Post by cory on Jan 14, 2007 17:13:30 GMT -6
I just wrote this one today. I didn't have anything better to do so I wrote about soft plastics. Well, here it is. Enjoy 
Few baits on the market offer you the variety of sizes, styles, colors, and versatility that soft plastics do. The variety of soft plastics can often make it intimidating when trying to purchase new baits. You are presented with thousands of color and shape options to choose from, as well as many different scents and brands. The style of baits you are presented with include worms, crawdads, lizards, flukes, pencil type baits such as the senko, tube baits, creature baits, and grubs. Now do you see why going to the tackle shop to pick up some new soft plastic baits can be intimidating!?
Selecting a Bait:
The best thing to do when selecting a bait is to try to "match the hatch." When I say this, I mean you should get baits that closely resemble the food the fish are eating. If you are fishing where the fish are feeding on shad the majority of the time, a fluke bait is probably the best. They can be darted and jerked to mimic a wounded or injured shad. If you are fishing where the bass are munching on crawdads, a creature bait such as a craw and brush hawgs do a good job of resembling a craw. Pulling a lizard through a bass nest will entice the bass into attacking the bait. Tube baits also do a great job of intimidating a crawfish. They can be jerked around to look like a swimming crawfish, or slowly drug along the bottom to imitate a walking craw. With the variety of soft plastics on the market today, it is becoming more and more easy to match the hatch.
Worms:
Worms were the beginning of the enormous soft plastic industry we have today. They started as a strip of rubber made from old tires. They have now been transformed into works of art. Worms present themselves to bass as several types of forage. Dead sticking a worm can imitate a dead worm and can be deadly especially in the winter when the bass are not active. Punching texas rigged worms through heavy cover in the summer months with heavy tackle will often produce fish. Cover provides shade and cooler water that fish can't resist.
Creature Baits:
Creature baits are those baits that do not fall into the worm, crawdad, lizard, fluke baits, worms, or grub categories. Most creature baits are combinations of worms, lizards and craws. They were first made by fisherman melting pieces of different baits together to customize their own baits. They became so popular that bait companies began producing them for sales.
Baits such as the creature baits are never ending in design. They are always being modified in some way to more closely resemble some type of forage. They are often flipped and pitched in or around cover by anglers in search of bass. Creature baits can be texas rigged, carolina rigged, fished weightless, put on a jig as a trailer, and rigged on a jig head. These baits have accounted for several tournament wins and countless successful days on the water for anglers.
Pencil Baits:
Pencil baits are awesome baits to fish weightless. They fall slowly and wobble resembling a dying baitfish of some kind. Gary Yamamoto's senko was the first pencil type bait that took the bass fishing world by surprise. These pencil baits are most often fished like a soft jerkbait because of their erratic jerking action. Their fluke-like action makes them highly attractive to feeding bass. Many times when fish strike the bait, but don't get the hook, stopping your retrieve and letting the bait slowly sink imitates a stunned baitfish. Most of the time, bass will then eat the bait when it is falling. Just like any soft plastic, pencil baits come in an array of colors and sizes. Once you key in on the right size and color, your livewell will be full in no time!
Lizards:
Lizards are one of those baits that anglers will have better luck at certain times of the year, and on certain bodies of water. Salamanders are a big bass nest invader during the spawn, and that is what lizards are made to resemble. Lakes that have a good population of salamanders will be the best places to use lizards, however, lakes that do not contain any salamanders are still an option.
Primarily flipped and pitched, lizards are mostly a reaction-strike type bait. Lizards can be found in just about any color you can think of. Matching the color of the lizard you purchase to the color of the salamanders your lake has will pay off.
Grubs:
Grubs have been thrown for years by anglers in search of smallies, though they also work well for largemouth bass. They are similar to a ring tail plastic worm, but much shorter. Most anglers texas rig them and drag and hop them along the bottom. They can also be swam around cover on a jig head. Grubs are also fished on carolina rigs and on split shot rigs. The tails on grubs vary from straight tail, split tail, beaver tail, single curly tail, or double curly tail. Each of these baits have a different actions. It is best to experiment with the different tail actions and see which one best sits your needs.
Tube Baits:
Often thought of as a finesse bait, tube baits come in sizes ranging from 1" crappie tubes to giant tubes in the 7-8" range. They can be rigged on a tube jig head or texas rigged. Tubes are often thought of as primarily for smallies, but that is not true. They work exceptionally well for largemouth too. Drag a tube through a bedding bass' nest and hang onto your rod! The action of tubes imitates a crawfish so well fish can't resist them. Some tubes actually give off bubbles, or bubbling tablets can be inserted into them. This makes them look more like a crawfish. Tubes come in thousands of colors and color combinations, just like any soft plastic. Shop around and you may find the color that looks just like the crawfish in your body of water.
Crawfish:
Crawfish are a common forage in thousands of lakes across the U.S. Soft plastic crawfish are obviously the best soft plastics to imitate crawfish. They are rigged several different ways such as the texas rig, carolina rig, weightless, and split shot. They can also be fished on jig head and bounced off the bottom. Many crawfish on the market today have little pockets that can be filled with crawfish scent. Crawfish soft plastic baits also come in worm-like crawfish. They can be fished just like a regular worm and are more versatile than the realistic plastic craws. With such a variety out there on the market, you really have to look around to find the right colors and sizes.
Rigs:
The rigs used when fishing soft plastics each present the fish with something different. The texas rig consists of a soft plastic bait with a weight pegged to it. This presentation is sometimes used to jig a bait off the bottom, hop or crawl it along, or simply dead stick plastics. The carolina rig is a bit more complex than the texas rig. It involves a leader, swivel, slip-type sinker, and a bead, which is optional. The leader allows the sinker and swivel to be dig up the bottom and then be followed by the soft plastic. The next rig is the the wacky rig. This is one of the most recent rigs that fools thousands of bass each year. It is a simple rig used with a pencil bait. You take a hook and put it through the center of the bait. That's it! Then cast the wacky rig out and let it sit for a few seconds to allow it to get down. Then, twitch your rod tip to give the bait action. Split shots are often used to get the bait down faster. The final rig is the jig head. This rig is simple to do and pays off big. You simply slide your bait onto the jig head. Putting soft plastics on a jig head allow you to "swim" your baits through the water. This is a killer technique to use around weed lines and brush piles. You should try to rig the same bait on different rigs to see what the fish like. One day might be a good day to fish a lizard on a carolina rig, the next day might be a good time to texas rig it.
Hooks:
The hook is one of the most important things when fishing. A dull hook isn't going to hook the same amount of fish that a sharp hook will. You will dramatically increase your catch numbers if you have sharper hooks. Colored hooks are also a few thing on the market. Red hooks give your soft plastic the look of a bleeding baitfish or type of forage. This presents an easy meal to fish. Changing the color of your hook will often change the outcome of your day on the water. A red hook might be the key factor in weather or not you weigh in a limit.
Rods and Reels:
The rods you use to fish soft plastics vary greatly. Texas and carolina rigs often require a heavier rod than weightless plastics. The texas and carolina rigs work well with a MH-H action rod, while weightless plastics are good with M-MH rods.
The reels you use are also a key factor. You do not need a high speed reel to fish soft plastics on the bottom. A high speed reel may cause the angler to drag the bait too fast when they should really be using a slower presentation. Most anglers can maintain a slower retrieve when using a high speed reel, but some tend to burn them. It is a matter or preference really. Go with what you think you will do best with.
Line:
The line you use is also a huge thing to consider when getting your gear set up. When flipping and pitching baits, a braid is a good choice because it tends to cut through the vegetation. Braid is also a non-stretch line. This means that you will get more power on your hookset. Carolina rigs can be thrown with a main line being braid and a fluorocarbon or mono leader. Weightless plastics are most commonly fished on light line in either fluorocarbon or monofilament which are nearly invisible in the water. Vary your line and match them with each different rig. Remember, your line is what brings the fish in, so don't forget to have good line on 100% of the time.
SOFT PLASTICS
Few baits on the market offer you the variety of sizes, styles, colors, and versatility that soft plastics do. The variety of soft plastics can often make it intimidating when trying to purchase new baits. You are presented with thousands of color and shape options to choose from, as well as many different scents and brands. The style of baits you are presented with include worms, crawdads, lizards, flukes, pencil type baits such as the senko, tube baits, creature baits, and grubs. Now do you see why going to the tackle shop to pick up some new soft plastic baits can be intimidating!?
Selecting a Bait:
The best thing to do when selecting a bait is to try to "match the hatch." When I say this, I mean you should get baits that closely resemble the food the fish are eating. If you are fishing where the fish are feeding on shad the majority of the time, a fluke bait is probably the best. They can be darted and jerked to mimic a wounded or injured shad. If you are fishing where the bass are munching on crawdads, a creature bait such as a craw and brush hawgs do a good job of resembling a craw. Pulling a lizard through a bass nest will entice the bass into attacking the bait. Tube baits also do a great job of intimidating a crawfish. They can be jerked around to look like a swimming crawfish, or slowly drug along the bottom to imitate a walking craw. With the variety of soft plastics on the market today, it is becoming more and more easy to match the hatch.
Worms:
Worms were the beginning of the enormous soft plastic industry we have today. They started as a strip of rubber made from old tires. They have now been transformed into works of art. Worms present themselves to bass as several types of forage. Dead sticking a worm can imitate a dead worm and can be deadly especially in the winter when the bass are not active. Punching texas rigged worms through heavy cover in the summer months with heavy tackle will often produce fish. Cover provides shade and cooler water that fish can't resist.
Creature Baits:
Creature baits are those baits that do not fall into the worm, crawdad, lizard, fluke baits, worms, or grub categories. Most creature baits are combinations of worms, lizards and craws. They were first made by fisherman melting pieces of different baits together to customize their own baits. They became so popular that bait companies began producing them for sales.
Baits such as the creature baits are never ending in design. They are always being modified in some way to more closely resemble some type of forage. They are often flipped and pitched in or around cover by anglers in search of bass. Creature baits can be texas rigged, carolina rigged, fished weightless, put on a jig as a trailer, and rigged on a jig head. These baits have accounted for several tournament wins and countless successful days on the water for anglers.
Pencil Baits:
Pencil baits are awesome baits to fish weightless. They fall slowly and wobble resembling a dying baitfish of some kind. Gary Yamamoto's senko was the first pencil type bait that took the bass fishing world by surprise. These pencil baits are most often fished like a soft jerkbait because of their erratic jerking action. Their fluke-like action makes them highly attractive to feeding bass. Many times when fish strike the bait, but don't get the hook, stopping your retrieve and letting the bait slowly sink imitates a stunned baitfish. Most of the time, bass will then eat the bait when it is falling. Just like any soft plastic, pencil baits come in an array of colors and sizes. Once you key in on the right size and color, your livewell will be full in no time!
Lizards:
Lizards are one of those baits that anglers will have better luck at certain times of the year, and on certain bodies of water. Salamanders are a big bass nest invader during the spawn, and that is what lizards are made to resemble. Lakes that have a good population of salamanders will be the best places to use lizards, however, lakes that do not contain any salamanders are still an option.
Primarily flipped and pitched, lizards are mostly a reaction-strike type bait. Lizards can be found in just about any color you can think of. Matching the color of the lizard you purchase to the color of the salamanders your lake has will pay off.
Grubs:
Grubs have been thrown for years by anglers in search of smallies, though they also work well for largemouth bass. They are similar to a ring tail plastic worm, but much shorter. Most anglers texas rig them and drag and hop them along the bottom. They can also be swam around cover on a jig head. Grubs are also fished on carolina rigs and on split shot rigs. The tails on grubs vary from straight tail, split tail, beaver tail, single curly tail, or double curly tail. Each of these baits have a different actions. It is best to experiment with the different tail actions and see which one best sits your needs.
Tube Baits:
Often thought of as a finesse bait, tube baits come in sizes ranging from 1" crappie tubes to giant tubes in the 7-8" range. They can be rigged on a tube jig head or texas rigged. Tubes are often thought of as primarily for smallies, but that is not true. They work exceptionally well for largemouth too. Drag a tube through a bedding bass' nest and hang onto your rod! The action of tubes imitates a crawfish so well fish can't resist them. Some tubes actually give off bubbles, or bubbling tablets can be inserted into them. This makes them look more like a crawfish. Tubes come in thousands of colors and color combinations, just like any soft plastic. Shop around and you may find the color that looks just like the crawfish in your body of water.
Crawfish:
Crawfish are a common forage in thousands of lakes across the U.S. Soft plastic crawfish are obviously the best soft plastics to imitate crawfish. They are rigged several different ways such as the texas rig, carolina rig, weightless, and split shot. They can also be fished on jig head and bounced off the bottom. Many crawfish on the market today have little pockets that can be filled with crawfish scent. Crawfish soft plastic baits also come in worm-like crawfish. They can be fished just like a regular worm and are more versatile than the realistic plastic craws. With such a variety out there on the market, you really have to look around to find the right colors and sizes.
Rigs:
The rigs used when fishing soft plastics each present the fish with something different. The texas rig consists of a soft plastic bait with a weight pegged to it. This presentation is sometimes used to jig a bait off the bottom, hop or crawl it along, or simply dead stick plastics. The carolina rig is a bit more complex than the texas rig. It involves a leader, swivel, slip-type sinker, and a bead, which is optional. The leader allows the sinker and swivel to be dig up the bottom and then be followed by the soft plastic. The next rig is the the wacky rig. This is one of the most recent rigs that fools thousands of bass each year. It is a simple rig used with a pencil bait. You take a hook and put it through the center of the bait. That's it! Then cast the wacky rig out and let it sit for a few seconds to allow it to get down. Then, twitch your rod tip to give the bait action. Split shots are often used to get the bait down faster. The final rig is the jig head. This rig is simple to do and pays off big. You simply slide your bait onto the jig head. Putting soft plastics on a jig head allow you to "swim" your baits through the water. This is a killer technique to use around weed lines and brush piles. You should try to rig the same bait on different rigs to see what the fish like. One day might be a good day to fish a lizard on a carolina rig, the next day might be a good time to texas rig it.
Hooks:
The hook is one of the most important things when fishing. A dull hook isn't going to hook the same amount of fish that a sharp hook will. You will dramatically increase your catch numbers if you have sharper hooks. Colored hooks are also a few thing on the market. Red hooks give your soft plastic the look of a bleeding baitfish or type of forage. This presents an easy meal to fish. Changing the color of your hook will often change the outcome of your day on the water. A red hook might be the key factor in weather or not you weigh in a limit.
Rods and Reels:
The rods you use to fish soft plastics vary greatly. Texas and carolina rigs often require a heavier rod than weightless plastics. The texas and carolina rigs work well with a MH-H action rod, while weightless plastics are good with M-MH rods.
The reels you use are also a key factor. You do not need a high speed reel to fish soft plastics on the bottom. A high speed reel may cause the angler to drag the bait too fast when they should really be using a slower presentation. Most anglers can maintain a slower retrieve when using a high speed reel, but some tend to burn them. It is a matter or preference really. Go with what you think you will do best with.
Line:
The line you use is also a huge thing to consider when getting your gear set up. When flipping and pitching baits, a braid is a good choice because it tends to cut through the vegetation. Braid is also a non-stretch line. This means that you will get more power on your hookset. Carolina rigs can be thrown with a main line being braid and a fluorocarbon or mono leader. Weightless plastics are most commonly fished on light line in either fluorocarbon or monofilament which are nearly invisible in the water. Vary your line and match them with each different rig. Remember, your line is what brings the fish in, so don't forget to have good line on 100% of the time.
