Sea bass are one of the prime, most sought-after fish in saltwater. They are a powerful, strong fighting fish which makes them fun to catch. In addition, sea bass are also one of the tastiest fish around and make for great table fare.

Using live bait, or cut bait is a good way to catch sea bass. However, using artificial baits will actually catch you more fish and bigger fish. There's something special about the lure of artificial baits (no pun intended) which triggers more sea bass to strike. Some say it's the action, some say it's the various colors and sizes, while others say it's just something different then what the sea bass are accustomed to eating. Here are a few of my favorite artificial lures and some tips on how to use them to catch bigger and more sea bass.

A Bucktail Jig
This lure, believe it or not, is the most effective to use "as is" - meaning, not tipped with any bait. This allows the bucktail to work as it is intended to, without anything interfering with its action. When using bucktail jigs for sea bass, one of the most effective ways is to cast your line out, let your bucktail jig hit the bottom, and then aggressively jig it back to the boat - waiting 2 seconds before each jig. The sea bass will generally attack the bucktail jig on the way down or when it's on the bottom.

A Luhr-Jenson Jigging Spoon
Unlike the bucktail jig, when using jigging spoons for sea bass it's best to tip your jigging spoon with either live bait or cut bait. Jigging spoons will work "un-tipped" but you will double your catch by adding a small piece of bait. This will give your jigging spoon that added attractant/scent it requires, all without affecting the action.

Artificial Soft Plastics
Plastic Shads of various sizes and colors all work for sea bass. Be sure to rig them on a jig head which is heavy enough to get you down to the bottom considering the conditions you're faced with. Then you can either swim them or jig them back to the boat or back to shore. When jigging, the sea bass will generally hit the shad on the way down, or when it hits the bottom.

Viper Spoons - Meant to be Fished With Natural or Artificial Bait
You can troll, drift, or cast the Viper Spoon for sea bass. The Viper Spoon is intended to be used tipped with live bait, cut bait, or artificial bait; which gives it twice the fish-catching power. The Viper Spoon also produces 2 different fish-enticing actions (one from the flash and flutter spoon and a separate unique action from the added trailing bait) which are proven to attract more sea bass and bigger sea bass. It's such a versatile lure and sea bass simply cannot resist them.

Further, since each Viper Spoon has hooks which are snelled using titanium wire line, any incidental catches of toothy fish will also make their way to your net!
These four artificial lures are your best bet for catching bigger sea bass, and a lot more of them. Although my preferred method is to use the Viper Spoon because of its versatility, advantages and fishing-enticing action, my tackle box always have a good assortment of all of the above!

http://www.thundermistfishingtips.com/about-ivo/
Ivo, is the CEO and CFO of Thundermist Lure Company and the host of the Thundermist fishing videos.

From saltwater to freshwater and from tournaments to casual angling, Ivo shares tips and techniques with you and invites you to read more at: http://www.thundermistfishingtips.com