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The difference 0.5g gram can make is tremendous.
This post is aimed at HRF/ LRF and Eging all of which utilise a falling lure as a basic or fundamental methodology.
However:
We've had a decent amount of time to figure stuff out now and I know I keep saying line diameter is paramount. Well, it is but, lets suggest we are all using PE 0.8 8 strand for this post. Simplifies it somewhat.
For this discussion, there is no wind and no current, not yet anyway.
The braid is floating and we have 3ft of 12lb FC leader.
Let me tell you, HRF often relies on bottom contact. It is vital to feel the bottom and know when, and how far OFF the bottom a lure is at any time.
This is known as, finding your range.
Then we have 2 basic falls, free-fall and curve-fall.
Free-fall:
Cast, lure hits the water, we spool line off the reel by hand to assist a zero drag situation as much as possible. Try to send all the line down the drain (one hole).
Curve-fall:
Cast, lure hits the water, we close the bail and get the rod 90 degree's to the line. The line forms a VEE WAKE in calm water. Drag slows the fall but it falls back towards our position and takes are easier to detect. With a heavy enough jig, paddle tails can activate on such a fall.
The Lift or Jump:
Your lure is on the bottom, no take yet so we decide to move it. If jig fishing HRF or LRF we might jump the lure or, slow roll it. In fact, Eging is similar except that a decent Egi will sit on the floor at a 45 degree angle with it's kanna (hooks) in the air so to speak. Look at Egi's to understand the difference between basic, live and jumping and....
You might notice the weights are angled slightly differently but, the biggest difference is in the body profile. Jumping Egi's have wider, flatter underbodies.
ah-ha....
Go back to French rigged Xlayer, rigged upside down, HRF deadstick for Wrasse. Flat side down, wrist flicked, lure JUMPS up and drops back down. I can attest to the fact that the fall is sliding in nature and, the lure jumps up at a higher angle than a xlayer rigged standard. It re-falls slower with planing too.
Basically, think about weight and overall shape and size.
3.5g with a very thin tailed sp is going to rocket down freefall. On a curve fall it might fall very straight back toward us. Paddle tail might swim down, or, it might spin on a freefall if the tail is too wide for the weight it is carrying. This is why it is important to match jig weight with tail width. Zander men have known about this stuff for ages and Savage-Gear lures are matched, tail and weight.
Think it doesn't make a difference...
Yamashita Naory Basic #1.8 5.5g fall-rate 3 to 3.5 seconds per meter.
Yamashita Naory Shallow #1.8 5g fall-rate 10 to 12 seconds per meter.
Amazing eh, same body, same density, 0.5g difference in jig weight and nearly 3 times the fall time for 0.5g difference.
Think back guys to all those times one bloke was getting Pollack after Pollack, we all though it was just overall size and colour. Maybe it was much more.
Remember, not all jigheads are equal and one 5g head could be wider than another, one SP wider bellied, thinner tailed etc..
There is much more to this stuff than you might imagine and only now are we starting to unlock the mystery.
I wish ALL lures had a sink rate.
They are going to pretty useless as printed right now because both saltwater and it's temperature make a huge difference. Colder means slower falls, warmer means quicker.
Think about that.
Pollack or Bass might prefer a fall rate of 6 seconds per meter. You find that combo in late April is working great. However, by late August the same combo just doesn't catch so many Bass ?
Is it the Bass or the fact that the very same combo is now falling much faster ?
I hope this post opens up a debate on this topic because it is one largely ignored and one I place great importance upon...
So, there's the opener...
This post is aimed at HRF/ LRF and Eging all of which utilise a falling lure as a basic or fundamental methodology.
However:
We've had a decent amount of time to figure stuff out now and I know I keep saying line diameter is paramount. Well, it is but, lets suggest we are all using PE 0.8 8 strand for this post. Simplifies it somewhat.
For this discussion, there is no wind and no current, not yet anyway.
The braid is floating and we have 3ft of 12lb FC leader.
Let me tell you, HRF often relies on bottom contact. It is vital to feel the bottom and know when, and how far OFF the bottom a lure is at any time.
This is known as, finding your range.
Then we have 2 basic falls, free-fall and curve-fall.
Free-fall:
Cast, lure hits the water, we spool line off the reel by hand to assist a zero drag situation as much as possible. Try to send all the line down the drain (one hole).
Curve-fall:
Cast, lure hits the water, we close the bail and get the rod 90 degree's to the line. The line forms a VEE WAKE in calm water. Drag slows the fall but it falls back towards our position and takes are easier to detect. With a heavy enough jig, paddle tails can activate on such a fall.
The Lift or Jump:
Your lure is on the bottom, no take yet so we decide to move it. If jig fishing HRF or LRF we might jump the lure or, slow roll it. In fact, Eging is similar except that a decent Egi will sit on the floor at a 45 degree angle with it's kanna (hooks) in the air so to speak. Look at Egi's to understand the difference between basic, live and jumping and....
You might notice the weights are angled slightly differently but, the biggest difference is in the body profile. Jumping Egi's have wider, flatter underbodies.
ah-ha....
Go back to French rigged Xlayer, rigged upside down, HRF deadstick for Wrasse. Flat side down, wrist flicked, lure JUMPS up and drops back down. I can attest to the fact that the fall is sliding in nature and, the lure jumps up at a higher angle than a xlayer rigged standard. It re-falls slower with planing too.
Basically, think about weight and overall shape and size.
3.5g with a very thin tailed sp is going to rocket down freefall. On a curve fall it might fall very straight back toward us. Paddle tail might swim down, or, it might spin on a freefall if the tail is too wide for the weight it is carrying. This is why it is important to match jig weight with tail width. Zander men have known about this stuff for ages and Savage-Gear lures are matched, tail and weight.
Think it doesn't make a difference...
Yamashita Naory Basic #1.8 5.5g fall-rate 3 to 3.5 seconds per meter.
Yamashita Naory Shallow #1.8 5g fall-rate 10 to 12 seconds per meter.
Amazing eh, same body, same density, 0.5g difference in jig weight and nearly 3 times the fall time for 0.5g difference.
Think back guys to all those times one bloke was getting Pollack after Pollack, we all though it was just overall size and colour. Maybe it was much more.
Remember, not all jigheads are equal and one 5g head could be wider than another, one SP wider bellied, thinner tailed etc..
There is much more to this stuff than you might imagine and only now are we starting to unlock the mystery.
I wish ALL lures had a sink rate.
They are going to pretty useless as printed right now because both saltwater and it's temperature make a huge difference. Colder means slower falls, warmer means quicker.
Think about that.
Pollack or Bass might prefer a fall rate of 6 seconds per meter. You find that combo in late April is working great. However, by late August the same combo just doesn't catch so many Bass ?
Is it the Bass or the fact that the very same combo is now falling much faster ?
I hope this post opens up a debate on this topic because it is one largely ignored and one I place great importance upon...
So, there's the opener...