Grub Help!!

[B@ssCrzy]

I am going to a northern Michigan lake in August that is very clear to fish for smallmouth. On a calm sunny day you can see bottom in 12 feet of water. Mostly will be fishing rocky points and humps, but there will also be some shallower weeds and also deep weed pockets in 15-20 ft of water. I have been going to this lake most of my life, but have always used live bait in the past. I am wanting to start using artificial baits instead. I could use some help on the following questions...

1. What color would you use?

2. What brand do you prefer?

3. What technique when fishing a grub would you use in a lake like this?

I have never fished with grubs before so any help would be appreciated!! Thanks everyone!!

[midnighthrasher]

Wait for the rage tail grub!!! White and green pumpkin would be my choices.

[Siebert Outdoors]

4" grub in a green pumpkin variant. Also take some 4" tubes. Same color

[grimlin]

Zoom Fat Albert in either salt and pepper or watermelon color.

You can rig it with a bullet weight(I've been doing well with the 1/8-1/4 oz weight) or you can do the split shot about 6-12" up your line.

I cast it out to a likely spot that might hold fish.Let it sink and hit the bottom(be ready I get strikes as it's falling).If you don't get a strike on the fall,slowly drag the bait with your rod.stop and reel in the slack line.Repeat till the bait is all the way back to you.

Or you can cast it out let it fall then SLOWLY reel it in.

I've been having great fun this year with them....I've already been through 5-6 packs of these grubs...so make sure you buy a few packs,they go pretty quick.

[Gavin]

4" Zoom Fat Albert or a Yamamoto Grub...match the color of the bottom, and the prevalent baitfish..Swim them on a ball head jig, hop or drag them on a weedless football or standup jig head...texas rig too..no way to fish one wrong.

[Lund Explorer]

3" - 5" Kalins Lunker Grub, rigged on a 1/8oz - 1/4oz darterhead jig. You can also T-Rig the 5" grub using a Gammy 2/0 EWG hook.

Any color works as long as it is some shade of green. Avacado to Watermelon, with my choice being Avacado.

Best selection is now on the Uncle Josh website as they bought out the company.

[A-Jay]

Berkley Power Grub 4" Green Pumpkin is a good choice up here.

You received some great advice so far and here is a method that takes fish as well.

Use a heavier head jig with the grub. Make a cast and allow the bait to get to the bottom and quickly snap it up off the bottom. Allow it to fall on either a semi-slack line or for a quicker decent, a completely slack line. Repeat this snap and fall for the length of the retrieve. Let the fish tell you what they want. Most hits will come on the fall. Often times the harder you rip it up, the better they like it. This works with tubes quite well also.

Good Luck

A-Jay

[Sfritr]

What lake are you fishing? I would take the advice of everyone posting and add that you should try to drop shot an "Aarons Magic" roboworm on a 1/8 to 1/4 ounce weight. This tactic works Extremely well on N Michigan smallies at some of the most gin clear lakes I have ever seen. Good Luck

[CSimon2]

I fished Lake Michigan the end of June and the smallmouth were spawning. I had a lot of good luck using the 3" BPS triple ripple grub in the baby bass color rigged on a 1/4 oz jighead. I cast it out and let it sink and then slowly swam it back. I got most of my strikes when swimming it back. When that was not working I was using YUM craw bugs in the craw dad color. Good luck!

[Sfritr]

I am not sure if it is technically a grub but you can't mention SMB and not bring up a Fat Ika..

Technically, I guess its a grub family member

[WanderLust]

I am not sure if it is technically a grub but you can't mention SMB and not bring up a Fat Ika..

Technically, I guess its a grub family member

Nothing to see here... Move along

Smoke and watermelon are awesome colors for grubs. I like the 5" on a 1/4 jig or weightless on a 2/0 EWG.

[B@ssCrzy]

I am heading to Mullet and Burt lakes. How do you fish a fat ika? Do you hop it, slowly drag it, fish it on a football jig, texas rig, etc. Keep in mind I don't have any experience with these types of lures so the more information the better. Thanks for your help.

I am not sure if it is technically a grub but you can't mention SMB and not bring up a Fat Ika..

Technically, I guess its a grub family member

[WanderLust]

I am heading to Mullet and Burt lakes. How do you fish a fat ika? Do you hop it, slowly drag it, fish it on a football jig, texas rig, etc. Keep in mind I don't have any experience with these types of lures so the more information the better. Thanks for your help.

I trig mine with a 3/0 EWG gammy weightless, normally on flouro... Cast, let fall to the bottom on semi-slack line; pop it off the bottom using the rod. Sometimes slow, sometimes fast etc.

Hold on!! Watch your line close as it gets destroyed on the fall. Hopping it works to but normally not necessary with active smallies.

[B@ssCrzy]

I will make sure to pick some of these up. Thanks everyone for you your help on this.

I am heading to Mullet and Burt lakes. How do you fish a fat ika? Do you hop it, slowly drag it, fish it on a football jig, texas rig, etc. Keep in mind I don't have any experience with these types of lures so the more information the better. Thanks for your help.

[Lund Explorer]

Went north this last weekend to visit the kids and spent a little time fishing Brevoort Lake up across the bridge. Daughter-in-Law works in the local office of MI-DNR, and has been told by fisheries folks that Mullett Lake's population of gobies is growing quite fast and that they have also been found in the Indian River headed towards Burt Lake.

You may want to consider looking into baits that mimic these invasives as well. Might not be this summer, but it wouldn't surprise me that these lakes may some day resemble Lake St. Clair to a certain extent. I haven't fished down there since these fish moved in, so maybe a few LSC fishermen can chime in on where to look for them. It could give you more choices on Mulltet this summer. I'm thinking shallow flats where the little buggers like to burrow into might be worth a look.

BTW, you didn't hear this from me, but fishing for Walter has been fiarly good on the river from Lake Huron upstream towards the dam. Meat rigs trolled along the weedlines have been producing some nice fish.

[B@ssCrzy]

Can you explain what you mean by a "meat rig." Thanks for the info!!!

Went north this last weekend to visit the kids and spent a little time fishing Brevoort Lake up across the bridge. Daughter-in-Law works in the local office of MI-DNR, and has been told by fisheries folks that Mullett Lake's population of gobies is growing quite fast and that they have also been found in the Indian River headed towards Burt Lake.

You may want to consider looking into baits that mimic these invasives as well. Might not be this summer, but it wouldn't surprise me that these lakes may some day resemble Lake St. Clair to a certain extent. I haven't fished down there since these fish moved in, so maybe a few LSC fishermen can chime in on where to look for them. It could give you more choices on Mulltet this summer. I'm thinking shallow flats where the little buggers like to burrow into might be worth a look.

BTW, you didn't hear this from me, but fishing for Walter has been fiarly good on the river from Lake Huron upstream towards the dam. Meat rigs trolled along the weedlines have been producing some nice fish.

[Lund Explorer]

Can you explain what you mean by a "meat rig." Thanks for the info!!!

Sorry, that's the name around here for a crawler harness.

[Crestliner2008]

A clear lake in August and you're planning on targeting 12' - 20' of water? I really believe you need to start thinking deeper. I wouldn't even consider looking for smallies in <25' of water this time of the year.

Talk to the locals. Yes, you can get a lot of 'dinks' up shallow, but the bigger bass are going to be on off-shore structures between 25' - 40' of water - and deeper! I'm assuming you have a sonar; otherwise it will difficult for you to get on decent fish this time of the year.

Find structure breaks (humps, drop offs, ledges) leading to deep water, that has bait fish on it. Then use the drop shot and slowly move along those breaks until you locate the fish you want. If you do not have a sonar, plan on casting top waters, in the depth levels you are comfortable with, early in the morning hours.

Good luck out there!

[NBR]

1. I'd use colors tied to the forage base and 1 or 2 wild departures from it.

2. I don't have a favorite brand.

3. Drag it on the bottom, hop it and swim it at various water depths.

4. Assuming you caught fish before fish the same areas.

I'd be sure to fish off shore humps.

When you say norther are you talking northern lower or UP?

[bobbyc]

There killing em on 1/4 oz. roadrunners, red head, white two inch grub.

[fishermantony]

X3 on the zoom Fat Albert Grub. I've had success rigging it on an arkie stand up jig head.

[tate]

X4 on the Zoom Fat Albert Grub .... Works well in one of my favorite lakes where the water is fairly clear around 12 - 14' visibility, and the bottom is mostly gravel with alot of big rocks mixed in. I prefer Watermelon and Pumpkin-seed colors. I use a 1/8oz round blk jig head. I let it fall to the bottom, then a few twitches and let it fall again.

- tate