Loosing Fish

[speed craw]

I am a huge fan of chatterbaits . I have been having really good success with spot remover screw lock skirted finesse jigs for bass on bed . However I have had good success with chatterbaits , but heres my dilema . I am pitching in confined spaces with medium to heavy sunken wood , so I have been using a 6 foot 6 inch rod with heavy fluro . I might just switch out for MY 7 FT medium heavy . But i'm having trouble driving the hook home , my question I guess is there a 3/8ths size finesse chatterbait that has a better hook up ratio ? As I am having trouble setting the hook on older larger bass  . 

[bass2bluegill]

i fish the 3/8 oz mostly.  i fish it on a medium heavy 7ft rod and 14 lb pline flouroclear. or 12lb mono. i havent had any problems with hook ups. most of my fish are very well hooked then again i havent caught any giants on a chatterbait. 

[frantzracing0]

are your hooks sharp?

[Raul]

are your hooks sharp?

 

X2 !

[Deleted account]

I am a huge fan of chatterbaits . I have been having really good success with spot remover screw lock skirted finesse jigs for bass on bed . However I have had good success with chatterbaits , but heres my dilema . I am pitching in confined spaces with medium to heavy sunken wood , so I have been using a 6 foot 6 inch rod with heavy fluro . I might just switch out for MY 7 FT medium heavy . But i'm having trouble driving the hook home , my question I guess is there a 3/8ths size finesse chatterbait that has a better hook up ratio ? As I am having trouble setting the hook on older larger bass  . 

[georgeyew]

I am a huge fan of chatterbaits . I have been having really good success with spot remover screw lock skirted finesse jigs for bass on bed . However I have had good success with chatterbaits , but heres my dilema . I am pitching in confined spaces with medium to heavy sunken wood , so I have been using a 6 foot 6 inch rod with heavy fluro . I might just switch out for MY 7 FT medium heavy . But i'm having trouble driving the hook home , my question I guess is there a 3/8ths size finesse chatterbait that has a better hook up ratio ? As I am having trouble setting the hook on older larger bass  . 

 

You might need the opposite of a medium heavy rod. Remember the chatterbait is a moving bait. You don't really need to set the hook hard. The fish might be short striking it or not fully taking it in. Try switching to a mono line to give them more time to eat it. Same concept as a crankbait and spinnerbaits.

[speed craw]

As far as sharp hooks the lure is brand new . I figured the extra backbone would be the way to go , however I normally use the same rod application for my spinnerbaits . I am sight fishing for spawning females . I am slowly rolling over each log to then drop on the bed , I do not have a problem with finesse jigs with the screw lock to keep the snags down . They are picking it up and slowly turning but again I have a limited access for the fish to run so I have to do  quick hooks set then start reeling fast , almost like a frog fishing hook set . The space limit is i guess where the problem lies therein so maybe a swim jig might be a better presentation provided I am not using a xx strong hook ?

[speed craw]

I am fishing different angles within several fallen trees in 3-4 ft of water and flipping then swimming the chatterbait all through cover and sunken logs , etc .

[papajoe222]

SpeedCraw, Just because a bait is new doesn't mean it's hook or hooks are sharp. Every spinnerbait, or single hook bait I own gets the thumbnail test before I tie it on. If it slides off, it gets sharpened. If I threw Chatterbait you can bet I'd check it's hook first.

[speed craw]

Yeah I can understand that and your probably right , just frustrating setting the hook and realizing your missing 4 lbs plus fish on bed . I just thought maybe a light wire hook would do better kinda like a light wire hook on a heavy football jig . 

[A-Jay]

One way to increase hook setting power while using your current rod & reel is to switch to a braided line.

 

You'll get a solid hook up and be able to move the fish quickly, which sounds like what you're looking for.

 

Good Luck

 

A-Jay

[wnybassman]

I don't use braid on too many rigs, but I do use straight 50 pound braid on my chatterbait rod with a 7' MH/F rod.    Be warned though, once you fish a chatterbait with braid you may not be able to feel any other baits vibrate ever again.    lol

[livetofish28]

I don't use braid on too many rigs, but I do use straight 50 pound braid on my chatterbait rod with a 7' MH/F rod.    Be warned though, once you fish a chatterbait with braid you may not be able to feel any other baits vibrate ever again.    lol

X2 I now hate any line for reaction baits but braid. And braid will definitely help drive the hook home

Tight lines

Andrew

[dreamertino]

X2 I now hate any line for reaction baits but braid. And braid will definitely help drive the hook home

Tight lines

Andrew

X3 I love the feel of braid the tap tap feels like a bang bang

[gobig]

I fish a chatter bait on braid also.

[flyingmonkie]

I don't use braid on too many rigs, but I do use straight 50 pound braid on my chatterbait rod with a 7' MH/F rod.    Be warned though, once you fish a chatterbait with braid you may not be able to feel any other baits vibrate ever again.    lol

 

HAHAHA!  No kidding.  You're shooting for that numbness in the hands you get after working the weed-whacker for an hour.

[WIGuide]

My question is if you're killing them on a shaky head, why bother with the chatter bait if you know they're on a bed especially given your hookup ratio?

[speed craw]

I was getting the fish to stare and get deffensive with the finnesse approach but not committing. However with a chatterbait and craw trailer I would do small rips through the bed causing a reaction bite.

[hookset on 3]

speed craw, As an add on to what Papa Joe said, the stock hooks on the Original Chatterbait are notoriously dull out of the package.

 

The manufacturer, Z-Man, took steps to correct that, by putting a Gamakatsu on their newer Elite style.

 

I've read that lots of bass fishing tournament anglers have tried sharpening the original hooks, but they are so lousy, you can't even put a good point on them.