Fort Loudon Fishing Report- 6/25/13

I fished in the Tuesday TNToad tournament on June 25th from 6-10pm and didn't do so great.  We launched from Louisville Point Park and stayed in the mid-lake area.  The weather was partly cloudy and in the mid 70s and very humid.  There was a chance of thunderstorms early but they all passed by.  The water was around 74 F where we fished.
The evening started off good because we had our first keeper in about 15 minutes.  We also caught another small fish and I missed one deep while fooling with a bird's nest that formed on my spinning reel!  Two hours passed before we caught another keeper.  That's what we weighed in... two small keepers weighing 4.4 lb.
On a better note, the fish seem to be starting to school up pretty well.  We've been catching several in the same spots instead of one here and one there.  They are hitting deep crankbaits now and also plastics on deeper docks and trees. 
There were several 4+ lbers weighed in last night but I don't know where or how they were caught.  I would guess on jigs or crankbaits.  It must have been tough on everyone because I think there was only 1 limit weighed in and 11 lbs won. I think only one smallmouth was weighed in.
At least we didn't get skunked!

Crankbait Modification - Part 1 - Getting More Depth

Over the next few weeks, I will be discussing and providing examples of modifications anglers can make to their crankbaits to achieve better performance. There are many things one can do to turn an ordinary, mediocre, out of the package crankbait into a great fish catching tool. Perhaps the most common question I hear is, "How can I get my crankbait to run deeper?" So, this topic is going to be the first covered in this Crankbait Modification series.

One of the most important things in getting your crankbait deeper is to be sure it is tuned. Having a properly tuned lure is the basis for catching fish with it. If it's not tuned right, no amount of modifications is going to help. If you cast it out and notice during the retrieve that your line is moving to either the left or right, then your lure is not tuned properly. There are several reasons this could happen with the most common being a bent line tie and uneven lip. To fix a bent line tie is very easy but can be frustrating. Sometimes, you can adjust it too much and it will start running the opposite direction. I have found the easiest way to tweak lure direction is by taking a pair of needle nose pliers and placing one side on the line tie and the other on the side of the lure's lip and gently bend. You should bend the line tie in the direction that you want the lure to run. Photo 1 is an example of me tuning a Norman DD22 that has been custom painted. Do not apply too much force because you will break the lip! If the line tie doesn't bend easily, you will need to grip only the line tie with your pliers and bend. It may also be necessary to bend the front edge of the line tie to the right or left. Photo 2 shows an example of this.

Remember to make small adjustments and test before making any additional adjustments. Definitely take the time to learn how to do this because after catching several fish or getting your crankbait caught on the bottom a few times it will need to be tuned. Sometimes, the lip will crack or break. You can buy replacements from several sites on the internet, but I find it easier and less hassle to salvage the hooks and split rings and buy another lure.

Now that your lure is tuned, let's get it going deeper. The most obvious way to get the lure to dive deeper is by adding weight. There are many ways to do this, but here are a few that I have used and work great. First, you can add Suspendots or Suspenstrips. These are easy because there is no drilling, sanding, or painting required. Just stick them on evenly on each side of the lure and you're ready to go. Placement of these on the lure depend on personal preferences. I like to put them on the bottom front just behind the lip to achieve a more vertical dive.

Some other ways to add weight are a little more time consuming. These include adding lead wire to your hook shanks, drilling into the crankbait and adding BBs (which also makes it louder), drilling into the lip of the lure and adding lead, and changing to different hooks.

To add lead wire, simply wrap it around the shanks of your treble hooks. If you do this to the front treble, it is more useful in getting your lure deeper.

Drilling into the crankbait involves drilling a small hole, but big enough to insert BBs, putting the BBs in, epoxy over the hole, sand, and repaint. This method is entirely too time consuming in my opinion. It also works better with plastic crankbaits.

Drilling into the lip of of a crankbait involves using a dremel tool to hollow out part of the center of the lip and inserting weight with epoxy. This is tricky and can easily throw the balance of the lure off if done incorrectly.

Changing to different hooks is something I do on all my deep diving crankbaits. I prefer size 1 Owner Stingers 2x. They make up to a 4x, but I think that is overkill for bass fishing. The 2x is very strong, heavy and very hard to bend. The main reason I choose this hook is because it is much heavier than those on most factory packaged lures and has great holding power.

Line size is another factor in getting your crankbait deeper. The lighter the line, the deeper the lure will go, which is due to line diameter. I wouldn't use any lighter than 8 lb test on a deep diving lure. There are too many things to break the lure off. With the cost of high quality crankbaits these days, I don't want to lose any more than necessary. In the past, I would use 10 or 12 lb monofilament because I liked the stretch provided. I feel this is best when using treble hooks. However, fluorocarbon line will get the lure deeper because it sinks. I have been experimenting with Berkley Professional Grade 100% Fluorocarbon and have been very pleased with it. You should make long casts which requires a longer rod. I prefer 7' to 7'6" rods for cranking. The farther the lure has to run, the deeper it will go. Lastly, use a slower ratio reel. I use a 6.3:1 and slow down my retrieve, but most pros prefer a 5.2:1. I just haven't brought myself to purchase one yet.

Another modification for getting more depth is to "shave" the front of your lure's lip. You must be careful to make it even. This allows the lip to slice through the water better, quickly achieving maximum depth. It also decreases the durability of the lip making it easier to break. To do this you need a good fine toothed file. Hold the lure in one hand and file the front of the lip at about a 60 degree angle.

Finally, here is a tip for those of you who want to get to the absolute depths of your lake. It's very simple. First, make a Carolina rig with a 1 1/2 or 2 oz weight. Then, tie your crankbait to the end instead of a plastic. This can be very effective when fish are deep because you can stop the retrieve and the crankbait will float right in their face. The bite can be hard to feel so pay attention. You can use any size crankbait for this because that heavy weight will take it to the bottom.

Hopefully, some of these tips will help you achieve the depths you desire. Some of these will require trial and error, but once you learn them they are very helpful. I recommend trying these modifications on some of your cheaper, least favorite lures until you get the hang of it. That's it for now. The next topic in this series will be about painting and color selection. Have a great day!

Fishing Report 7/30/09, Fort Loudon

Fishing has been great lately in terms of quantity. Quality on the other hand is scarce. The fish have been scattered in different depths. I have caught them anywhere from 3 - 30 feet. I have also caught many suspended fish in depths of 10-30 ft over 50 feet of water.
The shallowest fish are coming off Carolina rigged craws and Texas rigged worms. Many of the deeper fish have been taken with the same techniques, but also on deep diving lures such as Lucky Craft CBD20s, Norman DD22s, and Luhr Jensen Hot Lips. It is worthwhile to have some type of fluke or popper rigged up for when the schools pop up at these depths.
The suspended fish have been taken on topwaters such as the Rebel Pop-R, and Excalibur Pop'N Image. They are actively trapping schools of shad against any type of deep bank and can be easily caught with a fluke type plastic.
The quality fish I have caught have been underneath these schools and have been taken on big worms and jigs. They are biting these on the fall. The only problem is keeping the smaller fish away from the lure long enough for the big ones to respond.
The lake has risen the last couple days from the rain. There is decent current in some areas, so fish any current breaks made by points, docks, or bluff walls. Always fish windblown points and humps. If you catch one fish, chances are extremely good there are more in the same area.
Good luck and be safe!

Tournament Preparation

Well, it's almost that time of year when I start competing in tournaments and thought I'd share some things I do to get prepared.
Most of the pros talk about studying lake maps, calling local tackle shops and doing internet research to prepare for their upcoming season. That's fine because they fish many different lakes all over the country. However, to me this information is kind of useless because I only fish 3 or 4 lakes a year. As a matter of fact, most of the anglers I know only fish a few lakes a year. More... We have become familiar enough with these lakes to eliminate map study and such. If you are fishing a lake for the first time, by all means, get a map and use it for as long as you feel you need it. I used maps of the lakes I fish for a couple years until I felt comfortable without them. Having said that, I would like to talk about some things to prepare you for the tournament season that would apply to both amateur and professional anglers.
The most important thing in preparing for tournaments is making sure your gear is in good shape, especially your boat, rods and reels. Following is a list of things I do to make sure they are in good working condition. I continue to do this several times a year due to the frequency of use.

Rods:

• Check for any hairline fractures. A broken rod is a useless one.


• Make sure your cork is in good shape.


• Check all guides and tip. Run a cotton ball through them and if it snags, you need to sand down or replace the guide. Snags lead to broken line.


• Clean rod and eyes to remove any dirt.

Reels:

• Remove all old line.


• Clean exterior with a good product designed for reels. I like Ardent products.


• Take apart and completely clean insides.


• Grease the gears lightly, don't gum them up.


• Lightly oil any moving parts such as handles, spools, roller balls.


• On baitcasters, make sure the line guide is smooth and clean any dirt out of it.


• Put new line on all reels. Write down what line you have on each reel so if you don't like the setup, you'll know not to use it again.

The other equipment you need to prepare is your lures. Here are some of the things I do.

Crankbaits:

• Touch up any paint you feel is necessary. I do this on some baits, but mostly I like them beat up and rough looking.


• On heavily used baits, change the hooks. I prefer Owners on lipped crankbaits, and Mustad Triple Grip on lipless. I change factory hooks on everything except Lucky Craft.


• Make sure the split rings aren't bent.


• Sand the diving lip if it's beat up. This will help it dive.

Spinnerbaits, Buzzbaits and Jigs:

• Sort by size


• Sort by color


• Sharpen hooks

Plastics:

• This may sound silly, but make sure they haven't melted in storage before you throw them in your bag.


• Arrange them so they are easy for you to find. A previous article recommends using a cake pan that you can get at WalMart or Target and it works great. I carry about 50 plastic bait bags in one of these.


• If you have several bags of particular bait, consolidate them into one to save space.

Lure Storage:

I used to be a lure fanatic. I would buy everything just to try it. Those days are gone! I try new lures occassionaly, but I mostly know what works well where I fish and what I am comfortable with. Here is what I carry for lure storage in my boat to tournaments.

• A Shimano bag that holds four boxes in it and has a front pocket, 2 side pockets, and a zipper pocket in back. In the boxes I have one for spinnerbaits and buzzbaits, one for flipping jigs, one for football jigs, and one for smaller buzzbaits, inline spinners, hair jigs and bucktails. The side pockets hold extra blades, trailer hooks, sharpie markers and scent. The front pocket holds plastic trailers and pork trailers. Tha back zipper holds my caplight, scissors and pliers.


• Two Falcon hook utility boxes. One holds shakey heads, drop shots, and other finesse type hooks and sinkers. The other holds heavy hooks and sinkers for Carolina and Texas rigging.


• 2 Plano utility boxes. I like to make these season specific as far as colors and types of lures, but generally it is this. One for deep diving crankbaits. One for other crankbaits, topwaters, lipless crankbaits, jerkbaits.


• 1 cake pan for all my plastics.

So, to sum it up, I carry one bag, 4 utility boxes, and 1 cake pan. This really helps me decide what to use on the water by limiting my choices to only the lures I am comfortable with and I know work.

Last but not least, you need to make sure your boat, trolling motor, and electronics are in goodworking condition. I change my lower unit oil, start the boat in the driveway and let it idle for a few minutes. I also put it in and out of forward and reverse gear. Be sure to keep up with regular maintenance on your boat. I just turn my electronics and trolling motor on to make sure they're working after being stored for a couple months.

Everyone has their own preseason rituals which may or may not include things in this post. These are some of my practices, but I am a firm believer in doing whatever works best for you. Have a happy and safe tournament season!

Does Size Really Matter?

Well it depends on who you’re asking, but if you’re asking a bass, then she would most likely say yes. I experienced a new-found love and gained confidence last year in fishing big lures. Although to this day I’ve caught my largest bass on a three inch grub, which to most fisherman would be considered a small fishing lure. You will catch large fish on small lures too, but I believe there are certain lures that will increase your chance of putting a lunker in the livewell. More... Most of my fishing career I’ve relied on small to medium sized fishing lures in tournaments to produce more bites and medium size fish with an occasional large fish here and there. So, this past season I told myself that I would make a change and I stuck with it. I knew that I probably would not get as many bites, but if I did receive a bite, then it would most likely be a keeper for the livewell. I soon realized and found a new confidence in fishing big lures. The main big fish lure I like to use is the big ribbon tail or curly tail ten inch worm. Several manufacturers produce a good ten inch worm, so I suggest you try a few and choose the best one that works for you. You can fish a big worm several different ways, so you just need to adapt it to the season and style that the bass are hitting during the time of year you’re fishing. It’s important to be comfortable with the rig you are using too, so if you prefer texas rig, then stick with it until you gain confidence in the other styles and approaches, such as carolina, shaky head, wacky, or drop shot rigging. There are other lures I like to use which land big fish too. You will experience catching big bass on jerkbaits, spinnerbaits, flippin’ or pitchin’ jigs, lizards, brush hawgs, deep diving crankbaits, and slow rolling swimbaits. This fishing season just ask yourself one question, “Do you want to catch big bass”? If the answer is yes, then I suggest you try out more big lures this year and stick with them until your livewell is full of hawgs.

Best,

Dittmore