Missing four of five?

[Catt]

7 hours ago, papajoe222 said:

Catt, The first time I felt my bullet weight hit bottom at night, I set the hook! On occasion when it hits a hard bottom, I'm unaware of, I still do.

 

Been there...done that ?

 

Somethings to think about!

 

Worm/jig: with these baits the bass will simply flare its gills causing a vacuum which moves water and your bait into their mouth. With this bite there is very little if any line movement thereby not much is transmitted to your rod tip.

 

The art of feeling a worm/jig bite is a fine combination of watching your line and feeling for unnatural sensations of what your bait should feel like. Some times you will feel that classic Tap, some times you'll only see line movement, some times your line will simply go slack, but some times there will only be a feeling of heaviness that is almost like your line will not move. The bites where the bass moves after inhaling you bait are the easy ones to feel because there is line movement, the bites where the bass simply inhales your bait and just sits there are the hardest to feel.

 

Sensitivity starts with your line & rod but ends with your hands & brain.

[Joe_w1234]

Wow I had no idea that many strikes went undetected. 
 

Does palming a casting reel provide more sensitivity? Or maybe it doesn’t change it?

[Choporoz]

The lessons on this subject are difficult to apply in the wind, though, that's when its probably most important.

 

On those really dead calm days or nights, spend some time really working on your focus.  You will more quickly learn the differences between sand, rock, wood, bluegill, bass, etc.   Keep a finger on the line and intently focus on that pinpoint spot where the line enters the water.  

That sort of focus may be more important in a breeze, but I don't learn as much about how much I miss.

[TnRiver46]

34 minutes ago, Sweet Tater Pie said:

Wow I had no idea that many strikes went undetected. 
 

Does palming a casting reel provide more sensitivity? Or maybe it doesn’t change it?

There’s a lot you don’t know about the undetected.......

[Catt]

In this dumb Cajun's mind most anglers miss bites because they're waiting to feel or see something.

 

Those bumps, thumps, tics, & taps are easy to detect, so are the ones where ya see line movement.

 

It's the bites where we have to interpret what we are feeling or not feeling. 

 

It's the ones where the bass inhales your t-rig/jig without any tell-tale signs or movement & proceeds to sit there until you apply to much pressure at which time they spit it.

 

Keeping a certain amount of tension while keeping a certain amount to slackness will "clue" you in on two bites.

 

If you jig/t-rig is sitting still & your line gets tighter or your line gets slacker odds are you've had a bass pick it up.

[WRB]

21 hours ago, scaleface said:

One thing about the Homer Circle film is he holds the rod by the handle , it would be difficult to detect a strike that way . 

How else would he hold the rod if not by the handle, by the rod blank?

I think you are saying he is using a pistol grip rod and not palming the reel. You can feel the line with the index finger using a pistol grip type rod, that's is what I learned to fish with and had no issues detecting strikes and a skilled angler like Homer Circle would.

Tom

[scaleface]

32 minutes ago, WRB said:

How else would he hold the rod if not by the handle, by the rod blank?

I think you are saying he is using a pistol grip rod and not palming the reel. You can feel the line with the index finger using a pistol grip type rod, that's is what I learned to fish with and had no issues detecting strikes and a skilled angler like Homer Circle would.

Tom

He holds the rod handle behind the reel when retrieving a bait . I think that would make it difficult to detect strikes .

[MickD]

How do I know if I've missed 4 strikes if I have not detected them?  Sort of like "I almost hit 4 deer last night driving home, but I never saw them"   ???

 

 

[TnRiver46]

2 minutes ago, MickD said:

How do I know if I've missed 4 strikes if I have not detected them?  Sort of like "I almost hit 4 deer last night driving home, but I never saw them"   ???

 

 

That one that almost bit my cricket

 was at least 9 lbs 

[lo-fi-hi-fi]

18 minutes ago, MickD said:

How do I know if I've missed 4 strikes if I have not detected them?  Sort of like "I almost hit 4 deer last night driving home, but I never saw them"   ???

 

 

?

[Way north bass guy]

I’ll never forget the first time I really discovered the “ slightly off feeling” bite. 
I was dragging a football jig across rocky areas for smallmouth in the late fall, about two weeks before freeze up, and when something just felt “off” about the bait, I set the hook and sure enough there was a nice bass on the end. It was like a lightbulb went off in my head, and suddenly I realized how many other times I could’ve had fish and didn’t even realize it. I’ve gotten quite a bit better at detecting those types of hits, but like everyone else, I’m sure there’s still lots that go undetected. 

[Bigassbass]

I think it helps to fish with the lightest line you can get away with, I fish mono and really have no trouble filling the bite.  I think a hit is when the fish has tapped the lure or already spit it out, you're late reacting so you miss the fish.  The bite is when the fish eats the lure and you know you got to set the hook.  A real good rod also helps, those rod makers don't make broom sticks and they do a good job of creating sensitive fishing poles!  You got to spend the money and get one that lets you feel the bite.  Some rods fish like broom sticks and you're never going to feel much of nothing till the fish hangs itself. 

[TnRiver46]

1 hour ago, Way north bass guy said:

I’ll never forget the first time I really discovered the “ slightly off feeling” bite. 
I was dragging a football jig across rocky areas for smallmouth in the late fall, about two weeks before freeze up, and when something just felt “off” about the bait, I set the hook and sure enough there was a nice bass on the end. It was like a lightbulb went off in my head, and suddenly I realized how many other times I could’ve had fish and didn’t even realize it. I’ve gotten quite a bit better at detecting those types of hits, but like everyone else, I’m sure there’s still lots that go undetected. 

That’s the mushy bite!!!!

I just remembered another good way to improve strike detection. Set up on a school of crappie or white bass and catch them with all kinds of lures. Spoons grubs hair jigs drop shot etc. They will hit it all so you can learn what everything feels like 

[Hewhospeaksmuchbull]

8 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

That’s the mushy bite!!!!

I just remembered another good way to improve strike detection. Set up on a school of crappie or white bass and catch them with all kinds of lures. Spoons grubs hair jigs drop shot etc. They will hit it all so you can learn what everything feels like 

I knew you had it in you!

[Manly Studson]

I’ve never missed a strike, and I’ve never missed a hook set. All my hook sets are in the same spot on every bass (1/4 inch from upper lip, direct center). It’s a technique I call “lying.”

[Coldbasser]

Being a finess walleye guy for many years allowed me to learn that slightest tic or the light bait is even lighter than it should be. SET THE HOOK mentally really what do you have to lose but a fish. Lol

my 2 cents 

Rick

[scaleface]

10 hours ago, Coldbasser said:

Being a finess walleye guy for many years allowed me to learn that slightest tic or the light bait is even lighter than it should be. SET THE HOOK mentally really what do you have to lose but a fish. Lol

my 2 cents 

Rick

I grew up vertical jigging for crappie in brush piles along the Mississippi and backwaters . I held the string between my index  finger and thumb to feel bites while using cheap fiberglass rods . When I ventured into bass fishing , still using fiberglass , I employed the same tactics  and still do so today, except glass has been replaced by graphite .  

 

 One clue for beginners . If you feel the slightest tap as the lure is falling , any lure , that is most likely  a strike . If you feel the tap  when lifting the lure that could be a bite but more likely a limb .

[Oregon Native]

Feel is important....very.  I believe being a line watcher is even more.

[Coldbasser]

12 hours ago, Oregon Native said:

Feel is important....very.  I believe being a line watcher is even more.

Have too agree & I learned to pay way more attention to the line itself on this site.

cheers