Will Wetline

Position pliers as shown and squeeze.

I too have been tying 1/8 oz. hair jigs. I plan to cast them with my 7' Med.- Lite St. Croix Avid spinning rod. There has been a lot of good information the past couple of years on fishing hair jigs early season for smallmouth in In-Fisherman magazine. Read all you can find by Matt Straw and Doug Stange.

Smallmouth slayers in the know tell me I'm missing out if I'm not throwing blade baits at chilled out smallies in April and early May. Last year I passed on the blade bite but did get some nice brown bass on hair jigs that I molded and tied. This winter I put an order into Barlow's, my main components supplier, for what they call "Vibrating Blade Lures." http://www.barlowstackle.com/Vibrating-Blade-Lure-P2631.aspx Here's what I got: I chose the 5/8 oz. model and double hooks thinking that 4 hooks per bait are enough for the fish and I won't hang the bottom with the extra 2 that I won't be using! (tholmes confirms this in reply #12 in this thread: http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/131783-blade-baits/?hl=%20blade%20%20baits) This is one of the easiest bait making projects you can undertake. Here are the assembled baits: Before assembly I cleaned the bodies with alcohol. The nickel, after being polished dry with a scrap of old T shirt, came up to a mirror finish. Not so with the brass. I improved the shine somewhat with Flitz polish but while significant to some extent, finish is not the key feature of this bait - vibration is. I'll let you know in just a few weeks how the smallies like my vibes.

Not surprised in the least. When you get your F + L + P together wonderful things happen.

12.9 lb. steelhead from New York's Salmon River, January 5, 1999

Some innovative design elements and well crafted. Thanks for posting.

In 2012, Massachusetts banned the use of lead sinkers and jigs weighing less than 1 oz. in inland waters. This decision was based on the work of a Ph.d biologist who did an extensive study on loons and determined that when these birds ingest a lead split shot they die an agonizing death. I'm a sportsman not a scientist and I'm not inclined to argue with the science of this study. However, when I contacted state authorities asking for a clarification of the extent of this ban - a 1/2 oz. fully dressed jig is quite a different animal from a small, shiny lead split shot - I got a runaround rather than anything approaching a convincing explanation. I don't doubt there's a large dollop of politics involved in this MA regulation. Be that as it may, I fish legally. I use tungsten bullet weights and have switched from lead to a bismuth/tin alloy for casting jigs. As has been mentioned, there are sources for tungsten jigs. So, to whomever "no lead" applies, swallow hard and make the adaptation. When you've got a hawg on the end of your lead-free presentation you won't be thinking about the expense and inconvenience.

I was excited about the additional freedom of movement the Jika rig provides when I first read about it. I made a few up even though working with split rings strains my patience. The rig does work although I didn't fish it enough to say that it's significantly better than a T-rig or a jig. This season I'm looking forward to throwing a "jointed" jig that will provide a bait with a good deal more action than one on a fixed hook. http://www.barlowstackle.com/Do-It-Football-Swing-Jig-Mold-P3026.aspx Several companies market articulated football jigs for the many bassmasters who don't like to play with molten metal.

Classy.

ML, I am 2X your age and did use Mud bugs in the late '70s - '90s. Never did bother to change hooks and did not have a problem getting hefty LM to the boat. How 'bout we leave the discussion this way: find some more Mud Bugs from the '70s with the original tin plated trebles and I will sharpen them to a needle point. It will be noted in my will that they must be returned to you after I have made my last cast.

Vintage Mud Bugs are no good whatsoever. I will do you a favor and take all of yours from your box if you will sharpen the original hooks with a small stone.

Felix, I've been fishing a 3 1/2" Gitzit with an 1/8 oz. Insider jighead for smallies for years. Generally I'm casting over rock piles or sand flats with some gravel and assorted rubble at depths of 5' - 15'. Line is 6 lb. copolymer. I let this little bait hit bottom then raise the rod tip to 45º and reel v e r y slowly. I frequently hit bottom and accept the fact that I'm going to leave a few rigs in the rocks each trip but hey - this presentation catches em! Your braid/FC combo would be better to detect takes quicker. Usually the smallies simply inhale this offering and are hooked deeply.

http://lurepartsonline.com/Shop-By-Category/Lure-Display-Containers/

Wilbur (Will) Wetline comes from a practical joke I played on a workaholic friend and his wife many years ago. I couldn't convince my friend Ron to take some time off and go fishin', so I wrote his wife a serious-toned letter to enlist her help to get her overworked hubby out of the shop. I tried to make it sound like I was a state employed social service official whose husband had been brought to my attention by his co worker and would-be fishing buddy. I signed this bulletin, "Wilbur Wetline, Director, MA Mental Health Through Recreation Program, Fishing Division." Note that I have shortened my name on this fine forum to "Will," wanting to sound like a serious and knowledgeable bassmaster among online anglers . . . hmmph!

huskybass, are you still out there somewhere? Would like to join you for a trip on our favorite smallie water in MA in 2014!

Monsters!

Favorites from Quabbin Reservoir from the past few seasons:

I have been buying from NBS for 20 years and will continue to do so. Good people. Competitive prices. There is however, no argument that the really big guys like TW offer a broader selection, but if I can find what I want from northernbass.com they'll get my business.

http://www.cabelas.com/product/Luhr-Jensenreg-5-12-Original-Hook-File/1611386.uts?Ntk=AllProducts&searchPath=%2Fcatalog%2Fsearch.cmd%3Fform_state%3DsearchForm%26N%3D0%26fsch%3Dtrue%26Ntk%3DAllProducts%26Ntt%3Dhook%2Bsharpening%2Bfiles%26x%3D20%26y%3D5%26WTz_l%3DHeader%253BSearch-All%2BProducts&Ntt=hook+sharpening+files&WTz_l=Header%3BSearch-All+Products

Can't name a single lure or technique because that varies from late April into mid July when I fish a sizable clear water reservoir in central Mass for smallies. Could be: vibrating baits suspending jerkbaits jigs spinnerbaits crankbaits wacky rigged Senkos poppers and walkers . . . To sum up: Whatever presentation works under the conditions of a particular day.

The water temp on my first trip last year was 42º. I had molded and painted a batch of Shake It jigs over the winter and along with a rubber skirt, I dressed the jig with a GYCB twin tail trailer. I thought that trailer might have too much action in the cold water but a 4.5 lb. LM disagreed with me. Later the same day a 3+ lb. smallie was fooled by an Uncle Josh Spinning Strip on a white bucktail jig. So, both an "active" plastic trailer and old school pork worked. What you want to keep in mind when fishing water from say, 40º to 50º is to retrieve slowly.

Wowza x 6!

That's an inspired design - great idea to use Zonker (rabbit) for the claws and, to my eye, the chenille for the body works well too. Thanks for sharing this.

I've been using Barlow's painted spinnerbait heads for some time and they work fine. http://www.barlowstackle.com/Spinner-Bait-Heads-Painted--P1503C189.aspx Understand though, that they don't last forever. After readjusting the wire several times after unhooking big smallies (who I hope you learn like to make wire puzzles out of .035 and even .040 wire), I don't think a spinnerbait head/wire form owes me a whole lot more. Do use decent swivels, not the imported BB swivels which won't spin for long if they ever did. Try the Spro-Gamakatsu, size 0. http://www.barlowstackle.com/SPRO-SW-Gamakatasu-Ball-Bearing-swivel-with-Interlock-Snap-P878C123.aspx Also search smalljaw67's posts for excellent advice on how to build a spinnerbait - select balanced components - for a particular application. I fish clear water for smallmouth and when the sun is out and the wind is up I burn this 1/2 oz. bait about a foot under the surface and keep a tight grip on my rod:

Fish waters known to produce big fish. Adapt to current conditions - if one presentation, type of bait isn't working, try something else. Understand that sometimes they just ain't biting. Be persistent. Pay attention to details. Retie now, don't trust that slight fray to hold. Most important is focus. Fine tune your state of attention, your alertness. It works like this: Brain > rod tip > line > bait > fish on!