Perfecting techniques (drop shot) or wasting time

[Hammer 4]

Stop fishing Laguna lake, it's a waste of time. You have other decent city park lakes/ponds in the O.C., I know cuz I've fished them all. 

I suggest using 6 or 8 lb mono or fluro, tie on a size 1 Octopus hook, the about 2 feet up from the hook, clamp on a 1/16 oz split shot weight. Then for your bait grab some 4" Roboworms in Hologram shad. 

Cast it out, then retrieve it slow enough to keep it about 1' or so off the bottom. I've had good success doing this. Good Luck, and don't give up.  

[Rora]

Finally caught two today morning during a 2 hour span. Both were pretty dinky but was ecstatic none the less. Thanks a lot for the help guys. Appreciate the support and advice from this community. 
 

Caught them on the drop shot but I might try and change things up tomorrow and see how I do. I have a dobyns fury 702 so I think that helps alot to detect the bites. 

[Jigfishn10]

7 minutes ago, Rora said:

Finally caught two today morning during a 2 hour span. Both were pretty dinky but was ecstatic none the less. Thanks a lot for the help guys. Appreciate the support and advice from this community. 
 

Caught them on the drop shot but I might try and change things up tomorrow and see how I do. I have a dobyns fury 702 so I think that helps alot to detect the bites. 

Great news!

So happy that your persistence paid off.

Congrats. 

[QED]

1 hour ago, Rora said:

Finally caught two today morning during a 2 hour span. Both were pretty dinky but was ecstatic none the less. Thanks a lot for the help guys. Appreciate the support and advice from this community. 
 

Caught them on the drop shot but I might try and change things up tomorrow and see how I do. I have a dobyns fury 702 so I think that helps alot to detect the bites. 

 

Congratulations!  Quod erat demonstrandum.

[Dash Riprock]

Why is the drop shot not a good technique for bank fishing? 

[Scott804]

Interesting how many people in this thread are talking about how they don't dropshot from the bank. It is one of my favorite bank fishing tools. 

 

If you can't get bit on a dropshot, try shorting your leader to the weight and putting on a tiny 3 inch swimbait and just slow reeling. Or try a wacky rigged senko on a dropshot. Usually they are biting one of these two styles of dropshotting if they aren't biting the ol' roboworm/flatworm/dreamshot. If not, switch to something else. The dropshot is a very versatile tool and there are lots of modifications you can make that will make a large difference before switching to another type of lure though. That being said, sometimes the fish have just been hammered on a dropshot in prior days if you are bank fishing and there is fishing pressure, so you might need to go down to lighter line or  just try something different all together. 

[trout123]

On 7/27/2021 at 7:12 PM, WRB said:

Outside of bed fishing spawning bass from the shoreline the drop shot rig has little use.

The drop shot rig is a vertices soft plastic presentation not designed for casting vertically and retrieving along the bottom. Can you do it? sure you can do whatever you like. 

My advice is use the slip shot rig or some call the finesse C-rig. The slip shot rig is similar to a split shot it Mojo rig, the difference is the weight slides on the line.

Fished from shore this rig will catch bass everywhere including highly pressures SoCal lakes and ponds.

My version is made up using very specific components based on decades of use in SoCal lakes.

1. Spinning tackle medium fast rod with Copolymer line Maxima 5 o 6 lb Ultra Green.

2. Components; Owner #5133 size 1/0 hook. 1/8 oz Mojo Jo or Pro Jo cylinder weight. 8 mm glass faceted bead. Carolina plastic Keeper. 4 1/2” to 6” Roboworm.

The cylinder weight goes on the line 1 st followed by the bead   , then the Carolina Keeper and hook on the main line.

The distance between the weight and hook is between 18” to 36” and easily adjusted without reason tying.

Rig the worm weedless and straight so it doesn’t spin. Skin hook the worm.

Roboworm co,ors that work in SoCal are Oxblood light red flake and MM111.

Cast and slowly drag the rig back along the bottom.

Tom

 

Can you post a picture of the slip shot rig?

[WRB]

10 minutes ago, trout123 said:

Can you post a picture of the slip shot rig?

Google “Carolina Keeper”, the package has a sketch showing the rigging. If not clear enough PM your email to send details.

Tom

[trout123]

2 minutes ago, WRB said:

Google “Carolina Keeper”, the package has a sketch showing the rigging. If not clear enough PM your email to send details.

Tom

Thank you! 

It looks like it is essentially a texas rig with the weight pegged on the opposite side as normal and left further away from the bait.

[WRB]

 Basically a finesse C-rig. The weight I use is a 1/8 oz cylinder (mojo), 8mm glass faceted bead, Carolina Keeper or McCoy Stopper behind the bead followed by a Owner 5133, 1/0 or 2/0 Down Shot hook weedless rigged finesse worms.

The weight is free to slide (Slip Shot), 1 knot at the hook using the main line without a leader. Hook to stopper distance is adjustable, usually 24” to 36”.

Tom

PS, alternate to a Carolina Keeper is using a rubber Peg-It  to peg the glass bead as a stopper.

[Junk Fisherman]

I love a dropshot and fish it a lot but like others have said it wouldn't be my choice for shore fishing.  If you are sticking to finesse and just learning, a 1/15th Ned rig with a green pumpkin TRD is a fish catching machine and a great place to start.  You're going to catch a lot of small fish and bluegill.  Hell, I have caught a lot of different species on a Ned rig.  Just cast it, let it sink, watch your line, and fish it slow.  If you are getting gunk from the bottom, fish it a little faster.  It is a very versatile bait and can be successful with a variety of retrieves.  You can do a search for Ned rig retrieves and get lots of suggestions.  Good luck.  

[haggard]

Only you can answer this one. If you enjoy the process of discovery and learning, then working on perfecting the drop shot could give you some memorable days on the water. If you measure happiness by numbers of fish caught, using an alternate tried/true technique might be the ticket.

 

 

[papajoe222]

The drop shot rig isn't designed to be a search and catch bait.  It's for use once you've located fish, either with your electronics, or by actually catching fish with a different presentation.  You can, an evidently have, waste a lot of precious fishing time using it otherwise. 

[Big Hands]

On 7/27/2021 at 2:36 PM, Bass_Fishing_Socal said:

Don’t beat yourself up when fishing in SoCal city pond, and don’t compare with others. You are in a tougher place to begin with.

Dropshot try lightest weight you can 1/16-1/8oz, small 4” worm and drag slowly with pause and a little bit of slack line in between. If that doesn’t work then go weightless finesse worm, 4” Senko or even slim Senko. Ned rig might work but there will be too much algae on bottom. Small top water 1/4oz popper might be good early morning or evening.
SoCal City pond is structure less, shallow with little to no fish but tons of fisherman legal and illegal.

I grew up about five miles from Laguna Lake. My nephew fishes there and another nearby 'city pond' type lake that I won't broadcast the name of, but I'm sure the OP knows which one I am referring to and it's pretty close to Laguna Lake.

 

The advice above is spot on, but also don't be afraid to try some things like topwater or a spinnerbait. I think a lot of local anglers used to haul fish home from other lakes (when it was legal?), but it is very much illegal to haul bass from one body of water to another here now. I think all the park lakes in the greater LA area have been getting pounded for years and even moreso lately, so the bass are generally pretty spooky these days.

 

My $0.02: If you are able to, go late at night.

 

Also, I know it's an hour drive in good traffic conditions, but if you can drive up to Castaic, the upper lake has been very good to shore anglers throwing a dropshot for the past few months. 

[Rora]

Thanks a lot for all the help guys. I’ve actually had some more success since I last posted. Including catching my PB (I think it was almost a 5lber which I think is the biggest these ponds hold). I started learning more about my local ponds and where I think the fish are holding. One thing I have noticed is that I catch more on the initial fall than the actual retrieve. Which leads me to believe that it’s more of a reaction bite than my presentation. Still have to work on it! But wow the rush you get catching a bigger fish is amazing. 
 

 

[Bankc]

I am of the opinion that drop shots should be avoided in lakes and ponds within the city limits of big cities.  The reason being that these city lakes tend to see a lot of heavy fishing pressure from people who don't usually do a lot of fishing.  And they tend to fish with live minnows and worms.  So in my experience, bass in these waters tend to shy away from food that just sits there and wiggles slowly.  

 

I'm not saying that a drop shot won't ever work, or even that it won't ever land a limit on a given day.  I'm just saying that techniques like that are pretty far down my list of things to try on city waters.  Now, if you get away from the city where most people fishing will be throwing artificial baits from a boat, then those slow finesse style presentations are much higher up on my list.  

[JustJames]

4 hours ago, Rora said:

Thanks a lot for all the help guys. I’ve actually had some more success since I last posted. Including catching my PB (I think it was almost a 5lber which I think is the biggest these ponds hold). I started learning more about my local ponds and where I think the fish are holding. One thing I have noticed is that I catch more on the initial fall than the actual retrieve. Which leads me to believe that it’s more of a reaction bite than my presentation. Still have to work on it! But wow the rush you get catching a bigger fish is amazing. 
 

 

If you got more bite on the fall, then just simple lift and drop technique should work. Just slowly lift as high as you can and let the lure drop on slack line. You gonna have to watch the line closely. I will work the lure as close as 2-3’ to shore. In small shallow pond, bass usually roaming in shallow close to bank area for bait fish. 

[QED]

2 hours ago, Bankc said:

I am of the opinion that drop shots should be avoided in lakes and ponds within the city limits of big cities.  The reason being that these city lakes tend to see a lot of heavy fishing pressure from people who don't usually do a lot of fishing.  And they tend to fish with live minnows and worms.  So in my experience, bass in these waters tend to shy away from food that just sits there and wiggles slowly.  [stuff deleted]

 

You can swim[bait] a drop shot rig with a short sinker line just the same way you would a tokyo rig.  It's more versatile than just the way you've been using it.

[detroit1]

18 hours ago, papajoe222 said:

The drop shot rig isn't designed to be a search and catch bait.  It's for use once you've located fish, either with your electronics, or by actually catching fish with a different presentation.  You can, an evidently have, waste a lot of precious fishing time using it otherwise. 

I couldn't disagree any more with your opinion. I use my relatively cheap electronics just for reading bottom depth/ features and for locating vegetation. I don't use it to find fish. I have caught 1000's of bass, pike, and a few big panfish without ever seeing them first with either my eyes or electronics, on a dropshot being used as a "search" bait or rig. I must be doing something wrong. 

[Big Hands]

36 minutes ago, Bankc said:

I am of the opinion that drop shots should be avoided in lakes and ponds within the city limits of big cities.  The reason being that these city lakes tend to see a lot of heavy fishing pressure from people who don't usually do a lot of fishing.  And they tend to fish with live minnows and worms.  So in my experience, bass in these waters tend to shy away from food that just sits there and wiggles slowly.  

 

I'm not saying that a drop shot won't ever work, or even that it won't ever land a limit on a given day.  I'm just saying that techniques like that are pretty far down my list of things to try on city waters.  Now, if you get away from the city where most people fishing will be throwing artificial baits from a boat, then those slow finesse style presentations are much higher up on my list.  

In California, in most waters, you can't buy minnows (or even crawdads) to fish with. You have to catch them yourself, and on the same day you're fishing with them. So, they outlawed them without really outlawing them because most people can't catch them or won't do what it takes to catch them and keep them alive long enough to fish with them. You can fish with nightcrawlers, red worms, or meal worms, but they don't seem to cut into the ability of getting fish to strike artificial baits.

4 hours ago, Rora said:

Thanks a lot for all the help guys. I’ve actually had some more success since I last posted. Including catching my PB (I think it was almost a 5lber which I think is the biggest these ponds hold). I started learning more about my local ponds and where I think the fish are holding. One thing I have noticed is that I catch more on the initial fall than the actual retrieve. Which leads me to believe that it’s more of a reaction bite than my presentation. Still have to work on it! But wow the rush you get catching a bigger fish is amazing. 
 

 

That is especially true for me with the weightless wacky Senkos tossed right up against the bank.

[Darth-Baiter]

The drop shot is my most productive technique by a mile. 
 

according to some YouTube guy, it wins the most tournaments.  Dunno. I love it. It’s fun and the bite ranges from super subtle to “double fisted hold on tight”.   The baits can be varied infinitely.