weights

[MARSH MASTER]

A week ago I posted this topic and it got lost on the switch to the tackle forum. Im looking for some information on the importance of weights on soft plastics. Is there a science to this or is it a personal preference? I understand the basics of it like when its warm and the fish are active go with a heavier weight to create more action. If its cold and the fish are slow to react I would use a lighter weight. Is there more to it than that if so I would like to learn more about it and if not why have weights down to the sixteenths? Can the wrong weight affect hook ups?  

[Catt]

I would like to know where this topic went but was afraid to get chewed out by management.

Psst! I hear they get real mean during hard water periods  

[MARSH MASTER]

I ain't saying no names but the initials are RW

[Sam]

Wow! What a question!!

Weights.

Easy question, complex answer.

You have three substances for weights: tungston, lead and brass.

All have their applications.

You have various shapes, too.

And when to peg and not peg.

The weight is designed to hold the plastic on the bottom, or allowing it to float a specific amount of inches or feet off the bottom.

You can place the weights by the hook or up the line.  In the case of tubes, you put the weight inside the tube.

You probably know all about weights as you use them all the time, unless you attend or are a Toolame grad. If that is the case, you have no chance to learn about weights.

Your weight sizes depend on the season, the current and the structure/cover you are fishing.

You will receive a lot of answers but we need you be more specific about your weight questions.

I would love to give you all the input I know but there is so much data about weights that I don't know where to start.

Grab a Barq's; tear a slice of Randazzo's excellent King Cake; sit back and here is some info for your consideration, although it is a simple start.

1.  Use lead or tungston bullet weights for Texas-rigged plastics.

2.  Consider placing a bead between the weight and the hook's eye for some sound.

3.  Peg the weight unless you are fishing heavy cover or strucutre and an unpegged weight will let the plastic go through the cover/structure easier.

4.  Tungston has more feel.  Add a graphite rod and a sensitive line and you can feel Mardi Gras beads on the bottom.

5.  The heavier the weight the easier to punch through slop and grass.

6.  Use a Split-Shot weight when fishing the split-shot rig.  Just crimp it above your #1 or #1/0 hook about 12 to 18-inches and have some fun.

7.  Current will dictate the weight's weight.

8.  The bait's fall will also be determine the weight.

9.  Use brass weights when fishing Drop-Shot.  Will sound like a crawfish snapping if you add a glass bead as you move it along the bottom.

10. There are many varieties of weights. The Mojo; Bells for Drop-Shot and tubes; jig heads; Clam Shots for spinnerbaits; round; football; weedless; with rattles; Shaky Head applications; Carolnia rigs with heavy weights that move along the line above the swivel; screw-in; and on and on.

11.  Use the lowest weight possible to cast and fish your technique. Do not be bashful about changing weights as you fish.

12.  Practice "skipping" the plastic under docks, trees and bushes by using a pegged 3/16 lead bullet weight.

I know the guys will give you a lot more info. In the meantime, do four things for me:

1.  Read all you can about weights.

2.  Pull for the Fighting Tigers.

3.  Go to Mardi Gras for me and have a good time, but keep an eye on those beautiful ladies Adams Apple.

4.  Eat some good King Cake.

Have a great 2009!  

[MARSH MASTER]

Sam where are you from?

[Sam]

New Orleans.

Uptown, by Audubon Park.

Fished the Biloxi and the Mississippi Sound growing up plus Audubon Park Lagoon.

Love fishing for red fish; crabbing and bass fishing in the marsh.

Used to attend the Chalmette Mardi Gras parade as we have friends marching and riding. Katrina wiped out friend's house and we have not been back for Mardi Gras in years.

I try to make one LSU game each year, if possible.  Did not go to any games this year as I got to attend the BCS game in the Superdome and that was enough for the year.

Graduate of Fortier and LSU.

What high school did you attend????  

[roadwarrior]

C'mon Marsh Master,

Just a technical problem, there was nothing against you or the post.

-Kent a.k.a. roadwarrior

[amesl]

I agree with Sam on his examples for choosing weights. I use a different approach to heavy cover though. I have more success with a pegged weight. I have fished heavy cover with an un-pegged weight and have actually gotten the weight twisted around branches and thick brush. If I m fishing light cover, such as grass or a laydown, I ll go un-pegged. Im not saying he is wrong, just giving my own experiences here. I typically use Tungston because of the size of the weight. A Tungston weight in a any size ie.. 1/16 oz will be significantly smaller then say a 1/16 oz lead or brass weight.

Another rule of thumb for weight selection I use is depth. If I m fishing a tube/ worm or a any other type of finesse bait in shallow water, (0-6 ft) I usually stick with small weights. 1/16-1/8 oz Deeper water I use a heavier size (1/4-3/8) Heavy Cover I will use a heavier weight as well so I can penetrate whatever cover I m fishing. The different sizes will give you a different rate of fall like previously mentioned so it is good to have the same bait rigged up on a couple of different rods and weights to see how the fish want it.

You may also consider the profile of the bait as well. If you are crawling a Green Pumpkin Texas rigged worm like a Tiki Stik and you want to add a bigger profile, you may want to add a pegged 3/8 oz Green Pumpkin weight. Smaller profile= smaller weight.

There is so many factors in weight selection but these are just some tips that I use.

Hope this helps,

L

[Tin]

Also think of the plastic you are using. There is a big difference in a heavily salted bait compared to bits with air pockets or light baits.

A stickbait sinks at a specific rate already. So you might want to lean to the lighter weight sizes. A Senko with a 1/4 oz bullet may actually have the same fall rate as a Culprit rubber worm with a 3/8 or even 1/2 oz weight. The same goes for big bait that has more surface area like a Brush Hog or airy baits paca craw. It will take a heavier weight to make it fall as fast as a 3/8 oz jig.

[MARSH MASTER]

RW just messin nothing personal.

I usualy take in to consideration everything ya'll have been saying for the most part. I just have to start paying alittle more attention to the different applications. Tell me what ya'll think about this. I was talking to a fellow angler before a tournament about this and he said the other day he was missing fish becouse he couldn't figure out the right weight. I didn't think it got that technical am I wrong or can this be possible?

[amesl]

There are times when you may not get bit on lures because of the weight but missing them because of it, Im not quite sure.

I have had situations where I am only catching small Bass using a certain size weight and one little adjustment of changing the size, I immediately weeded thru the Dinks and caught keepers.

It's possible they weren't Bass that he was feeling, could have been some other species. Just my opinion though