punching experience so far

[shutupnfish]

My punch gear order I made last week was for two BOSS Weedeater skirted weights 1/2 oz and 3/4 oz.  pack of KO punch hooks, pack of hippo stops.  Neither of the BOSS skirts were anywhere near heavy enough for the stuff I'm dealing with.  Might make some finesse punching rigs, or some kinda swimming jig.  After doing a little more BR reading I was gonna give it another try with a 3/4 oz. tungsten weight, glass bead, punch hook, craw/creature/monkey and lose the skirt!  After a couple of pitches I was casting it up a ways and let gravity take over.  It was at this point that I hoped nobody was watching me.  First couple of tries I thought this rig would work.  Made some more lobs and I found this rig would not work.  I think it even bounced once.    So to Academy and back with 1 1/2 oz of tungsten. Went out for a hour two earlier for more skirtless punching.  Fished from a dock that normally extends 25 feet out, 5 ft deep, next to a "rocky" boat ramp.  Now it's 12 ft out, 5 ft. deep.  Weeds are pretty solid out to 40 feet or more in some places.  Figured this would be an ideal launching area.  Still used the lob method, even with that much weight.  Three fish, biggest was 2.5.  Lost one that felt pretty heavy.  Tried various craws and creatures and the space monkey gets the vote for durability and least amount of fouling. Fixing to give it another shot this evening for a while.  Going to see what a 1 1/4 oz. of tungsten will do first.  NOW IF ONLY I COULD LEARN TO TIE A SNELL KNOT!!!!!   Later.

Steve 

 

[BASSclary]

The way I snell hooks. --->

[Catt]

Grass = Bass 

[SoFl-native]

My punch gear order I made last week was for two BOSS Weedeater skirted weights 1/2 oz and 3/4 oz. pack of KO punch hooks, pack of hippo stops. Neither of the BOSS skirts were anywhere near heavy enough for the stuff I'm dealing with. Might make some finesse punching rigs, or some kinda swimming jig. After doing a little more BR reading I was gonna give it another try with a 3/4 oz. tungsten weight, glass bead, punch hook, craw/creature/monkey and lose the skirt! After a couple of pitches I was casting it up a ways and let gravity take over. It was at this point that I hoped nobody was watching me. First couple of tries I thought this rig would work. Made some more lobs and I found this rig would not work. I think it even bounced once. So to Academy and back with 1 1/2 oz of tungsten. Went out for a hour two earlier for more skirtless punching. Fished from a dock that normally extends 25 feet out, 5 ft deep, next to a "rocky" boat ramp. Now it's 12 ft out, 5 ft. deep. Weeds are pretty solid out to 40 feet or more in some places. Figured this would be an ideal launching area. Still used the lob method, even with that much weight. Three fish, biggest was 2.5. Lost one that felt pretty heavy. Tried various craws and creatures and the space monkey gets the vote for durability and least amount of fouling. Fixing to give it another shot this evening for a while. Going to see what a 1 1/4 oz. of tungsten will do first. NOW IF ONLY I COULD LEARN TO TIE A SNELL KNOT!!!!! Later.

Steve

i feel you on the lighter weights. I start with 1 oz now and go up as needed. 1 oz seems to do it 85% of the time.

Bobber stop seems to help it get through and beaver baits penetrate the best imo.

[bilgerat]

One of these http://*.com/crawtube

slathered up with attractant (for lube) on your rig would go through nicely. They're good for this application as they have extra thick heads and thick walls. Plus fish flat out crush 'em

[shutupnfish]

I forgot to mention the bobber stops, I definitely use them.  Thanks for the link to the video, I'll have to give it a try.  What about casting methods?  What are you fellas using to bust through?  The lob seems to work best for me now, so I'm sticking with it.  Well I'm off to give it anther try.  We had a cold front blow in the other day though so its only going to be in the lower 90's.  Might have to switch tactics.

Steve

[SoFlaBassAddict]

My punch gear order I made last week was for two BOSS Weedeater skirted weights 1/2 oz and 3/4 oz. pack of KO punch hooks, pack of hippo stops. Neither of the BOSS skirts were anywhere near heavy enough for the stuff I'm dealing with. Might make some finesse punching rigs, or some kinda swimming jig. After doing a little more BR reading I was gonna give it another try with a 3/4 oz. tungsten weight, glass bead, punch hook, craw/creature/monkey and lose the skirt! After a couple of pitches I was casting it up a ways and let gravity take over. It was at this point that I hoped nobody was watching me. First couple of tries I thought this rig would work. Made some more lobs and I found this rig would not work. I think it even bounced once. So to Academy and back with 1 1/2 oz of tungsten. Went out for a hour two earlier for more skirtless punching. Fished from a dock that normally extends 25 feet out, 5 ft deep, next to a "rocky" boat ramp. Now it's 12 ft out, 5 ft. deep. Weeds are pretty solid out to 40 feet or more in some places. Figured this would be an ideal launching area. Still used the lob method, even with that much weight. Three fish, biggest was 2.5. Lost one that felt pretty heavy. Tried various craws and creatures and the space monkey gets the vote for durability and least amount of fouling. Fixing to give it another shot this evening for a while. Going to see what a 1 1/4 oz. of tungsten will do first. NOW IF ONLY I COULD LEARN TO TIE A SNELL KNOT!!!!! Later.

Steve

i feel you on the lighter weights. I start with 1 oz now and go up as needed. 1 oz seems to do it 85% of the time.

Bobber stop seems to help it get through and beaver baits penetrate the best imo.

x2

I was using a 3/4 yesteday as that was all that I had available. It was really only good for picking apart the outer edges of some emergent grass. Definitely need to go up to a 1oz or heavier to get through thicker stuff. Like SoFl-native mentioned, beaver type baits are what I'll primarily use. RI Sweet Beavers, Ugly Otters, Wooly Bugs, etc etc. If you want to downsize some, BB Crickets are a great smaller alternative. In thinner grass with darker water, I a Rage Craw or Lobster for the added vibration they put out. I tend to use darker colors when flipping heavier stuff.

Look on youtube for directions on how to tie a Snell Knot.  I feel that you do get better hookups with it.  The revised or quick Snell Knot is extremely easy to tie.