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Posted by Lpbassman on 10-04-2004 01:29 AM:
SLIDER WORM 102 / The Alternate Technique
Droppin & Hoppin
To some Slider Worms are an integral part of their fishing arsenal, thrown
often and with confidence. To others they are an unfamiliar curiosity. They are
a remarkable little bait that very often will catch fish when other baits wont.
Their size, (3-4"), mimics prey that research shows are the most commonly
eaten by both large and smallmouth bass. Their shape resembles a food source
that is non-threatening and easy to catch.
Manufactured by the Charlie Brewer company, (and frequently refered to here at
NYBass as "Brewers"), they are part of a fishing system that includes
a "how to" book and video, with specific guidelines, even rules as
how to fish them. From where and when to fish them right down to type of rod,
reel and retrieve that is to be used. The textbook method suggests a
slow/steady swimming retrieve using a short limber rod (5'-5'6") on light
line and a sweeping hook set. The drop and hop technique differs in many
ways from the textbook method but is just a simple and easy to fish and in my
opinon is more productive than the original method.
THE CAST & RETRIEVE
Cast your slider to a target from 1' to 10' deep. Weed beds and edges, thick or
sparse, inside or outside, stumps, laydowns, rocks and drop offs are all
suitable places to fish it. Let the bait sink to the bottom while holding your
rod tip at 10 or 11
o'clock. Let it rest
for 10, 15 seconds or even longer. Lowering your rod tip to 8 or 9 o'clock, S-L-O-W-L-Y begin to pick up your slack
leaving a slight bow in your line, without
moving the bait! S-L-O-W-L-Y
begin to raise your rod tip until you can feel the bait. (Like any bait that
you are fishing, it is imperative to know what the BAIT feels like. Once you
have become familiar with the feel of tha bait, set the hook on ANYTHING that
feels different. If no fish is detected, a slight snap of the wrist will
cause the slider to dart up off of the bottom into open water. Once up, give
the rod a twitch or two which will cause the bait to HOP a foot or two and let
it drop, darting back into cover.
The HOOK SET
The hook set does not require the long sweep that the textbook method call for.
Once you have taken up the slack in your line, if you feel something other than
the bait, simply give the rod a sharper "snap of the wrist" and let
the back bone of the rod and that sharp light wire slider head do all the work
of setting the hook for you.
The EQUIPMENT
Perhaps the MOST important piece of gear for this technique is the rod. It
should have a fast tip
and a strong back bone . I would suggest a rod that is 6'6" in
length with a medium heavy action. A 6' rod will work just fine too. MY
personal preferance is a 6'6" BPS MH Bionic Blade. Use any rod that you
are comfortable with as long as it has a fast tip & solid back bone. You
will need the back bone for the hook set and controlling bigger fish.
Any good quality reel in the 1000 - 2500 series will do the job. Make sure it
has a reliable drag and not too small to muscle a larger fish. My preferance is
a Shimano Stradic 1000FH, but any good quality spinning reel in the $50-$60
range will work fine.
As far as line goes, I like to use 6lb test flourocarbon with Yozuri Hybrid or
P-Line as my choice, smoke or green in color. I consider these finese baits and
frequently fish them in clearer water. I want a strong durable line that does
not have a lot of stretch and can not be detected easily. Use any brand of line
that you are comfortable with and have confidence in.
On note about your line: This method will cause every brand of line to start to
twist up. I have tried EVERYTHING out there in 6lb test both monos &
flouros and they will all begin to twist eventually. Next year I intend to try
10/2 Power Pro to see if the twist still occurs and whether the visability of
braided line makes a substantial difference in the number of hook ups.
DROP N HOP vs STEADY RETRIEVE
We have all read and know that bass are lazy creatures that want to expend the
least amount of energy possible to obtain a meal. They will size up any
potential meal and will only move so far in order to catch & eat it. The
slider worms and grubs are small baits and being slight in profile are not apt
to have a bass move too far in order to catch it. Most bass will stay in hiding
waiting to ambush their unsuspecting prey. The swimming technique takes the
bait in and then out of the strike zone too quickly. The DROP & HOP allows
the bait to stay in front of the bass for a longer period of time. While a bass
might not chase this bait for any distance as it swims by, most bass will
stealthily approach and move closer to the "still" bait as it darts
up and hides in weeds or other cover. That next HOP will more often than not,
provoke the bass into striking. In short, the steady swimming retrieve might
have more bass "seeing" the bait per cast, but not chasing it or
striking. The DROP & HOP gives YOU a longer and better opportunity at the
same fish and multiple opportunities as you hop the bait along, for other fish
that are not about to chase.
HOOKS / BAITS & COLORS
There are several styles of Slider heads that are available including the new heavier
"pro heads". I am a firm believer in the "if it aint broke, dont
fix it" rule. I prefer the original SPIDER SLIDER HEADS for this method
and use 1/16, 1/8 & 1/4 oz versions. The 1/16 oz for fishing very shallow
water or very light cover only.
More often I will use the 1/8 and 1/4 oz heads for most circumstances. I dont
"tex-pose" my hook points as I find the baits have a tendency to foul
more often than when keeping the point imbedded in the body. They will also
come through heavy weeds much easier this way.
I have tried just about everything under the sun that is a suitable substitute
for BREWERS 3" grubs and 4" worms. In 20+ years that I have been
using these baits the ONLY other bait I have found to be an adequate substitute
are Earthy's little 4" flat sided do nothing worms. (No sponsor hiney
kissing---just a fact!)
Colors: Charlie Brewers Slider Worms & Grubs come in about 30 or more
different colors, with new ones being added all the time. Some people have
confidence in certain colors and prefer to use them. If you think it will catch
fish for you---use it! Although I have and keep about a dozen colors on the
4" worms and about 6 colors of the 3" grubs my preferances are:
Early spring: Motor oil / fire tail & Pumpkin / chart tail
Mid Spring: JUNEBUG / CHART TAIL (#1 color for worms & grubs), Plum glitter
/ chart tail
Summer: JUNEBUG / CHART TAIL, Plum Glitter / chart tail, Chartreuse / Black
core, Smoke / Red Core & Cotton Candy
Fall: JUNEBUG /CHART TAIL & Motor Oil / fire tail.
These little baits have helped me to catch countless numbers of fish over the
years and some very big ones too. (A few over 6lbs.) This method has helped
many of my friends catch more fish and made them more versitile anglers. Those
of you who have not tried SLIDER fishing are missing a VERY usefull tool from
your arsenal. Those of you who have not tried this method of fishing SLIDERS
are perhaps not getting the number of hook ups you could be getting.
Some of the purists will say that the Drop & Hop is not Slider Fishing. I
really dont care what "some" might say and neither will you when you
see how the DROP & HOP method catches fish, and in my humble opinion, more
than the textbook method. For a more detailed, hands on look at the Drop N Hop,
Slider 102 classes will begin in April of 2005. Reserve your seats early! LOL
__________________
"early to bed, early to rise--fish like hell and make up lies"
Posted by Bass Rat on 10-04-2004 06:53 AM:
Nice read Leigh. Thanks for sharing.
Posted by NO LUCK on 10-04-2004 08:42 AM:
Nice and simple to
understand...well written!!!
__________________
Posted by Lpbassman on 10-04-2004 09:33 AM:
One piece of info that I forgot to include is that the vast majority of hits will come once the bait is down, however, it will occasionally get slammed the second it hits the water. Like most other baits, when this does happen you will see your line take off like a bat out of hell. SET THE HOOK!
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"early to bed, early to rise--fish like hell and make up lies"
Posted by Tracker99 on 10-04-2004 11:07 AM:
Excellent
article
Thanks for the great article. I haven't had the greatest of success with the traditional slider method. But I'm going to try your method next time out on Muscoot as see how many Bass I can catch.
__________________
Joel
Newest Member of the
Reservoir Rat Pack. And Mighty Proud of it.
Posted by joe p on 10-04-2004 01:32 PM:
veryyy nice read!
hey, I learn from the
best.....this technique won a tournament for me this year (including a 5 lber!)
and caught some much needed keepers in some.....
When the flipping bite starts to slow down with the standard baits, a downsized
bait is in order and a 1/4oz Slider with a 3inch Yammie senko is hard to
beat....
I fish this with 6lb Pline , a MH 6-6 Clarus and a Daiwa 1600......
very underrated technique......
nice writing, Leigh..simple and straight to the point
Joe
Posted by Wild Bill on 10-04-2004 09:01 PM:
Leigh
Well done...A great read,
and an effective method
I want to book a lesson with you now...to avoid the onslaught of requests
you'll probably get....I will hopefully also be getting Slider 101[the swim]
from John G sometime early next season, too..
............................................................
A few addendums...the 'original Slider Spider' heads weigh approximately HALF
of what they are marked by the manufacturer [i.e. a head marked 1/4 oz, is
really about 1/8 in true weight]. The "Pro' series od Slider Spiders are
much closer to true weight as marked on the packaging..
While I had never tried the Slider worms nor Slider grubs prior to this year,
the Spider head has been part of my 'arsenal' for over ten years, but using
them in conjunction with soft-plastic crawfish, usually about three inches long....like
the Stan Sloan Ninny Craw, which has rocked em good for me in an amber color,
or the small Yamamoto ones they offer, and yup, lifting and hopping them, which
has been good for me..
One I h
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Posted by Wild Bill on 10-05-2004 11:17 PM:
Leigh...
have you ever tried using
a barrel swivel in your line, a bit in front of the bait, kind of like c-rig
distance, since you say line-twist is inevitable??
Curious...
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Posted by Lpbassman on 10-06-2004 12:34 AM:
I have and It affects the action of the bait.
__________________
"early to bed, early to rise--fish like hell and make up lies"
Posted by Wild Bill on 10-06-2004 08:27 AM:
Leigh....
The reason I ask that is I have observed the lure and it's motion underwater as it is retrieved, and EACH time it is lifted and dropped, the bait spins one full revolution, imparting the line twist you so often get from it. I have not tried the barrel swivel in-line myself, but have often thought about trying it....
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Posted by Lpbassman on 10-06-2004 09:27 AM:
I have found that the swivel impedes the darting action that you want the bait to have as it hops up from cover. It also creates a very "slight" tick in your line when IT hits the bottom and can be mistaken for a light strike. I have kind of accepted the fact that fishing the Drop N Hop is going to give you some line twist. Once it gets too annoying I usually just peel off about 20 or so feet of line, hide it in my partners tackle bag, and re-tie. LOL
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"early to bed, early to rise--fish like hell and make up lies"