by Russell Roper

Created on: January 18, 2009

The men and women that pursue largemouth Bass are definitely a dedicated, if not obsessed, group of anglers. They tend to live, breath, and dream about largemouth Bass. This is not a bad thing mind you, because chasing Bass is full of fun and excitement - that is if you are properly equipped to fish for them.

When preparing to tangle with "Bucketmouths" the first thing you will need is a good, strong, and powerful rod and reel. As for your rod, you will find that a good 6 foot 6 inch to 7 1/2 foot medium/heavy action rod with plenty of backbone tends to work best. Using a rod of this type will give you the much needed power to properly set the hook. These also provide excellent casting ability and lure action. However, no rod is any good without a quality reel.

You will find an abundance of reels on the market today that will make adequate "tools" to meet your needs. Some things to consider though have to do with the bearing system of your chosen reel and its drag mechanism. If you are looking more along the line of baitcast reels the bearings are very important. The thing to remember about bearings is; the more there are, the more cranking ability the reel will have. For example; a reel with three bearings will have more "slip" or "dead crank" when fighting a four or five pound Bass than one with six. A six bearing reel will have little to none when fighting the same size fish.

Another important asset to Bass anglers is the wide array of lures available. This is something you will want to ensure you have a broad selection of when heading into Bass country. Your tackle box should consist of choices ranging from Crappie size jigs to 1 ounce crank baits, such as; Rat-L-Traps, Frenzy Shad, and Big-Os. It is also very important to have a large selection of plastic worms and the needed hooks and weights.

When stocking your tackle box be sure to have many different colors and sizes to cover all the changing situations you are sure to encounter - and there will be many. The thing about Bass fishing, it can change as quickly as one cast, and you will want to be ready and able to make the necessary adjustments.

Now, we'll actually look at fishing for Bass. You can't catch Bass if you are not able to locate them. Oh sure, anyone can "luck" into one or two, but if want to really catch good Bass you need to know how to find them, rather than just "slapping" the water. (Just a saying we had, it means constantly casting and never catching anything.)

Let's say, you see a rocky

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