Im pretty new to fishing and haven't heard anyone talk about this strategy but im wondering if it would work.
Could I for example, cut a chunk out of a pan fish and rig it under the belly of this paddletail?
It seems like it would be a good way to get the realistic action of a soft plastic while making the lure smell like a real bait fish. Could this be a good way to get more bites?
Do people actually do this?
Let me know?
Posted by Shot-Worldliness1439
12 Comments
I don’t see why you couldn’t do this, but I’m not sure if it’d actually be much more effective than just fishing the lure as is or adding a bit of scent.
I feel like it might be a lot of extra work when you could just spread some attractant goop on the plastic
No reason you couldn’t, but it might not be the best of both worlds. I have the best luck with something that’s either real convincing or real tempting.
A weird lookin fish somehow towing around a chunk of meat might not jive with the ones you’re after, but then again I’ve seen a smallie attack a pocket comb that was dropped in the pond
I remember there was a czech dude in Germany many years ago who used whole roach/shiners rigged up like that to fish for zander/walleye. He did pretty well & was featured in fishing mags back then.
Thought i might try that with strips of mackerel belly for flatfish from a boat.
Just fish the lure as it was intended. Never really heard if anyone doing well this way, and the guys i know who do well, dont do that.
You don’t see a lot of it because it usually isn’t a great idea, but it does have a place. It isn’t uncommon to say tip something like that with a minnow. While not impossible, a lot of fish that people target with soft plastic don’t prefer cut bait. At least in my case if I use cut bait I am probably targeting catfish.
A lot of people also are trying to up the challenge by using artificial baits. In general it is considered easier to catch fish on liver or cut bait than it is lures.
IMO it’s not worth the effort. It would almost certainly hinder the action of the soft plastic too, just like when you get a leaf or some grass stuck on the hook. If you want to add scent (which isn’t a bad idea in and of itself), I recommend using ProCure gel – the particular lure you’re holding has a hollow belly slot that can be filled with ProCure gel (as can the slot in the fin on the top of the lure) for extended release of scent while fishing.
Where I’m from we often ‘tip the hook’ for striped bass. Just a small piece of chunk bait added on for smell
IMO You’re better off using something like Pro Cure bait scent. Trying to rig cut bait on a soft plastic will only mess up the action of your artificial lures.
Its not uncommon on trolling to add something like a colorful skirt to dead bait
Issue is that soft plastics and dead bait get strikes by targeting different senses of the fish as well as fish on different feeding behavior (scavenging vs hunting vs opportunity strikes or defensive)
Some people do swear by adding scents to lures while some people claim its snake oil
At the end of the day, might as well try, maybe it works
I remember going on a charter once, one of the anglers had a bunch of live sardines hooked to his knife jig. The deckhands other anglers were confused because it wasn’t really normal to do so. Sure enough he was the one catching most of the fish. You never know what works until you try.
I have done it when I’m too lazy to swap to just a hook. And I’ll pull the plastic off and run finger mullet on a jig head- because I’m too lazy to look for a hook and leader. Both ways will catch fish. And I’m talking salt water fishing. Not sure how well my lazy fishing style works in fresh water.