Getting better with bottom baits?

[JFlynn97]

I feel like I'm only able to consistently catch bass on moving baits like chatterbaits, spinnerbaits, or crankbaits. What tips do you guys have for bottom-contact baits? Things like texas rigs, senkos, and most importantly jigs? When you're using a bottom contact bait, do you typically have your line tight to the point where you can feel the weight of your bait but you're not dragging it, or let it sit on more of a semi-slack line? I feel like if it's sitting on semi-slack I might not feel a hit, but if I have the line tighter I might get over excited and set the hook too early or the line might be more visible to the fish. Also, how do you guys deal with windier conditions? It seems like it's windy every time I go out in my area lately and it gives me trouble keeping up with where my line is and if it's moving or not, but I'm dedicated to learning these types of presentations.

 

Thanks a ton!

[MassYak85]

Usually I am holding my line semi-slack. It also pays to watch your line, look to see any jumps, if it's tightening, or if its getting more slack. Unfortunately, wind sucks. You may have to upsize your weight to maintain contact with the lure, and watching your line becomes more difficult. You could try a high-vis braid with a leader.

[jr231]

Second the hi viz braid with a leader. Usually floro for me because it sinks. 

 

Also second the semi slack line . 

 

Most of the time slow is best. Slow it down, then slow it down some more. Try several retrieves before giving up. Such as a hop/pause with different speeds , or a drag.. then kind of burn it. Let the fish tell you what they want. 

 

The only way to get better at something is to do it. Like most things in life, reading can give you ideas, but nothing beats hands on experience... 

[TylerT123]

When it’s colder I like to scratch them on the bottom, very slowly, not much movement. Most people are too concerned about the fish seeing the line, they might see it but they won’t put 2 and 2 together.. It’s a fish. Reel before you set the hook. You’re overthinking it.

[TnRiver46]

I can’t catch much on moving Baits but I have been catching bass with bottom Baits since I was knee high. You can’t really move a bait on a slack line so I would say keep it tight while moving it and watch the line while its sitting still on bottom or sinking. A good way to feel more bites is to always be “weighing” the lure in your mind. By that, I mean every time you lift a Texas Rig, jig, or drag a Carolina rig or shakey head (or even lift a weightless Senko for that matter) with the rod, pay attention and make a mental note of what the weight of your lure feels like WITHOUT a fish biting it. That way when a fish does bite it, it will be different than what you have been feeling and it will stand out. sometimes when they eat the lure it feels like a wet sock is stuck on your line. Other times it feels like someone hit you with a ball bat 

[thinkingredneck]

I catch far more by feel than sight.  Anything that feels or looks different gets a hookset.  I want constant contact once it is on the botton.  Tight lines.

[Mike L]

8 hours ago, TnRiver46 said:

You can’t really move a bait on a slack line so I would say keep it tight while moving it and watch the line while its sitting still on bottom or sinking. A good way to feel more bites is to always be “weighing” the lure in your mind. By that, I mean every time you lift a Texas Rig, jig, or drag a Carolina rig or shakey head (or even lift a weightless Senko for that matter) with the rod, pay attention and make a mental note of what the weight of your lure feels like WITHOUT a fish biting it. That way when a fish does bite it, it will be different than what you have been feeling and it will stand out. sometimes when they eat the lure it feels like a wet sock is stuck on your line. Other times it feels like someone hit you with a ball bat 

Ditto

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mike

[Catt]

Feeling a t-rig/jig bite requires keeping a certain amount of tension on your line while at the same time keeping a certain amount of slackness in your line. To the average angler this makes no sense at all but the t-rig/jig angler it makes total sense.

[A-Jay]

19 hours ago, JFlynn97 said:

I feel like I'm only able to consistently catch bass on moving baits like chatterbaits, spinnerbaits, or crankbaits. What tips do you guys have for bottom-contact baits? Things like texas rigs, senkos, and most importantly jigs? When you're using a bottom contact bait, do you typically have your line tight to the point where you can feel the weight of your bait but you're not dragging it, or let it sit on more of a semi-slack line? I feel like if it's sitting on semi-slack I might not feel a hit, but if I have the line tighter I might get over excited and set the hook too early or the line might be more visible to the fish. Also, how do you guys deal with windier conditions? It seems like it's windy every time I go out in my area lately and it gives me trouble keeping up with where my line is and if it's moving or not, but I'm dedicated to learning these types of presentations.

 

Thanks a ton!

Some solid advice offered here so far - 

Something that improved my own 'bottom contact bait' fishing immeasurably - was to fish at night.

Learning to feel & sense what a bottom bait is doing at all times is very valuable.

This is pretty much forced upon an angler at night; seems really tough at first. 

One quickly learns how 'sight orientated' they are but will later come to realize how much more there is to the whole deal.  Watching ones line for bites is helpful and will no doubt help detect bites. 

But a few successful outings in the black of night can be life changing when it comes to day time bite detection. 

I don't know a single night time basshead who wouldn't agree.

So get a head lamp & be safe.

A-Jay

 

[Brad in Texas]

I have never been much of a line watcher, have done so more lately and all I can say is it is circumstantial. It just involves another sensory element and where it works best for me, by far, is when I am using any weightless finesse presentation, say a wacky-rigged plastic or weightless worm or shad-like bait.

 

For T-Rigs and Drop Shots and several others with weights? The weight provides an anchor from the other end, so when a fish bites down on the plastic and moves it, it is more like, what, a string on a guitar being strummed and it'll be that tiny weight that helps transmit the vibration up to your hands. Here, I think a very taut to semi-slack line works. Anything too loose will mask the signal.

 

Many of us started out fishing with cane poles or cheap rods/reels fishing with a red and white bobber, the rest hanging down below the water line. If you recall, when you were watching your bobber, you'd most often see it dip several times just a fraction of an inch, then suddenly get jerked under water. Sort of like that old scary scene in the original Jaws movie, the girl getting hit, hit, then dunked. Yes, occasionally a fish will slam a finesse presentation, no messing around, but more so with moving baits than those that sit on the bottom. When they do hit them fast and aggressively on finesse applications, in my experience it is almost always on the drop or just as it hits bottom. Otherwise, they tend to inspect it a bit first, maybe push on it or pick it up and drop it first.

 

So, for me: 1) line watching is a big deal when you can see it and are using any weightless finesse bottom presentations; 2) you want as much slack out of your line really fast if they hit it on the fall or at touch down; 3) and, if you have a weight at the other end, hook between you and it, the line has to be at least a bit snug to transmit signals best.

 

*** Then, there's that Carolina Rig that doesn't fit these rules. Ha! (big weight between you and the hook to transmit signal through). Not so much a finesse presentation really and a different skill set altogether to know when you are hooked up.

 

Brad

[Catt]

@A-Jay

The greatest instructional tool available to the anglers wanting to learn "feel" bites is night time!

 

I don't mean a couple hours here & there, that will only teach you frustration

 

Start with the spawn & fish the entire year until the next spawn, I promise your bite detection & hookup ratio will increase ten fold!

 

The jig bite where ya feel that classic tap or the one where ya see line movement are the ones y'all should not be missing!

 

The majority of my jigs bites when casting, flipping, pitching, & punching come with NO line movement or tap, nothing until I apply pressure & feel resistance, at this point I set hook, most anglers simply apply more pressure, at which time the bass spit your jig.

[scaleface]

Get good at it and you will be a different angler for the better  .Most lures  that sinks can be bounced along the bottom .

[TnRiver46]

@Catt, no way in this lifetime I’m going out on your 120,000 acre mosquito infested stump field in the dark!!! Bluuuuuh. Forgot to comment on the OPs question about the wind. I have 2-3 different ways I like to deal with it depending on what kind of area I’m fishing. When I was in Michigan fishing for a week, the wind blew hard every day after lunch and I had a kayak to fish out of. The lake I fished seemed to have grass everywhere I could find within paddle range so I would just cast the worm out, let it settle into the grass and let the wind and waves blow the kayak. The lure was constantly jumping ripping out of grass and falling back into it, and the fish were eating it. Another way is to just position yourself with the wind directly at your back, if possible. If you can combine the wind at your back and parallel a bank, you will have good feel of your bait 

[scaleface]

Sometimes you have to keep the rod tip low in a heavy wind and try to keep it pointing straight into the wind . Lots of people recommend using the lightest weight possible ,  I'm the opposite .  When fishing with my uncle he rarely went over 1/8th  ounce and I rarely used a 1/8th or smaller . I caught at least 5 x more bass than him . 

[Catt]

@TnRiver46

 

Don't be afraid of the night...be afraid of what hunts in the night  ?

[TnRiver46]

9 hours ago, Catt said:

@TnRiver46

 

Don't be afraid of the night...be afraid of what hunts in the night  ?

Things that go bump in the night keep me safely locked up at home all night! I’ll get frogs out of pond after dark but a big stumpy reservoir seems too much for my scaredy cat rear end 

[Mobasser]

I agree with those that talked about night fishing. After dark, your senses become much more tuned in. Also, what helped me years ago was keeping my rod tip up. I could see my line, and feel strikes too. This might be a way to keep the tightness and slack in your line that Catt mentions. In the end, I think the more experienced guys will say " feel" is the best way. Once this happens for you, and it will with practice, you'll know it, and become a better angler right away.Keep at it, and good luck

[the reel ess]

I was the same when I was learning bass fishing. I preferred moving baits because the hookset was easier. It takes practice. I keep the rod between 10-12 o'clock. Move the bait a little with the rod (do not move it with the reel), reel down the slack and repeat. When you feel that tell-tale tap-tap of a strike, reel down to about 7-8 o'clock and set the hook pretty hard. 

[FishDewd]

On 4/21/2018 at 4:11 PM, JFlynn97 said:

I feel like I'm only able to consistently catch bass on moving baits like chatterbaits, spinnerbaits, or crankbaits. What tips do you guys have for bottom-contact baits? Things like texas rigs, senkos, and most importantly jigs? When you're using a bottom contact bait, do you typically have your line tight to the point where you can feel the weight of your bait but you're not dragging it, or let it sit on more of a semi-slack line? I feel like if it's sitting on semi-slack I might not feel a hit, but if I have the line tighter I might get over excited and set the hook too early or the line might be more visible to the fish. Also, how do you guys deal with windier conditions? It seems like it's windy every time I go out in my area lately and it gives me trouble keeping up with where my line is and if it's moving or not, but I'm dedicated to learning these types of presentations.

 

Thanks a ton!

Same exact issues I've been having! The wind makes it tough to learn how to read lines when you've never had to do that before in the past lol. So I feel you on that one... I missed two jig hits today because I wasn't sure if it was a fish or the wind moving my line. Kind of an odd deal though... I brought too light of a rod because when I was left it was cloudy and calm. Once I got there it was full sun and gusty. I had planned on running topwater... that got thrown out the window pretty quickly.