When we all begin ultralight bass fishing, we have the typical overload of questions. Once we venture into the bass fishing aisle at our favorite store, we are then overwhelmed with the choices. Questions flood into my inbox asking me about lures, most of them are good questions. However, sometimes, people ask me about the scam baits, and this part hurts me. This is why I have taken the time to put together this list of must have baits, that I believe belong in your tackle box!

The first, is an all time favorite, and definate classic by any definition. Brought around in 1949 by Mr. Nick Creme, the plastic worm has been catching fish longer than many of us have been around. You can’t go wrong with a 4″ plastic worm with a curly tail, in either green pumpkin, or junebug. Guaranteed fish catcher. If you aren’t getting bit, change your presentation.

The Rapala Floating Minnow comes in second on the list, and is one of my personal go to confidence baits. These baits kind of act like a zara spook when you reel them slow enough on top of the water. If you get moving faster though, they are a diving jerkbait or crankbait, and the jointed version just creates a more attention getting action. Dead stick this bait, for a different presentation. Also, remember to stick to the smaller sizes, in silver/black back, or gold/black back.

The grub is also a classic hit with many. I prefer grubs in the 2inch size, even though they don’t have the meaty appearances of most baits, they do catch fish. The small body with the waving tail is often times exactly what the fish prefer. The presentations are unlimited with this bait, from the top of the water column to the bottom. You could even burn it like a buzzbait for a new presentation. I like the green/black with the chartreuse tails, using a black ball jig head with no skirt.

The fourth lure that I highly recommend to you is the Booyah Pond Magic spinnerbait. I prefer the 3/16 ounce model, in either firetiger, or white with copper blades. You can vary your presentation by either slow rolling the bait, or keeping it moving on the bottom just fast enough to get the blades to spin, or waking it — burning it just below the waters surface, creating a small v-wake for fish to hone in on it.

Last, but not the least, is the skirted jig. Even on ultralight fishing gear, these things are proven “big” fish catchers. You catch a grip of fish on ultralight gear, but the skirt jig weeds out the smaller fish. I rarely catch a fish under 1lb using a skirted jig and trailer fishing in ponds.

The author is an avid bass fishermen, and writer / editor at The Ultralight Bass Fishing Blog. If you find it informative, feel free to stop by and take a look at our other featured posts! New content streaming in all the time!