Bottom bumping Silver Buddys

[slinging southpaw]

Making long casts with a Silver Buddy and bumping it along the bottom is something that I've heard is a great way to catch cold water smallmouths, but looking at a Silver Buddy makes me think are you kidding? A metal bait with two treble hooks scraping along the bottom hitting every rock, catching every weed in sight. It would seem like if you were going to use this technique, you would need about fifty of them to account for all of them that you would lose.

I have fished a Silver Buddy with a vertical presentation and have had mixed results.

In my mind there are at least a hundred better  suited lures for bottom bumping.

Anybody out there that has had a great deal of success with this presentation?

[roadwarrior]

Never!

I fish the Silver Buddy and the Cordell Gay Blade for white bass mostly. The presentation is a long cast and steady retrieve, maybe an occasional pop and sometimes a slow or extended hop. Actually touching the bottom or any structure for that matter is a recipe for disaster. I would like to fish this lure for smallmouth if the situation were right, I am POSITIVE this would be an excellent lure for those pretty brown fish. However, unless you are in a situation where you can target suspending fish in relatively open water, you're going to lose this lure...fast!

[wvubassfan]

I have to agree with RW on this one. I have found that this lure is best used when you are able to cast and burn.

[slinging southpaw]

Thanks guys

[rocknfish9001]

One of the absoloute deadliest presentations for ice out bass (large and smallmouth) is yo-yoing a silver buddy. You toss it out and let it settle, then yank it about 1-2 ft. off the bottom, and repeat all the way back to the boat, kind of like a kastmaster. It produces well when nothing else will. I have seen people take 5-6 lb. bass in 35 degree water using this technique.

[roadwarrior]

Yep, that is exactly the kind of environment I was talking about, but unfortunately for me, I don't get to fish the Great Lakes but once a year. If you have the right situation, I'm sure the Silver Buddy would work as well as you described. Unfortunately, most of the rivers and lakes I fish makes this impossible.

[rocknfish9001]

yea, it is mostly geared towards deep fish on sandy bottoms, not rocks and boulders like you would find in most good rivers.

[Triton21]

One of the absoloute deadliest presentations for ice out bass (large and smallmouth) is yo-yoing a silver buddy. You toss it out and let it settle, then yank it about 1-2 ft. off the bottom, and repeat all the way back to the boat, kind of like a kastmaster. It produces well when nothing else will. I have seen people take 5-6 lb. bass in 35 degree water using this technique.

Worked the same way on Dale Hollow in the Winter.  One of the presentions Billy taught me.  If you get snagged you can get directly over the lure and jiggle the lure and it will come loose 9 out of 10 times.  Of  course Billy got the free and I still have several dozen he gave me.

Kelley

[Triton21]

RW, The Silver Buddy was originaly developed for catching Sauger below the Greenup Locks and Dam on the Ohio river.

Kelley

[roadwarrior]

I don't think I would be fishing those Silver Buddies. Some type of display with the lures and a picture of you and the legend would be cool. Did you know Westmoreland well?

[justfishin]

RW, I had a thread on Silver Buddy's in the Fishing Tackle thread. Triton spoke of Bill in there. He was a great fisherman. I agree that Silver Buddy's can be tough to fish around a rocky bottom. Goodness knows I have lost my share. I rarely use them in the river for this reason. I do like them at a local smallie lake here though. I pretty much fish them on a free fall and then yo-yo them back to the boat and use a snap of the wrist presentation as well. I also burn them over the grass like a trap. I have caught some good fish on this bait.

[roadwarrior]

Yep, I saw your thread. There is no doubt that the Silver Buddy is a great lure and I'm not afraid of losing them, but I lose my fair share staying off the bottom! I'm certainly going to fish them as Triton21 described when I have an opportunity, but it won't be on the Tennessee River.

[Triton21]

RW, I am sure I have a picture somewhere around here.  If you call Horse Creek Dock and talk to Jack he will verify Billy and my relationship.  Ask him about the guy from Kentucky that made the MARABOU SPINN.  I just move here to IL from Eastern KY 4 years ago.  I will bring what I find to Fork.  What reason would I have to LIE?

Kelley

[roadwarrior]

Whoa!

Triton21,

I was complimenting you, NOT questioning you AT ALL. I think pictures and lures would make a nice display if you had a place for it, that's all. I also think the technique you were describing would be KILLER! It's just that I lose plenty of Silver Buddies when I'm trying to stay off the bottom and I don't think I can fish it that way most of the time.

Sorry for the confusion, I meant NOTHING disrespectful. I wish I would have had the opportunity to meet Billy Westmoreland. To have him as a friend is something very special.

[slinging southpaw]

RW, The Silver Buddy was originaly developed for catching Sauger below the Greenup Locks and Dam on the Ohio river.

Kelley

That's good to know. The first time I ever fished a Silver Buddy was while pre-fishing for the B.A.S.S. Eastern Regionals back in the late 80's on the Ohio River. All I caught with it was Sauger.  

[Triton21]

I apologize RW for taking it the wrong way.  I have had people question my relationship with Billy over the years.  Again I am sorry.  Guess got up on wrong side of bed this morning.  I will bring some of my NOS lures to Fork.  Bass Mag. had a write-up in Feb 2000 on the Marabou Spinn.  Did not mention my name but gave my Co. name(TOP SHELF LURES) and phone number in E. KY.

Forgive me for any misunderstanding on my part.

Kelley

[Zel]

It would seem like if you were going to use this technique, you would need about fifty of them to account for all of them that you would lose.

Using old spark plugs are the best way to retrieve them when they get hung up.  I hardly lose any and I use blade baits in some real nasty locations.

[MickD]

My son and I use silver buddies in deep water both vertically and on long casts and have little trouble with snags.  We encounter weeds and rocks, very little wood, which might be a different issue.

I think I remember an article recently in which the leading hook of the front treble was cut off, maybe one of the rears, too, and it prevented snagging without significantly affecting the action.

At the right times of the year, they are very effective.  If fished vertical, they are a piece of cake to fish-even jigging-challenged guys like I am can do it.

Another time they work very well is if you find midsummer pike off Canadian lake points in very deep water (40-50 feet).  Just hang the boat over them and jig the silver buddy-usually pike cannot resist.  Oops, talked pike on a bass site again.

[john087]

If anyone has any Silver or Gold Buddies in 1/4 to 1/2 oz let me know please, the company is out of business now and I can't find them anywhere! I've caught some huge fish for where I live on them. They are an excellent bait

[roadwarrior]

BPS still has Silver Buddies, I recently bought a few. A very similar lure is the Cordell Gay Blade, also available at BPS.

[slinging southpaw]

If anyone has any Silver or Gold Buddies in 1/4 to 1/2 oz let me know please, the company is out of business now and I can't find them anywhere! I've caught some huge fish for where I live on them. They are an excellent bait

I'm pretty sure you can get them at Northernbass.com

[slinging southpaw]

If anyone has any Silver or Gold Buddies in 1/4 to 1/2 oz let me know please, the company is out of business now and I can't find them anywhere! I've caught some huge fish for where I live on them. They are an excellent bait

I'm pretty sure you can get them at Northernbass.com

I was wrong. They have some knockoffs though.

[GRIZZ]

Up here on Cape Cod in the Northeast, the farther you go down the Cape, the more sand you run into. We fish a few places in Wellfleet and Eastham that is all white sand beaches, bottom bouncing the  Silver Buddys is a killer procedure. BUT like most here will agree, if you dont know the lay of the land, a steady retrieve is best.

A  group of us (12) are heading down the Cape next weekend to fish for Smallies and a few will be trying for trout (Brown-Rainbow's-Tiger trout) Yes I will have about a half dozen SB in my tackle box for the trip

[Wayne P.]

Silver Buddys are still being made but not in the original location. They are being made in Florida (according to the new package). The original inventor has them back in production since his son died that was operating the business and the business was down for a while. The newer ones have salt water type hooks on them. The silver color is the only ones I have seen lately being available. I prefer the gold. I have about 75 of the 1/4 oz silver ones. Most of the Silver Buddy practitioners prefer the 1/2 oz.

Do a web search for Silver Buddy and you will find several retailers the carry them.

http://www.silverbuddy.com/

[Crestliner2008]

Very interesting discussion on a very effective lure presentation for smallmouth bass. I use blades ice out until the water gets above 55. Then again in the late fall. I cast & retrieve it quite differently than what's been talked about here though. First, you must use some kind of a braded line with little or no stretch. This is the problem with most hang-ups.

This is how I present it: when the lure hits the bottom on a cast, you tighten up a bit and just barely pop it off the bottom, letting it settle back right away. This pop stops as soon as you feel the vibs start, so it usually doesn't get more than 3" - 5" off the bottom. This is repeated, all the way back to the boat. It can also be worked vertically in the same manner, but the cast gives you more coverage, obviously.

If you get hung, move directly over it and use the weight of the lure as a "plug knocker". This will free it up most times, especially if you use the 3/4 oz. sizes like I do. Or you can use a separate plug knocker or lure retriever; there are many on the market.

Why go thru all this trouble? Because in rivers, during the cold water period, this technique will far outfish any other, hands down. You have to locate the bass, but when you do, you can really get into some of the best fishing of the year. Fish the upside of dams in deep water. Find a current break down there and you'll get bit! And the strike is bone jarring!

BTW, you do not need to spend $5.00 (or more) for a blade bait. There are plenty of knock-offs out there, and they all work equally as effective. If you spend over $2.50/ea., you're wasting your money.