punching through mats

[soccplayer07]

Hello all. I am trying to learn how to punch through dense mats. I have tried pegging 1/2 -1 ounce weights with beavers and craws with no luck. I have not dedicated nearly enough time to this technique. Any advice or tips? Do you start on the edges of mats or go directly into the center? Another concern I have is with the heavy weight that the bait is falling to fast. Any tips or presentation? I was thinking of trying the anacondas for this technique. Thoughts on that bait or others? Thanks.

[.dsaavedra.]

this helped me, http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1248137420

[Sam]

Hey Dave,

The DVD I mailed to you on Wednesday covers this subject in detail.

It is very basic but it does address the issue.  

[soccplayer07]

thanks for the link. I should have searched. I got lazy. Being that I am on this site all the time I do not know how I missed this...Thanks again.

[DINK WHISPERER]

As hot as it is right now i have found no need to go too deep into the mats. I find most of the fish are either on the outer deeper edges of the mat or just a couple of feet back. The anaconda would not be a very good choice because the tail will wrap up easily and keep it from penetrating. Use more compact baits such as craws/creatures. Rate of fall shouldn't be an issue because you are looking for a reaction strike really. You can control the fall with your rod once you get a custom to the technique. BEST OF LUCK

[Koop]

Rate of fall shouldn't be an issue because you are looking for a reaction strike really.

+1

[Jordan Goehring]

This may be a new tech idk but try drop shotting it but with a 1oz sinker to punch through it with a t-rig plastic of course,If your worried about it falling to fast. It might work idk just an idea.

[Dan:]

Rate of fall shouldn't be an issue because you are looking for a reaction strike really.

+1

See? That's what I told you, Aaron!

[RoLo]

The Anaconda is a great lure, but not a good choice for weed-punching. Long worms tend to wrap around stalks.

To generate minimal resistance, favor short, streamlined trailers with few or no appendages.

My all-time favorite weed-probe is the Gambler 5" Flapp'n Tail Worm, which consists of pretty tough plastic.

Also good is the 4" Rage Craw but a plastic craw generates more resistance than a short worm.

Use the lightest weight possible, which will normally be between 1/2 and 1-1/2 oz depending on weed density.

A 5/0 hook or at least 4/0 should be used. Target the heaviest cover available (shade is valuable on a sunny day),

but favor matted vegetation that adjoins an open pocket. To make certain that I'm really on the bottom,

I lift-and-drop my rod-tip in a slow, yo-yo fashion. As often as not, the lure will suddenly break through the false bottom

and enter a second freefall, and sometimes even a third freefall before truly reaching bottom.

Roger

[soccplayer07]

so what application on you guys using the anaconda's for??? just carolina rigs?

[DINK WHISPERER]

T-rigged through cover, sparse or heavy. Just not punching, there's a difference. Also Carolina rigged and even weightless.

[RoLo]

so what application on you guys using the anaconda's for??? just carolina rigs?

You really like that Anaconda don't you?  Me too

Mat-punching aside, you might try this with the Anaconda.

T-rig the anaconda or thread it onto your favorite jig (really doesn't matter).

After it makes bottom contact, crank the reel two or three turns, then allow the worm to glide back to the bottom...repeat~

At no time does the rod move, and if you mend the slack as it glides, you'll remain in contact with the lure (limbo line).

Bottom contact is signaled by a sudden droop in the line or the when the line stops approaching the boat.

Roger

[Catt]

Rate of fall shouldn't be an issue because you are looking for a reaction strike really.

+1

See? That's what I told you, Aaron!

Rate of fall is one of the triggers of the reaction strike

Many anglers think a silent approach when fishing grass is the proper approach; by that I mean they want the lure to fall quietly through the grass and come through the grass cleanly. My approach is to be noisy, that is I want my lure to cause a disturbance by moving grass as it falls and when its coming though the grass.

[DINK WHISPERER]

Rate of fall shouldn't be an issue because you are looking for a reaction strike really.

+1

See? That's what I told you, Aaron!

Rate of fall is one of the triggers of the reaction strike

Many anglers think a silent approach when fishing grass is the proper approach; by that I mean they want the lure to fall quietly through the grass and come through the grass cleanly. My approach is to be noisy, that is I want my lure to cause a disturbance by moving grass as it falls and when its coming though the grass.

Finally, someone with some punching know how! You are 100% right sir. Everyone who fishes with me try's to tell me i splash around to much when flippin'/pitchin'. But i am a firm believer that is what brings me more strikes. It's pretty dark in that slop and a quiet presentation will get you know where!

[bigtimfish]

Ok here's the way I look at it. I use a 3/4 oz parasite weight on Paca craws for this method.With other baits also. But I have no trouble punching through. I always use baits that are pretty smooth,not a lot of curly or big arms/legs/flapping things.Nothing to get wrapped around the grass. Also use a good oily or jelly type scent for lubrication.

[michael Lynn]

I had to switch to a 1.5 oz tungsten. a nice 10mm glass bead and my choice is the Brushhog in watermelon/purple flake

[NOVA Angler]

Hello all. I am trying to learn how to punch through dense mats. I have tried pegging 1/2 -1 ounce weights with beavers and craws with no luck. I have not dedicated nearly enough time to this technique. Any advice or tips? Do you start on the edges of mats or go directly into the center? Another concern I have is with the heavy weight that the bait is falling to fast. Any tips or presentation? I was thinking of trying the anacondas for this technique. Thoughts on that bait or others? Thanks.

Depending on how thick the mats are I would recommend using your trolling motor as little as possible.  Since you fish the Potomac and most of the grass mats you are fishing are in the 3-6' range, the trolling motor moving through that slop tends to spook a lot of the fish IMO.  Try to use the wind to your advantage and drift through/over the mats.  I would start on the outside edge before working your way in.  Some people even use push poles, though I think it's a pain in the rear.  When the grass gets heavily matted on top, sometimes you have to drag your rig across the top to find a hole for it to drop in.  I've heard other say that they slam the bait down into the mat to get it to penetrate.  I haven't really experimented much with that technique.  Like other have said, use a compact bait with fewer appendages.  The Sweet Beaver usually works well for this technique.  Since it's a reaction strike, don't worry too much about rate of fall.  The bass have plenty of time to grab your bait before it hits the bottom, even with a 1.5oz sinker.  Good luck!

[RoLo]

Rate of fall shouldn't be an issue because you are looking for a reaction strike really.

+1

See? That's what I told you, Aaron!

Rate of fall is one of the triggers of the reaction strike

Many anglers think a silent approach when fishing grass is the proper approach; by that I mean they want the lure to fall quietly through the grass and come through the grass cleanly. My approach is to be noisy, that is I want my lure to cause a disturbance by moving grass as it falls and when its coming though the grass.

I would've thought that was a foregone conclusion :-?

When fishing in the weeds, you'll often see the stalks swaying, right before your lure is struck.

If it's alright for bass to move the weeds, I guess it's okay for us too.

Any angler familiar with the sound of bass feeding on the surface, knows that it sometimes sounds

like a piano dropped from a low-flying plane. Bass are very familiar with this noise,

which is attractive to other competitively feeding bass. When fishing a surface lure, the only reason we wait

for the ripples to disappear is to give a curious bass time to close-in on the sound of the splashdown.

It's estimated that about one-third of all surface attacks are misses,

so bass instinctively know that the odds are good that a wounded minnow may be close at hand.

As Catt stated, "my approach is to be noisy".   You'll probably scare your boat-mate before any bass ;D

Roger