Snagless Search Baits?

[Bankbeater]

I would start off with a weightless fluke or a weightless senko. If conditions are such that you need a weight then I would use a Texas rig with a very light weight on it. 

[GetFishorDieTryin]

A swim jig will do really well if you want to cover water.  You can slow down and pitch with it as well if you want to, so long as it's the right jig 

I use them in combination with T or free rigs.   After probing around with the swim jig, I pick the cover apart, more so lately with a free rig over a T rig.  The free rig gives me a little more time than an unplugged bullet weight as it breaks away immediately and allows the bait to work slowly.  You change the action by using a different weight.  A heavier weight actually gives you faster separation and slower fall rate for the bait.  It also resists moving as you work the bait vs a lighter weight, so you can really work a specific limb or piling efficiently.

[king fisher]

Bait Monkey's recommendation.

[WRB]

It doesn’t matter what lure you choose if you can’t control the bass after it strikes and runs into the cover. 
Until we know what tackle you fish with lure suggestions using tackle inappropriate for those lures are wags.

Tom

[Rucksack]

Thanks for all the suggestions! Life got the better of me (got sick, dog needed surgery, etc) that I am just now getting back to this thread. 

I've collected your responses, sorted by frequency of lure type mentioned, and I'm going to work them in order of most suggested. I'll fish the top ones for a few outings and report back on this thread on results, which hopefully will be helpful to somebody in the future looking through the forum. Top suggestions are swim jigs, @A-Jay's homemade rig, topwater (buzzbait, whopper plopper, etc), swimbaits, flukes, and jika rig. 

Speaking of the homemade rig, @A-Jay do you have a suggestion of the best place to buy those materials? I live reasonably close to a Bass Pro, but I feel like they'd charge a premium for something that is designed to save money.  

There were some questions on my equipment. I'm fishing a 6"6' medium-heavy, fast action, St. Croix spinning rod with a 2500 Shimano Reel. My main line is 15 LB  Berkley X9 braid with 8 LB to 10 LB fluorocarbon or mono leader. I remove the leader for running stuff like my Whopper Plopper 90, otherwise it's on there. 

[WRB]

Get well soon,

Your spinning tackle limits several suggestions or most bottom contact presentations.

MH spinning rod can cast the lures but the line isn’t ideal to get a 3+ lb bass out of the cover from shore imo.

You should change the leader to 12 lb Big Game your odds go up. Braid and wood can be a problem if the line cuts into it, not much you ban do about that issue using spinning tackle.

Good luck,

Tom

 

[TnRiver46]

Fluke and speedworm 

[A-Jay]

On 9/3/2024 at 7:16 AM, Rucksack said:

Speaking of the homemade rig, @A-Jay do you have a suggestion of the best place to buy those materials? I live reasonably close to a Bass Pro, but I feel like they'd charge a premium for something that is designed to save money.  
 

Not sure if Bass Pro has it,

but TW has the Boss Hub and plenty of pre made or skirt making material if you want to make your own.  I do that. 

The rest of the rig is just a hook and a bobber stop.

Surely you can get that at Bass Pro.

https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/BOSS_Punch_Hub_5pk/descpage-BOSSPCH.html

 

https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/catpage-SKRT.html

 

Good Luck

A-Jay

[Swamp Girl]

On 8/30/2024 at 3:29 PM, Catt said:

 

I'm with Catt. I feel invulnerable with my underspins and Keitechs/Crush City Mayors. I pitch them everywhere.

 

One caveat: Just because you hook meat in salad doesn't mean it's coming free.

[10,000 lakes Bassin]

On 8/30/2024 at 8:04 AM, A-Jay said:

This is EXACLY WHAT you're looking for.

It's essentially a light punch rig.

Consists of a bobber stop, a bullet weight, a shirt on a hub, an ewg hook and the plastic of your choice.  

Rigged right, comes through anything. 

I use this when fishing new water when I'm not sure what type of mess I might be throwing into. A lighter weight can slow you down, get more bites and save you from constantly being snagged. 

Takes a few seconds to rig but totally worth it.

A-Jay

 

What determines whether you will fish this, or a jig? I’m sure this is much more snag free so heavy cover it’s better hands down, but what about open water or light cover? I guess one of the main reasons I fish a jig is because I feel that it draws bigger than average bites, do you feel like this rig draws bigger bites like a jig? Thanks!

[A-Jay]

24 minutes ago, August said:

What determines whether you will fish this, or a jig? I’m sure this is much more snag free so heavy cover it’s better hands down, but what about open water or light cover? I guess one of the main reasons I fish a jig is because I feel that it draws bigger than average bites, do you feel like this rig draws bigger bites like a jig? Thanks!

When fishing hard or soft cover that is thick/dense enough snag up or foul the effectiveness of a standard jig, I fish the rig.

For everything else, I fish a jig,

As to whether or not this rig bets bites, in my mind they are essentially the same baits.

The exception being the rig snags less and I can make it into anything I want.

Skirt color/material, weight size and type (lead or tungsten) and the hook - whatever I need to fish the situation and fit the trailer perfectly - all customizable. 

A-Jay 

[10,000 lakes Bassin]

2 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

When fishing hard or soft cover that is thick/dense enough snag up or foul the effectiveness of a standard jig, I fish the rig.

For everything else, I fish a jig,

As to whether or not this rig bets bites, in my mind they are essentially the same baits.

The exception being the rig snags less and I can make it into anything I want.

Skirt color/material, weight size and type (lead or tungsten) and the hook - whatever I need to fish the situation and fit the trailer perfectly - all customizable. 

A-Jay 

This rig will definitely be part of my arsenal from now on!

[A-Jay]

9 minutes ago, August said:

This rig will definitely be part of my arsenal from now on!

I'd be very interested is hearing about your results.

Good Luck.

A-Jay

[BrianMDTX]

@A-Jay would pegging the bullet weight work in lieu of the bobber stop? 

[MickD]

SNAGLESS, right?  Nothing is as effective AND SNAGLESS as a Johnson silver minnow with a white trailer, something like an old white  pork rind.  Remember, it's for search, covering a lot of water fast.  Some of these solutions being proposed are not even close. 

[JackstrawIII]

I'd fish a paddletail swimbait on a weighted swimbait hook. Very snag-proof and can be fish deep or shallow effectively. 

[PaulVE64]

 

https://www.instagram.com/p/C2c5wHxOTLR/?igsh=MXYwdjNzenRjaXlwaw==

Great for boulder feilds, chunk rock, gravel, mud and trees. 

It's a heavy wire short shank hook. Most of these weigh 3/8 ,oz and are ,+5" but cant be thrown very well into a breeze. 

[BrianMDTX]

Ok, the ever-persuasive BM sang his siren’s song and I ordered skirts, beads, hubs, weights, etc. and a selection of trailers and will be making some of those A-Jay Specials lol. I like swim jigs so these are right in my wheelhouse. 

[A-Jay]

12 hours ago, BrianMDTX said:

@A-Jay would pegging the bullet weight work in lieu of the bobber stop? 

Yes.

I save pegging for heavy weights that will move a stopper up the line. which gets old.

Also. sometime I lose the fight when it comes time to remove the peg.

Which is also a PIA.

A-Jay

 

[scaleface]

I make my own skirted weights with a spinnerbait mold .I Dont insert a hook , instead a piece of wire that can be pulled out.

[Catt]

[Rucksack]

Updating the thread for anybody interested. 

 

R&D is continuing, I'm keeping detailed logs, but I do have some initial findings. I have tried Swim Jig (Strike King Hack Attack), Finesse Spinners (Bass Pro Crappie Maxx), and Underspin Swim Bait (1/0 Flashy Swimmer with Keitech).
 

• Finesse Spinners (3/16 oz) caught the most fish (multiple 2-3 lbs bass), but hung up and were lost by the end of the trip. I was fishing them in pretty ideal spinner conditions (overcast, misty, and choppy). I wonder if a heavier head would help them get through cover. I can source some older, heavier inexpensive ones from a nearby gas station.  
• Swim Jig was highly enjoyable to fish, but was lost to a submerged snag. This specific snag is some sort of Cthulhu level eldritch monster, because it's eaten Texas rigged craws in the past, and I have no idea what it actually is. The swim jig hung up several times before this, but I was able to free it. I think the exposed hook, even with the brush guard, is not viable in my conditions. 
• Underspin Swim Bait seemed promising, but the underspin would get caught in brush piles. I have lost four flash swimmers now fishing around laydowns and brush. I am going to move to a simple keel weighted hook and swimbait combo in the future. Additionally, the Keitech themselves seem too fragile for the conditions as they get beaten up quickly. I may need to source more robust swimbaits. 

I am returning to the water this week with a version of @A-Jay's rig. I have high hopes for this. Based on the performance of the other lures, I think its streamlined texas-rigged profile will get through this mess. 

By the way, if you're interested in why things are so gnarly where I fish, the answer is hurricanes and tropical storms. The lake I'm fishing is heavily wooded and has just continually filled with storm debris over the year. I'm also fishing the side the wind generally blows into, it's the only bit I have easy access to, so lots of stuff washes up there. Bad side is it's incredibly frustrating to fish, but bright side is there are 1) some big fish available from shore and 2) it's a good lab for brutal snag hazards that will hopefully help answer this snagless question.