King.Of.Anglers.Jeremiah
Fishing ? Instructor!
Got good feedback the last time, and it's too rainy to fish, so here I am to continue the series! Share your own if you'd like.
1) Spice up jigging spoons
A jigging spoon is nothing more than a chunk of metal with a hook attached to it. Sometimes plain, sometimes very shiny or painted. Nevertheless, if worked properly, it remains one of the most effective lures of all time. Here's how to give it a different look and action.
Slip a soft body tube bait over a thin body jigging spoon, pushing the eye of the spoon out the top of the tube. Fish it with the same lift and drop technique as usual, but the tentacles will wiggle enticingly on the drop.
2) Groove your walking baits
Some plugs like minnow baits or topwater walking baits used for bass, redfish, and other species work better when the knot is tied at the lower part of the eye. Problem is it usually rides up the eye on the retrieve. To counter this, file a shallow groove about midway down the lower half of the attachment eye. Tie on the lure and make sure it lands in the groove while tightening the knot.
3) Pop off balloon
Anglers who fish for trophy stripers, largemouth bass, and even sharks often suspend a large baitfish under a party balloon. It rides high on the water, so a lively shad, golden shiner, or various saltwater baitfish can easily tow it around and cover a lot of water on their own. The balloon is normally tied around the line and has to slide up when you get a fish to bite. Sometimes the resistance makes for an awkward fight or causes the fish to drop the bait. For an easy fix, just double your line, making a loop, and tie the balloon around the doubled loop. When a fish runs, the balloon simply pops off. Make sure to use a biodegradable balloon so it dissolves back into the environment.
4) solve float problems
Those tall cigar floats are great for catfish, striper, and saltwater species, but stringing the line through them can be a pain, especially when using a flexible line. It gets caught up somewhere on the inside, and try as you may, it won't go through. Here's an easy remedy. Make a tight bend in the end of a piece of thin wire, push it through the bottom of the float, and out the top. hook it around your line, and pull it back through. The wire should stay in your tackle box. You can also tie the line to a straightened out hook and put it through.
5) Better Night Light
Anyone who's fished at night knows how important it is to have enough light to see and attract fish. Only problem with your flashlight, is somebody has to hold it, the beam is too concentrated, and commercial lights designed for attracting fish can cost upwards of $800 depending on make and design. Here's how to make your own light that will illuminate a large area for cheap -
Replace the 110 volt bulb in an ordinary shop light with a 12 volt bulb that fits in the socket. Then cut off the plug, split the wire, and attach a pair of alligator clips. Then attach the clips to your 12 volt boat battery. Then you can clamp the light to your boats gunwale. Direct it into the boat when you need to see, or over the side to attract or land fish.
6) Long live minnows
A minnow bucket for small baitfish with a perforated insert makes it easy to change the water. And you can put the insert into the water and use it like a flow through minnow bucket. Unfortunately, the small bucket doesn't hold much water and your bait can die from lack of oxygen. Instead, fill a 5 gallon pail with water and place the insert from your bucket inside the pail with your live bait in it. The much greater volume keeps the bait alive longer, you can change the water easily, and instead of chasing after them with a net, you can pick up the insert and all the bait will be in one place for you to simply pick one and put it back in.
7) No more tangled leaders
Pre-made wire leaders save a lot of rigging time, but they constantly tangle. Just loop a thick rubber band around the coiled leader to secure the ends, then cinch it tight so it won't come loose. You can store multiple leaders this way and never have to untangle one from another again. Keep them in small, resealable plastic bags and keep them all in a small box.
8). Slip bobber problems
Slip bobber fishermen using spinning gear have a rough time dealing with the bobber stop while casting because the line catches onto it. Minimize the problem by leaving the stop untrimmed so the line doesn't catch it, or by trimming closely and coating it with beeswax so it slips over the stop easily.
9). No-slip split shot
If you've ever used split shot sinkers before, you know the problem they have with sliding down to the hook constantly. There are two ways to solve this.
A) you can use the split shot with the "teeth" or some other kind of grip molded into the middle, or:
B) loop your line and pinch the shot onto the double loop. Tighten the line and it won't budge.
10) Re-use your braid
Don't toss out your braided line just because it's frayed at one end. Just spool it onto another reel. Now the business end is brand new. If there is only about a half spool left, that's fine. You can use that braid as backing and top it with monofilament.
1) Spice up jigging spoons
A jigging spoon is nothing more than a chunk of metal with a hook attached to it. Sometimes plain, sometimes very shiny or painted. Nevertheless, if worked properly, it remains one of the most effective lures of all time. Here's how to give it a different look and action.
Slip a soft body tube bait over a thin body jigging spoon, pushing the eye of the spoon out the top of the tube. Fish it with the same lift and drop technique as usual, but the tentacles will wiggle enticingly on the drop.
2) Groove your walking baits
Some plugs like minnow baits or topwater walking baits used for bass, redfish, and other species work better when the knot is tied at the lower part of the eye. Problem is it usually rides up the eye on the retrieve. To counter this, file a shallow groove about midway down the lower half of the attachment eye. Tie on the lure and make sure it lands in the groove while tightening the knot.
3) Pop off balloon
Anglers who fish for trophy stripers, largemouth bass, and even sharks often suspend a large baitfish under a party balloon. It rides high on the water, so a lively shad, golden shiner, or various saltwater baitfish can easily tow it around and cover a lot of water on their own. The balloon is normally tied around the line and has to slide up when you get a fish to bite. Sometimes the resistance makes for an awkward fight or causes the fish to drop the bait. For an easy fix, just double your line, making a loop, and tie the balloon around the doubled loop. When a fish runs, the balloon simply pops off. Make sure to use a biodegradable balloon so it dissolves back into the environment.
4) solve float problems
Those tall cigar floats are great for catfish, striper, and saltwater species, but stringing the line through them can be a pain, especially when using a flexible line. It gets caught up somewhere on the inside, and try as you may, it won't go through. Here's an easy remedy. Make a tight bend in the end of a piece of thin wire, push it through the bottom of the float, and out the top. hook it around your line, and pull it back through. The wire should stay in your tackle box. You can also tie the line to a straightened out hook and put it through.
5) Better Night Light
Anyone who's fished at night knows how important it is to have enough light to see and attract fish. Only problem with your flashlight, is somebody has to hold it, the beam is too concentrated, and commercial lights designed for attracting fish can cost upwards of $800 depending on make and design. Here's how to make your own light that will illuminate a large area for cheap -
Replace the 110 volt bulb in an ordinary shop light with a 12 volt bulb that fits in the socket. Then cut off the plug, split the wire, and attach a pair of alligator clips. Then attach the clips to your 12 volt boat battery. Then you can clamp the light to your boats gunwale. Direct it into the boat when you need to see, or over the side to attract or land fish.
6) Long live minnows
A minnow bucket for small baitfish with a perforated insert makes it easy to change the water. And you can put the insert into the water and use it like a flow through minnow bucket. Unfortunately, the small bucket doesn't hold much water and your bait can die from lack of oxygen. Instead, fill a 5 gallon pail with water and place the insert from your bucket inside the pail with your live bait in it. The much greater volume keeps the bait alive longer, you can change the water easily, and instead of chasing after them with a net, you can pick up the insert and all the bait will be in one place for you to simply pick one and put it back in.
7) No more tangled leaders
Pre-made wire leaders save a lot of rigging time, but they constantly tangle. Just loop a thick rubber band around the coiled leader to secure the ends, then cinch it tight so it won't come loose. You can store multiple leaders this way and never have to untangle one from another again. Keep them in small, resealable plastic bags and keep them all in a small box.
8). Slip bobber problems
Slip bobber fishermen using spinning gear have a rough time dealing with the bobber stop while casting because the line catches onto it. Minimize the problem by leaving the stop untrimmed so the line doesn't catch it, or by trimming closely and coating it with beeswax so it slips over the stop easily.
9). No-slip split shot
If you've ever used split shot sinkers before, you know the problem they have with sliding down to the hook constantly. There are two ways to solve this.
A) you can use the split shot with the "teeth" or some other kind of grip molded into the middle, or:
B) loop your line and pinch the shot onto the double loop. Tighten the line and it won't budge.
10) Re-use your braid
Don't toss out your braided line just because it's frayed at one end. Just spool it onto another reel. Now the business end is brand new. If there is only about a half spool left, that's fine. You can use that braid as backing and top it with monofilament.
