Baits.....

[BJ Laster]

Alright I need a shopping list. I get my first paycheck in a few days and I will be heading to BPS in Springfield in a couple of weeks. Whats hot right now.



More specifically We will be at Table Rock for a couple of days. Whats hot right now there for those (if any...i never really hear to much about it) who fish Table Rock.



Anyway what in general should I pick up. Cranks? Plastics????



BJ

 

[Staci Matheis]

BJ -



I've never fished Table Rock..... But there was someone on here before who said he used jigging spoons to fish deep, submerged timber (30' - 40') for smallmouth when he won a Tracker Owners Tournament there a few years ago.



That's about all I remember. Hope it helps.



me!

 

[BJ Laster]

Yeah thats one of the things we have done before. We get off some of the longer rock points and sit in about 50 to 60 foot of water. We'll throw as far as we can into 15 feet and work the jigging spoons back to the boat. We've caught more spots on it than largemouth. I have never caught a smallmouth bigger than my hand so i can't say i have caught any smallies on it.

BJ

 

[Josh Bertrand]

Hey BJ,

Finally got the new computer and I'm back online.

Give dropshotting a try, can't suggest colors or anything for that lake, but I'd definetely rig a rod for it.

I'll talk to you later. Josh

 

[BJ Laster]

good to see you back josh! I will definatly try it if I can ever learn to fish it LOL.



BJ

 

[Michael Snow]

BJ, I'm going to give you the best advice I can on this topic...



If someone tells you that dd-22's are THE bait to have, but you don't like crankbaits, especially deep-divers, don't buy a sack of DD-22's in every color under the rainbow and doubles because you know they'll only hit one color and once you find that color, you know you'll lose the one lure you have. Of course, you really need three, one for you and one for your partner and one spare. Well, with two people in the boat, is one spare enough? Naw, better make it two.



Know the last time I used a crankbait with a lip on it? Me neither, but I've got a box full of 'em.



Last time I threw a lizard? Don't know either, but I've got a box full just in case they won't eat anything else. Now I may get skunked, but I still ain't tying on a lizard. But by golly, I gotta have them just in case.



On the other hand, if you like Boo-Boo brand goober worms in olive-onion color, pick up a few more bags. You like them, you're going to fish them even if the fish ain't gonna bite them. But you WILL use them.



Good luck on Table Rock with them olive-onion goober worms .



If I remember what I think I remember about Table Rock, it is a bluff-type lake. A lot of steep drop-offs. Now, I'm only going by what I think I remember HEARING, so you may get there and the max depth be three feet .

 

[Staci Matheis]

LOL @ Snowball!

You hit the nail on the head, Mike!

 

[BJ Laster]

We go to Table Rock a couple of times every year. It is a very deep clear water lake.



I have the deepdiving crankbaits...never fished one!!!



LOL LOL LOL

 

[Ken Neeley]

BJ,

I've fished Table Rock a few times....try drop-shotting on the steep bluffs.

Use a heavier weight to get it down quick, and if you don't have a feel for drop-shotting, rig a rod with Fireline...you'll feel every single tick.

Also, it won't stretch on the hook-set...especially important at those depths.

Good luck, and let us know how you do.

 

[Michael Snow]

And Neeley hit it on the head...



Buy weights you don't already have.. if you have 1/4 and 3/8, you will find you have to have 5/16, so buy 4000 of them. Get some of that Fireline, even if you use Powerpro now, you must switch. Of course, none of your rods will work for that presentation, so you must buy new ones. What's a new rod without a new reel? Oh, and you do know you'll need a whole new set of hooks and plastics for drop shotting, so get those.



And... $500 later, you're still throwing the same spinnerbait you've been throwing for the past 6 years whether the fish jump in your boat and TELL YOU to drop shot or not .



All because -- listen closely -- you heard it on the internet. Send me $250 for my advice and you're still $250 ahead.



And Ken, it's got absolutely NOTHING to do with you... no slam intended at all. You just happened to be the one who told him which technique to use. This is all about laughing at ourselves for the tackle purchases we make, NOT picking on those giving advice.

 

[Ken Neeley]

And what's wrong with suggesting a technique?

I betcha he can rig for drop-shotting with what he has available in his box right now....without spending another dime.

If all he has are 3/8 bullets weights, tie 2 on the end to make it heavier...

I'm sure he has a hook in his box, and probably some plastic to go on it.



BJ,

Best advice I can give you.....spend your MONEY on gas, and your TIME on the water, instead of here reading smart-azz answers to your serious questions.

 

[BJ Laster]

Hey wait a sec...I respect some of ya'll as fisherman....



I was just asking what baits are popular.....



Yes Ken is right i have a rod and reel for drop shotting. It is a Bass Pro 7 footer spinning rod I bought last year just for dropshotting....I have used the thing twice! I can't figure a dropshot out at all!!!!!!!!!!!!! or a C-rig or anythign that goes deeper than 10 foot. I love fishing creeks with laydowns and flipping jigs to bushes and laydowns.....I also love fishing at Table Rock....I just cant figure out the deepwater thing!!!!

 

[Michael Snow]

BJ, I'm with you... I cannot figure out those off-bank techniques either. Then again, I have too many "confidence" baits to try before I can even think about trying something new. I tried drop-shotting for a few casts, no fish jumped in the boat, so I tried something else and still didn't catch anything .

 

[BJ Laster]

off-bank fishing or structure fishing to me just doesn't happen. I can't feel whats down there and people tell me to imagine whats going on...when I try to to "paint" a mental picture of what my bait is doing one of two things happens. First I see what I am throwing it total darkness...HOW am i supposed to know what it looks like down there?!?!?!!? OR secondly I see a spinnerbait going by a laydown and a BIG bass grabbing it!!!!!!



Deep water fishing doesnt work for me...



well kinda...Last couple of years when my sister wants go fish with my dad I we use live worms (Although I will rarely admit I used live bait..lol) at 30 feet under the bridge to catch Spots....its fun for her because we usually catch about 20 to 30 for a couple of hours of fishing...



BJ

 

[Ken Neeley]

Here's some more free advice



For C-rigs or drop-shots, use a rod with a limber tip at first, and try Fireline or the equivalent so you have the ultra sensitive feel.

Use 3/4 ounce or better to get it down quick to the depths, especially if there's current.

Learn to feel the bottom, the rocks, the weeds, every little tick....



You won't get a great hook-set with a limber rod, but use it to LEARN with...get the FEEL of it, then switch back to a med-heavy rod...you will need the backbone and a stiffer tip to get a good hook-set at those depths.



If spinnerbaits are your go-to bait, use 3/4 ounce at those depths and let her drop, but you're limiting the time the bait is in the strike zone once you start reeling.



If you fish the bluffs at Table Rock, look for the main and secondary ledges off the bluffs and try a jig-n-pig...cast right in to shore and work it down and back to the boat.

When you hit a ledge, and find that it's holding fish, reposition the boat and work the jig directly across the length of the ledge.



Again...you don't need to spend any money for this...you probably have everything you need in your tackle box.



Hope this helps, but then again, what do I know...I have at least 3 of everything too!!!

 

[Larry Harp]

BJ, @ Arbuckle, which isn't quite as clear nor quite as deep as Table Rock but similar, I have good luck with Yamamoto or Kinammi twin tail hula grubs on a football head jig. I cast up in shallow water then slowly drag down the quickly dropping bottom. You have to be sure and feed it a little line to keep it from hinging back at you and on the bottom.



Harpo