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Old 12-11-12, 08:36 AM   #1
syd
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Default jerk bait questions

I caught my first fish on a jerk bait Saturday. But i figured i would go to the best place to get the best answers so here i am. Since i fish year round on Smith Mountain i figure i better learn how to do this correctly.
I know that i should (and i am) using flurocarbon line.
But here are some of my questions.
Do you like to use the larger or smaller jerkbaits?
Is color an issue?
Just how deep is a jerkbait supposed to suspend?
And of course do you have favorites. I keep hearing about the Megabass and Lucky Craft.
As always thanks for your input
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Old 12-11-12, 08:52 AM   #2
fishingprodigy
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Actually a lot of people don't like using fluoro for their line since it sinks quite fast and causes the jerkbait to point face down, which in some cases inhibits the action of the lure.
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Old 12-11-12, 09:22 AM   #3
lilmule
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While fluoro may indeed cause it to nose dives deeper and in a nest its deadly,some dont use many lines for various reasons,but all work to some degree including floating braid or mono.
Size should not be angler favorites as much as the forage base where used,they eat whats available so have a selection of baits from shiners to shad.Lc is a leader of jerkbaits,yozuri,H2/0 and most companies that make crankbaits make them those are angler selective the brands that is.
Weighted suspended are good cold water baits,and late winter spring is most popular time to use them however will work just about year round,more so in river systems than lakes.
Can be used in super shallow water to deep as have floaters and deep divers and can be imitative of darts dace shiners,bream or shad.
Retrieve can be just as varied as the lures.Ive got three large plano boxes both sides filled with them never seem to have enough.
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Old 12-11-12, 10:14 AM   #4
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I know that i should (and i am) using flurocarbon line.
But here are some of my questions.

I have used both FC (10lb) and a very thin mono (12lb)
Do you like to use the larger or smaller jerkbaits?

Yes, I use both - let the fish tell you what they want.

Is color an issue?

yes, what color is the water you typically fish?

Just how deep is a jerkbait supposed to suspend?

Some go down to 8' some are at 4'. Depends on what one you are fishing.

And of course do you have favorites. I keep hearing about the Megabass and Lucky Craft.

I have about 20 different Lucky Craft. All are pointers. I have 78's and 100's, deep divers and standard divers. So in all, I have 4 of each in the same color just size and diving depth are different.

Do you need that many? Nope. Find a color or size that works for you and sick with it.
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Old 12-12-12, 07:36 PM   #5
pig n jig
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Stickbaits will wear you out if you fish them at a fast cadence which seems to be the most productive presentation for me.I don't use fluoro,just the run of the mill mono in 12 -14 lb test.I like the Lucky craft pointer and Megabass leviathon for cold water ,cranking down and let pause for extended periods of time but a smithwick super rogue gets the majority of the fishing time.I work the super rogue super fast.I probably caught more fish on a ripplin redfin than anything else but I haven't fished them in a long time. Pick a color, I use clown and other gaudy colors for smallmouths, chromes and shad colors for searching for largemouth and smallmouth.
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Old 12-12-12, 08:15 PM   #6
keithdog
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Myself, I use a copoly line. Flouroclear by PLine. Always worked well for me. I've also used Suffix Elite. Works well for me also.
Nearly all my jerk baits are in the 4-5 inch range. Casts easily and gets plenty of strikes. Never noticed any improvment by going to a smaller bait.
I mainly use LC Pointers, Smithwicks, and have a couple Spro McSticks I havn't used yet. Nearly all are some form of a shad color. My best jeerk bait is one I found snaged to a log long ago. Cleaned it up and catch tons of fish on it. It's an old Excaliber jerkbait, not made any longer. Not to my knowlege anyway. I have several Rapala Xraps I'd give you if you lived nearby. Never score with those for some reason.
And as mentioned by MIbasser, they suspend where you stop them, and how deep depends on the model. They come in varying diving depths.
ALSO! Don't forget to get some floating jerkbaits. I probably catch as many or more on those than the suspending version.
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Old 12-12-12, 08:25 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by syd View Post
Do you like to use the larger or smaller jerkbaits?
Is color an issue?
Just how deep is a jerkbait supposed to suspend?
And of course do you have favorites. I keep hearing about the Megabass and Lucky Craft.
As always thanks for your input
Here are my answers to your questions based on my opinions and experiences. I am not a jerkbait fan but I use them a lot, especially in the winter/early spring.

I believe that color is a huge issue with jerkbaits. Mainly because the fish will get a better look at the bait than most other hardbaits because of the nature of the retrieve (long pauses).

The depth a jerkbait will need to be suspended at is totally relative to the conditions you are fishing. Generally I will fish jerkbaits on windy banks and windy points. If there is wind then the fish will generally be more active and are likely to be more shallow. If this is the case I will usually fish jerkbaits that are in the 5' range. If I am seeing fish on the graph that are deeper then I will go to a deeper jerkbait.

I am a big Lucky Craft Pointer fan, they were the first high end jerkbait I ever used and I have caught a lot of fish on them over the years. Megabass Vision jerkbaits are a little bit more money but not much. I have a few of them and am really starting to like them a lot, they have a great action to them. One of the best producing jerkbaits around here is the tried and true suspending Rogue. It's not a bait that has a lot of action and in all honesty it doesn't come in any colors that are all that eye catching. But for whatever reason they flat out catch fish in cold water. With Rogues I don't try to put too much action into the bait, it just wasn't designed to be a bait with a lot of action. I will use fairly light twitches of the rod tip rather than sharp jerks. Another really good jerkbait is the Spro McStick, and it's a little cheaper than Lucky Crafts and Megabass baits. It has some pretty dang good action and comes in some really good colors.
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Old 12-13-12, 12:40 PM   #8
bluebasser86
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Quote:
Originally Posted by syd View Post
I caught my first fish on a jerk bait Saturday. But i figured i would go to the best place to get the best answers so here i am. Since i fish year round on Smith Mountain i figure i better learn how to do this correctly.
I know that i should (and i am) using flurocarbon line.
But here are some of my questions.
Do you like to use the larger or smaller jerkbaits?
Is color an issue?
Just how deep is a jerkbait supposed to suspend?
And of course do you have favorites. I keep hearing about the Megabass and Lucky Craft.
As always thanks for your input
I love fishing jerkbaits. I think because when they start hitting jerkbaits in late winter it means spring is just around the corner.
I never fish jerks on fluoro because it sinks. A slow sinking jerkbait can be deadly but if I want it to sink I want it sinking parallel to the bottom and I can do that by putting a larger middle hook or larger hooks on the front and back if the bait only has 2 hooks. I fish mine on copoly, usually 10-14 depending on the area I'm fishing, how deep I want my bait to run, and the size of the bait I'm fishing.
I fish a lot of small to standard size baits, down to a 65 pointer and up to a Erratic shad or RC stick. I fish the smaller baits in really clear water, where the forage is small, and where the average size fish is small. I fish the bigger baits when I'm looking for a bigger bite, when it's windy, or when the fish are biting aggressively.
Color can be extremely important. You're normally fishing them in pretty clear water and the bait is sitting still for a period of time and the fish are going to really examine the bait at times. I like natural baitfish colors. As a general rule of thumb I like baits that are translucent or have some flash on sunny days and non reflective baitfish colors like chartreuse shad or sexy shad on cloudy days. Of course off the wall bright colors like firetiger, crack, and Table Rock shad have their places too.
Depth will be effected by water temp, line type and size, and size of the baits bill. The bait should run just above the fish since they will normally move up to eat the bait but you don't want it too far above them because they may not be willing to move too far so you may have to play with different baits. I've watched fish come up from 20 to 30 feet below a bait to eat it and other days it has to stop right on their noses.
I have tons of jerkbaits and lots of favorites. I fish Lucky Craft Pointer 78's probably more than any others but I also like their flash minnows, slender pointers, staysees, and spazz baits. Excaliber Erratic shads are a very solid bait that seem to attract big fish for some reason. Luck E Strike RC sticks and the new Jr. size have both been really good baits for me. Xraps have their time and place as do the old original rogues.
Sorry about the book, like I said, I love fishing jerkbaits
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Old 12-20-12, 11:22 AM   #9
BigBassin144
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Quote:
Originally Posted by syd View Post
I know that i should (and i am) using flurocarbon line.
FC is not a must, and not always desirable. I usually use it, simply because I don't have a dedicated jerkbait setup and most of my reels have FC on them. If I want it to run shallower, I'll throw it on mono.

Quote:
Originally Posted by syd View Post
Do you like to use the larger or smaller jerkbaits?
I keep mine in the 4" range like the LC Pointer 100. Will go with both longer and shorter baits, depending on conditions.

Quote:
Originally Posted by syd View Post
Is color an issue?
This is very much personal opinion, but I believe it is to a point. I usually use natural colors. Shad colors, whites, etc. I've got a few that are similar to yellow perch that work well in reservoirs that have them. And LC's Ghost Minnow seems to work well most places.

Quote:
Originally Posted by syd View Post
Just how deep is a jerkbait supposed to suspend?
Depends on the jerkbait. You ideally want them to dive to their rated depth and stay there. However, most either slowly sink or slowly float. That all depends on the jerkbait, and water temperature (affects the density of the water).

Quote:
Originally Posted by syd View Post
And of course do you have favorites. I keep hearing about the Megabass and Lucky Craft.
As always thanks for your input
LC Pointers are great baits, but there are other great ones out there too. X-raps are good, and have a bit more erratic action. I use then in lakes with pike as to not lose $15 jerkbaits. The Smithwick Suspending Rogue is another of my favorites. Doesn't break the bank, although you may want to swap the hooks.

One more thing to mention, it seems counter intuitive, but next time you're out in what you'd consider jerkbait weather, give a lipless crankbait a try. I've done well on them in early spring.

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