chatterbaits

[zx200]

 Ok, what's the secret? I've been tryin these things for a couple of years now and just can't seem to make em work for me. I've thrown em pre spawn, spawn, and post spawn, pretty much all throughout the year in nearly every water condition imaginable and caught very few fish on em. I hear folks say they whacked em on a chatterbait, what am I missing?

[Mike Cork]

Chatter baits are very effective but it's a timing thing as well. I've found them most effective when bass are feeding on bream or crawfish. The thump this bait puts out is strong like those to species would have. If the bass are on a hard shad bite, it can still work, but I find that something with a blade or two flashing is better... I.E. spinnerbait.

Now coming into late fall, depending on where you live, the shad are full grown and the chatter bait can mimic them a little better. I love to through it around the shad die off. The shad are bigger, but the bass are really eating anything that swims because the winter is coming. So shad, bream, or crawfish, they are all targets.

It's never been a good prespawn bait for me, I like baits with a tighter vibration because of the cooler water. However, if they are feeding up on crawfish for the protein headed into the spawn, the chatter bait can be awesome again, but you have to slow it way down and skim the bottom with it. Crawfish don't move fast in cold water so it's best to let it almost drag the bottom.

Lastly.... it's a bladed JIG. I've done really well hoping it on the bottom like a jig. Cast it out and let it hit the bottom. Lift it fast enough to feel the thump of the blade, then let it fall again. Work it down ledges or along staging banks, it will catch bigger fish.

[zx200]

Thanks Mike, that last part made the little light bulb come on. Always fished em high in the water column,  never thought about draggin or hoppin one on bottom even though I love to slowroll a spinnerbait right down on the bottom.

[Mike Cork]

They have their times that the mid water columns is where it's at but this is usually around cover. They are great for drawing strikes from cover.

If slow rolling is effective you your area this might be better

[Princeton_Man]

Like jigs, they work great in rivers with a strong flow as well. Hardly have to do anything, the river flow lifts them up and they'll call'm in. Caught a lot of New River smallies and a couple of toothy critters on them last year.

[Polaris425]

I havent had much luck w/ them either but, I might be fishing them too fast... Might need to slow down after reading these replies.

[Princeton_Man]

There's a lot of ways to fish them but I've only had limited success on lakes. I have burned across weed beds with some success. Most of my success with them has been in the New River and mostly fishing parallel to the shore using the currents. Slow to no retrieve sometimes giving it a quick pull for more attention. They will bring the smallies out of the rocks.

[Pat Curtis]

Never had much luck with them either.....until last year.

Since our bass up here eat up the bluegill, in pre spawn slow roll a bladed jig through a pad field that is still submergent.  If it's near a drop off where they're staging that's even better.

Post spawn, burn and twitch them around bluegill beds.  The bass will be out to get revenge on the bluegill for harassing them while they were on beds.

[Buzbait88]

Probably my favorite bait to fish.  It takes some tinkering to get them to run just right.  Different trailers and skirt material make them run completely different and certain situations call for different trailers.  For instance, a split tail trailer will give the bait more action and run deeper while a crawdad trailer gives the bait less action and a bigger profile while being able to retrieve the bait higher in the water column.  During the spring I like to use the crawdad trailer, I think the bigger profile looks more like a bluegill and allows you to retrieve it through the shallows easier.  During the summer I like 4" ringworms and during the fall I like the erratic action the split tail gives the bait.  I also have decent luck from time to time using small swimbait trailers.

[jocko]

I love bladed jigs. 

ZX200,  Are you tipping the bait with any trailers?  I don't think the bait is great fished plain.  Like all jigs,  it requires a trailer.

I like to fish a black and blue Chatterbait paired with a full size Paca Craw in Okachobee.   I also like to fish a white or Chartruese and white one tipped with a Basstrix swim bait. 

I fish the swim bait one just like a spinnerbait.  I fish the paca craw a little slower but not too much different.  One imitates a bluegill - the other imitates shad.  Bass Crush it! 

I just caught my personal best (10 lbs) on the Chatterbait - swim bait combo.  Pic is in the Catch of the day.  Chatterbaits work!

[zx200]

 I've only tried fishin em with the split tail trailers like the ones that come with the z-mans. I fish baby pacas on the back of my jigs almost exclusively whether I'm pitchin, draggin, or swimming. Guess I just figured the split tails worked best on the bladed jigs since that's what most of em are sold with. I definitely wanna try the paca on it now. Thanks

[Canesfan]

I like 'em.  Last time I used one I caught a 4 lber on first cast.  Not much afterwards though but will continue to use them periodically.

[jocko]

I've only tried fishin em with the split tail trailers like the ones that come with the z-mans. I fish baby pacas on the back of my jigs almost exclusively whether I'm pitchin, draggin, or swimming. Guess I just figured the split tails worked best on the bladed jigs since that's what most of em are sold with. I definitely wanna try the paca on it now. Thanks

Yeah,  I throw the split tail out.  Always experiment with trailers.  A baby paca might be too small.  I like the large size one.  Experiment.  You can use twin tail grubs,  skinny dippers,  a lot of things.

Choosing the right trailer can really make a difference.   I always throw the split tail away - same with spinnerbaits.  There are much better soft plastics to tip with!

[steve76]

 Back during the spawn I caught about 20 bass in one day throwing one around beds. Gave me a new confidence in them. Have thrown them a lot the rest of this year with little luck.

[merc1997]

Probably my favorite bait to fish.  It takes some tinkering to get them to run just right.  Different trailers and skirt material make them run completely different and certain situations call for different trailers.  For instance, a split tail trailer will give the bait more action and run deeper while a crawdad trailer gives the bait less action and a bigger profile while being able to retrieve the bait higher in the water column.  During the spring I like to use the crawdad trailer, I think the bigger profile looks more like a bluegill and allows you to retrieve it through the shallows easier.  During the summer I like 4" ringworms and during the fall I like the erratic action the split tail gives the bait.  I also have decent luck from time to time using small swimbait trailers.

what kind of tinkering do you do to a vibrating jig to get it to run right??  just curious.

bo

[Buzbait88]

what kind of tinkering do you do to a vibrating jig to get it to run right??  just curious.

bo

Just by putting different trailers on it can make a difference in how much action the bait has, but putting different skirts on effects the action to.  A big thick skirt will make the bait ride higher with less action whereas a thinner skirt will let the bait move more freely, but will run deeper as well.  I've even trimmer the bottom layer of skirt off so the skirt was more like the terminator quick skirt where it flairs out the top, and no skirt material coming straight out below the head. (not sure if I explained that very well)  If you use the cheap ones you can also bend the blade to get different action out of it, but I don't use the junk ones so I don't have much experimenting there.