Anyone else fishing these type baits? I had success today with a 1/4 oz head and a fluke jr. I spiked a chartreuse lat line on the fluke as well. I got em to eat a slow retrieve tight to the bottom. How do guys fish em, trailers,ect? 

I just started throwing these a lot in the last two months, fishing it like a spinnerbait. I put a Keitech 3.8 swimbait on the back of a fish head spin..

I have fished these things consistently for over 2 years now and still haven't caught a fish on them yet! Even when the white bass are on the banks heavy I can't get one of them to eat it. They look great in the water, and I'm not ready to give up on them yet, but man they're making it tough!

I was having a little bit of success in summer on suspended fish but it was only 1 or 2 on an outing. I was ready to give up but before I did I made sure to try it in colder water, 52 degrees was the magic number with a light stain. I was throwing a 1/4oz model I make myself with a fluke Jr. on the back and just slow reeling it across the bottom in 6; of water and that is when I got my first good fish on it. Ever since then we've been doing well, it seems like the best conditions for our waters is from 48 degrees up to 60 degrees with the best action happening in the 52 to 55 degree range. There is one thing I learned, if you feel you are getting hit, don't set the hook, just keep reeling until the rod begins to load up, then pull it hard, it seems that just about every fish likes to bump it or push it a time or two before eating it. If you go to you tube look at a video of Paul Mueller fishing the fish head spin, that video is exactly what happens in my water, tap ..Tap..Tap..Load and then set, I was setting the hook on the taps and was missing bad until I started to keep reeling, I wish I saw this video first.

Several years ago I had my best day on the BassResource.com Roadtrip at Pickwick. Sworming Hornet with a LFT Live Magic Shad trailer. My presentation  is completely different: Cast and allow the lure to fall on slack line. Hold the rod steady at about 10:00. When the bait reaches the bottom reel up QUICKLY without pumping your rod, about 4-5 cranks. Let the bait fall again on slack line. Repeat until you feel you are "out of the zone".  100% of the strikes occur on the fall. On that particular day I was fishing with Dinky and caught 78 bass.

 

Ok cool, the water was 47 yesterday and the strike was mushy so I let it load up and sweep set it. All the fish were hooked perfectly. I was getting bites around 10ft out of 12ft. I tried to envision the bait hovering off the bottom. I found myself trying to feel the small blade spinning and that really put me in touch on staying slow with it. I wondered how it would do over a grass bed in the spring. 

I caught my limit on it on a day when otherwise I would have had one fish, all at the back of a creek in two feet of water, prob caught about ten keepers... I try to feel the bait in the same way, but as I was throwing it with a swimbait, I was keying on the thump of the swimbait tail... Caught them at first light, and at about 1:30 pm.

I was going to go to a boot tail to get more feel as you said, but they were eating the one i had on so it will have to wait til next trip lol

Here are a few that liked it yesterday. Nothing real big, but fun none the less.

2 hours ago, roadwarrior said:

Several years ago I had my best day on the BassResource.com Roadtrip at Pickwick. Sworming Hornet with a LFT Live Magic Shad trailer. My presentation  is completely different: Cast and allow the lure to fall on slack line. Hold the rod steady at about 10:00. When the bait reaches the bottom reel up QUICKLY without pumping your rod, about 4-5 cranks. Let the bait fall again on slack line. Repeat until you feel you are "out of the zone".  100% of the strikes occur on the fall. On that particular day I was fishing with Dinky and caught 78 bass.

 

Were you using casting gear? I fished it on a 7-1 M Om#n 12lb FC and it felt perfect. Could have used a lighter line and been just fine.  I could see a spinning application being used as well though I prefer this light casting set up.

G.Loomis GLX MBR842C/ Core 50Mg7/ Tatsu #10

 

I want to try ripping it and letting it fall on slack line too. While its cold though it seems the creep method was more appropriate 

Maybe, but a lot of shad die in the cold.  With real baitfish the "pop" is their last shot. As they fall it's easy pickin's for predators.

 

Understood. At what point do we see the die off in relationship to water temp?

Threadfin get sick around 45*, 42* is fatal.

 

 

So this lift and kill retrieve is most used in the mid 40s? I want to mimic that last gasp. 

No, I use it all the time and my "Big Day" was the first week of May.

 

Nice, I know what I am tinkering with next time out. The size of the 1/4 with the fluke jr seems like it could be a savior on a tough day as well.