When fishing in 3 to 5 feet of water, Stanley likes to go with a double willow-leaf spinnerbait. He'll have a No. 3 1/2 blade in front, and a No. 4 in back. "If you've got fairly good visibility -- say, 12 to 18 inches deep -- that's when the silver willow-leaf blades are real good. And if the bass are feeding in vegetation, the willow-leaf blades will not get hung up in the grass, or whatever type of aquatic vegetation you're fishing in."

It was while pre-fishing a bass tournament last April that Stanley caught three bass over 7 pounds. He was working a 3/8-ounce spinnerbait through vegetation growing in 5 feet of water on a point. The key was to fish a perch pattern like the golden shiner.

"If I'm fishing in water that's murky, I'll go with a bigger spinnerbait and a fire tiger-colored skirt," he said. "I'll also add a big curl-tail trailer that's anywhere from 3 1/2 to 4 inches long. It can be the same color as the skirt, or maybe a contrast in colors. That's when a buoyant trailer will allow you to keep the spinnerbait moving deeper with the blade still turning. The main thing is to fish the bait slowly but keep the blades turning for more vibration."

In clear to off-colored water, Stanley will go with a grub tail that matches the spinnerbait skirt. Or, he'll slide on a twin-tail grub.

Toward the end of April, the water will begin warming up, and you'll want to speed your retrieve up gradually as the temperature rises. Waking or buzzing a spinnerbait will attract more bites as the water temperature warms into the mid-60s.

"Once the water hits the upper 60s in late April and May, I'll almost always be using a 3/8- or 1/4-ounce spinnerbait," Stanley noted. "I can fish it faster, cover more water and catch more bass. As the water warms bass will be more aggressive. That's when a medium to fast retrieve will get you more bites."

Waking or buzzing a spinnerbait is akin to working topwater plugs for bass -- and it's a blast.

Waking a spinnerbait is easy: You cast the lure out, and when it hits the water you immediately begin reeling it back in, keeping the lure just under the water's surface. It's a way to cover lots of water in a variety of situations. For example, you can wake a spinnerbait over thick vegetation without it getting tangled in weeds. And we all know how important it is to fish lures in vegetation. After all, that's where baitfish hang out -- and the bass are rarely too far behind them.

There's nothing quite like waking a spinnerbait through a bunch of lily pads. Bass and lily pads go together like vanilla ice cream and hot apple pie.

When waking it's usually best to go with a single blade; either a Colorado or a willow-leaf blade will work. I've found that a Colorado blade will really cause a bulge on the water's surface and thus is a very good option for working vegetation in murky water. That big blade turns out quite a bit of vibration, and can be worked super-slow to give hungry bass plenty of time to home in on the lure's action.

In clear water a single willow-leaf blade is almost always your best bet, as it's a smart pick for coping with all sorts of aquatic vegetation like coontail moss, hydrilla and peppergrass. It can be worked fast, and it's practically weedless.