Big Indiana Bass

With the super hot weather, and the corresponding super hot water, many anglers are experiencing a pretty tough bite on several of the lakes. Fish metabolism only fires up to a certain point it seems, after which fish tend to hunker down a bit and try and conserve energy. With surface temps in the 90 degree range right now, that's what we're seeing on many waters.

If you can't get the bass to fire up and chase the next time you're out, don't be afraid to pull out the light tackle and really saturate some key cover or structure spots. It takes a little patience, but the rewards can be many. In particular, give the dropshot a try. There aren't too many techniques that will fish baits you can drop right in front of a basses face and just jiggle in place for an eternity until you trigger a bite. The dropshot is one such technique.

 

Doesn't matter whether you're fishing from the shore or from a boat, the technique works in 2' to 20' or more. As long as you can muster about 2 foot of visibility, you stand a pretty good chance of getting bit. Clearer is actually better. I could go into all the details, but dropshot guru RichZ has already written the book on the technique. It's the article I used to finally get started with the technique many years ago, and covers about all you'll need to know. You can find two pieces he's done on his site:

• Bass at the Drop of a Shot
• Dropshot Secrets

Both of the pics above were from last evening's dropshot trip after work.

ICAST was held July 13 - 17 at Las Vegas. Over 400 companies showcased their products and many introduced new products for 2011. I spent two days walking the show floor speaking with a variety of tackle manufacturers. This report is more of a personal review of what I saw. The items that caught my eye that fit into my own style of fishing.

One thing I have noticed is that more and more I am tending towards the finesse side of things. This has not been a conscious decision on my part. Having success with finesse techniques tends to foster a natural progression in that direction. In looking over the information I gathered, it reinforces the fact that I was attracted towards products that work best with light-line.

Molix

Molix is high-end lure company based in Italy. They are trying to work their way into the US market. They have a variety of lures for bass, both hard and soft baits. But this little guy caught my eye:

 

The Molix Nano Jig is a tiny bit of prettiness. A small tungsten head with a clear weed guard, surprizingly strong Owner hook and ultra fine silicone skirt, the Nano just seems perfect for those pressured fish that give a half-hearted swipe at larger presentations. Available in 2.5, 3.5 and 5 gram sizes, the Nano Jig pairs up well with a small Zoom Critter Craw or maybe a 3" Slider Grub.

 

 

This is THE one bait I really hope to be able to get in my store!

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Netbait

It is always interesting to see how lure designers come up with ways of morphing existing baits and techniques into new and innovative products. Netbait has had a number of highly effective and successful baits. Here are two new baits I found interesting. First the Dirt Dawg:

   

I'm not sure I can remember all the rigging options I was told about with this lure. Mainly, it can be rigged as a shakey head worm, only with two tails. Or as a jig or spinnerbait trailer. Each tail has a small kicker foot that creates a twiddly comotion.

An interesting option is to rig the Dirt Dawg on a shakey head with the jig head at the crotch of the legs. This provides a wacky-rig but with a stand-up craw when on the bottom...

 

Also new from Netbait is the Kick'r B and the Mini Kick'r B. These are what I would call a cross between a beaver-style bait and a Zoom Speed Craw.

 

I am looking forward to fishing the Mini Kick'r B on a 1/8 oz Little Pek Jig like I do the Speed Craw. I am excited about the slightly larger profile, the gliding action of a beaver and also the kicker tails similar to the small Zoom craw I like so much.

 

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Gene Larew

I have enjoyed fishing Senko's and Zoom Magnum Trick Worms on a 3/16oz Giggy Head jig the last year. The new Salt Flick'r from Gene Larew looks to me to be another bait that will fit into this technique. A sinking bait, swimming bait and shakey head worm all in one! I plan on fishing this one on a heavier head and swimming it along the bottom, bouncing along gravel or rocks. It is soft, ribbed and salty.

 

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Quantum

I spoke with Chris Strickland about the the new Smoke series baitcasters from Quantum. Extremely light at 6.2 and 6.8 ounces, the 100 series and 150 series are both all aluminum. I like smaller reels and have been using Shimano Scorpion 1001's for a number of years now. What I really like about the Smoke Series is that not only are they small, light and strong - but also available with a high-speed retrieve. 7.0:1 or 6.3:1 in the 100 and 7.3:1, 6.6:1 and a cranking 5.3:1 gear ratio in the 150. And the unique matte black is pretty sweet looking, too.

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Top Brass

From Top Brass Tackle comes the Jumbo Peg-IT. These are newer versions of the popular Peg-IT and Bead Peg-IT, a soft rubbery toothpick used for pegging weights. The new Jumbo version is longer and is useful for pegging the larger punch weights but also can be used to peg beads to your line. Anymore, this is how I make a Carolina Rig. I peg a bead to the line 2 to 3 feet up from the bait but below the sinker. Only one knot and no swivel. Quick and easy.

 

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Sebile Innovative Fishing

Soft Weight System

The SEBILE Soft Weight System was voted the winner of the Best Accessory / Terminal Tackle award for 2010 at EFTTEX in Valencia, Spain. This was followed by another Best of Show award at ICAST 2010!

 

The Soft Weight System comes in 1/0 to 6/0 hook sizes and can be used with many kinds or brands of soft plastics, whether worms, grubs, lizards, frogs, crawdads, swimbaits or soft jerkbaits. The soft weights feature a Tungsten gum rubber style construction so that they can be easily added, repositioned on the hook shank or removed to make on-the-water adjustments to fishing conditions.

Vibrato

I am not a jigging spoon fisherman, but this spoon may find a place in my box. It is kind of a wacky-rigged spoon! With the line tie in the center it's vertical fall and rod vibrating motion when jigged has got to produce! Plus, it can be cast and fished on a straight retrieve. Patrick Sebile is a true innovator in the industry.

 

Flatt Shad Snagless

In speaking with one who has spent a fair amount of time fishing the Flatt Shad Snagless, I learned that this bait is not as it appears. He says he fishes it similar to flipping a jig! It is that snagless! What appears to be a lipless crankbait, which it is, hides the fact that it can be fished it a lot of different ways.

I am especially anxious to give this bait a try on those shallow flats with wood cover. The ones to skinny to get a boat up on to retrieve a hung trap. One Sebile insider believes this to be the best of Patrick Sebile's designs to date.

 

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As always, seeing all new tackle tends to get me thinking about how it can fit into my way of fishing. Or maybe how it may change my way of fishing. I was not disappointed in what I saw at ICAST 2010. Now I am ready to get my grubby little hands on what's new and see what it can do!

Regards,

Rod Yoder
RedShad.com
http://tackle.redshad.com/