How to work a plug
 

Here is a how to for everyone. It was written by Bassmaster, of Daves Guide Service. Please post all questions on this subject in this thread. DO NOT, I mean DO NOT PM or Email Bassmaster directly. It is on how to work a plug enjoy:


I will start out with a Hard plastic
Bombers, Yozuri, and Mega's ect....
Well You can cast and reel them in Yes....
But If you toss it out and reel fast then stop and then retrieve You may get slammed By a Bass.
REASON , once that plug Hits the water , If there is a Bss with in 20 feet of it there on top of it, And if its just sittin there. They MAY NOT TAKE IT...
Once You start Your retrieve. Jig the plug.
It makes noise and imparts action to the plug.
Allso..... reel fast then stop twitch and start again.... Make the most out of the cast. You will notice Better Numbers of Bass taken...
A few ways I reel are , As I reel' I drop the rod 2" and reel at the same time. It gives the plug action and gets the rattle thing going...
A steady retrieve with a snap in the rod By about 8" Usually works good to.

If Your Plugging and some one is hooking up on eels. Do this.....
Toss it out and let it sit in current then reel slow as to keep the Bomber ,ect. near the top and Give it that slow wiggle...
( I would go to Rubber or needle) But this is about Bombers
also , If You drop Your rod tip down to the sand and side sweep The rod, It gets the plug to dig a little deeper and that little pause and as You reel foward to sweep again, gives a different retrieve speed
Some times I will Toss out a bomber and shake the rod Barely Keeping tension on the Line. then reel and change up...
If You get a hit or Bump. reel fast for 1 or 2 feet and then twitch as You reel in...
And when that plug is in the last curl on the surf Dont Yank it out.. You may get slammed there........
Dave> )))'>~~~~~~~


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how to work a plug properly. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Ive always used that method, meaning start the plug moving as soon as it hits the water. I have heard of the technique of leaving it there for several seconds as well being successful, although Ive never tried it.

I got a question, could be a stupid one but, what are we talking for speed on the retrieve 1sec per revolution, or is this just to quick?..I have also seen a few people just lettin it float for a few, then retrieve and then just floatin again..anyone think this is a good idea, because I just don't know.....

reel...float..reel...float.....retreive speed doesn't matter[not with me anyway] bass are lazy feeder's...they like a bait that looks like it's dieing on the surface....O look ,,an easy meal...slurp.

just cast and reel . no problem HuH !

Anyone use these in the canal?

canal is a good place for plugs because of all the hangs ups down below

Load some bombers with BB's, slow reel and stop or slight jigging gives it an irresistable rattle too...

Dannys............Get your line tight, give it a pause, then a twitch and start a steady retrieve.....just fast enough to get the plug working and leaving a wake. Hestitate often and twitch and restart. Fish often attack it on the pause. Every 10-15 feet or so (by day) stop reeling and let it veer sideways to you. Wait a second, then rip it hard to make it chug, restart your retrieve.......you're calling them up. Fool with the line tie loop and your rod tip height (which should lower as the plug gets closer) to keep it swimming right. Try upsizing your belly hooks to sink it lower in the water...sometimes they swim better deeper in the surface film. I like them with only a bucktail (no hook) on the tail.

Pencils/spooks. Line control is key. Stay in touch with the lure by using your reel to keep out slack. Veer it with rhythmic short twitches of the rod tip. Get it slapping back and forth moving towards you very slowly. Throw in some pauses, then fast wild motion, another pause, then a slow rhythmic retrieve again. If you lose touch, stop, get out the slack and get it walking with short twitches again. A cross wind causes trouble (particularly with spooks)....you need more violent rod action to move it. Dropping the rod tip and to the side and keeping you line low can help a little. Remember you are moving it towards you with the rod tip, not the reel. Big fish like gentle and slow, smaller fish wild and fast.

Darters........an underutilized plug. The standard retrieve is to fish it in current. Cast at an angle uptide (about 10-11 oclock), drive it down with some quick cranks and rod sweeps, then commence with a medium-slow retrieve with occasional pauses then several fast short tugs to keep it down. Once it gets past you to @2 oclock crank it in. If it gets shallow, you can sometimes speed up enough to roll it out and have it skid across the surface to avoid obstruction.

An alternative method is to fish it very slow (both in current and still water) keeping it barely subsurface. Try this by daylight first (it only works with some brand darters). Get your line tight, two short tugs to get it slightly nose down then start a painfully slow retrieve at needle speed or even slower, pausing every two or three cranks to twitch and shake it again. It will move barely below the surface film, trying to break to the surface then struggling to get back down. Speed up too much and it will dive too deep. Hang on.

Bottles. Fire them out, sweep hard to vibrate them, start a slow-moderate retrieve, pause briefly, twitch, sweep to vibrate again and repeat.

Are you asking if people use plugs in the canal?

What should you do to entice the second strike the fish is delivering to your plug?

often times i'll get a wack, a boil, and continue my retrieve in hopes of the fish coming back but thinking about it probably less than half do. Ive always been told to just keep doing what your doing, wait for the weight of the fish, then set the hook. Should you stop the plug to imitate a stunned fish and just wait for the second attack? twitch the bait to imitate panic? it probably depends on the plug, but missing fish pisses me off

If a fish whacks a topwater plug with it's tail, I'll let the plug sit for a bit before re-starting the retrieve. I can't count how many fish I've caught by doing this. I was told a long time ago that bass will slap the bait with their tail to stun it and then come back to swallow it. This seems to be the case in my limited experience.

Sometimes with swimming plugs, I'll just jerk the plug a bit or speed up the retrieve for a couple of cranks if a fish short-hits it. I've also just let the plug sit for a few seconds with swimmers, but it seems like they get more agressive if the "bait" tries to flee after being hit.

great info, my question is, are you or can you use mainly one rod and reel outfit for all these lure presentations?