Please help I am tired of losing big bass!!!!

[ChrisOvens]

cranky wrote:

i see you have a whole list of good quality fish to you name...i find it hard to believe you are having problems catching little bass...you should be giving us tips.

there is no such thing as bad luck only bad preparation.

 

I am pretty new to bass fishing and mostly fishing from shore and going to use my float tube after reading some of the other topics. I used to live at the coast then near Dullstroom and now out in Limpopo so pretty much trying to master the fishing of the area.

Always keen to learn new techniques so braid is out and back to mono will be my first change, i fish a coffee grinder as the only center pin i enjoy is on my surf rod.

I will also go for a larger rod any recommendations on what to get?

By the looks of things its the little changes that make a big difference I got alot to think about now when i am out there on the water again.

Thanks again for all the help i can go pro with all this info (ha ha i wish)

 

[sustan]

@ Herman: how did you get the hook of the scale through the fishes jaw like that to weigh it?

 

[Herman Nel]

Sustan -This was a few years ago before digital scales and lipgrip scales... etc...

My buddy Chris ( the guy in the pic ) has got a small red swiss armyknife ( as sharp as hell! ) he used to make a small incision in the soft flesh below the jawbone and slid the sharpened scalehook through. Later we replaced the scalehook with a big basshook with the barb removed.

Nowadays he uses a digital scale with a big bass hook.

I do in no way support this way of weighing fish, but I must add the bass was released and a small incision like that heals within about 10 days.

Also this beats hooking the scale hook into the fishes' gills for weighing purposes...NEVER touch the red gill raker filaments if not neccesary, if you have to make sure your fingers are wet!

regards

Herman

 

[cranky]

i use 10 lb viper braid...must be the black and not grey one...with a shimano sidestab 1000...balances nicely with a cherrywood 7 ft medium action rod...i use to catch the majority of my fish using this setup...with a 10 lb flouro leader.

i use the swivel and hook as  weights to determine how fast i want the bait to sink...if i want it to sink fast...i use bigger and for real finese fishing i got small barrel swivel and no. 2/0 mustard hook they are nice and light...or an owner hook.

the viper braid is super thin but strong and casts for miles...even with a weightless jnr fluke...and the best of all it is so sensitive you can feel a bite when the line is slack.

just my 2 c worth...ever man for his own...do what makes you feel comfortable.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[TOE 007]

ok man i think i just spotted your problem , dont cast to long/far .for the simple reason you do drop more fish , its just a fact ,rather make shorte accurate casts [ even more so , when fishing cranks] , or lures with trebles , you can swop your braid , with 8 to 12 lbs mono , i like the Trilene , or for finesse , Doublex , down to 4 pound line to if i can , i have a cherrywood or two , very nice sticks think mine is a 6 and a 6'6 though , Some places its just one of those things you drop more fish than land fish !
enjoy i hope you land that olbucketmouth !!!!

 

[cranky]

another tip is to use solder wire to weight the hook...the beuty about solder is you can wrap it anywhere on the hook or the line...it is easy to put on and take off.

i use a thin screw driver and wrap it around the screwdriver so it looks like a spring...when i need a mojo sinker i open the spring wrap the line into the spring cut it off at the weight i want...heavy i leave long light i cut it short...then twist it tight again..if you dont want tit to slide on the line you just sqeeze it with the pliers just slightly.

 

[Herman Nel]

Applying side pressure while playing a fish shortens the fight and you have less distance to travel either up or down with the rod... in other words hold the rod at an 45 degree angle to the water rather than 90 degrees...

 

[Koos Bass]

Herman Nel wrote:

If you are fishing with Crankbaits you can also bend the treble hooks slightly to one side, front hook to the left and rear hook to the right. I found this increased my hook-up ratios on crankbaits!

Regards

Herman

Hi, Herman

Could you please post another pic from another angle of that treble. and what do you think of the rapala sureset hooks. should i replace them or keep them.

 

Thanks

 

[Herman Nel]

Hiya KoosBass!

See the attached pic...Hope it helps! Bend the hooks on the front hook a bit to one side and the other hook in the opposite direction.

Do a test...before bending the hooks make a little "tunnel" with your hand. Try pulling the lure through and see if the hooks purchase some flesh...now bend the hooks as described and do the same exerise...notice the increased hooking ability?

Personally I have had good results with the sureset hooks, but I still prefer a large and sharp treble ( VMC preferabally ) dressed with white feathers as found on the Rapala X-Rap slashbait series.

Greetings

Herman

 

[sustan]

@Herman, thanks for the reply. i kept a bass for a while in my pond and after about a week i took it out to sort out the pond and noticed where i had hooked it (big slit in the side of the mouth) it had healed and was just a red mark...so people should never look at a basses mouth to determine if it has been hooked before

glad to hear the fish was released in the end!