of the products. I hope these products can help you “krak” some bass! Thank you for your support.
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