[Toby Harnett]

To date I've only dabbled in fishing with SP's. However when I have done it I have always lost my jig heads & lures. Now I know that this is part & parcel of all lure fishing but I just wanted to know if, with the gear that I've got what set ups/techniques that I can employ to reduce tackle losses.

I've got my AFAW rod, 8', casting weight 10-55g. A bit overgunned perhaps for most SP fishing but that's all I've got for the moment bar my Bushwacker which is much stiffer & less sensitive. I fish with 20lb braid swapping to SP's straight from plugs when I'm out. I have some 10 & 15g jigheads, some cone weights & 'weedless' hooks & a selection of softies.

Is rigging up a weedless hook in conjunction with cone weights the best way to go over the rougher, more snaggy ground? I've been using the SP's retrieving them on a rise & fall but still getting used to detecting when I touch the bottom on the fall. I know that the more I do it I'll feel more of the snags before I get snagged if you know what I mean.

Time is of the essence as I want to get any new weights/lures etc before testing it all out on the Plymouth Breakwater on Sunday. I hope that all you SP experts out there can help me.

Cheers

Toby

 

[Dave Irving]

Toby,
I am far from an expert on fishing SP, However I went through a similar phase of loosing pretty much every jighead/SP I used. I was advised to try lighter jigheads and it has definately helped. Seldom use more than 7g these days.
I am sure one of the VASTLY more experienced guys will give you more advice.

 

[Ben Field]

Two first steps matey will be going lighter, and also sourcing some football heads (AGM?). Going lighter will mean they don't get so far and deep in there with the rough stuff, and the football heads will ensure they sit hook point 'up' when they're at rest on the bottom. We've obviously messed around in pools and stuff before, and going lighter without being able to feel it could also be a mistake, but ultimately, going lighter will be the way forward. The cone weights will probably be the way to go for now as going lighter may one day mean looking at a lighter rod for the job. I obvioulsy recommended the 10g jobs at the start to ensure that you could at least feel 'something' on the rod to get you started.

Multiple ways of rigging can help too. Check out 'shakey head' jigs and the use of coils etc attached to the hook eye for some ideas.

 

[Toby Harnett]

Cheers Dave. My only concern about going light is (combined with my lack of experience of fishing SP's) with the rod I've got will I feel when I've touched bottom?? I know that going as light as you can will help on reducing snagging. More food for thought for the experts!

 

[Toby Harnett]

Two first steps matey will be going lighter, and also sourcing some football heads (AGM?). Going lighter will mean they don't get so far and deep in there with the rough stuff, and the football heads will ensure they sit hook point 'up' when they're at rest on the bottom. We've obviously messed around in pools and stuff before, and going lighter without being able to feel it could also be a mistake, but ultimately, going lighter will be the way forward. The cone weights will probably be the way to go for now as going lighter may one day mean looking at a lighter rod for the job.

Thanks Ben. I think my reply to Dave crossed with your post. How come the football heads (oval shaped?) make the hook sit 'point up'

When/if I get some lighter jig heads with my AFAW rod I was not planning on going any lighter than 7g.

I take it then that cone heads + weedless hooks or football jig heads are the best ways to go ahead?

Must say that this forum is ace for getting good advice & quickly at that:-D

 

[Ben Field]

It depends partly on how direct the contact between rod tip and weight is as it drops, but if the bait is coming back towards you as it falls then the football shape - being wider - when it reaches the bottom it can't roll over on it's side like a round weight does - which would put the hook in prime location for catching the rock next to it. Hope that makes sense. It's just the fact that they can't roll from side to side because of the shape. It's not guaranteed, but every little helps.

Yep, go with the cone heads for now. You should just about be ok with the 7g so give it a go! I'm away so can't make kiit, but it will be an interesting match for sure!

 

[Mark Sleep]

Hi Toby

I fish either weighted hooks weedless, or normal hook fished weedless with a cone weight. I rarely use any more than 10g, my most common weight is 5 or 7. Having a good low dia. braid helps staying in contact in current. It pays to experiment with how you hold the rod as well. I never really put much thought into rod position etc, but K & K have shown me how it can and does make a big difference for feeling the bottom. Also, use longer fluoro leaders, and learn to 'flick' the lure out of snags

 

[Tim Murphy]

A lighter rod helps with feel (of course!), you can feel when you touch weed and lift away from it. If you snag on rock, don't panic and ratch at it, let some slack out and often wave action will push it clear. When you get properly caught, my favourite method for getting for pulling out of a snag is to point the rod tip toward it, wind in as much as poss, then put my hand over the spool (to lock it) and smoothly pull backwards (or walk backward if you have room), this gets me out of 75% of probs.

 

[Toby Harnett]

It depends partly on how direct the contact between rod tip and weight is as it drops, but if the bait is coming back towards you as it falls then the football shape - being wider - when it reaches the bottom it can't roll over on it's side like a round weight does - which would put the hook in prime location for catching the rock next to it. Hope that makes sense.

Yep, in conjunction with some vids on You Tube, I now understand :-D

 

[Toby Harnett]

Hi Toby
It pays to experiment with how you hold the rod as well. I never really put much thought into rod position etc, but K & K have shown me how it can and does make a big difference for feeling the bottom.

Some good advice their Mark, cheers. Re holding the rod, are you talking about holding the rod in a specific way (light grip?) /position or just generally experimenting to find what gives you the best feel??

 

[kevin white]

Toby,

you've been given some great advice already, like mark mentioned(thanks for the praise) the way you hold your rod can be vital, with the right angle and light but tight grip can transmit a lot of extra feel from what your lure is doing.

also, like as been said, if you feel like your snagging up, be sensitive, gently try and climb the lure up and over the obstacle in stead of just pulling at it like a mad man, when we all started you lose lots of gear until you gain the type of feel needed, but with alittle time and effort your losses will be at a minimum.

kev

 

[Mark Sleep]

I personally felt more with a light grip, finger on the blank (that where the exposed blank of the Shimano Dropshot would be good), keeping my rod right up in the air and trying to follow direction with tip. The most important part was keeping the angle between tip and lne by keeping the rod up. Though even now I forget and let the tip drop. It probably doesnt sound like much, but having the tip that bit closer to vertical mean't I felt a lot more bites when LRFing

PS.. Dont get me wrong, I lost a hell of a lot of gear when starting doing it!

 

[Keith White]

Know when you are on the bottom.
Don't ever wind across the bottom 'unless' you know you can get away with it.
Learn to 'hop' lures across the bottom.
Make sure your main body of braid 'floats'.
Make sure you have some idea of how long it takes your lure to sink after it has been hopped or lifted.

Not rocket science but takes practice.
Early HRF session could see 2 dozen rigs gone in 2 hours. It's rare to lose that many in a week now.

 

[Mike Sullivan]

ok i am going to show my relative ignorance for lures now so i apologise in advance.
But what is SP? i furst thought it might be a surface popper, then possably soft plastics? still not overly sure:???:

Thanks guys and sorry for a stupid question.

 

[Keith White]

Soft Plastic.

Best to ask. No foul.

Actually, should be more accurately, soft lure as many soft lures ( aren't plastic at all ).

 

[Toby Harnett]

ok i am going to show my relative ignorance for lures now so i apologise in advance.
But what is SP? i furst thought it might be a surface popper, then possably soft plastics? still not overly sure:???:

Thanks guys and sorry for a stupid question.

Mike, I didn't know either a few months ago till I got into it a bit.

Are you coming along on the 24th Oct to Whitsands. See the thread that's running at the moment

Cheers

Toby

 

[Mike Sullivan]

Hi toby mate

Ben mentioned it i have the kids over that wekeend else i would have been there though i will try and get to the next one.
The attraction of lure fishing opposed to fly fishing is realy getting me now the more i read into it the more i like it.
Thanks again keith soon i will stop asking stupid questions mate.

 

[Mike Sullivan]

hi toby mate i have the kids that weekend else i would have been there. though i will try and get to the future ones.

thanks again keith soon i will stop asking stupid questions mate:shock: