Wasting Money on Soft Plastics

[Bankc]

I feel like I've wasted a lot of money on soft plastics.  I've been fishing a pond recently on my lunch break.  I just take one rod and a Ziploc bag of assorted plastics and terminal.  When I get hung up or a plastic gets cut up too badly, I just tie on another one, usually a different one, because I tend to carry one of everything.  What I've noticed is, when the fish or biting soft plastics, it doesn't seem to matter what I have tied on.  They'll bite it.  And when they're not biting, the same goes.  Speed worm, Senko, curly tail, rage tail craw, fatty craw, or even a lifelike craw... they all seem to produce the same for me.  Color doesn't seem to matter either.  What does seem to matter is how I retrieve it.  How fast, how big of hops, how long of pauses, etc.  That seems to matter.  The weight also seems to matter, as I can't hardly get bit with a pegged weight, even a 1/16 oz. pegged weight.  It needs to be free.  

 

So now I'm questioning if I really need all of these different plastic baits.  I understand that if you're a tournament angler, then using the right worm might mean the difference between 9 bass and 10 bass in the boat, which could be the difference in getting paid or not.  So I get it then.  But for us average hobbyists, who fish for fun and don't make any money off it, is it really worth it to have $500 worth of soft plastics lying around just in case, when you could probably get almost identical results with just a few?  

 

Or is what I'm experiencing just a weird anomaly of this particular pond?  What's your thoughts on this?  Do any of you notice the same thing, or are there times when some baits won't work and others really produce for you?  

[gim]

5 minutes ago, Bankc said:

But for us average hobbyists, who fish for fun and don't make any money off it, is it really worth it to have $500 worth of soft plastics lying around just in case

I don't have a lot of plastics compared to most.  Part of the reason is that I prefer to "power fish" with moving lures instead.  Just personal preference.  However, at times I do use soft plastics regularly because that is what is effective.  Certain brands are not very durable (yamamoto in particular) so I have a pretty good supply of those.  On the other hand, zman elaztech is extremely durable so I don't keep nearly as many of those around.  I'm sure there are anglers who almost exclusively use just soft plastics so in their case it would make sense to have a bigger supply of them.

 

I should also mention that at the moment I have more than I normally would.  Last season's tackle shortage caused this, so over the winter I stocked up.  When I saw it, I bought it.

[Black Hawk Basser]

I agree that probably nobody needs as many as they have, but that's not as much fun!  I will say that there are times where I've switched plastic baits and the one I switch to worked better than what I started with.  Could be the difference in color, fall rate, action, or all of the above....who knows?

[king fisher]

A good fisherman can catch fish with almost any bait.  I have been out fished by a Mexican kid fishing with an old soda bottle for a rod and reel and a home made lure made from a toothbrush.  I am sure there are many members here that can catch more bass than me with one worm or jig. I have way to many lures but will by many more. Don’t know why.  

[roadwarrior]

14 minutes ago, Bankc said:

...is it really worth it to have $500 worth of soft plastics lying around just in case...

 

Where do you keep the rest?

 

 

 

[Bankc]

1 minute ago, roadwarrior said:

 

Where do you keep the rest?

 

 

 

Oh, I don't have $500 in soft plastics.  That was just hyperbole.  At least I hope it was.  I honestly don't know how much I've spent on that stuff, and really don't want to know.  But I keep some in my tackle bag, which I'm always trying to find room to squeeze a few more in, and the rest in their original bags (or Ziploc bags if the original bag won't seal) in a 5 gallon bucket in the garage.  Then, at the end of the day, I'll often replace what I used from the bag with what's in the bucket.  Since I fish from a kayak or the bank, I have to limit what I can bring, which means a lot of stuff gets left behind.  

 

Another thing I've noticed is I've often caught fish on a craw that had it's claws ripped off (I call it the goose turd), half a curly tail worm with no curly tail, the bottom half of a speed worm, or whatever.  It just seems to me that the action I impart onto the bait is what gets bit, not the action of the bait itself.  That's my running theory anyway.  It could be that I'm just a terrible angler, and the only time I get bit is when they're so hungry and aggressive that they'll eat anything I throw at them.  That can't be ruled out!

[Mike L]

If that’s the only place and time you will be fishing, and your results never change year round no matter what, then of course you don’t need any more. 
 

But I’d keep a good inventory anyway

 

 

 

 

Mike

[MAN]

44 minutes ago, king fisher said:

A good fisherman can catch fish with almost any bait.  I have been out fished by a Mexican kid fishing with an old soda bottle for a rod and reel and a home made lure made from a toothbrush.  I am sure there are many members here that can catch more bass than me with one worm or jig. I have way to many lures but will by many more. Don’t know why.  

 

Ha! Me to.  So I went home and made my own and brought it to the pier the next trip out with my co-workers just out of amusement if things were slow.  We were not catching anything so I tossed it out and hooked a huge fish right away. He absolutely slammed it and headed out for deeper water never stopping.  Crushed my plastic bottle when it got to the end and snapped my knot.  (I got spooled).  Darndest thing ever. 

[Bankc]

11 minutes ago, Mike L said:

If that’s the only place and time you will be fishing, and your results never change year round no matter what, then of course you don’t need any more. 
 

But I’d keep a good inventory anyway

 

 

 

 

Mike

I fish other lakes and stuff on the weekends.  In fact, I don't really like this pond.  It's just close to work, and I recently came to the conclusion that I could waste money and get fatter on fast food, or pack a cheaper, healthier lunch and go fishing. 

 

Usually when fishing a different lake, if they're not biting a T-rig, I'll move onto a completely different type of lure.  So I tend to make larger changes, rather than messing with the subtle differences like I do at this pond.  I'm more of a crankbait/spinnerbait type of guy anyway.  It's just that due to all of the reeds and grass, there's not much I can fish from the bank and not get hung up.  So I decided to simplify and go with T-rigs and one rod (in case someone breaks into my car at work).  

 

I don't know.  It's hard to take one small sample and extrapolate a grand idea from it.  That's why I'm asking what others have noticed.  It's not like I'm running a scientific experiment here.  Just noticing some things I hadn't really noticed before because I never really limited myself to just a T-rig.  

[FishinBuck07]

Need all those plastics?  ABSOLUTELY!!!!?

[Guitarfish]

At one point I was so enamored of fishing it was all I thought about.  So naturally I went to pouring my own baits, pouring my own jigheads, tying hair raisers, etc.  Every thing for fresh or salt.

 

Now, I have way too much of every thing. Absolutely lost my mind.  But pouring plastics was so much fun.  I actually made $150 in one day selling off lead pieces.  I posted it online and was literally buried with pm's.  I could have charged more but I wanted the stuff gone.  And I still have too much, lol.

[BassinCNY]

I took two young men who had never fished before out to a spot I knew was producing. I gave one my rod that had a 5" green pumpkin senko tied on and the other a 3.5" green pumpkin tube, both texas rigged. The tube out fished the senko about 5 to 1. It didn't take long before they were both fishing tubes and catching at the same rate. I was surprised that the tube out fished the senko and even more surprised that the result was so unequal. That taught me that the plastic matters at least sometimes.

[Krux5506]

Every body of water is different and there is no one size fits all when it comes to fishing them and using plastics. Then factor in the occasional bulk sale, and it can be pretty easy to start getting overrun with different plastics. 

[Tatsu Dave]

3 hours ago, Black Hawk Basser said:

I will say that there are times where I've switched plastic baits and the one I switch to worked better than what I started with.  Could be the difference in color, fall rate, action, or all of the above....who knows?

Thats why you need a lot....just in case.

3 hours ago, roadwarrior said:

Where do you keep the rest?

 

Thats what I was wondering, my tackle is starting to make my boat slower.

1 hour ago, BassinCNY said:

That taught me that the plastic matters at least sometimes.

Thats my take exactly, sometimes one plastic bait (rage tail craw) will outfish another (senko or ocho). Sometimes junebug will out catch Grn Pumpkin, it takes a lot to cover all your soft plastic bases.

 

 

[NoShoes]

I fish soft plastics 90% of the time. 
 

I catch almost all of them on trick worms and Ol monsters. Finesse worms and rage bug also get some action. 
 

I only fish GP, JB, and black.   If i can’t get bit on those, I need to trailer. 

[Diggy]

We're ⬇️


 

[Mobasser]

You've said that it's the retrieve that catches your fish, and not the actual plastic bait? This is akin to Charlie Brewers Slider fishing style. He fished his 4" worm in lakes all over, and caught many bass, including some big ones. It was the retrieve that made it work.

[DitchPanda]

I think the plastic matters alot..the size and shape at least..color matters some but less than size and shape. I can't count how many times I've switched from a grub to a TRD, or a straight tail to a ribbon tail or a fluke to a soft stick bait and instantly starting getting bit.

[Team9nine]

4 hours ago, Bankc said:

I feel like I've wasted a lot of money on soft plastics.  I've been fishing a pond recently on my lunch break.  I just take one rod and a Ziploc bag of assorted plastics and terminal.  When I get hung up or a plastic gets cut up too badly, I just tie on another one, usually a different one, because I tend to carry one of everything.  What I've noticed is, when the fish or biting soft plastics, it doesn't seem to matter what I have tied on.  They'll bite it.  And when they're not biting, the same goes.  Speed worm, Senko, curly tail, rage tail craw, fatty craw, or even a lifelike craw... they all seem to produce the same for me.  Color doesn't seem to matter either.  What does seem to matter is how I retrieve it.  How fast, how big of hops, how long of pauses, etc.  That seems to matter.  The weight also seems to matter, as I can't hardly get bit with a pegged weight, even a 1/16 oz. pegged weight.  It needs to be free.  

 

So now I'm questioning if I really need all of these different plastic baits.  I understand that if you're a tournament angler, then using the right worm might mean the difference between 9 bass and 10 bass in the boat, which could be the difference in getting paid or not.  So I get it then.  But for us average hobbyists, who fish for fun and don't make any money off it, is it really worth it to have $500 worth of soft plastics lying around just in case, when you could probably get almost identical results with just a few?  

 

Or is what I'm experiencing just a weird anomaly of this particular pond?  What's your thoughts on this?  Do any of you notice the same thing, or are there times when some baits won't work and others really produce for you?  

 

Congrats - now sit down, reread your words, and understand the profoundness in them. You have attained the next level of fishing enlightenment.

 

"Master Po: Close your eyes. What do you hear? ... Do you hear the grasshopper which is at your feet?

 

Caine: No. Old man, how is it that you hear these things?

 

Master Po: Young man, how is it that you do not?"

 

 

 

[Bankc]

So it looks like the answer is clearly a "It only matters when it does".  

[JustJames]

No you don’t need all of those plastic, but why not? It is just another fun of fishing addiction. Bait monkey always stays around with us.

Now I agree when fish active, it doesn’t really matter what kind or color of plastic. But there are often time when fish is not committed, unless you downsize or change fall rate or become reaction strike.

It is a nature of human that think there always be something better. Why we buy so many new stuffs and It is kind of more fun when catch a fish with something new instead of same old Senko all the time.

 

[Skunkmaster-k]

6 minutes ago, Team9nine said:

 

Congrats - now sit down, reread your words, and understand the profoundness in them. You have attained the next level of fishing enlightenment.

 

"Master Po: Close your eyes. What do you hear? ... Do you hear the grasshopper which is at your feet?

 

Caine: No. Old man, how is it that you hear these things?

 

Master Po: Young man, how is it that you do not?"

 

 

 

Sniff.. that was beautiful. 

[gunsinger]

This thread reminds me of a bonehead thing I did recently.  I'd fished in the rain one day and all my tackle was soaked so I took it out of the boat and laid it out to dry in my shop.  Fast forward to the next day and I get up bright and early to run to the lake.  I get there and open the tackle locker which, to my horror, is empty.  All I had to fish with were the lures/baits tied on to my rods and a spare pack of my favorite worms.  

 

It was one of my most productive days ever and all I had to work with was my TR setup and a pack of worms.  No guessing at colors because it was Fire n Ice or bare hook.  ?

[Catt]

You can have fish in the livewell or lures in your tackle box...ya can't have both!

 

What you will learn about hobbies is ya never look at them strictly from a cost stand point.

 

Do you "need" that many plastics, just starting probably not, but you will over time collect quite a bit..

 

And yes there are certain bodies of water where certain plastics & colors work. This year Watermelon Neon & White Pearl with the tail dipped in chartreuse has worked all year in one of the marshes I fish. 

[GreenPig]

I've got $500 in Super Flukes