UPDATED!!! Ned vs the Drop Shot

[Chance_Taker4]

Fishing an event this weekend as a Co. Already have my boater and he said "as usual drop shot all day" Literally every angler in this even will have a drop shot in his hand all day. The drop shot has replaced a tube in the events I fished. I am thinking as a back seater I should throw something a little different and go out throwing the Ned rig. I know how versatile the Ned is. However is this a good presentation in drop shot dominating water or should I just try to get bites by DS a different bait than my boater?

[Darren.]

I don't know the "rules" for a co-angler, but why not throw

the Ned? Give the fish something no one else is showing  

 

Are you allowed only one rod? I'd have DS on the second 

if allowed.

[Brad in Texas]

And, it'll depend on what the bottom looks like. My home lake, Lake Athens, here in Texas has a ton of vegetation and a Ned Rig could just disappear down into it making it hard to see. On the other hand, I can use a relatively long leader down to the sinker, say 18", and the worm will be dancing above the vegetation.

 

Say, if your angler is using a 6" drop shot sinker leader, you could check various heights to see if you can find some a bit higher in the water column. Even 30" might work and you can snip off leader length to hone in on the proper depth.

 

Good luck . . . catch some fish!

 

Brad

[J Francho]

I wouldn't want to use a Ned rig over drop shot in 30'+ water.  Why is the drop shot the dominant bait?  A C-rig, dragging a tube, or even a Hopkins Shorty spoon may be the better bait that day.

[Chance_Taker4]

Clear water, Rocky bottom. Think lake Erie type water. Usually we fish around 10-25' dragging tubes used to be the norm but now everyone is throwing DS. I usually carry 5 rods as a co.

[bassguytom]

How about a shakeyhead? I’d throw that for something different. 

[OCdockskipper]

I'd say that is an excellent strategy.  If you find the fish are on the bottom and won't come up to get a bait, you might want to bump up to a 1/10 oz head to get the bait down there a bit quicker.

 

I would venture to say you will catch more fish on the drop than the dropshot folks, so if the fish happen to be looking up that day, you will have a decided advantage.

[WRB]

Really depends on wind and boat control skills of the front seat. If the boater is staying on top of isolated structure with fish under the boat the drop shot rig works well.

You should have a drop shot rig ready. My second choice or 1st choice would be a slip shot rig to cover more area. As Franco mentioned a structure spoon works very well vertically. Keep in mind you can drop shot a tube! Another soft plastic over looked is a wacky rigged nail weight worm if the boat is stationary enough to present it and dart head jigs with curl tail worms. Don't over look spy baits!

Tom

[frogflogger]

haven't seen a drop shot outfish a ned rig yet

[Brad in Texas]

3 minutes ago, frogflogger said:

haven't seen a drop shot outfish a ned rig yet

I think where Ned Rigs are being used, it is a super presentation. Very productive.

 

Odd, though, as I know many pros have a rod rigged with a drop shot on deck at all times, I am uncertain whether I have heard of or seen anyone fishing in the bigger pro tournament formats . . . using Ned Rigs.

 

Are they mixing it in with their finesse arsenals?

 

Brad

[Chance_Taker4]

9 hours ago, WRB said:

Really depends on wind and boat control skills of the front seat. If the boater is staying on top of isolated structure with fish under the boat the drop shot rig works well.

You should have a drop shot rig ready. My second choice or 1st choice would be a slip shot rig to cover more area. As Franco mentioned a structure spoon works very well vertically. Keep in mind you can drop shot a tube! Another soft plastic over looked is a wacky rigged nail weight worm if the boat is stationary enough to present it and dart head jigs with curl tail worms. Don't over look spy baits!

Tom

I have fished with this particular boater a few times and have already mentally prepared to not move all day. Once he finds fish he puts spot lock on and doesn't move till weigh in even when the bite slows. I thought about wackey rigging a trick worm with a nail weight as well. I prepared 4 finesse setups and one flipping rod because I know it will be a tube, wackey, DS, Ned in deeper water type of day.

[J Francho]

12 hours ago, Chance_Taker4 said:

Clear water, Rocky bottom. Think lake Erie type water. Usually we fish around 10-25' dragging tubes used to be the norm but now everyone is throwing DS. I usually carry 5 rods as a co.

Like I said, if you struggle for bites, go back to other baits that worked in the past.  I'd rather stick a fork in my eye than wait for a 1/5 oz. poop jig to hit bottom at 25'.

[NYWayfarer]

On 6/18/2018 at 7:21 PM, WRB said:

Keep in mind you can drop shot a tube!

Yes sir! I find the Z-man TRD Tubez are perfect for a drop shot.

 

http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Z-Man_TRD_Tubez_6pk/descpage-ZMTRDT.html

[WRB]

3 hours ago, frogflogger said:

haven't seen a drop shot outfish a ned rig yet

Have you ever watched MLF and seen a Ned rig used successfully? The MLF format is often suited for finesse presentations and the pros often use a drop shot rig when the bite is tough to catch a 12" or 1 lb bass. 

Tom

[Chance_Taker4]

3 hours ago, WRB said:

Have you ever watched MLF and seen a Ned rig used successfully? The MLF format is often suited for finesse presentations and the pros often use a drop shot rig when the bite is tough to catch a 12" or 1 lb bass. 

Tom

The normal DS bait is roboworm or fluke. I was thinking of going with the Ned to give something different but also considered using something like the Jackall Crosstail Shad or Strike King Drop Shot Half Shell on the Drop Shot and just present a different bait.

[blckshirt98]

Why not do both at the same time?  Tie a dropshot as usual and instead of a dropshot weight, stick a ned rig on the bottom of the leader.  It'll cost more out of pocket if you have a break off, but you can see what is/isn't working faster.

[J Francho]

58 minutes ago, Chance_Taker4 said:

Jackall Crosstail Shad

Those don't work at all!

 

[WRB]

2 hours ago, Chance_Taker4 said:

The normal DS bait is roboworm or fluke. I was thinking of going with the Ned to give something different but also considered using something like the Jackall Crosstail Shad or Strike King Drop Shot Half Shell on the Drop Shot and just present a different bait.

You are just using a light weight jig to present soft plastic and a dart head will work better then a mushroom head IMO. Flick shaky jig and wacky worm is another very effective vertical presentation.

The advantage in deep water with a drop shot is the drop shot weight doesn't affect the soft plastics action and a jig head can. Dart heads swim with action in a vertical or horizontal presentation.

You want a real deadly deep water vertical presentation try Raplala Rap Ice jigs!

Tom

[fishwizzard]

19 hours ago, J Francho said:

Those don't work at all!

 

That's a staged photo, no way a Crosstail would have stayed on the hook after the bite ?

[J Francho]

It was one in a million!  Luckily they float.  I've "harvested" many a cross tails doing the back stroke.

[Log Catcher]

If you are fishing a lot of rocky areas you will spend a lot of time hung up or breaking off with a ned rig.

[BobP]

Ned vs dropshot.  I think it depends on what forage the bass are favoring.  On my last trip to Canada we fished a clear water reservoir filled with rock and weeds.  They were reluctant to bite a Shad type DS but the Zman Ned in a craw color rocked all week, all species, all sizes.  And it is more efficient to fish than a DS when the fish are biting both.  So I’d take both.

[Bluebasser86]

On 6/20/2018 at 6:01 PM, Log Catcher said:

If you are fishing a lot of rocky areas you will spend a lot of time hung up or breaking off with a ned rig.

I fish almost all rocks with a Ned rig, you're fishing too heavy a head, too big a hook, letting it sink too long, trying to fish it like a shakyhead, or all the above. Even with the open hook, it rarely hangs up and it pops loose easily if it does. 

 

Drop shot just does not seem to be very effective around here. Our stained water, shallow lakes, muck bottoms, poor fish populations, and lack of offshore structure probably has a lot to do with it. A Ned rig can be fished quickly in very shallow water and is just far more effective. 

[Log Catcher]

3 minutes ago, Bluebasser86 said:

I fish almost all rocks with a Ned rig, you're fishing too heavy a head, too big a hook, letting it sink too long, trying to fish it like a shakyhead, or all the above. Even with the open hook, it rarely hangs up and it pops loose easily if it does. 

 

Drop shot just does not seem to be very effective around here. Our stained water, shallow lakes, muck bottoms, poor fish populations, and lack of offshore structure probably has a lot to do with it. A Ned rig can be fished quickly in very shallow water and is just far more effective. 

I haven't fished a ned rig a lot but when I did I managed to get them hung up and end up breaking them off.

[Bluebasser86]

1 minute ago, Log Catcher said:

I haven't fished a ned rig a lot but when I did I managed to get them hung up and end up breaking them off.

I use a 1/16oz head with a #2 hook and it doesn't hit bottom often, just a slow glide/shake retrieve just off the bottom. When one does hang up, a bowstring pop will often knock them loose and I can keep the retrieve going.