I'm finally a 'FLUKING' believer!

[joedog]

Well for the longest time I never used flukes. Fact is that I had such poor success on past 'fluking' experiences you anglers saw how I liked to interchange 'fluke' for another very popular 'F' word.
I had little success with paddle tails and a fluke just seemed to be a paddle tail without a tail.
After the tremendous positives without hardly a negative ever mentioned around here I decided to LEARN the fluking Fluke.
I mentioned in the spring that I was going to and I did.

Now to start with, if you have never seen a fluke twitched in the water, check it out. This thing can make anyone believe they should work. I mean the darting and twitching looks so much like a 'live fish' it still amazes me.

Well wieghtless was not successfull but remember it was cold weather and water so top water probably wasn't the best choice but when I 'test' a lure I use them almost anywhere anytime because.....well just because.
Next I moved to a wieghted Gami on a 3/0. Wieght 1/8oz. The males were moving in to start nesting. I threw a fluke at least for 15 minutes each outting and you folks know I get out ALOT, usually a couple of hours a shift and usually two shifts a day. Ya I know, crazy.
Now I felt that I should start with the original fluke and I did. Still not a very good bite but caught a few.
So when I was on a baitshop outting with the monkey WE decided to try other brands ......because the monkey made me do it!
Then WE saw the Caffene Shads from Strike King and you know the monkies got stock in Strke King so you know they went in the bag.
Let the fun begin. (And you anglers TOLD me coffee scent was good for attracting ladies too, remember?)
Now I in NO way will telll ANYONE what makes a good or bad fluke but those little tail bubbles are very inticing on the fall and the jerk, jerk, pause retrieve seems pretty much the same.
Caught a 6 lb. LM and a 4+ SM first time out with them.
I still use at times the original but my true success is the caffenes.
I've caught a couple of 5+ Cats, to many pike to mention, (not intentionally) a good pound sunny,(4in.caffene) and even snagged a BIG carp with one.
I've thrown them and did the traditional retrieve, I've slow crawled them on the bottom. I've popped them like a jig on bottom and through grass and vegatation (love the weedless rigging abilities), I've still fished them (again, not really intentionally at first ), I've surfaced popped them through shad clusters, I've basically done it all except.....the double fluke presentation but this maybe on the table yet. Thinking maybe deadly on school feeding fall Bass. I've worked them on leaders, mono, braid, Floro, Coply. I've fished them wieghtless all the way up to 1/4 oz wieghted hook, I've fished them wieghted texas rigged, you thought of it, I probably tried it.
I studied it, the presentations, the color selections in an effort to understand the 'whys'. You anglers helped me understand alot too.
Bottom line, a paddletail and a fluke are not fished or meant to fish the same way. Paddles more of a crankbait retrieve and flukes a jerk and retrieve. You know I tried it, paddletails stink for a jerk, jerk retrieve.

I always NOW have at least one fluke setup in the car always and often more then one.
I'm still in the learning and experimenting phase but.....

I now proudly declare, I'm a fluking believer!

Oh feel free to give me more ideas and presentation ideas cause I'm still learning.