Fishing Tubes

[hoosierbass07]

  A couple of times this spring (or should I say later winter/very early spring) I tried using tubes for the first time.  I've owned tubes the last three years but never used them because I was not sure how to rig them right to be weedless.  I watched a Mike Iaconelli DVD where he shows how to rig them weedless (bell sinker in tube with round bend hook running through bell sinker eye and texas rig it).  So I tried that with some Bass Pro Shops tubes I have while bank fishing in very shallow water.  I've only caught some small bass so far but I have to say I'm becoming a big fan of tubes.  I've noticed the Bass Pro Shops tube I'm using gets really slimy while dragging it over grass and weeds.  Also, I've noticed how it spirals down in the water and I think that is very cool.  

 

 So if you use tubes, what are your favorite ones and how do you like using them?  What kind of line do you throw them on?  And what color and size do you get the most action with?  

[Siebert Outdoors]

99% of the time I fish tubes I'm throwing a green pumpkin tube texas rigged.

[Ben Eipert]

I throw tubes as often as I can. I love Cabin Creek's 4 inchers. Their salt and pepper with green or blue flake is just killer. I fish them with a weedless insider head or on a shakey head. I use 14 pound fluorocarbon. The water I use is also super clear and they kill anything and everything that swims.

[mcgreggor57]

I threw Gitzit tubes for the first time last fall.  Green Pumpkin is the preferred color where I was fishing and I had limited success,  My technique needs improving I'm sure.

[*Hank]

Bait: My tube of choice is a Gitzit 3.5in color: Brown craw /green sparkle.

Rigging: Fishing around rock type structure I use the bite me vertical eye tube head,Fishing around wood&grass etc/ Ike's method works great,I like 1/4oz for just about all the tubes I use.

Line: I use seagur red label 6-10lb test depending on the cover.

[IDUTBass]

I really like the zoom tubes myself. Then I would say strike king is a close second.

[smalljaw67]

I have some specialized equipment for tubes and I use different tubes depending on how and where I'm using them. Most of the time I'm fishing tubes in the  river for smallmouth, when I do that I'm using a jig inside the tube from 1/16oz up to 1/4oz and the presentation is either dead stick, slow drag, or hopping. For those types of presentation I'm using a River Rock Baits pro series tube, a little pricy but you'll find no better, the fish eat these so you get a good hook set every time. For flipping or pitching tubes I will Texas rig a 4" tube that is hard, it is a Cabela's flat tire tube with Megastrike scent on it and it is basically a pitch, hop it twice, and reel it in for the next pitch type of presentation. The reason for that tube it is isn't subtle at all, it is a reaction type bite and I use it when the water is too clear for a big jig but stained enough that I want something that can still move water and have a somewhat natural look.

[papajoe222]

Tubes replaced worms as my plastic of choice years ago. I prefer a softer tube like the BPS TenderTube for open water presentations and I'll almost always rig it with an internal jig. Whe fishing cover, I like a thicker tube and depending on the cover I rig it differently. That spiral drop that you mention is great, but you can also use tubes for horizontal presentations. Dragging a tube over hard bottoms is a great way to pick up smallies.

StrikeKing, Zoom and Gitzit are all good choices. As for equipment, I only use heavy line when flipping heavy cover and my Rod choice is determined by the size tube and weight. I use baitcasing gear for most tubes 3.5in. and larger and spinning gear for anything smaller.

[iabass8]

I throw tubes a lot as well. My preferred tube(s) of choice are the Gene Larew ring tube and Chompers/Lake Fork Craw tube (depending on if i run out of one or the other). I pitch them into laydowns a lot /w a peged T-rig. 

 

The 3in Gitzit slender tube /w a tube jig head is a smallie killer.

[WPCfishing]

I like throwing tubes. Black with blue works well for me. 3"-4" depending on conditions.

 

Here's a tip, Last summer I pushed a tube over a 1/2oz ball head jig and added a Johnson beetle spin wire to it. My new tube spinner became an instant success.

I use this often now. My catch on these is about twice what it was on a beetle spin. 

[*Hank]

I throw tubes a lot as well. My preferred tube(s) of choice are the Gene Larew ring tube and Chompers/Lake Fork Craw tube (depending on if i run out of one or the other). I pitch them into laydowns a lot /w a peged T-rig. 

 

The 3in Gitzit slender tube /w a tube jig head is a smallie killer.

What kind of jig head do you use for the gitzit 3in. ?

[iabass8]

What kind of jig head do you use for the gitzit 3in. ?

It's a local guy pours some cylindrical weighted heads much like Northland offerings. 

[Big Swimbait]

My favorite is the Keitech tube. It is solid/weighted in the head. If you rig it backwards, it dives away from you on the fall.

[Lacustrine]

I have never used a tube. Do they do as good as worms or other soft plastics? I like the ones in the video above.

[Big Swimbait]

I have never used a tube. Do they do as good as worms or other soft plastics? I like the ones in the video above.

At times they will. I always keep one rigged because not many people throw them. If the bite's slow, sometimes that different bait will get you bit. I also have a tournament buddy that throws the Basstrix giant tube. That thing is about 6 in long & about 2 in thick. He may not catch as many as the rest, but he usually has big bass.

[smalljaw67]

I have never used a tube. Do they do as good as worms or other soft plastics? I like the ones in the video above.

 

Solid tube like the Keitech salty core in the video are completely different from regular tubes, they fish different and have a different action, more like a fat Ika or Damiki Hydra. Hollow tubes are the norm, if you rig them with an insider jig head they fall in a spiral motion, and if you leave a small gap between the top of the tube and the jig head it will fall in a wider spiral. They are used like that for smallmouth but are often Texas rigged for largemouth in cover, go to you tube and check out tube rigging and fishing videos, lot of good information available.

[scaleface]

Tubes have always been hit or miss for me. One day I was using black gizits in 6 to 10 foot of water on a point. I would raise the lure off the bottom to close to the surface and let it fall. Dont know what the technique is called , if anything. Anyway the bass were hitting at the surface or close .

[corn-on-the-rob]

That is the beauty of a tube. It is ambiguous enough looking that one fish thinks it's a craw, another thinks it's a baitfish. Very versatile.

[ib_of_the_damned]

If you guys are fishing tubes with the internal jig head (Stupid Tube Rig) and get that spiral fall, do you all use a spinning set up for this or do you use casting gear? I'm looking to try tubes for a different presentation where I fish and rarely if ever see people throwing them.

[bowhunter63]

I like a 3inch Green Pumpkin most the time on 10 lb flouro

[fisherrw]

Bait: My tube of choice is a Gitzit 3.5in color: Brown craw /green sparkle.

Rigging: Fishing around rock type structure I use the bite me vertical eye tube head,Fishing around wood&grass etc/ Ike's method works great,I like 1/4oz for just about all the tubes I use.

Line: I use seagur red label 6-10lb test depending on the cover.

Same I use except I use suffix 6 and 8 pound test

[IDUTBass]

If you guys are fishing tubes with the internal jig head (Stupid Tube Rig) and get that spiral fall, do you all use a spinning set up for this or do you use casting gear? I'm looking to try tubes for a different presentation where I fish and rarely if ever see people throwing them.

I Use casting gear if I'm using a 3/8 or greater head. Under that I use spinning gear. Both with braid and a leader

[.ghoti.]

I like Poor Boys tubes; watermelon rose, golby amd rufus poop colors. internal weighting, 1/16 to 1/8oz; either a bell sinker or a drop shot weight with the wire spread open, and a 4/0 Owner Rig-n hook. This will catch fish just about anywhere, almost any time. I fish this rig on casting gear.

I also carry some 2.5" tubes to be fished on spinning gear, with 1/32 - 1/16oz jigheads inside. when I need to down-size, this is a good first choice. I want either realistic craw colors, or bairfish colors for those times.

[primetime]

I love tubes, I consider them to be the most versatile soft bait, and there are a million ways to fish them, I would simply google how to fish a tube and modifications, and you will find articles with a lot of tricks.

 

It is important to understand the different types of tubes, double dipped, flipping tubes, and then the finesse tubes or thinner tubes that I prefer for anything other than flipping, and my favorite tubes are by far the following.....

 

1-original Gitzit Flash tubes-in deeper water, suspended fish, rig a 3" gitzit flash tube on a slider jig head or darter head open hook, trim the tentacles and fish it like a jerkbait but use your reel for action, keep the rod down and ready to set with a pull more than a snap since the hooks are light wire...or go heavy line any way you would fish a worm.

 

Zoom Tubes, BPS Tender Tubes, Kase Plastics, Mizmo, Venom, missle flipping craws for punching, and Power Team food chain tubes are really good but for the money, BPS own brand has a cult following...The Reviews explain why they are good tubes, don't buy the more expensive brands for same tube....Gitzits and truly unique, they are the GYB of tubes.

[primetime]

A popular way to fish tubes here in Florida is to use them when you have to skip under a dock or laydowns etc..NOthing skips better than a tube, and it can be fished like a fluke, subwalk, hopped etc...But lately people are throwing them in the slop instead of a frog or toad and letting it fall through, using internal weights and texas rigged.

 

I forgot to mention, if you want to get the best tube for clear water and for fish feeding on batfish and not craws etc...Berkley makes a tube with eyes that looks realistic, but Reaction Strike has tubes that are fantastic, overstock has them for cheap like $5 a bag, they are super realistic and are awesome for fishing weightless like a fluke or for a gliding fall, the key is the flat slider jig heads, any jighead with a flat design or line tie that is 90% If 0 weeds, but think swim jig style heads and putting a tube on it....Tubes fall great If you peg the weight but let it slide 3-6" as well, gitzit tubes glide the best and flash tubes are thin and imitate baitfish...peeling off the outer layer and making sure the tentacles are not sticking is key, tubes need grooming usually, and they hold scent well.

 

The Berkley Powerbait Tubes with eyes are still available on Ebay, they don't sell well since Tubes are not marketed much and are not a flashy fun bait anymore, when they first hit the market they were in everyone's box, now I am the only guy who buys a lot of tubes out of the group I fish with, some guys use the Hydra and IKa which are awesome, but for me those are punch baits or casting gear heavy presentations and I save them for important days when I am fishing great lakes and areas...Hydra and Ikas are heavy and no joke, they are great as a frog on the trash....