I know tubes are good for structure, rocks gravel etc... but does anyone use them for softer bottoms with heavy vegetation?

Yes, use them on a Texas rig or Carolina rig.

Most lakes in my area are heavy vegetation and sandy bottom. I have had great success with a Z Man Tubez on a ned rig. In more heavily weeded areas I use a larger tube rigged weedless.

Tubes are excellent baits in post front conditions when flipping/pitching/punching.  They come in and out of cover very well.  

 

If you can find good hooks, a 3.5" tube can be awesome Texas rigged.  

I t-rig them on a small weighted hook (similar to a Swimbait hook but much smaller). They are smallie killers for me, but I’m sure bass of a different variety would blast them as well. Good luck!

 

edit: I fancy the 3.5” size like the previous poster alluded to.

One of the best flipping baits you can use in heavy vegatation.

I just used the big salty zoom tubes about 4" id say from dicks and they work great. broke off all my jighheads so i rigged em stupid style, then fished em weightless on a 4/0 superfine ewg and texas rigged the nose and places the hook end freely in the tubes core. worked great around shallow docks and n grass. the ultra slow fall rate is a killer mid day.

21 hours ago, dwtaylor said:

Tubes are excellent baits in post front conditions when flipping/pitching/punching.  They come in and out of cover very well.  

 

If you can find good hooks, a 3.5" tube can be awesome Texas rigged.  

 

This.

 

Tubes are probably one of the most under utilized flipping and pitching baits and they can be fantastic.  They drop through vegetation well, can be fished like a jig in holes in surface vegetation, and can be worked at a TON of different speeds on the fall.  Finding a good hook that you like and can rig well is probably the most tricky part.  Generally, for this, I like straight shank hooks with wide gaps like a punching hook with any weight pegged to the hook eye.  

 

They can also be fished weightless like a soft jerk bait near the surface and allowed to go all crazy on the fall.  This can be a really fun technique when fish are either feeding up, or suspended.  

Just 'Stupid' rig it with the same jig you use for clean, hard bottoms.  You'll maintain most of the spiraling action vs. T-rigging it. T-rig, drop-shot,or C-rig also work.

On 6/1/2018 at 11:55 AM, Eric J said:

I know tubes are good for structure, rocks gravel etc... but does anyone use them for softer bottoms with heavy vegetation?

Yes.....all the time.  Texas. I don't peg the bullet weight right up to the bait.  I use a bobber stop a few inches up the line, then the weight and then a chrome or gold bead, followed by a faceted clear glass bead, then the bait.  This is my standard set up for a lot of different soft baits.  Or I stupid rig them.  I VERY rarely use a standard tube jig.  Too many hang ups in the lakes I fish.

Tubes are an excellent punching bait.....one that has gotten forgotten about, but they get as many, if not more bites than they ever did.

Being a river rat and smallie addict. Tubes and grubs are some of my go to baits. Have worked in all river structure conditions. 

tubes work excellent in cover 

Two weeks ago, two fish didn't take everything I threw at them, and some others kept biting off the tails of worms. Heavy vegetation and soft bottom. I nose hooked a 2.75" tube, slip shot rig, got all them landed within an hour. One smallmouth, three largemouth, and two big crappie over one pound and 14" long!