Rapala Minnow Trouble

[Bluegillslayer]

I recently have been using a 2 to 3 inch Rapala floating minnow. First time I used it I trolled it past a weed bed and had a big trout chomp it, I went to set the hook but my line somehow got caught on the small wooden boat and it jumped a foot in the air and spit the hook, It was my fault. Then another day I was twitching by some pads when a bass blasted at it but was not hooked I casted out again and the bass got barely hooked, It swam to the pads. All I saw was its open mouth coming out of the pads but it was stuck and my lure shot back at me. The same thing was happening with the bluegill. The next day a bass did the same thing. The next day I finally was able to catch a bluegill on it. Today I was using it at another pond and continued to get many hits from bass but none were hooked they seem to only hit at it when its on the surface. Am I doing something wrong setting the hook? Am I just unlucky right now? Thanks    

[WRB]

Check the treble sharpness. You either have F5 or F6 with with size 8 VMC hooks.

What type of rod and line are you using?

Tom

[Bluegillslayer]

13 minutes ago, WRB said:

Check the treble sharpness. You either have F5 or F6 with with size 8 VMC hooks.

What type of rod and line are you using?

Tom

Medium light I believe 6 pound test

[WRB]

Set the drag at 2 lbs then set the hook by sweeping the rod back firmly while reeling.

Check the hook points by scratching your finger nail the points should stick.

Tom

[VolFan]

As Tom mentioned above - best hookset with those small trebles is to sweep down/sideways and away from the fish while reeling - kind of like a sweep set in flyfishing. Depending on which size you're using, those small trebles may not be biting on larger fish, or you may have a bunch of bluegill taking pot shots at it. Its one of my favorite baits though.

[Fishes in trees]

I'm thinking hooks might be a little dull.   You can catch a dozen fishing a row with dull hooks, and not realize hooks are dull because the fish hit the bait good.  You're catching fish, that's all you care about, and the hooks are "sharp enough."    Sharp hooks are most necessary when the fish don't exactly hit the bait strong.  When you're tying the bait on, it is worth checking to see how sharp the hooks are, on any given bait, not just Rapalas.  At that point you make the decision, Are these hooks " sharp enough" ?,  and if not swap them out or sharpen them up.

 

[primetime]

I throw floating minnows and especially the Rapala floater often, especially when fishing smaller ponds etc...One thing I have learned over the years is how often Bass will crush a lure with 3 treble hooks and not get hooked. Often times they are just smacking at it, or not fully committing, or it could be the hooks(some of the stock hooks on the older Rapala plugs are dull, but newer vmc hooks are good imo), pulling it away too quickly after you see the strike, or if fishing braid, putting too much pressure on them, setting hook to hard etc...One thing I like to do with both floating minnows and hollow frogs is put a bright line or spot on the top of the lure so I can see when it vanishes. If it disappears, you should hook that fish, and you shouldnt need much more than some pressure if you get the slack out.

 

I have found that a softer tip can be helpful, and when a fish blows up on it, I reel in slack, make sure fish has it, then just do a sweep like on a carolina rig hookset but often not even that hard. Just getting tension on the fish will often be good enough if they truly committed.

 

Some days you will only hook 2/10 blowups or swipes because they never actually take it, sometimes changing the color or size of the bait can help...Some days you seem to  hook them all, but it can be frustrating at times especially when you know they are Bass. The Rapala hooks are smaller as others have said, and I like to fish the Rapala minnow on light Mono to get more stretch and to keep it more buoyant. I always try to use the lightest line possible since it effects the action on a balsa bait, and do my best to be patient after a strike, just like if fishing a frog or plastic worm...Once they get the lure down, you should hook most of them, but it can be tough when its an aggressive strike, instinct is to always set the hook too quickly many times.

 

Hope that helps. 

[Captain Phil]

Rapalas don't have the sharpest hooks and they tend to dull over time. Buy a hand held hook hone.  The one I carry has a yellow plastic handle.   Sharpen your hooks before you use any lure. If the hook point will stick in your fingernail instead of dragging over it, it's sharp enough.

 

 

[looking45]

I used to have similar problems when fishing the smaller baits and small treble hooks.  Here's how I solved it. 

[Bluegillslayer]

I just wanted to say that because of everyone's help i finally managed to catch 3 bass on my minnow, thanks ?