[Harold]

Hi,

Has someone successfully used sinking pencil/stick baits like the Lucky Craft Wander, Maria Blues Code or the Hart Reef Pencil ?
I like to use/try them next season on calm days and clear water.
I,am curiosity to your experience !

Here a vid from the Hart Reef Pencil.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Ono2h9xE6k

 

[Dave Irving]

Harold I use the mirrorlure Catch 2000, which is a sinking stickbait, and has a lovely WTD action, and hangs beautifully on the pauses. Works great in slack water, harbors, marinas, any where out of the main current. A good choice for the days when the bass aren't agressive. Or the sea is very calm.
The Hart Reef Pencil, seems to be a very popular lure in south of france and Spain, 12g looks good and I bet the larger size must cast well.

 

[Harold]

Harold I use the mirrorlure Catch 2000, which is a sinking stickbait, and has a lovely WTD action, and hangs beautifully on the pauses. Works great in slack water, harbors, marinas, any where out of the main current. A good choice for the days when the bass aren't agressive. Or the sea is very calm.
The Hart Reef Pencil, seems to be a very popular lure in south of france and Spain, 12g looks good and I bet the larger size must cast well.

Thanks a lot Dave,

Nice lure, an a nice priced one aswell.
Find a few on Google

 

[wjmoree]

Hi Harold,

Done some decent share of fishing with these sinking pencils (sometimes also referred to as lipless minnows), not only with the mentioned Wanders (LC) and Blues Codes (Maria), but others like the Bankroll (Dice) and SlideSwimMinnow (Zipbaits) as well. I don't have the Reef Pencil (Hart) however, so I can't comment on that one.

You can fish them several ways:

1. Just cranking or winding them on a steady retrieve, they develop some sort of S-movement just below the surface (slow) or on the surface (faster). Don't find this movement very convincing though, but that's a personal thing I guess.

2. You can twitch/jerk them just like their counterparts the floating pencils (stickbaits/pencilbaits): with a fast retrieve you get a WTD on the surface, a subsurface WTD on a slower retrieve with regular short pauses.

3. I also tried to fish them somewhat deeper in the water after counting them down: most of them have a very beautiful fluttering action on the drop, which I find really very convincing I must say, but unfortunately they quickly resurface when you start twitching or jerking them: therefore you need frequent and long pausing to fish them this way.

Maybe I should have given it more time, or should have tried a more 'sink and draw' type of fishing, don't know, but I never really got the hang of this latter type of fishing, so I lost my interest and switched to sinking (bibbed) jerkbaits instead. Had good results with the B'freeze 78S and EXS (LC), Nabarone Stuka (IMA), the Athletes S and Artists (Jackson): they usually lack this beautiful fluttering action whilst sinking, but IMO this gets satisfactory compensated by a much more beautiful upward darting action (very convincing!) when you start twitching/jerking again after pausing.

So IMO the main importance of these sinking pencils, in relation to their counterparts, are therefore: the enhanced casting distance (i) because of the added weight, most of them are 'silent' (ii) because of their fixed weights (although I do belief the Reef Pencil has a shifting weight), and (iii) the possibility to fish them subsurface.

Hope this helps.

 

[Ben Field]

I plan on using these types of baits a bit more this year, although probably in contradiction to the above, more in current than out of it. There's obviously been lots of talk lately about fish hitting baits on the drop, and I think these could be just right in some circumstances. Baits like the Eclipse Varient Drift (which I tried and liked in the past - before losing it) could very easy be cast a long distance if necessary - dropping them in to current and being allowed to slowly sink whilst taking line (controlled) and travel down current away from you, or across it. With the odd twitch they'll be kept from sinking too deep. Could just as easily do it with a standard sinking plug but sinking more slowly and with more of a subtle jig type sinking action, I think these'll be better. The IMA Calm is one that I've had for quite a while but never really got in to. In light current, fished very slowly I think it might just work though...

 

[Harold]

Hi Harold,

Done some decent share of fishing with these sinking pencils (sometimes also referred to as lipless minnows), not only with the mentioned Wanders (LC) and Blues Codes (Maria), but others like the Bankroll (Dice) and SlideSwimMinnow (Zipbaits) as well. I don't have the Reef Pencil (Hart) however, so I can't comment on that one.

You can fish them several ways:

1. Just cranking or winding them on a steady retrieve, they develop some sort of S-movement just below the surface (slow) or on the surface (faster). Don't find this movement very convincing though, but that's a personal thing I guess.

2. You can twitch/jerk them just like their counterparts the floating pencils (stickbaits/pencilbaits): with a fast retrieve you get a WTD on the surface, a subsurface WTD on a slower retrieve with regular short pauses.

3. I also tried to fish them somewhat deeper in the water after counting them down: most of them have a very beautiful fluttering action on the drop, which I find really very convincing I must say, but unfortunately they quickly resurface when you start twitching or jerking them: therefore you need frequent and long pausing to fish them this way.

Maybe I should have given it more time, or should have tried a more 'sink and draw' type of fishing, don't know, but I never really got the hang of this latter type of fishing, so I lost my interest and switched to sinking (bibbed) jerkbaits instead. Had good results with the B'freeze 78S and EXS (LC), Nabarone Stuka (IMA), the Athletes S and Artists (Jackson): they usually lack this beautiful fluttering action whilst sinking, but IMO this gets satisfactory compensated by a much more beautiful upward darting action (very convincing!) when you start twitching/jerking again after pausing.

So IMO the main importance of these sinking pencils, in relation to their counterparts, are therefore: the enhanced casting distance (i) because of the added weight, most of them are 'silent' (ii) because of their fixed weights (although I do belief the Reef Pencil has a shifting weight), and (iii) the possibility to fish them subsurface.

Hope this helps.

Hi Willem,

Thanks, an first of all: realy great to see more an more Dutch guys on TLF in the last month or so

I also use the small lures/minnows you mention, an also a lot simulair ones like the MB X-80, OSP Asura, Ima Sasuke 95ss, an so on.
Last year those minnows seem to be not as good as the where before on some particular spots, the bass get more suspicious (dressage)
After a while i find out that the more silent an subtle lures do the job an were more successful

In late season i use the LC Wander an Dice Bankroll for a few sessions, basicly the same way i use the Illex/Jackall Watermonitor, WTD on a steady retrieve.
Caught a few bass on it, next season i give it a bether go to find out if the are successful.
I also bought some silent minnows for this reason an those particular spots like the Jackson Artist, MB Vision 95, Tackle House M an - Seabass College.

Like a said, on some spots much-used lures like the LC Sammy or Rapala X-Rap don,t work anymore, the bass will follow but don,t take them anymore.
So we have to adapt other technics/lures i gues, suggestions ?

 

[wjmoree]

Difficult question Harold whether or not bass get accustomed to artificial lures eventually, to the best of my knowledge there is no scientific proof for it yet, but personally I´m convinced it´s definitely possible, especially in high pressured area´s.

But whether or not this education is possible: there´s certainly no harm in anticipating this effect on fish and so it’s a sensible thing to keep on the lookout for new spots, tackle (lures included) or techniques, not only to keep up your catch rates but also, and perhaps most important of all, to keep evolving and keep developing your skills.

Just look at us right now: discussing floating/sinking pencils and other sorts of jerkbaits, and their merits, or talking about twitching, jerking or ripping: 5 years ago we've both never heard of it, at least not in Holland!

 

[Chris_NL]

Hi Guys,

It's definitely true that a large amount of bass anglers in the Netherlands aren't that well known with al the technique's that are availeble to catch bass. The large group all follow one certain public figure and every thing he says and does is almost holy and instantly followed up.

But if you look further and search, for example on the internet, and you will come across site's like these were you can find loads of information, and most importantly, techniques and lures (brands) where you never heard of before. But used with great success.

For example the LC Sammy, i ordered my first few in December of 2006 to try them out in the season of 2007. I think Harold has start using them around the same time if I remember correctly. The first few times i had no success with them but then the first bass on a surface lure, my hart almost jumped out hehe, what a fantastic and visual way of fishing for bass! But now, a few years later, everyone is using the LC Sammy and the bass are definitely less interested then before. So i also believe that the bass "can tell" that a certain type of lure isn't food, but they do get triggered and will investigate but they won't strike it.

Last season i started jerking and twitching with lures like the MB vision 95. At first it didn't work out very well. But with some good advice of WJMoree it did get better and i started to catch bass on it. This way of fishing was far more fun than just casting out and reel it in. Now you could let the lure do what you wanted it to do. I tried it a few times with softies but gave it way to less time and lost interest in it.

For upcoming season i'm planning to use the softies more and especially the Megabass X-layer (4 and 6 inch) weightless, or on a small jighead and in combination with the Illex Lightninghead 7 and 14 gr. The last combination when you twitch or jerk it, gives a really nice zig-zag action up to around 40 cm to the left and to the right. Looks really hectic and so far the French bass love it. Hope the Dutch bass will love it also. And my second softie which will see a lot of action will be the MB Spindle worm. Also weightless or an a small jighead.

I'm very curious to see if the bass are willing to take these lure's without suspicion...