Tease 'em is what I call a technique I've used with great success while bed-fishing for bass. The majority of fishermen/fisherwomen will pitch the usual baits at bass on the beds, i.e., worms, tubes, jigs, etc. A technique I came up with many, many years ago has paid off for me more times than not. In fact, I'd almost call it "fool proof"….remember, I said "almost".

I live in Northern Florida and have a 10 acre, spring-fed, crystal clear lake behind my house. The bass here tend to start spawning in late February and into mid-March, your location may have a later spawning season. No matter when it is, when your bass hits the beds here is a tip that will catch you more bass.

The technique is very simple, all I do is take about a 3/8 or 1/2 oz. un-pegged bullet weight and put it in front of a stick bait, such as an 11-S Rapala, Rattlin' Rogue, etc. I don't feel the color of the stick bait makes much difference but, I'm partial to the shad or perch colors. There are tons of bream in my lake so, the perch color is very effective. However, as we all know, a bass is protecting his/her bed and will chase away or attack anything that comes near it.

I have had best results using a Medium Heavy rod to get good hook sets. I use a 7 ft. G.Loomis medium/heavy casting rod spooled with 15 lb. McCoys green mono line. Once I spot an occupied bed, I back off and cast beyond the bed. Then, I simply DRAG the weight and stick bait into the bed. The majority of the time, the bass will move off but, not far.

Here's where it gets interesting. The bass will come back and when it does, I ease the tension on my line enough to allow the stick-bait to float away from the weight, thus, suspending OVER the bed. All I do then is give the line very light twitches and it will appear to the bass that the stick bait is trying to invade the nest. Talk about an aggressive strike!! Some may think this is a crazy idea but, trust me, it works more times than not!

John Frascello "copnjax"