A trophy-sized Fast Water Pre-Spawn Smallmouth is what drives us to spend so much time, energy and money on our passion.

“I find that Fast Water Pre-Spawn Smallmouth always leads me to the upper part of rivers”.

Nearly 30 years ago, I was able to first connect the dots to my favorite river system and its tributaries. Without much known data to support my own theories, I sought out to understand why my favorite areas of the river system were loaded in May and June and mostly devoid of smallmouth thereafter. I struggled to understand why my river smallmouths were in abundance for 4 weeks out of the year, and then no longer present. For me I found the high water time in may and early June led me to the upper rive in the fastest water. It dwelled on me how highly migratory river smallmouth bass can be. If free to navigate without obstructions, they’ll migrate long-distance like all other river fish species are capable of.

I find that Fast Water Pre-Spawn Smallmouth always leads me to the upper part of rivers. I mean the fastest and shallowest water with deeper pools adjacent to them. In pres-pawn they will bunch up in the 2 to 4 foot range. In rivers they are primarily feeding on crawfish. This is because the crawfish at this time are very lethargic. They are actually being sucked out of their holes in the banks. I can duplicate this fast Water Pre-Spawn Smallmouth pattern on any headwaters

Fast Water Pre-Spawn Smallmouth

Without river rat intuition and an extensive history with the river system, I could have otherwise blown through the staging pools unbeknownst and without ever testing them. It’s easy to ignore staging sites on rivers. Most anglers wouldn’t know how to identify one. Good spots like this one get revisited and used annually by the same fish.

Learn more in my new book “Strategies for Bass“.

Water temperature must be optimal as well. It’ll single-handedly influence a river migration in spring. 40 degree range, it’s too cold. At 48 to 52, we’ll finally find some smallmouth success, but only from isolated staging sites. Good luck ever locating them as 99% of the river will be vacant. Middle 50’s and slowly climbing, we’re getting hot! River’s loaded, and we’ll have a bonanza through spawn’s conclusion in early June where 50 fish a trip is to be expected.

Blade baits in Summertime work well for largemouth bass. They may not be a super popular bait for targeting largemouth bass, but you can definitely catch some nice bass on these baits. Some anglers will wind these baits in with a steady retrieve, however, one of the best ways to fish the Binsky blade bait is to vertical jig it in the summer and fall when big largemouth bass are suspended over schools of bait fish.

The best ways to fish the Binsky blade bait is to vertical jig it in the summer when big largemouth bass are suspended over schools of bait fish.

Fish blade baits in summertime Vertical

If you’re like most bass fishermen, you probably have a couple of blade baits you bought years ago, fished once or twice with little or no success, and tossed them in a forgotten corner of the basement. Now is the time to dust them off!

When largemouth bass move into deeper water, a blade bait can be very effective for vertical jigging. It’s not a super common way to target largemouth bass, but it works great when largemouth bass are feeding on bait fish in deeper water.

The trick to catching on blade baits in summertime is not to overwork them. An angler who is new to fishing The Binsky blades tends to fish them with big sweeps of the rod, causing the bait to jump 4 to 6 feet off the bottom. The most successful blade fishermen lift their rods just enough to feel the blade kick a couple of times. Making this adjustment will improve your Binsky blade bait success ten-fold.

In lakes with alewives, use silver blades. In lakes without alewives, gold or perch-colored blades will be your best bet.

Keeping regular contact with the bottom is crucial, so when targeting deep bass, you’ll need Binsky blade baits from ½ to 1 ounce. By far the best on the market is the Binsky blade bait. In lakes with alewives, use silver blades. In lakes without alewives, gold or perch-colored blades will be your best bet.

I actually begin fishing a fall pattern when the water has cooled 10 degrees below its hottest point of the summer. This can vary greatly from body of water to body of water. A rapid temperature drop is best, for this can really put bass on the move from deep main river structure to shallow water. Bass react to cooling water by moving shallower to big flats, long points with a gradual taper and tributary arms.

As surely as the seasons change, the behavior and location of bass change as summer passes into fall and fall into winter. Unfortunately, the exact changes the bass makes often seems as unpredictable as the fall weather.

Fishing a fall pattern starts when you see first signs of the fall cooling trend

Bass are more baitfish oriented now than in any other season. Look for large schools of shad, alewives, etc., on your graph. In most reservoirs, fishing a fall pattern as cooling water causes vast numbers of shad to migrate into tributary arms, and bass are close behind. Follow this migration by fishing the first third of creek arms in early fall, then gradually pressing farther back into the tributary as the surface temperature drops. I’ll often idle my boat up a creek arm, watching my graph for suspended shad schools or looking for bait flipping on the surface. Isolated wood cover or boat docks in the backs of creek arms are dependable fall bass patterns. In lakes that don’t have shad, bass feed heavily on bluegill and shiners, both grass-oriented species, so target weedy areas that still have living green weeds.

A large number of the fish relate to backwaters as well as main lake areas during the summer. From the first signs of the fall cooling trend, main river fast water fish begin a gradual move toward areas with limited current.

Identifying these reduced current areas is usually pretty simple. Look for the bass to move to big cuts on the main river, cuts and coves in the bigger creeks, and slack water ponds off the main current area.

For the rest of the story and much more….. BUY NOW! Lee’s Strategies For Bass e-book.

Binsky In Late Summer works so well when those bass move offshore and begin to school in deeper water, that’s when you can get your money’s worth out of this blade bait.

It’s a good bait for pressured or schooling fish. Bass don’t stop eating bait fish when the water gets warm, so continue to use a Binsky blade bait no matter what time of year it is. When it’s in the dead of summer, you might not be able to just pull up and drop-shot on a school of fish. But, if you use a Binsky, they eat it at first sight.”

A Binsky has the kind of versatility that you simply can’t get from a drop-shot.

A blade Bait is great to use in summer because it can sink like a rock to whatever depth you need it to/ You can get the reaction bite with it because it’s so fast and moves so quickly. It’s also a good casting bait to use when you’re waiting for topwater fish to blow up because it’s so heavy and you can throw it far.

Binsky In Late Summer is more effective than a suspending stickbait during this time because it can probe deeper and catch fish in the 30 to 40 foot range. Steep drop-offs along main and secondary points or creek channels in the major coves are the prime spots to introduce the metal Binsky to bass.

The best sizes to use for this blade bait are 1/2-ounce for depths under 20 feet and 3/4-ounce for probing deeper than 20 feet. After making a long cast, allow the bait to sink to the bottom on a slack line before starting your retrieve. You want to lift that bait just enough to where you actually feel it vibrate. Once you feel it vibrate then kind of let the lure pull back down on a more tight line to where it will pendulum out a little bit. You don’t want it to go straight up and down during your retrieve.

Make sure you work the lure all the way back to the boat because bass will frequently hit the lure right under the boat. Match the lure with a medium-heavy rod and baitcast reel filled with 15-pound fluorocarbon line.

Typically Binsky Late/Spring Early/Summer Bass Fishing in the North is when you should think of post spawn bass. Think of big groups of bass looking for a summer hang out spot. Most bass only spawn for a couple of days before they head on back to the deeper creek channels and main river channels to group up and feed on shad for the summer. I try to target places that are fairly deep water and with a little cover. For deeper lakes I tend to look for longer points that might extend for a couple of hundred feet. I want to find numbers of fish because they will likely be more active and feeding rather than trying to locate one or two fish up shallow.

Typically Binsky Late/Spring Early/Summer Bass Fishing in the North is when I think of post spawn bass I think of big groups of bass looking for a summer hang out spot. Most bass only spawn for a couple of days before they head on back to the deeper creek channels and main river channels to group up and feed on shad for the summer. I try to target places that are fairly deep water and with a little cover. For deeper lakes I tend to look for longer points that might extend for a couple of hundred feet. I want to find numbers of fish because they will likely be more active and feeding rather than trying to locate one or two fish up shallow.

The post-spawn bass fishing season in the North typically begins when the water temperature reaches 70 degrees. It also coincides when the bluegill begin spawning. On most years, the spawn lasts only 2-3 weeks. If the spring is cold, it might be less than that. The post-spawn period is normally just two or three weeks as well, and then they begin establishing summer patterns.

A Binsky by Fish Sense Lures worked around these weed beds to mimic a vulnerable bluegill is another effective strategy for post-spawn. The Binsky Late/Spring Early/Summer Bass are positioned perfectly for this technique as well. Match the Binsky to the colors of the bluegill. Then look for a reaction bite. The size of fish you catch will tell you which presentation to use.

Because the bluegill are often spawning, seek out Binsky Late/Spring Early/Summer Bass by finding the bluegill. Look for the closest deep water structure near bluegill beds. Often times you can find this happening in the same places you caught spawning bass, because bluegill will often spawn in the same area. Bluegill and bass have an interesting relationship. During the bass spawn, bluegill will often pester bass by raiding their nest and eat their eggs. However, when the bass are done spawning, they will turn around and ambush the bluegill beds for their own food source, and eat the bluegills.

Fishing the Binsky is a great way to get a bite on a super slow day. When the day hits that lull where fish become less active and the bite has slowed down, the Binsky Late/Spring Early/Summer Bass are perfectly set up to get a bite. There are two ways I like to fish the Binsky Blade Bait, and the first way is fishing across a point. Position yourself where you can cast across the point and hop and drag the bottom all the way back to the boat.

The other way is to fish it, is to parallel the channel or structure. Try to keep your Binsky Blade Bait as close to the fish as possible allowing the slow sinking of the bait to attract the fish off the structure.

Deep blading is a tournament proven way to catch fish. Every pro on the tour will throw a blade bait at some point during the late spring early summer events they fish. Fish are feeding on shad and a Binsky will get a reaction strike every time, so fish that are pressured or hugging the bottom will bite a Binsky Blade Bait that comes by their face. When cranking a blade you want to identify the water depth and water clarity.

Early Spring Binsky Tricks is traditionally a cold water presentation but its effectiveness doesn’t stop there! Keep the Binsky on deck in Early Spring and you might be surprised how the bass react.

Why does it work? Largemouths, Smallmouths as with many other predatory species, are primarily sight-feeders, but when their vision is impaired by murky water they rely heavily on their other senses. Fish detect many lures by picking up its vibrations with the sensitive lateral lines. This is the salient feature of a Binsky. It’s long, has a lean profile and its weight-forward construction causes a tremendous amount of vibration.

Binsky blade baits are not infallible. More than one angler has cursed his luck when a fish has turned against the lure and gotten off the hook. The quality the Binsky comes equipped with, a strong split ring that does not afford the fish the leverage to throw the hook. A supper sharp strong set of treble hooks that will stick a fish and hold them on the slightes bite.

Fishing Early Spring Binsky Tricks for largemouths or smallmouths is pretty much a no-brainer. Cast it out and reel it in. You can vary your retrieve and tweak the action by speeding up and slowing down, and by pumping your rod tip and allowing the lure to flutter momentarily. you need to believe that this “dying flutter” action would be dynamite on both ‘eyes and northern pike as well.

So, what’s the best time to start blade baiting bass? April and May is a hot period for Binsky blades and they are deadly on giant pre-spawn females. Right after ice-out plump butterball shaped bass move shallow toward their selected spawning grounds. Here, they gorge themselves on bait fish while waiting for the water to warm up to 55-58 degrees. Many anglers will still catch fish on tubes, worms, and cranks, but if you want hot fishing action, concentrate on blades.

Up north, the Binsky early spring bass bite is unparalleled when it’s right, and it’s also fairly untapped. From February thru April, many anglers start pursuing pre-spawn bass, and the weather deters others. The weather is simply too dicey. All that adds up to unpressured largemouth and smallmouth that are about as fat and healthy as they’ll ever be and willing to eat if targeted correctly. There’s no better time to catch a big limit, and on places throughout the New England area, you can be looking at 50-fish days.

Steven Carey is as good at targeting early spring bass as anyone, particularly in big waters of the Northeast, and he’s been on the forefront of the Binsky movement for bass. However, one of Carey’s favorite cold-weather baits is far from new – the Binsky blade bait. In fact, it’s one of the best LM & SM bass baits around.

You can catch both species on a lot of baits in the early spring, but one of the most consistent producers thru winter into early spring is the blade bait, and Carey is an expert with it. His go-to is the Binsky.

The Binsky early spring bass bite is fantastic in the Northeast, largemouths and smallmouths looking to feed can group up in pretty predictable places. Once the water temperature reaches the low 40’s it’s game on, and the fish usually stay pretty aggressive until the water temp. rises into the mid to high 50’s.

“The whole system has somewhat of a current-related aspect to it, and when the water warms the fish move into more current-related areas and places they can ambush baitfish,” says Carey. “There seems to be a migration of shad and alewives to places with any type of current – whether it’s shallow current at the mouth of any river feeding the lake. It’s a natural progression for the bass to follow the bait, and they like eating shad in the in the spring.”

As fall progresses, the shallows get colder and aquatic plants die providing fewer places for baitfish to hide, the bass’s food moves deeper, and so do the largemouth bass. That’s not to say you can’t catch them on shallower flats. Some of the best fishing of the fall happens when wolf packs of largemouth bass move up and hunt on expansive flats that still have enough vegetation for bait to relate to. A Binsky blade shines here with a long cast and a hopping retrieve that makes the lure vibrate, but not burn too quickly through the strike zone. The objective is to keep the blade north of the bottom, but not dredging the bottom and picking up weeds in the process.

You can also use a Binsky blade at a consistent depth across large flats with a retrieve just fast enough to make it vibrate and stay off the bottom. When you feel resistance it will be either a fish or a weed, and in either case, a sharp jerk of the rod will either set the hook or rip the blade free of the grass. Lots of strikes seem to come right after you rip the lure free and let it settle toward the bottom.

A second place to look for bass with a Binsky by Fish Sense Lures is on sharper drop-offs where weeds are present. Fish tend to hang on the outside edge of the vegetation, and positioning your boat so you can work your lure parallel to the weed bed edge can get your string stretched. Normally, a crankbait would be a better choice, and certainly easier to use. A Binsky blade shines when the water temperature dips below 50 degrees, largemouth bass seem to prefer a blade bait more in direct proportion to how much colder the water gets.

When the water gets real cold with surface temperatures below 38 degrees, you can sometimes find bass outside of the weed edges, right in the basin. That’s where the warmest water in the lake will be. The largemouth’s aren’t very active, but you can have a pretty good day by positioning your boat in the shallower water, right over the remaining weeds and casting into the basin and moving your bait just fast enough to feel it vibrate a little bit and let it touch the bottom. It’s difficult for many veteran bass anglers to get their heads around this, but bass sometimes inhale a blade when it’s lying right on the bottom. You’ll be working that bottom area, pulling your rod back just fast and far enough to feel the blade “thup-thup-thup.” Let the blade settle, and after it’s assured it’s on the bottom, you’ll feel that “tick.” Other times, the fish will just “be there” when you lift the rod again.

Always use a snap (not a snap swivel) on the end of your line for attaching the Binsky. With the way the hole is punched through the metal on these lures, tying any kind of line directly on the blade will result in instantly frayed line and a lost lure.

If you haven’t tried blade bait fishing in fall’s coldwater bodies, give it a shot. It’s a great way to catch numbers of good-sized bass.

Up north, the Binsky fall smallmouth bite is unparalleled when it’s right, and it’s also fairly untapped. From October onward, many anglers start pursuing furry things instead of bass, and the weather deters others. The weather is simply too dicey. All that adds up to unpressured smallmouths that are about as fat and healthy as they’ll ever be and willing to eat if targeted correctly. Outside of the prespawn, there’s no better time to catch a big limit, and on places throughout the New England area, you can be looking at 100-fish days.

Steven Carey is as good at targeting early fall smallies as anyone, particularly in big waters of the Northeast, and he’s been on the forefront of the Binsky movement for smallmouths. However, one of Carey’s favorite cold-weather baits is far from new – the Binsky blade bait. In fact, it’s one of the best smallmouth baits around.

You can catch smallmouths on a lot of baits in the early fall, but one of the most consistent producers thru winter is the blade bait, and Carey is an expert with it. His go-to is the Binsky.

The Binsky fall smallmouth bite is fantastic in the Northeast, smallmouths looking to feed can group up in pretty predictable places. Once the water temperature falls below 55 it’s game on, and the fish usually stay pretty aggressive until the water drops down into the low 40s.

“The whole system has somewhat of a current-related aspect to it, and when the water cools the fish move into more current-related areas and places they can ambush baitfish,” says Carey. “There seems to be a migration of shad and alewives to places with any type of current – whether it’s shallow current at the mouth of any river feeding the lake. It’s a natural progression for the bass to follow the bait, and they like eating shad in the fall.”