Hello,
Live outside of Boston, and fish in a local Pond mainly. Mainly Panfish, but an occasional Small or Large Mouth Bass.
Another week or so, and it will probably be warm enough (for me) to get going again.
Usually use Mepps spinners. They often seems to work in most any situation.
Not an expert in any sense of the word, but would certainly like to learn.
Questions:
a. when would one use a dressed Mepps vs an undressed (bare hook) style ?
- is it a bit of a function of water temp., or... ?
b. would you also use a Pork jig trailer on an undressed Mepps ?
- under what conditions ?
- have never used Pork or other kinds of trailers. If you think they are a good idea, what style for the really small Mepps spinners would you suggest ? e.g., the two (split) tail style or a single tail strip ?
- where else would you use a Pork trailer, and under what conditions ?
c. what would you use for when the water is still cold, like in the next few weeks ? Why ?
Quite a few questions, but do appreciate the help.
Thanks, as always,
Bob
Live outside of Boston, and fish in a local Pond mainly. Mainly Panfish, but an occasional Small or Large Mouth Bass.
Another week or so, and it will probably be warm enough (for me) to get going again.
Usually use Mepps spinners. They often seems to work in most any situation.
Not an expert in any sense of the word, but would certainly like to learn.
Questions:
a. when would one use a dressed Mepps vs an undressed (bare hook) style ?
- is it a bit of a function of water temp., or... ?
b. would you also use a Pork jig trailer on an undressed Mepps ?
- under what conditions ?
- have never used Pork or other kinds of trailers. If you think they are a good idea, what style for the really small Mepps spinners would you suggest ? e.g., the two (split) tail style or a single tail strip ?
- where else would you use a Pork trailer, and under what conditions ?
c. what would you use for when the water is still cold, like in the next few weeks ? Why ?
Quite a few questions, but do appreciate the help.
Thanks, as always,
Bob
The only time I really ever use undressed Mepps is for panfish or trout. I fish mostly for bass, so I usually use a #4 with a silver spoon and the brown/blackish fur on it. Smallmouth seem to crush these things. I've trolled them behind my kayak and fished a lot from shore and done well with them on smallies throughout the year. Tough to fish in the weeds though.
This time of year you might target more panfish or trout than bass though because they like the colder water better and will be more active. Pickerel too. I always seem to catch picks early in the season.
Haven't used the pork trailers ever really...good luck
This time of year you might target more panfish or trout than bass though because they like the colder water better and will be more active. Pickerel too. I always seem to catch picks early in the season.
Haven't used the pork trailers ever really...good luck
I have used Mepps spinners with reasonable success. A long time ago I did use Uncle Josh white pork strip trailers on my lures...they add some extra scent and action to any lure that you put them on.
However, they can unbalance the action of some lures causing them to swim in ways that do not attract fish. Another thing to keep in mind is that the holes that allow you to slip the trailer onto the hook can be too small. So use caution when putting them on or you may end up with a hook in your finger.
Finally under no circumstances should you allow the trailer to dry on the hook. If that happens you will have to replace the hook because it is insanely difficult to remove a dried pork trailer from a hook without damaging the hook or hurting yourself.
I personally think that pork trailers are best suited for spoons then spinners because the spinner blade needs to maintain a certain speed in order to spin. Trailers can add drag to the lure which can inhibit the spin of the spinner blade.
However, they can unbalance the action of some lures causing them to swim in ways that do not attract fish. Another thing to keep in mind is that the holes that allow you to slip the trailer onto the hook can be too small. So use caution when putting them on or you may end up with a hook in your finger.
Finally under no circumstances should you allow the trailer to dry on the hook. If that happens you will have to replace the hook because it is insanely difficult to remove a dried pork trailer from a hook without damaging the hook or hurting yourself.
I personally think that pork trailers are best suited for spoons then spinners because the spinner blade needs to maintain a certain speed in order to spin. Trailers can add drag to the lure which can inhibit the spin of the spinner blade.
pork strip trailers are an old school method usually used with johnson weedless spoons. I never had much luck with those. mepps aglia spinners are great for smallmouth in size 3 and 4. they really like the fire tiger ones but any color will do. I wouldn't use a trailer on those.
The dressed spinners are for adding some bulk and action. I normally use dressed ones all the time unless i am in a very weedy area and i switch to a mepps #2 aguila brite. The blade on this lure is large enough to draw attention and block the hook from snagging weeds. When trying to add any type of bait to a spinner i shift to a single hook vise treble, for better hook ups. This is done by walleye fishermen all the time and should be easy to find on the net with a search. A lot of guys dont use a spinner but put beads and a blade right on the main line, but spinners work just as well. I like french or Colorado blades in situations where i am adding a trailer because they will spin at a much slower speed. Those blade configurations will also add lift so you may need to slow down to get the depth you want. I would suggest you get some kits from lurepartsonline.com or jansnetcraft.com before cutting up the expensive pre-made lures. It is fun to mess with the configurations till you find something that works and easy to get extra wire to rebuild those that do not work out so well.