What is a classic tap tap?

[BubbaBassin’]

I hear often on this forum about the classic tap tap bite. I’ve felt said bite, but what do I do? The one time I’ve felt the bite I set the hook and their was no fish? Just wondering when to set the hook and when not to.

[Scott F]

As is often said, “hooksets are free”. Anytime you feel the tap, tap of a fish, go ahead and set the hook. Bluegills are often the ones who are tapping on your bait when you set the hook and nothing is there. 

[tbone1993]

Got to pick up line quickly to get them when they're biting like that. Good thing is when they bite like that you can usually get them to bite again on a missed hookset. That being said fish that tend to rapidly bite a bait are usually gills or perch in my experience.  Next time you feel that take a look at your bait for bite marks.

[FishDewd]

I've had the same issue lately, feel the tap, reel in, swing and miss. I had it five times in a row last week fishing a few spot. The sixth time I waited another second before setting and launched a crappie a couple feet through the air. Answered my question as to what kept hitting my 4" curly tail grub lol. Least I'm getting it down... when a bass hits me, I'll get him!

[kenmitch]

I just kind of slowly reel into it as I lift my rod and if I feel something then I'll set the hook if needed. Really depends on what you've been catching and what your using for bait. Sometimes just reeling in and turning is enough to set the hook if were talking little guys like bluegill, crappie, and other panfish. Guess with a sharp hook just about any fish. Caught 3 channel cats up to 6lbs last year with #16 treble hook before while bluegill fishing this way. I wouldn't set the hook as I'd just reel in and turn away from the fish to load the rod which set the hook once the fish realized it was hooked and made a run for it . If fish misses the first shot the bait doesn't get jerked rapidly away.

[MassYak85]

In my experience "tap tap" is generally smaller fish or bluegills picking up your bait and then attempting to suck it in deeper. With bigger bass it's usually just one solid thud/tap/tick depending how hard they hit it. 

[greentrout]

Some experienced bassers claim you're too late and the bass has spit out the bait...others it's an alarm bell...set the hook NOW...I've caught many with the tap tap...

 

It's here on BR...

 

good fishing...

[WRB]

The 1st tap is your worm or jig going into the basses mouth, the 2nd is going out.

Tom

[Catt]

This is the way Shaw Grigsby put it to me, he calls the three tap theory.

 

The first tap the bass has inhaled your bait

 

The second tap the bass has exhaled your bait

 

The third tap I'm tapping you on the shoulder asking you why you didn't set hook!

[Lead Head]

Over time you will learn the difference between what is likely a bluegill "tap" and a bass "tap". When I'm in a area that I know is loaded with bluegill (or any other small fish that will harass a bottom contact bait) I tend to wait a bit longer and see if I can feel the fish or see my bait being moved before I set. Some people here will say I'm missing fish and I'm sure sometimes I do, but I can't afford to replace my soft plastic every cast because a bluegill ripped the appendages off when I set. I would suggest you treat all taps like it's the bass your looking for until you are confident it's small fish harassing your bait, then slow your set a bit. I have had people tell me that a bass will often grab and crunch a bait then spit it out to "kill" it, then pick it up and eat it. This lines up perfectly with the majority my experience. There are many, MANY, different types of "hit" on soft plastics and jigs but most often a bass will hang on to it for a bit (again this is just my personal experience). This is all stuff that is not easily explained but with experience you will slowly begin to understand. 

 

Having said all that, I'll tell you this... 

After years of soft plastic fishing and thinking I pretty much had the whole "tap tap" figured out, I had a "tap tap" that I would have bet my paycheck was a bluegill end up being a 4+ pound bass. My line slightly moved down the bank after the taps so I set... 

[IgotWood]

When you feel the tap, reel down to the water and as the line gets tight, make a good hard hook-set. I find that larger bass often give a tap, and normally smaller bass tend to pick up the bait and swim off with it, notifying you right away that you've got a fish on. This is all in regard to fishing non-moving baits btw...

[Catt]

@BubbaBassin’

 

Goto YouTube & search for Glen Lau's videos Bigmouth & Bigmouth Forever

 

Watch closely as each bass strikes the lure & decide do I need to wait or set hook ASAP!

[DINK WHISPERER]

Sometimes that tap tap is the feeling of the fish spitting your lure out!

[ohboyitsrobby]

Every tap is different for me. On the creek behind my house the rat-a-tat-tat is almost guaranteed to be a bluegill. So I let it swim and then swing and still get nothing quite a bit. On the lake it's a lil different but I always swing for the fences there. Caught quite a few 4-5 lbers that just double tapped it. Especially when I'm fishing brush piles at night. Cuz if it's a bass I gotta get it up outta there can't afford to let one just swim you around in brush

[Catt]

I wholeheartedly agree the "rat-a-tat-tat" bite of Bluegill but on many occasions I've set hook on than "rat-a-tat-tat" & it was a bass.

 

There's a spot on Toledo Bend we call "Machine Gun Ridge" because that's how the bass hit.

 

I find that Kentucky/Spotted bass hit the same way except a whole lot more aggressive!

[scaleface]

If you feel a tap  when the lure is falling , reel down and set the hook . If you feel a tap when lifting , you may have just ticked a limb or something .

[EGbassing]

Are you fishing soft plastics? If so, then this will apply: If you feel a tap, set the hook hard. Eventually you'll learn the difference between the tap of a rock and the tap of a bass eating your lure, but for now, just set the hook. Otherwise you'll be missing a lot of fish, and gut-hooking some. The classic bite is just one or two taps. When that happens, quickly reel down until the line is almost tight, and set the hook hard. I hook around 80% to 90% of the bass that bite doing that. As for bluegill hitting the lure, I think it's unlikely. I once found a school of around 50 bluegill just sitting under a dock right off the bank. Out of curiosity, I dropped a T-rig Finesse worm right into the middle and not one would bite it.  If you have any more questions, feel free to ask me. 

[Glenn]

 

[Glaucus]

I can usually tell if the tap is a bass or a bluegill. Also, in my experience, I rarely miss a fish after feeling the tap tap. 

[Trox]

The biggest bass I've ever caught tapped like a bluegill... better to set the hook and be wrong, than to not and be sorry. 

[Deleted account]

20 hours ago, WRB said:

The 1st tap is your worm or jig going into the basses mouth, the 2nd is going out.

Tom

This^.  I find the first tap is more like a tick, and the second like a thud. The trick is to know how your bait feels and behaves as you retrieve it. Sure, sometimes you may miss a bite, or mistake a branch, rock or other stuff for a bite, but the more you do it, the more it becomes second nature. 

[fishwizzard]

I fish mostly weightless or lightly weighted soft plastics and most of the time I get 2-3 taps per hit.  I find if I set on the first tap I miss more often then not and if I hold off until the second one I tend to get them.  I also tend to keep my lures moving, so maybe that is a factor?  

 

I do get a lot of hits where my only indication is my spider-sense going off and then setting the hook, but the double/triple tap really seems to happen more often than not when I am fishing soft plastics.  

[WRB]

I believe jigs are much harder to detect strikes with then Texas rigged worms with slinging sinker. Bass nearly always engulfs a worm and keeps it thier mouth longer then a jig. Depending on the type of bass and the size strikes feel different, for example both spots and smallies tend to grab the claws of a crawdad before engulfing it so you feel several fast taps or ticks and need to adjust your hook set timing accordingly. Small size LMB often grab a jig and run off with it before engulfing it. Adult size LMB don't fool around and engulf the jig crunching down on it to hill it and can quickly reject it. The bigger a basses mouth is the less you feel the strike until they move with it in their mouth. Unfortunitly most bass anglers miss detecting the really big bass strike and miss it.

Tom

[scaleface]

23 minutes ago, WRB said:

Unfortunitly most bass anglers miss detecting the really big bass strike and miss it.

Yep, most of the time I swing and miss , it was on a lunker .?

[Catt]

A jig imitates a crawfish correct?

Yes I believes they do

 

A crawfish has a hard shell does it not?

Yes they in fact have a hard shell

 

Why would a bass spit what it perceives to be a crawfish because it feels something hard?

 

When the bass "crushes" the jig to kill it; it feels the hardness of a shell, the softness of the skirt, & the firmness of the trailer just like a crawfish.

 

Ever look at an un-painted lead bullet weight after catching a bass?

 

You will see teeth marks! ?