Tube dragging

[Koop]

Curious what # Fluoro everyone else uses for dragging a tube.  I've been using 8# but considering stepping down to 6# like I use for my drop shot rig.

[Chris W]

It depends on how heavy a tube that I am dragging, and how deep of water I am fishing, the I start with about 8lb but have used as high as 15lb for 3/4oz heads in 30+ feet of water.

[Koop]

wont be more than 12fow in clear water.  I usually throw a 5/16 or 3/8oz jig head for tubes.

[A-Jay]

We use 6# almost exclusively when throwing tubes. We're fishing in very clear water fairly deep water (15-25 ft) and 6 just seems to get more bites.

A-Jay

[Steve_in_Maine]

I'm using 8# fluro with a 3/8oz jig head on my tubes. Drag the bottom, give it a little action, and the Smallies love it. We are normally in 2-10 feet of water when using tubes.

Steve

[simplejoe]

I use 8# when I'm fishing anything deeper than 15 ft. If I'm fishing less than that I'll use 6# line.

[jc2bg]

Here's a thought. Although the common logic is the smaller the line, the greater number of bites, in tube dragging (Erie) I've found that smaller line sometimes isn't an advantage. My reasoning, or at least the difference that I can feel, is that the smaller line allows the bait to sink faster and also to "jump" higher when it contacts an obstacle on the bottom such as a rock, mussel shell, etc. In tube dragging, the lighter line also causes the bait to present more vertically than horizontally.

Erie smallmouths, when they're being picky, tend to look for their targets a certain distance from the bottom and "acting" or moving in a certain way. Heck, maybe it's just a matter of the lighter line (which sinks easier) causing the bait to be too close to the boat, thereby spooking the fish. I just know that in our typical deeper water tube dragging--generally 18 to 26 feet--10 lb. fluoro outfishes 6 or 8 lb. most days, and by a clear margin. 12 lb. even gets us more bites than 6, and about the same amount of bites as 8. 10 lb. is clearly the fishes' choice, with the caveat that we don't try the lighter lines every day, having learned early on that it's not worth the effort. -- JC

[bassnleo]

Here's a thought. Although the common logic is the smaller the line, the greater number of bites, in tube dragging (Erie) I've found that smaller line sometimes isn't an advantage. My reasoning, or at least the difference that I can feel, is that the smaller line allows the bait to sink faster and also to "jump" higher when it contacts an obstacle on the bottom such as a rock, mussel shell, etc. In tube dragging, the lighter line also causes the bait to present more vertically than horizontally.

Erie smallmouths, when they're being picky, tend to look for their targets a certain distance from the bottom and "acting" or moving in a certain way. Heck, maybe it's just a matter of the lighter line (which sinks easier) causing the bait to be too close to the boat, thereby spooking the fish. I just know that in our typical deeper water tube dragging--generally 18 to 26 feet--10 lb. fluoro outfishes 6 or 8 lb. most days, and by a clear margin. 12 lb. even gets us more bites than 6, and about the same amount of bites as 8. 10 lb. is clearly the fishes' choice, with the caveat that we don't try the lighter lines every day, having learned early on that it's not worth the effort. -- JC

Wouldn't a simple solution be to change the size of the internal head? A heavier head would keep the bait closer to the bottom thus being more horizontal and bouncing along.

I most often use 8 lb flouro when on Erie. I do agree that sometimes the fish get picky, one day they may want the bait right on the bottom, other days they like it ripped off the bottom forcefully. IMHO it's easier to change the head size rather than line size to acheive the desired rate of fall or lack thereof.

[jc2bg]

We all have to try different combinations of jig weight and line test to determine what works best. For me, the differences are subtle yet important. If I use 10 lb. test fluoro with either a 1/8 or 3/16 oz. jig, I get lots of bites, have plenty of feel, and importantly, the line holds up pretty well against the wear of rocks and zebra mussels. If I use 8 lb. test line, I still have to figure out which jig head gives the presentation the fish are wanting. And frankly, I've seldom seen a situation in which they reacted positively to a 1/16 oz. jig. Some of that has to do with the jig being manufactured properly: very little lead but still the right sized hook to rig well and stick the fish well. If I had a jig between 1/16 and 1/8, it might be perfect for 8 lb. line, but where we fish in Erie, the 8 lb. is almost twice as fragile as 10 lb. line (frays too fast), while in some areas I'd never get 6 lb. back to the boat.

I had one occasion when I caught smallies very well on Erie's north side with 6 lb. fluoro and 1/16 oz. jig, but it was unusually shallow and few rocks or shells on the bottom. Normally they hold much more on structure, and I guess we're fortunate that they also don't mind the heavier line so long as it's fluorocarbon. -- JC

[thetr20one]

Here's a thought. Although the common logic is the smaller the line, the greater number of bites, in tube dragging (Erie) I've found that smaller line sometimes isn't an advantage. My reasoning, or at least the difference that I can feel, is that the smaller line allows the bait to sink faster and also to "jump" higher when it contacts an obstacle on the bottom such as a rock, mussel shell, etc. In tube dragging, the lighter line also causes the bait to present more vertically than horizontally.

Erie smallmouths, when they're being picky, tend to look for their targets a certain distance from the bottom and "acting" or moving in a certain way. Heck, maybe it's just a matter of the lighter line (which sinks easier) causing the bait to be too close to the boat, thereby spooking the fish. I just know that in our typical deeper water tube dragging--generally 18 to 26 feet--10 lb. fluoro outfishes 6 or 8 lb. most days, and by a clear margin. 12 lb. even gets us more bites than 6, and about the same amount of bites as 8. 10 lb. is clearly the fishes' choice, with the caveat that we don't try the lighter lines every day, having learned early on that it's not worth the effort. -- JC

Wouldn't a simple solution be to change the size of the internal head? A heavier head would keep the bait closer to the bottom thus being more horizontal and bouncing along.

I most often use 8 lb flouro when on Erie. I do agree that sometimes the fish get picky, one day they may want the bait right on the bottom, other days they like it ripped off the bottom forcefully. IMHO it's easier to change the head size rather than line size to acheive the desired rate of fall or lack thereof.

On top of this drift speed is probably #1 in fishing Erie Smallies. Two ajustable driftsocks are a must for the big lake.

[bassnleo]

Agreed, getting drift speed right is a must. I've actually had days where they wanted it cruising along the bottom really fast, other days at a crawl.

[jc2bg]

Speaking of speed, I've had days (not lately) when the smallies absolutely pounded tube baits dragged on Fireline, which as you know sinks very rapidly and jumps wildly off any structure the bait encounters. I always keep one rod in the boat rigged with Fireline just in case. When they are jumping on a fast-moving tube, you can't beat braided line. When the water is calmer, normally they won't touch a bait on line they can see.