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Old 12-27-11, 11:40 PM   #1
bassfishkansas
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Arrow Shakey Heads and Drop Shots

I've been stocking up and reading up on shakey head and drop shot rigs and supplies, because that is one of my new year's resoutions for next year. I really just need advice on when and how, and tackle. I fish a smaller private pond in a 15 ft johnboat, and a three pounder is a big fish there. Any pointers? Thank you!
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Old 12-27-11, 11:50 PM   #2
WatterBoy
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Hey BFK, you might find some things of interest in these recent dropshot-related threads. Just click below to check them out if you like.

Drop Shoters

Drop shot rod & reel pair

Drop-Shot: setting the hook
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Old 12-28-11, 12:14 AM   #3
WatterBoy
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OK, keep in mind that I'm by no means an expert on this, but here is more info on how I drop shot.

1) I use mostly 8-lb test line, and it's always Seaguar Invisx fluorocarbon. Sometimes I use 6-lb test, but not very often.

2) The weights I use I get from Cabela's and are Owner Down Shot Sinkers. I use a very light weight, almost always 1/16 oz, but that's because I drop shot almost exclusively in under 10' of water. When I drop shot in deeper water, or if it's really windy when I'm fishing shallow, I'll sometimes bump up to a 1/8 oz or 3/16 oz weight.

3) I use both 1 and 1/0 Owner Wacky Hooks, mostly using the Weedless kind, and I get those from Cabela's too.

4) I use a Palomar knot and usually put the weight anywhere from 18"-24" from the hook to start with. I do that to start with because if I get caught on something and lose the weight, I can just cut a tiny bit of line off and put on another sinker and not have to re-tie the whole rig. Losing the sinker doesn't happen very often for me, but I don't like having to take the time to re-tie while I'm out fishing. Once it gets down to about only 12" of line, then I'll re-tie the whole thing and start over.

5) The bait I use most often and have great success with when drop shotting is a 5" Yamamoto senko that is wacky-rigged. I have also had good luck with the Cabela's AquaGlow Creature Bait (JuneBug color) and the Cabela's AquaGlow Split Tail Grub (Watermelon/Red Flake). I live less than 5 minutes from a Cabela's store, so I tend to buy a lot of my fishing gear there.

6) One other thing I've found to be helpful is to "practice" by just dropping my lure in the water in a very shallow location (I do it from our dock) so the sinker is on the bottom and the lure is off the bottom on a fairly tight line. The "practice" part of it is to see how much and what kind of movement I need to do with my rod to see what action it imparts on the lure. It helps that the lake I fish is very clear, so I can see what's going on. I barely have to twitch the rod with one finger and it makes the senko tremor and wiggle. Or I can see what it looks like when I just slowly retrieve it as well.

I have also found the two drop shot videos on this site to be very helpful:

How to rig a drop shot

How to fish a drop shot

P.S. - As far as "when," I'd say any time. We fish the drop shot a ton during the summer and it's a very effective way to catch bass...at least on the lake my wife and I fish on anyway. And a 3 pounder is a big bass on our lake also!
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Old 12-28-11, 09:03 AM   #4
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I go just a bit heavier on the tackle as I fish Kentucky and Barkley lakes. Line is 20lb PowerPro with a leader of 10lb SST copoly. Rod is a 7' Lamiglas Excel with a Shimano Sahara 2500 reel. I use Gammy dropshot hooks exclusively. If nose hooking, I like a worm that floats so it doesn't hang down on the line.
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Old 12-28-11, 02:53 PM   #5
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Thanks, watterboy. I also live less than ten minutes from Cabelas and I'll take some time to revise my equipment and test out the rig. I think that the weights that i bought are a little bit too heavy. I have a dozen 1/4 oz. weights and a half dozen 3/16 ouncers. I appreciate those videos. Thanks!
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Old 12-28-11, 10:33 PM   #6
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Shaky head is something I used to do a lot more of and need to get back to. For me it catches fish when nothing else does. It's not real fun to fish, since it is very slow, but it works. I generally use 1/16 or 1/8 heads with long 4/0 Gammy hooks. I make my own but you can buy them from Bite-Me, but theirs don't have a screw lock. You can also use about any bait on it too. I prefer Zoom Trick worms, Zoom Finesse worms, and Netbait B-Bugs. I use 8# line.
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Old 12-30-11, 09:22 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bassfishkansas View Post
Thanks, watterboy. I also live less than ten minutes from Cabelas and I'll take some time to revise my equipment and test out the rig. I think that the weights that i bought are a little bit too heavy. I have a dozen 1/4 oz. weights and a half dozen 3/16 ouncers. I appreciate those videos. Thanks!
You must not be far from me, I'm about 15 minutes to Cabelas or 10 minutes to Bass Pro in Shawnee. Watterboy pretty much summed up the terminal gear. I pour my own shakeyheads, which I'll usually tip with a Zoom trick worm or 4" BPS stick-O. Zoom Baby Brush hogs also work well. I think the main thing to me is not to over fish them. You're trying to imitate a small food item that doesn't make big sudden movements. So shake and drag them slowly along to look natural, set the hook, repeat
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Old 01-02-12, 05:34 PM   #8
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Thanks, Bluebasser. I think that shakeyheads will work well for me this year. The bass in my pond aren't very big, and I think that this will be the ticket. I'm curious about where your home lake is, because I'm looking for some new places with larger fish

I appreciate all of your responses.
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Old 01-03-12, 11:50 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bassfishkansas View Post
Thanks, Bluebasser. I think that shakeyheads will work well for me this year. The bass in my pond aren't very big, and I think that this will be the ticket. I'm curious about where your home lake is, because I'm looking for some new places with larger fish

I appreciate all of your responses.
All depends on how far you want to drive. Close by there isn't much, Cedar Lake and Olathe are probably your best chances for a big fish in the Johnson County area. I usually drive about an hour to fish other lakes. Some of my favorites for bigger fish are Warnock, La Cygne, Perry, Miami, Pleasanton east and west, Ft. Scott, Mined Wildlife Area, Melvern, and Milford. Some of these places are 2 hours or more drive time though but I'd rather drive a long way and have a shot at some good fish than struggle to catch a few dinks like what usually happens at the lakes close by.
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Old 01-05-12, 12:31 PM   #10
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if you do mostly pond fishing then the light tackle of a shaky head is a great choice. also my favorite bait is a tube or baby tube with a light slip sinker that is pegged just above the hook. also a trick worm is a great choice
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Old 01-06-12, 10:37 PM   #11
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Bluebasser, I didn't know that perry had a bass population in it. I've only caught white bass there. Very interesting. Have you ever fished Tuttle Creek? I'm also curious about Milford for smallmouth. Thanks, BFK
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Old 01-16-12, 09:25 PM   #12
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Finesse is my thing! You can always catch fish using finesse techniques, there is never a wrong time to use them. Always use light FC line, I prefer 6lb Seagar but also use 8lb. Spinning gear is a must, I use a 7' M XF. One thing a lot of people believe about finesse that isn't true is that you must always fish slow. You can still catch fish on finesse baits with a fast retrieve and ripping them from weeds. Some people call this "power finesse". Finesse fishing takes a lot of time to get used to so don't get discouraged if you don't catch them right away.
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Old 01-17-12, 09:19 PM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bassfishkansas View Post
Bluebasser, I didn't know that perry had a bass population in it. I've only caught white bass there. Very interesting. Have you ever fished Tuttle Creek? I'm also curious about Milford for smallmouth. Thanks, BFK
Perry is probably at least in the top 3 best bigger lakes for largemouth in the state, but it takes some time to learn. Friend of mine won a tournament out there a few years back with 3 fish that weighed over 21lbs total. His "small" fish was 6lbs 14ozs and big one was just shy of 8lbs. I've never bass fished Tuttle but from those I know that have fished it, it is a very difficult bass lake. Milford is one of my favorite lakes to fish, specifically for smallmouth. You have to watch the wind out there though, it gets really rough, really fast.
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Old 01-17-12, 09:48 PM   #14
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Cool, thanks. I've kind of written Perry off of my list of lakes to fish until now. I'll have to do some experimenting this spring, but it's kind of hard to go on the big water with a 12' jonboat and trolling motor. I'll start asking around about fishing Perry. I know somebody that works for the COE and the rangers should have some advice and info. Thanks again
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