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New
Tricks to Try
Last
year I wrote an article on organizing your tackle with
the PLANO Tackle Logic System, this is undoubtably the
best way to keep your worms, spinnerbaits, and jigs
organized. Terminal tackle is an organized fashion where
you can find exactly what you need at a moments notice.
So often when you are fishing, especially in a tournament,
time is of the essence and being able to get your hands
on a particular ZOOM worm or LEDGEBUSTER spinnerbait
or your favorite POSSUM lure, can mean the difference
between catching or not catching a bass. If you haven't
tried this System, I urge you to get just one bag and
try it.
I
want to give you a few tricks that might improve your
fishing or refine your techniques and lures to help
you catch more fish. Let's start out with jigs, there
are several things you can do to a jig to enhance its
appeal to a bass. I use STINGER jigs which I modify
just a little bit. First, I will trim the skirt with
scissors so that it resembles a Christmas tree hanging
upside down, this gives a lot more life like appearance
in the water. Second, if I'm not fishing in heavy cover
I will cut about half of the weed guard off, in other
words if it's a 20 strand weed guard I would cut 10
of the strands off. Next, I fish a ZOOM super chunk
on the jig, 95% of the time. If you will take a toothpick
and run it lengthways through the end of the chunk,
trim it off, then run the hook right behind it, your
chunk will stay on a lot longer. Always have a light
jig and a heavy jig on and try alternating every so
often until you determine if the bass wants a slow fall
or a fast falling lure. I will flip these lures on a
minimum of 20 pound STREN Super Tough, but usually I
use 25 pound.
Most all of us fish Carolina rigs and I use the Carolina
Keeper 100% of the time because it eliminates two knots
and I can adjust my leader at any time. I also use LINDY's
Rattlin' No-Snagg weight, because it's almost impossible
to hang up. Using a ZOOM Lizard or Centipede sometimes
can become frustrating because after you catch a fish
or hang up, your bait will slip on the hook. Two things
you can do, to help keep your bait on longer. I use
fishing glue, a little dab on the end of the hook before
you slide the head on will help hold it on. Also you
can run a toothpick through the head of the bait and
through the eye of the hook, then trim it off. Another
trick for Carolina rigging now is to use a small POSSUM
Lure. Be sure to spray JACK's JUICE on all your plastics.
A lot of tournament fishermen are using this lure to
Carolina rig.
Floating
worms and minnow shaped baits such as the ZOOM Fluke
are real popular lures that you can do a lot with. The
glue or toothpick trick will help to keep these lures
on your hook also. A lot of times I will dye the head
of these lures either red or chartreuse with SPIKE-IT
dye. I feel it gives the fish a target. You can use
weights inserted in the body to give the lure a faster
fall. Different size STREN line can make a difference
in the action of these type lures also. Don't be afraid
to experiment. One recommendation is to always use a
wide gap MUSTAD Ultra Point hook on these plastic lures.
Line
twist is a problem we all face and there are several
things to do to eliminate this. One is to have someone
hold the spool when you are winding on your reel, don't
overfill the reel. If you are fishing a worm make sure
it is rigged straight. There are certain lures and conditions
that are going to cause some line twist that we can't
help. When this occurs I cut the lure off and troll
out about 30 yards of line behind the boat for a minute.
This will usually straighten the line out. You can also
tie your line to something, back off about 20 yards
and stretch it.
Keep
the throttle down on your NITRO, your eye on your RAYTHEON
depth finder, and when on the water, always wear your
SOSPENDERS.
Good
luck on your next trip and may God bless.
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