Entry 133-1

Denny Brauer on Strike King’s New Baits

A Bitsy Bit Better

Editor's Note: Denny Brauer of Camdenton, Missouri, fishes in all kinds of weather and under many varied water conditions. Since he must know how to catch bass year-round, he's especially excited about Strike King's new offerings for 2005.

Question: Last year, you came out with the Denny Brauer Chunk. Why did Strike King come out with two smaller chunks this year?

Brauer: To have a complete arsenal of jigs in your tackle box, you have to have several different sizes of jigs. When you're fishing in extremely-clear water or in lakes that don't have many big bass, downsizing your jigs usually means you'll get more strikes. For many years the smaller jigs like the Bitsy Bug have been extremely popular. Last year I developed the Premier Bitsy Bug jig, and the Denny Brauer Chunk overpowers that size bait. To have a proper-size trailer for the smaller jig, Strike King came out with three smaller sizes in jig trailers. Now anglers have trailers to fit all the Strike King jigs, regardless of the size you want to fish.

Question: Denny, you're widely known for your expertise as a jig fisherman. Do you ever fish the Bitsy Bug jig?

Brauer: Yes, I've always fished the Bitsy Bug jig, but to be honest with you, right now I'm only fishing the Premier Bitsy Bug jig. I like the design of the Premier much better than I do the design of the old Bitsy Bug jig.

Question: How does the Premier Bitsy Bug differ from the standard Bitsy Bug?

Brauer: The Premier has a better hook, a better head design and a cross-eye line tie. To me, having the line tie in a certain place on a jig is very important because it causes you to hook a higher percentage of bass. We also have a quality rattle in the Premier Bitsy Bug jig, and there hasn't been a finesse jig that I know of that has a rattle in it like this one. I'm really happy with my big jig and also my finesse jig.

Question: When do you put down that big jig and pick up that little jig?

Brauer: When I'm fishing a lake that has quite a bit of heavy fishing pressure, I've learned that if I downsize my jig and start fishing the Premier Bitsy Bug, I'll generate more strikes than if I stay with my bigger jig. When I'm fishing in lakes with numbers of little bass and not very many big bass, I really depend on the Premier Bitsy Bug. If I know the bass are feeding on very-small crawfish, then I'll also fish the Premier Bitsy Bug Jig, instead of fishing the big jig. When I'm fishing clear water with white line, I'll always pick the smaller jig over the bigger jig.

Just because I'm known as a big-jig angler doesn't mean that a big jig is always the best tool on a lake under every fishing condition to catch bass. When the conditions on the lake like I've described above dictate that I'll catch more fish and get more bites on a smaller jig than I will a bigger jig, I don't hesitate to use the Premier Bitsy Bug with the new smaller trailers that have come out this year.

Next: Scoop on the Red

Contents:

• Part 1: A Bitsy Bit Better
• Part 2: Scoop on the Red
• Part 3: Why the Bleeding Bait Tube
• Part 4: The Family at El Salto
• Part 5: I'm Going to Catch Some Bass on This One