dropshotting Aussie bass.........does it actually work

[yellahunter]

hey guys,

ive recently been trying to catch aussie bass on a dropshot rig without success..
I know they catch largemouths but they are a very different species and respond well to many techniques that ours dont.

has anyone actually caught them on dropshot...?

maybe its the lake im fishing, (hinze)
ive found plenty of good schools and tried many different setups,

any info appreciated,

Cheers,

Ben

[darylive]

define drop shotting ?

[Jeremy87]

Dary, dropshotting is where you basically hang the weight beneath the bait. Its always seemed pretty pointless to me. considering you could achieve exactly the same thing with a jig head. Plus you may also have the bass hit the sinker rather than the bait.

[yellahunter]

yeah as Jeremy said its basically a sinker below your plastic,

heres a pic of what im talking about,

[darylive]

Good luck with that.

[bayfisher]

Dary, dropshotting is where you basically hang the weight beneath the bait. Its always seemed pretty pointless to me. considering you could achieve exactly the same thing with a jig head. Plus you may also have the bass hit the sinker rather than the bait.

I will disagree;D you cant achieve exactly the same thing with a jig head, the big point a lot of people miss is the fact the plastic fished on a drop shot rig should basically be fished weightless, The sinker should be lying on the bottom then the slack line can be worked by twitching jerking etc this allows the plastic to glide weightlessly, pause, suspend shake etc etc. This is big benefit if the fish are say 30ft or even 60ft down. It would be almost impossible to present a weightless plastic to them otherwise. The other big benefit is if you fishing really nasty ground your not constantly losing jig heads and and plastics and having to retie your rig, you just lose the weight at the bottom which can be quickly replaced with a new clip on weight. Now i haven't used it on bass so i cant comment on them, but it defiantly works on snapper (not that a whole doesn't).

Cheers Chris

[Jeremy87]

Ahh I see. Yeh that makes sense now. Still seems like a good way of making an easy job hard though. I would anticipate a big tangly mess.

[yellahunter]

no one used it with success........?

[darylive]

we used to call that a 'paternoster' when used off shore.

But seriously folks, it sounds like it is worth a try when trying to get some action.

I will be giving it ago. Nothing to loose. Possibly a metal jig on the bottom and an unweighted plastic up the line. Thanks for the thread ;{

[Steve B]

Yella and boys,

I used to use this method with live schrimp....it was deadly on bass, couldnt go wrong...then I would try a plastic, or prawnstar etc on the same rig, in the same school of fish and ZIP!!!

The fundamental differences between feeding styles of bass vs largemouths probably is the reason this method is not used much IMHO.

This is what I was told by an american bass fisherman last year...feel free to correct me, or add if they have any further or better info.

Largemouth caught using dropshotting methods are usually targeted in shallowish water (often visable to the angler). These fish are protecting their nests...they are EXTREMELY protective of their nests...the idea was to 'jiggle' the baits (ie dropshotting) to entice the largemouth bass away from the nest and attack the bait..He reckoned you can prod the fish and they spook a bit then zoom straight back to the nest...now the basspro (USA), The funny thing is, you would think this would be easy to get a strike...but it aint...apparently. Its easier to get a jig head and pin the fish, or scoop them up with a net...BUT the rules of the comps suggest fish caught any other way than a 'strike' by the fish doesnt count. Hence why there are specific rods designed for dropshotting....these guys have heaps rigged up that taper differently, specifically to 'jiggy' the bait slightly different in an attempt to entice the strike ( I learnt that bit off a local rod builder)

Sorry, got off the subject. Aussie bass, in my belief, feed more off moving schooled baits....the fish move also to feed...hence why they generally chase trolled, rolled, jigged, hopped baits..that move.

In saying all that, there is NOTHING to say it wont work...I would like to see if it does....I will give it a go myself...just coz!!!


cheers Steve

[dinodadog]

I have caught heaps of bass at baroon pocket using this method over the past years, most on using the smallest rio's prawn and at other times 2inch single tail grubs. Just drop down the rig till the sinker (unleaded at BP) hits the bottom then give little flicks of the rod. Of course you have to have a few fish down there so that there is the desire to get it first . Have not had luck elsewhere but never realy tried. Hope this helps.

Dino

[The Cowboy]

Yeah it works,

Sqeeze Sqeeze, pause. 3 inch drop shot minnows or gulp.
Great on open rocky edges

Popular technique for deep Small Mouth bass also

Cheers

Chris Galligan

[Bud-dy]

I've used it semi regularly in Lake MacDonald in pockets inbetween very thick weed approximently 12 to 15 feet deep ( the fish have been holding at 8 to 10 feet ) you can't cast to them with anything because the weed is so thick So this method worked well BUT there is so much weed in McDonald that it is hard to know where to start ( I'm lucky that I fish it at least once a week so I have any idea on where to go ).
Paul

[yellahunter]

thanks guys,

maybe the hinze bass have just seen too many lures lol,
il have to give it a shot in one of the better schooling dams,

cheers

Ben

[Hairy_Harold]

it just seems like the same idea as using a texas rig with a floating plastic just done backwards. Never really used anything apart from jigheads need to get out more lol.

[Pumba]

Hi Guys,
I have found dropshotting seems to work better around structure- weed beds, lilly pads, standing timber or rocky points. Hinze lacks these and I can imagine the going would be tough with this technique.

One problem with dropshotting is that its not a method to cover ground- Hinze fish will be schooled but spread out over a large area, and the fish can be better targeted with plastics, blades, mask vibes or fly.

Drop shotting does work though- Clarrie Hall, Maroon and Lake Gregory are some some excellent places to try, as is Borumba with its standing timber (Although you will catch twice as many goldens at Borumba as you do Bass). Clarrie Hall really fishes well with this technique if you know the fish are in the lilles- you can leave the lure in the one spot for a long time with plenty of movement.

I have found fishing with straight through Fluro helps to keep the sinker still and move the lure around plenty, whereas braid will drag the sinker around to much. You will also get more hookups using a worm hook (must be pointing upwards) with the barb exposed than by using a proper dropshot hook- they are just too small.

Hope that helps.

[Roys]

Hi Guys,

Have used this methoid with good success on shut down fish at Somerset. Best lures have been Berkley drop shot minnows and Padtus. Basicly just droping the rig down in front of them (if you have a good sounder you can drop it down the transducer beam and follow its path) and eventualy you must annoy them. Shaking the rig and leaving it for long pauses seamed to work best. The fish would most times just garb the bait and hold it. You would have to load up the rod to set the hooks.

Hope this helps

Roy

[Dan_23]

Obviously this is more suited to boat fishing but I saw a friend drop shot land based successfully from a very very steep bank at NPD when the water level was low.