softplastics helpppp
Submitted by andyrew on Tue, 2007-10-02 20:21
hey guys im new to this sp game im trying to get into the sp's a bit more and just wondering wots the best out there ill mainly be targeting bream, herring, tailor, salmon, and pinks spess has alredy said keep to snapbacks 5' for pinkys ect.
just would like to know wat do people find best on wat fish and wat jigheads ect...
and do these sp crabs fish and squid that you can use for bbashing work...
cheers all help appreciated
Andy Mac
Posts: 4778
Date Joined: 03/02/06
They all work Andyrew
I was in talking to Noel today and told him he needed to get some more in, as well as a certain greeny gold looking jig that accounted for a certain 24kg Dhuie on the weekend.
Cheers
Cheers
Andy Mac (Fishwrecked Reeltime Editor & Forum Moderator)
Youngest member of the Fishwrecked Old Farts Club
Feral
Posts: 1508
Date Joined: 01/11/06
i use large atomics and
i use large atomics and gulps down south for ytk's and pinks and the like .... still looking for a 5' sp with a wiggle tail - like a large mister twister as i think they would work ok ... the minnow jerk shads work ok but i want something that wiggles a bit more on the drop ..... if anyone knows of something like that drop me a line as well ..
andyrew
Posts: 261
Date Joined: 25/08/07
:)
i liked that kg on the sp crab never would of thought it would take something like that....
tight linezzzzzzzz.....
cheers andyrew
nickyau2
Posts: 225
Date Joined: 11/05/06
3" bass minnows
for bream herring and tailor (and salmon if ur lucky) you can't go past bass minnows/power minnows... learn how to get them working in the water all jerky and the fish will crawl all over them. i found mastering simple fish like herring have helped to be able to catch anything on placcy. 3" in pearl watermelon you can't go past them as the most versatile placcy. 1/8th size 1 jig heads are about the most versatile.. bit of weight to cast and not too heavy to make them sink real quick
Here fishy fishy....
jangles
Posts: 826
Date Joined: 26/05/07
Soft Plastics!
Herring: Atomic Grubs in 2" but in a green or gold colour (Skippy love them too).
Tailor: Snapback Softplastics in 3" (any colour)
Hope this helps aswell mate, short and brief but worthy to have a shot!
My reels screaming zzzzzzz.... awwww damn it, its another boat!
All the best for the future fishing trips.
Cheers.... Jangles
SPESS
Posts: 3356
Date Joined: 29/12/06
Dont disregard squdgies
Dont disregard squdgies flick baits as well. I use the 70mm right up to the 145mm in green meanie, blue pilly, brown and clear purple. They work a treat as well on slow jerky retrieves, They also have a great tail action on the drop.
My top three: 1.snapbacks
2.bass minnows
3.squidgy flick baits
Keep it tight, reeeeeeel tight!
rickets
Posts: 995
Date Joined: 03/06/07
At the end of the day, there
At the end of the day, there is a huge variety of plastics out there and they ALL work given you choose the right one for the job and you work it right.
What nick said is tops, practice on herring as theyre not fussy at all and theyll smash anything you throw at them, as long as the action is right so you can perfect your action on them and then you know what to do...
Colours are important but not as important as your action. A well actioned and well performed retrieve will catch fish hand over fist moreso than the colour. But when choosing colour, take into consideration the colour of the water and the colour of the sky due to weather..
As for jigheads, i think the general rule is, "As light as you can get away with"
Obviously if you are using a 5" snapback off the boat and you are working the bottom with it for pinkies, youll need a heavier jighead to battle the current and to keep it working down there properly.... 1/4, 3/8+ is usually the goer in these situations.... however, keep an eye on the current...
As for fishing off landbased, in regards jigheads... as light as you can get away with... so it all depends on your line weight, your rod cast capacity and the winds etc...
On a perfect day with no wind and the right outfit, 1/32 and 1/48's are good for bream but in reality, chances are most the time you will be fishing with 1/16 and 1/8 jigheads for most your landbased stuff.
The only other thing you must always get right with SP's is presenting them correctly on the hook.... take your time to get it right and dont rush it as this is crucial to the action of the plastic and having it presented slightly off can usually mean way way less hookups, bites, runs IF any at all...
Hope this helps
seansurfy
Posts: 475
Date Joined: 09/08/06
When fishing soft baits,
Different strokes
Soft baits can be worked in different ways and various styles suit differing techniques. Shads can be retrieved almost like a spinner or metal lure, or else worked in short retrieves or lifts, followed by pauses where the lure ‘swims’ back towards the bottom. Grubs are generally worked with small movements of the rod tip and a slow retrieve; worms can be worked back very slowly, hugging the bottom, their extremely mobile bodies imparting all the action the lure needs.
Various other body styles each have their own most effective retrieve style. As a rule, the stiffer the bait, the more it relies on the angler for movement. Baits with extremely mobile bodies or tails will work seductively with almost no input from the angler.
Jerk shads are amongst the most versatile and popular styles. I like them because they come in several sizes and they can be worked in a number of ways. The most common is a jerky ‘lift and drop’ retrieve that works well with virtually every soft bait type. But compared to, say, a grub, a jerk shad retrieve is more positive with larger movements of the rod and exaggerated pauses and drops.
Jerk shads flutter and dart and their narrow tails move up and down, and from side to side, but compared to a worm or a curly-tail grub, they’re relatively immobile, so rely on jerky movements of the rod tip for their appeal.
As well as the standard lift and drop retrieve, jerk shads can be worked in a series of hard jerks, with pauses between each one, skittered unweighted across the surface, retrieved at speed from almost any depth, ‘twitched’ in place, or trickled very slowly back to the angler. Jerk shads can be fished at any depth, from just under the surface to right on the bottom, depending on the amount of weight used and the speed of the retrieve.
Casting and retrieving soft baits
The key to most soft bait fishing is to cast ahead of the boat. While it’s possible to fish effectively from an anchored boat, especially in conjunction with berley, most soft bait fishing is conducted from a drifting boat.
In order to get the lure into the strike zone and in front of fish not already spooked by the boat passing overhead, cast well away from the boat in the direction of the drift. There is much less water drag on the lure and line if you cast ahead of the boat; the bait sinks quicker and in a more natural manner and you can get a way with lighter jig heads, which means a more realistic lure action and more positive takes.
Superfine braided gel-spun polyethylene lines (GSP) l(e.g: Berkley fireline) are not only low stretch and extremely strong, their fine diameter means minimal water drag, equalling better lure presentation, less weight and a more natural lure action.
There is often not a whole lot of retrieving when fishing from a slowly drifting boat. That’s because you want the lure to stay close to the bottom. But the lure should make some progress, otherwise it’s simply bouncing on the spot. The speed of the retrieve is a balance between boat speed and water depth. But in every situation you must ensure you stay in touch with your lure so that you can react to a bite.
In deep water the lure may have only just got down into the strike zone as the boat passes over it, even though the bail has been closed for some time. It’s uncanny how many bites come when the line is vertical in the water column.
Of course, a soft bait works its magic throughout its descent, also attracting fish in mid-water; and fish will often swim up to intercept a soft bait, so bites can come at any time.
Sometimes a bite on a soft plastic is so violent it almost rips the rod out of your hands. If the fish is large and hungry enough, it will engulf the soft plastic, holding on to it long enough to ensure a positive hook-up. Very often the first inkling that a fish is interested in your lure is when the rod wrenches down.
But this is not always the case, especially since a lot of bites come when the lure is free-falling between twitches or lifts, or after the initial cast. These bites on a slack line can be difficult to detect and harder to turn into hook-ups. On some days they seem to mostly result in misses.
The hardest bites of all to convert into hook-ups are the ones that occur when the reel’s bail arm is disengaged. If you’re quick enough, it’s sometimes possible to jam your hand over the spool and strike before manually engaging the bail arm. But this is fraught with danger, especially if the fish is large. Superbraid is hard on fingers as well as gear: getting a loop of line around a finger when the other end is connected to a large, hard-fighting fish is no joke. You stand to lose skin and blood – at the very least.
This is much less of an issue if you are using an overhead reel. Good quality baitcasters are excellent choices for this style of fishing, though less able to effectively fish lightly weighted lures.
Many bites are detected through the line as a slight bump or a ‘tick’ rather than a pull. Some bites are only felt as you lift the rod. These often register simply as weight, but may include distinct nods and tugs, not unlike a bite on natural bait. Strike at any kind of bump or contact you may feel through the line.
As soon as you start fishing softbaits seriously, you’ll realise just how important it is not to let your attention wander. Staring off into the distance or admiring the scenery will result in missed strikes.
Strikes may come at any time after the lure has splashed down. Soft plastics are at their most attractive to fish as they are dropping, either after the cast, or after the angler has raised or jerked the rod to impart movement to lure. With every lift or jerk, the lure darts forward and up in the water column, ‘swimming’ down again as the rod tip is dropped in preparation for another lift. That’s when a fish is most likely to take hold.
These strikes pose a problem for the angler. They come when there is no direct contact between the angler and the lure. Even a little slack line can give a fish enough time to mouth the bait and eject it again before the angler can set the hook. Sometimes the angler barely notices the bait has been taken.
Although you should strive to keep the amount of slack line to a minimum, you need to allow some slack line for the soft bait to work properly i.e. drop towards the bottom unhindered, since that’s when most strikes come.
The answer is to allow a little slack but watch your line like a hawk. At the slightest hesitation or movement in the line, lift the rod high to set the hook.
The jerk shad retrieve
• Cast the weighted lure a suitable distance ahead of the drifting boat
• Allow the lure to sink, controlling the line with your index finger lightly on the lip of the spool (spinning reel) or feathering the spool with your thumb (overhead reel)
• Engage the bail arm/reel gears when you think the lure might be approaching the bottom and give the lure a couple of twitches – many bites occur at this point.
• If you feel the lure touch down, or more usually, when you think you are close to the bottom, begin a twitching, jerking retrieve. This can consist of a couple of hard jerks, a long-ish pause so that the lure can flutter back towards the bottom, then some smaller twitches, winding a turn or two of line onto the reel between each one.
• Between lifts, jerks or series of twitches, allow the lure time to sink. Drop your rod tip to create a bit of slack line so the lure can sink unhindered, but not too much, or you’ll miss bites. Strike at any movement in the line.
• Continue the retrieve all the way back to the boat, only winding in when the lure is directly below you. Many strikes occur right under the boat as the lure lifts off the bottom.
• Cast again, covering fresh ground.
SamC
Posts: 2013
Date Joined: 30/08/06
5' nuclear chicken jerk shad gulp!
they work pretty good aswell
Cheers,
Sam
SPESS
Posts: 3356
Date Joined: 29/12/06
Quote:"Colours are important
Quote:"Colours are important but not as important as your action. A well actioned and well performed retrieve will catch fish hand over fist moreso than the colour. But when choosing colour, take into consideration the colour of the water and the colour of the sky due to weather.." Hey rickets i dont really agree with you on this one mate.......IMO colours have a lot to do with it as secrets reveled when im fishing for pinkies they prefer a dead stick bait! thats when you cast out let it sink to the bottom and just leave it there ie; dead sticking. Now if you are to do that ive only ever had success in pinks and browns. Greens, whites, blues etc they wont touch! Unless you work them, so colour in my opinion plays just a part as action does. But that does not mean that they wont take a worked plastic beacuse they do........
When i fished alot of tornament bream comps trust me when i say that you can pull fish from a snag with a 2" red glitter grub change to the same grub in watermelon and get no hits then back to the red glitter and get smashed! Same as barra fishing theres no point in using dark browns if the waters clear, they just wont touch it but change to light blues, greens etc and get hits straight away. Same same as trying to use a bright green one in murky brown water it just wont happen.
Seansury has named probery the most improtant things to do when fishing plastics so read it well and remember to get out there and give it a go, dont take bait pack as light as possible and just walk the structure and once you crack it youll know for next time what you did right to entise a strike. You can out fish people on soft plastics if there using bait....just ask your old man.....i remember not to long ago at hillaries he and his 3 mates didnt get much of a hit compared to someone and a 3' basss minnow in watermellon! :) lol. Keep it tight, reeeeeeel tight!
seansurfy
Posts: 475
Date Joined: 09/08/06
Your right about colour
Your right about colour Spess.
So far this Spring I have found when using Soft Baits the primary thing to remember has been change…change size, shape and most importantly colour. Last trip the colour being used was undoubtedly the biggest factor to successfully catch both quantity and the bigger sizes of fish. I was having a bit of a hard time getting on to the fish. I tried different brands, different sizes all of similar colours….then a different colour. Wow what a difference. Re-drifting over the same fish with a translucent bright pink shad was like turning on the light switch!
SPESS
Posts: 3356
Date Joined: 29/12/06
Thats exactly what i mean
Thats exactly what i mean mate. Mind you alot of people get stuck to using one colour and shape that has worked in the past and generally tie that on first. I find with soft plastics the best thing is to think about it before using it and matching your atifical to what you can see around you....if that doesnt work try something radical. I tend to buy the colours that have worked for me to bad always take others that havent because all my favorties were NEVER the first choice in picking and they have come from one i didnt use to a favorite and vise versa etc etc. Think ouside the square and you WILL get results. Plus who wants to get smelling bait all over your hands!lol.
PS: also try sprays on your plastics as you will be surprised how much of your sent well be ion the lure, because im a smoker i dint realise that at the start fish would follow the plastic and not hit it! Get the nicotine smell off the lure with spray and worked the same way with the same plastic instantly got nailed insted of followed!
Keep it tight, reeeeeeel tight!
andyrew
Posts: 261
Date Joined: 25/08/07
cheers guys
you guys are suggesting and then off we go ill need a bigger tackle box....:P
once again thankyou to all the fishrecked members for the info,
its brill to be on this site and i will certanly keep supporting it..... ty
tight linezzzzzzzz.....
cheers andyrew
SPESS
Posts: 3356
Date Joined: 29/12/06
Thats why most of us joined
rickets
Posts: 995
Date Joined: 03/06/07
Just to backup and more
Just to backup and more explain my statement...
I agree with spess, in fact i had a discussion with someone on breammaster.com regarding colours and thier necessity with hard bodies however, this is not hard evidence that colour matters as much as action which is what I was trying to convey - however, i may have failed this...
Colour matters as a matter of visibility. It does not matter in regards to making a lure more appetizing to a fish. How do I know this?
The main reason is how light refracts through water, especially dirty water or on a cloudy day. Sure, on a cleear day with blue water, colour may be contrasted through up to 2-3 metres of water before losing its radiance and contrast however, there is usually many other factors contributing to the hinderance of this...
Fish eyes are similar to every other vertabrate eyes. However, depending on species and thier dwelling place. Shallow water fish have eyes that can perceive and comprehend the whole spectrum whereas the deeper the dwelling of the fish, the less they can perceive, going to blues and reds and then the deep demersal fish only see the reds - helping them to see in low light conditions... So in other words, fish are colour blind... but not due to thier own eyes, but due to the conditions around them.
After 2-3 metres max (depending on day) everything begins to turn into greys and browns so to a fish, colour in this instance is almost redundant in comparison to action. However, the brighter the lure, the lighter the grey or brown that moves around... Add some wind and current and some stirring up of silt or sand, some clouds or the dark water of the swan and you will find that colour is not the contributing factor to a strike, rather its the contributing factor to whether the lure is visible to a fish from a distance or not.
Yes I agree with Spess regarding the whole, change colours get no hits and keep using a certain colour on that day in that spot and get hit after hit after hit... But I am not convinced that it is the colour which has created this... rather, it would have been the action contributing mainly to the hit.. however, in the conditions, the lure would have stood out more visibly and thats all it comes down to.
Colours matter for visibility for a fish. If you use too bright a colour in a clear day however, the lure will tend to glow to them thus making it look unnatural and possibly spooking them. Use too dark a colour on a darker day and the lure will swim straight past them without them even knowing about it... especially in the swan where the visibility is very very poor... most fish rely on thier other sensatory capacity to find food, such as thier lateral line and thier sense of smell.
So in regards to colour, yes they all work, as I stated in the last post, but it is completely variable depending on day, weather, conditions etc... Colour will not make a fish strike a lure simply because it looks attractive. Action will which is why I was stressing that presentation is paramount to keeping the action correct.
Hope this clears up what i was trying to convey.
SPESS
Posts: 3356
Date Joined: 29/12/06
Sounds like someone has been
Sounds like someone has been talking to sooley!lol. Tell him i said hi......deffently looks like you have been doing a bit of homework latley rickets but how are YOU going on the soft plastic front of late....wasnt to long ago i think were asking the same questions as young andy lol. no offence intended! Have you been getting any bream up at guilderton on plastics?, because im have thinking of doing a quick trip up soon?
Keep it tight, reeeeeeel tight!
h0ju
Posts: 564
Date Joined: 05/08/06
bcf cannington are clearing
bcf cannington are clearing out there range of atomic softies 5 bucks a pack... come down and grab some if use want
rickets
Posts: 995
Date Joined: 03/06/07
i havnt been using softies
i havnt been using softies for bream... I been using HB's and no offense taken... i just figured that the same logic applied for softies as for HB's which is why i did the research :)
Of course colour matters, as i said, i agree with you but i was pointing out what ive found in my opinion as im sure many have the thought that colours actually attribute to the attractiveness of the lure. In which case, im pretty sure (in my opinion) it doesnt. Action and Retrieve does... colour makes it stand out (too much or too little - thats why varying colours work in different spots on different days) but my opinion (i hope) contributes to the logic behind choosing what colours on what day in what location etc.
Yeah givus a holler when you cruise up there and ill tag along for the ride... if youll have me :P
SPESS
Posts: 3356
Date Joined: 29/12/06
Yeah will do mate....i can
Yeah will do mate....i can get the use of a bream boat set up for toraments from a mate.....good to cast into snaggs with as theres heaps of casting deck and a good minkota on the back. Soon as i get time ill be into it.
Keep it tight, reeeeeeel tight!
rickets
Posts: 995
Date Joined: 03/06/07
righto buddy, hit me up when
righto buddy, hit me up when ya do hey, we'll sink some beers and hit the snags... should be good :)