The action was hot Sunday with over 25 fish in 2 trips with a 40" 28lb'er as the top fish. It was caught by this 8 year olds first Striper on a black tube.

Great fish your son must have been excited. I did the tube-n-worm thingy for the first time this season on Sat morning, had nothing to show for it but bluefish

Thats all I have ever caught with a tube and worm I guess you have to troll real slow and get that tube down there which I never figured out how to do the boat trolled to fast for it.

Nice! He must have been doing flips of excitement. I love it when kids catch fish. It's even better when they catch fish like that. Good job.

Ya gotta have buckets or a drift sock to get down around 1-1.5 knots

Can you leave the rod in the holder or is it better if you a "working" the pole forward and backward like a parachute rig?

If you don't need to work it I could use my downriggers.

I've never worked it like a parachute jig, but i seem to have much more success when I just leave it in the rod holder than if I'm just holding it. I think it has to do with the action of the rod. You want the tip of the rod to be slowly pulsating because I guess that means the tube is spinning slowly. If it's spinning too rapidly then all you get is bluefish. Same goes for speed, if you're going too fast then all you get is bluefish. Just my .02

"Lou"

If you can't get the speed down, its time to change the prop.

I drag a bucket and bump itiin and out of gear along with lots of swing turns to drop it down. Leave it in the rod holder if you jig it it will tangle.

:) Likwid!! You being a person with extreme knowledge, can you please explain why you need to change the prop to get down to 1 or 1-1/2 knots????

With my boat in neutral I do approx. 2.5knots just drifting!!!

Knowing what you know about props can you tell me where I could find a prop that will free spin in reverse when I have my boat in neutral !!! By free spinning in neutral will it slow my boat????

:) Sorry to have stolen that thread speaking about props!!! Didn't mean to!!!


When tube &worming I throw the boat in reverse a little and then forward just to get going forward and then throw it in neutral which is a pain in the butt!!! ;) :cool:

Lou,

So I want the rig to spin? Hmm, I know it has a tendancy to want to spin, but it sounds like spinning would not be good. Wouldn't that twist up the line? It's tough to get any kind of swivel to negate a twist like that isn't it?

Thoughts?

i've been making my own tubes...i use a swivel knotted to the wire...i believe it's a haywire twist... (which runs through the tube) just above a egg weight....then another snap swivel attached from my leader to the tube swivel...give the tube a bit of a twist before putting it in. watch the action from the side of the boat in a little depth and you'll be suprised.....also...a little hint it you make our own tubes....be sure to drill 3/8 holes on each side of the tube to allow the water that fills the tube to drain....hence...the motion.....black or dark colored tubes on bright days....bright colored tubes on overcast or fog.....and don't forget a big old sand worm on the second hook for scent...just my opinion...good luck......jim

I throw the boat in neutral, do figure 8's, drag a bucket, whatever it takes to go sloooooooow. What prop is gonna get u down to 1mph, besides one with no blades?????LOL
I also lowered my idle speed to almost a stall.

Fish On,

Ya, I was told it's suppose to spin, but slowly. It's suppose to look like an eel undulating through the water, and i guess if you only have a profile view, then maybe it looks more realistic? On the tubes I have, there is a swivel built into the front of the tube, and I usually have a ball bearing coastlock or similar type snap swivel attaching the tube to the line. I guess if you were using mono or braid it might have more of a tendancy to twist up the line, but wire, or at least the wire I have, seems to be pretty stiff and doesn't twist. Actually, now that I think of it, the mono leader doesn't seem to twist that much either. But to answer your question, yes it's suppose to spin, and you can tell it is spinning properly by the way the rod tip pulses. Also helps you to tell if you have something on your lure, like seaweed, because it usually stops spinning, hence no more rod action.

"Lou"

Some guys spin tubes a little, some allot and some like no spin. I have caught lots off bass all three ways. Bottom line...put the tube in front of the fish.

As for slowing the boat down forget the buckets off the back. You will forget about them and they will end up in the prop. Get a 24" sea anchor and a length of line. Troll this from your bow cleat to about half way down your hull and another tag line shorted up to the side as to keep relatively in one spot. This is soft, works better than buckets and since it is in front of the screw(s) will never get fouled.

I do better with a spinning tube.

To keep the line from twisting I use a large trolling rudder between my braided line and leader. Since I started to make my own tubes, I switched from a large single swivel to a bead-chain swivel at the head of the tube. Using 4 strands of 22 gauge SS wire helps the latex tube hold a good shape. It goes through the water like a corkscrew.

My last couple hookups have been as the tube is dropping from the cast or as I'm cornering so I think that the low and slow theory is a good one.

To slow down I just paddle slower.

I have found over the years that trying different techniques on different days increases your hook up rates. I make all my own tubes. I have tubes that corkscrew, tubes that run straight, tubes that swim and weighted and unweighted tubes. All in many assorted colors and in lengths from 14" to 35". They all catch fish you just have to try them until you find out what the fish want. Don't always fish them on the bottom either. If they are not biting on the bottom try bringing them up. Lately I have caught more fish in the upper half of the water column. To go slow I just trim the motor up and put my trim tabs all the way down. Buckets are a pain in the butt. One day I saw a guy trolling what I considered way to fast for tubes but he was hooking up every few minutes. Just shows you have to experiment and put your time in. Rod selection is very important too. A soft tip will give you better movement of the tube. good luck. P.M.

Heres a photo of a T&W rig I use. The Paddle helps the action and prevents line twist. Braided line helps it get down deeper.http://www.fisheyesoup.com/member_site/photo/article/big/44_20040223_c3c152c71b7d805.jpg

Buckets help you go slow....



http://www.fisheyesoup.com/member_site/photo/article/big/44_20040223_80aefb67d9483fa.jpg

Outriggers help the line stay put of the prop noise... I have been having results riged out...

http://fishmtc.tripod.com//sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/lesfishing-sm.jpg

Tubes work there is no doubt. But I have to say I have had just as good a luck with plugs and 9er's and better luck with slinging eels.

The worm thing to me is still a mystery. I believe it was invented buy a tackle shop owner to sell more worms. Putting a dinky sand worm on 3' tube seems silly but I have done it and found little difference with or without. They don't stay on long. I can troll pretty slow in my boat...how slow is slow? Also I don't like how most tubes are made. They have a crappy single little hookin the back of the rig. I have had hits that take pull the tube nearly off the back of the hook.....:confused:

I plan on chartering a boat here with a guy who that is all he does and I will find out what the secrets are.

That said i rarely fish bass during the day anyway...I like the might bite.

Sandman I try to get down to 1-1.5 knots

Mr. Sandman.... This is a good spot in your area...

Oh No, Here we go.:D:rolleyes:

I've had great success with the T&W. I watch the GPS for speed. WHen its blowing hard and I can't slow enough, I do zig zag patterns really hard, (not slow sweeping turns), that makes the TW drop and resulted in hits everytime yesterday.

I was still getting fish at 3 mph (whats that in knots?) with the wind pushing me. But the zig helped alot.

Also found if the worm is gone--no hits--. Bigger worms work better too.

This is what worked for me.

Originally posted by 179
Great fish your son must have been excited. I did the tube-n-worm thingy for the first time this season on Sat morning, had nothing to show for it but bluefish

If you're taking blues, then your speed is too high.... throw a 5 gallon bucket or two or even a fish tote over the side to slow you down. I worked on my tubing techniques a lot this this season and my catch went up greatly.

The point of the worm is all about scent. Someone told me to pierce the worm about 1/2" down from the head and bring the hook out through the opening in its' mouth rather than in through the mouth and out an 1/2" down. Again, it's all about scent i was told, and the results stand by that theory.

always use leadline even if your in 6 feet of water it is a metered way of fishing with the tube and hold the rod out to the side over the gunwales and never repeat never set the hook when the bass is tap tapping the tube let him hang himself. for more info go to www.fishfinatic.com