From about as far back as I can remember, I’ve enjoyed a fascination with hard-body fishing lures.

Some call them plugs, while others know them as crankbaits. Regardless of the nomenclature, the hard-body lures sport lips that cause them to dive, wiggle and wobble in ways that entice fish to strike them.

My first introduction to the wonderful world of fishing plugs happened many years ago. The tackle store near the cabin Mom and Dad rented for a vacation week in northern Michigan had an aisle and pegboard wall displaying a significant inventory of Rapala, Rebel, Heddon and other hard-body plugs.

Ten-year-old me, mesmerized by the various sizes and shapes of balsa Rapalas and plastic Rebels in metallic silver and gold, instinctively knew they were fish-catching machines.

Sure enough, they were — and are.

Today, I own a wide variety of crankbaits, including at least two or three of the original purchases I made with allowance money in the old Northland Sports store in Indian River, Mich.

I cast and wind crankbaits for largemouth and smallmouth bass and also have tricked a lot of other species, including northern pike, channel cats, shovelheads, crappies, steelhead and even a few toothy bowfin.

Plugs are very versatile. Muskie anglers cast and troll giant crankbaits for monster fish. Walleye anglers also troll plug. Many in our region learned years ago the potential for dragging Hot-N-Tots for big ‘eyes on Lake Erie, Mosquito, Pymatuning and Berlin.

Crankbaits are three-season lures for me. I never push the Bass Cat from the dock without two crankbait boxes aboard.

One box is stocked with a variety of deep-diving Bomber, Bill Norman, Strike King, Storm and Rapala cranks. The other holds shallow-runners — mostly square-billed models — made by Strike King, Storm, Norman and A.C. Shiner.

My go-to baits over the years almost always have at least a splash of chartreuse on them. I suspect the bass love the color, but regardless, it’s a confidence thing for me. I’ve caught so many smallmouth and largemouth bass on chartreuse crankbaits that I always reach for that color first when it’s cranking time.

Plugs are excellent search baits. While the experts use sophisticated cranking tactics, the fact is the baits are your basic “cast and wind” lure — throw it out, wind it back and get ready for the bite.

With so many shapes, sizes and colors, there are crankbaits for every condition an angler might encounter. On days when I’m not sure where the majority of the bass are holding, I rig three rods with different styles of plugs to probe the depths.

I like square-bill baits for working shallow flats and tapering banks with stumps and logs. The square diving bill deflects the lure off the wood and other hard cover to minimize snagging and deliver an erratic action that triggers bites.

For deeper presentations off long points or over underwater humps and ledges, I like Strike King Series 5 and 6, including the XD versions, as well as Bill Norman Deep Little N.

Mid-depth options like Bomber 6A, Strike King Series 3 and 4, and Rapala DT6 are perfect for fishing steep banks and structure in the six- to 8-foot depths.

I also rely on flatter, tight-wobble cranks, including Rapala Shad Raps and the OG (Ott’s Garage), when the water is cool and the fish want a more subtle action.

If you haven’t tried crankbait fishing, spring is a good time to learn. Tie one on during the next trip and let it search out a few fish for you.

Jack Wollitz is the author of “The Common Angler,” a book about the “why” that drives anglers. He likes readers’ emails. jackbbaass@gmail.com.