Spring offers prime opportunities for chatterbait fishing as bass transition through pre-spawn, spawn, and post-spawn phases, often focusing on shad and brim spawns. This guide breaks down effective chatterbait colors, setups, and techniques for success throughout the spring season.
Lures and Gear:
- Z-Man Jack Hammer Chatterbait
- Missile Baits Spunk Shad
- Missile Baits Chunky D Creature Bait
- Missile Baits Shockwave Swimbait
- Z-Man Mini Max
- Sunline Shooter fluorocarbon
- Daiwa Zillion SV
- Cashion Rods
Springtime Chatterbait Strategies:
As the late winter transitions into early spring, red and orange colors, such as fire craw and lava craw trailers paired with the Spunk Shad, can be highly effective. This color pattern often works well through the initial third of spring. In stained water conditions during this pre-spawn period, a big blade chatterbait can be a significant trigger, producing strong vibrations. Pairing it with a larger 5.5-inch Spunk Shad can be productive using the same rod and reel setup discussed later.
Closer to the spawn, as fish move shallower into potentially clearer water, chatterbaits remain effective. During this time, a trailer that helps keep the bait higher in the water column is beneficial. The Missile Baits Chunky D, rigged sideways so the flappers remain level, achieves this. A 3/8ths-ounce size can be effective. When retrieved past cover like stumps or dock posts, killing the retrieve allows the flappers to impart a tempting wagging action as the bait falls, often triggering bites.
During the bass spawn and into the shad spawn period, a smaller profile can excel. A white chatterbait, particularly the Minimax paired with a 3.5-inch Shockwave swimbait, proves highly effective around spawning shad. This smaller combination, with its more compact blade, moves slower than larger chatterbaits and can be irresistible to bass feeding on shad around riprap banks, floating docks, and willow grass, especially during early mornings. This setup serves as a key transition bait.
Towards the end of spring, as brim become prevalent, bluegill-colored chatterbaits come into play. Green pumpkin with a shrapnel-colored swimbait like the Shockwave, or a green pumpkin Spunk Shad, effectively imitates bluegill. For skipping docks, a bulkier bait like the Spunk Shad may be preferred. When fishing open banks without much cover, the shrapnel-colored swimbait alone can be productive. Observing brim activity signals prime conditions for these bluegill-imitating chatterbaits.
Chatterbait Setup:
A consistent setup proves effective across the seasons. Eighteen-pound Sunline Shooter fluorocarbon offers versatility for various situations, even the smaller Minimax (though occasionally 16-pound line may be used). A Daiwa Zillion SV TW reel with a 7.1:1 gear ratio provides a good balance, allowing for both fast retrieves to create erratic action and sufficient speed to reel in fish quickly. A 7’4″ Cashion Chattergrass rod with a moderate bend is ideal. This action allows fish to take the bait effectively and reduces hook pulls, providing the necessary bend from the mid-section to the tip while still possessing ample power.
Retrieving the Chatterbait:
During the pre-spawn, focus on contacting cover such as grass, stumps, and bottom rocks to trigger strikes from territorial fish. This tactic remains relevant through the spawn. In the shad spawn, the key is to cover water around areas where shad are spawning, like shallow bank grass and floating docks, to locate active fish. When brim are present in the late spring, target areas where brim congregate, such as around their beds and along grass lines. Skipping chatterbaits under docks can also be highly productive when brim are observed nearby. Late spring, with green pumpkin-colored chatterbaits, can yield impressive catches, particularly around docks where larger post-spawn fish often recover after spawning, before moving to deeper water. Springtime consistently offers excellent chatterbait fishing opportunities.
Image/Source: bassresource
