Bdnoble84

I know there have been alot of posts on this topic, but mostly water temps ranging 40’s to 55 degrees. The river I have been fishing is currently sitting at 36 degrees and has been below 40 for the past month. The area im fishing is about a half mile below the dam and drops to 15-20ft within 15-20ft of the bank. Current is also minimal with the low flow. Im confident this is a wintering spot. what are your guys go to baits in this situation? Any room for reaction style baits? Or stick to hair jigs, dropshot, fnf jig?

I use the engineered anglers formula he put on youtube. It seems realativy ballpark whick is good enough for me.today i was working with alittle 55mmthrough wire pine jerkbait and only put a gram of weight in it. I didnt actually do a ballast calc thinking i was putting relatively little weight jn it. Needless to say. Once the hooks are on it sinks like a rock. Also though, i sealed the wire slot with superglue and baking soda. I think the extra weight from that on suck a small bait is what has it out of wack. That and the lip is way to thick. Which is what inspired me to ask about factoring in lip weight.

So lip as well?

When calculating hardbait ballast, do you include the lip into the equation? Or just the hooks and hangers/ wire?

I am not, thats why it freefalls a bit.

Hula grubs are very good. They were one of the first jig plastics i threw that wasnt a straight curlytail or tube. As ive started making my own lures, ive gotten away from them, but im definitely missing out on bites. I actually like to texas rig mine with a 3/0 ewg and a 1/16 to 3/32 ounce bullet sinker. Bullet sinkers come through rock surprisingly well and i like the delayed falling action when hopping from the plastic pausing while the weight drops.

I use the bandsaw, i do it on the rough blank before i start shaping, however its still a struggle.

Im diggin it.

Small finesse cut jigs with a craw style trailer are a great option, i also like to throw swim jigs in 1/4 and 3/8 with a 3-5” kalins grub, however these draw alot more attention from northern pike than anything else.

Hobby Lobby is where i get all my airbrush supplies

Ive tryed regular sewing thread when i first started but you are definitely getting some 210 denier flat-waxed nylon thread. I prefer 140 utc myself but until you get the pressure down, 210 is the way to go. I would also suggest bobbins with a pvc type insert.

Cool, i like that. Guesing you run the blades down the back of the hide.

That was my question. That ii how i have done it as well, but its not the most uniform or efficient process. With the volume of cutting he did, i wondered if he used a different method.

How did you go about cutting. I havent had a ton of luck

Pretty broad, you going to the north end or more towards where it dumps into the mississippi. I grew up fishing a backwater of the lower wisconsin abou 40-50 miles upstream of Prairie Du Chien.

Becoming more year around for me. My apartment is being over-ran with fishing stuff currently. My computer desk doubles as a tying station and i was able to convert a closet to a painting area. I mean what better way to avoid homework than to tie jigs instead.

I have been painting them with createx and then coating them with clear gloss polyurethane. The poly leaves alot to be desired, but my can of kbs hardened on me and i havent made a uv cure setup yet. Once i get clearcoaring down, i think this will be the way to go.

Switching to hair mode! Marabou jig was made from feathers from a tom I harvested a couple years ago.

Between grad school, work and kids, ill fit that in somewhere. ???, hit me up over christmas break.

I have alot of luck nemo rigging these using an o-ring half way down. I tear the legs off to get the oringvin the correct position

What is the advantage of a short arm spinnerbait?

Yeah, dumb foot in mouth comment, I wasnt really thinking when I said that. Realized it when I re-read it last night.

I really came across wrong on that, im not saying i could do a great job and not trying to diminish time of work. Just that that prices seems extremely high for what they are. Great for them they can get people to buy them.

I could probably tie 40-50 of those for 10$ in cost and they are about the easiest jig to tie

I am pretty simple. Green pumpkin or watermellon based on water clarity/ dirtyness, black/blue or black/junebug, some sort of shadish color, and then something with chartreuse or chart/white. If im in a lake where bluegill are a target ill throw in something with blue and orange in it.