Drop shot Hooks...in heavy timber

[andrewlamberson]

Once the water gets cold here...the bass, crappies and walleye hold IN heavy timber. Not on the outside...but in the really thick stuff...in 10'-20' of water or more.

I did pretty good a few days ago with the 4.5" Dragon tail in heavy timber but I had issues with the stout hooks (VMC spinshot) hanging up in the timber...and breaking off trying to get them loose.

Any suggestions on hooks? Next time I'm going to try the very light wire crappie hooks...assuming I can get them to standout straight using a Palomar knot. Is there a better choice? They bend nicely...and can be reformed...but I suspect I run the chance of a bigger bass pulling them straight (?). Is there a better choice? I run PowerPro down to the first hook...and then 8lb fluorocarbon after that.

I'm also wondering if I used a heavier weight would that help pull the stuck hook off (I seem to hook up when I'm raising the rig...so I'm wondering if more weight might help pull/twist/leverage them off)...but I've always seemed to catch more fish with the lightest weight possible. I've assumed that a heavier weight would affect the bite....but I may be way off.

As I mentioned...that 4.5" Dragon Tail pinched back to about 2" worked really well on the crappies (and bass)....and I think I may be on to something with that bait!

I'm hoping you Crappie guys have the answer!

[t-billy]

 You could rig the full sized worm tex opposed on a small worm hook.  You might even be able to do the same with the 2" on a long shank wire hook. I suspect the 2" would lose a good bit of wiggle vs. being nose hooked though.

[BareKnuckleJigs]

That's what I'd do...rig it Weedless on a standard Worm Hook, Drop Shot that way.  Small Worm Hooks are available for chasing Crappie where they hide, also.  I've seen them in #1 and #2.

[pjmcla]

There are a couple of folks on Crappie.com that pour Crappie jigs with a weed guard.  The other options I can think of be the old dental rubber band weed guard trick ( not sure if that will fit the spin shot ) or a wire weed guard on a non spin shot drop shot .   8 lb. line for bass in heavy timber seams really light to me ( Southern ).  I would try some heavier clear flurocarbon to see if it spooked them or if it killed the action too much.  I watched a guy from California fish timber with 5 lb. line on TV; and it made me brake out in a sweat.       

[andrewlamberson]

With all the Zebra mussels...and significant improvements in land use management...."The Big Muddy"...isn't anymore!

So lighter lines are a necessity now.

[pjmcla]

I just thought of another possibility -  What about a wacky rig hook.  It is fairly weedless and is in light weights.  The #2 is a pretty stout hook as well.

[wubbawurm63]

I use a #4 EWG Gami hook for drop shot Texas rigged on hook. I get very few hangups in timber, on 8 to 10 lb. floro. Bait stands out well with palamar knot when I take tag end and run it back threw top of hook. I use 1/4 oz to 3/8 oz. depending on wind.

[DobynsTriton]

have you tried puttin the hook in from the bottom & hiding the point in the nose?

[ctom]

have you tried puttin the hook in from the bottom & hiding the point in the nose?

This might work on the walleyes and bass but not for crappies so much. They have such soft mouths and in the water this cold the plastic can get a tad stiffer.

Something to think about here Andrew. Even light wire hooks that are plated or anything but bronzed are brittle. I'm betting that if you were to take some light stainless wire and put a loop eye on one end and then slip the wire thru the eye of an aberdeen light wire, bronzed,  panfish hook and finish by twisteing another eye close to the hook's eye you could make a similar style of hook. The aberdeens are very soft and straighten easily by keeping a steady tension on the line.


I fish simlar stuff all year and find that staying as close to pure vertical helps to eliminate some of those hang-ups. Slowing down you lift/drop so you can feel those slight hangs helps too. One thing I carry when I fish vertically in wood is a two ounce bass sinker with a quick snap instead of the brass eye. I just clip this on the line and let it drop down the line making sure there is about 6 inches of loose line for it to drop past the hang-up and snap the stuck jig out. This works about 90% of the time.

[andrewlamberson]

That bass sinker trick just might be the ticket.

I think I'll also try some of those light wire crappie hooks and see how they do. Being really light...they should stand out nicely from the line with a Palomar knot, especially if I stiffen the braid a bit with a little crazy glue rubbed on just  above and below the hook to make the braid stiff.

[WALLEYE WACKER]

Andrew  put vmc spin shot  hook with the point is down . And hide point in plastic. mike

[ctom]

Mounting the slip shot hook in reverse might cure the hang-up problem to some extent but for hooking crappies it probably will result in lost fish. The toughest place to hook a crappie is the lower jaw and again having the point of the hook buried in plastic, even just a small amount will take away from the hook's efficiency.