Do you ever just start thinking ?

[Larry Francis]

So we hit this bite before the front the other day where they were only hitting crappie jigs and not much else. Trick worms were not working and even a Ned rig was not with a 4 inch Senco on it. They are feeding on shad that were very small. So, to Bridgemasters I go. I found these 2 inch swim baits there in their poured section. Paired with my old Yamamoto Hula Grub Jig heads with a Gamakatsu hook this will make an interesting option to try out over the Ned rig option. I will let you know how this turns out.

[FlatsNBay]

Looks like a good option to try. Let us know if it works.

Sent from my moto e5 play using Tapatalk

[Capt. BassinLou]

They are feeding on shad that were very small. So, to Bridgemasters I go. I found these 2 inch swim baits there in their poured section. Paired with my old Yamamoto Hula Grub Jig heads with a Gamakatsu hook this will make an interesting option to try out over the Ned rig option. I will let you know how this turns out.

An observant angler is a successful angler. Good luck Larry, I think your going to smoke them.

[coldfront]

So we hit this bite before the front the other day where they were only hitting crappie jigs and not much else. Trick worms were not working and even a Ned rig was not with a 4 inch Senco on it. They are feeding on shad that were very small. So, to Bridgemasters I go. I found these 2 inch swim baits there in their poured section. Paired with my old Yamamoto Hula Grub Jig heads with a Gamakatsu hook this will make an interesting option to try out over the Ned rig option. I will let you know how this turns out.

here this time of year, these danged fish get really focused on the little YOY threadfin shad and all those tiny 'glass minnows' that have been forced out of the weedbeds.
if you're tossing something over 3 inches, it can be really tough getting bit.

i am always keeping smaller baits in the boat this time of year.  real favorite has become the keitech easy shiner...  i'll bounce between the 2" and 3" size.  there are definitely color preferences shown by the fish.  last winter I was working a 1/16 oz ballhead with the 2" easy shiner ... they'd hit (had good action) on the sight flash color... got a little better when I moved to the electric blue/chartruese... but the 'deal' that day turned out to be the 'alewife' color.  got to that, and it was 'lights out'.  bites, while having been good, went stellar and I could work down a bank and pull 5-6 off, where before it was a 1 or 2 deal.

[bigjim5589]

Those are the old Sassy Shads. I've mentioned a few times over the years here that I still use them. In 4" and larger sizes they've always been good baits for Striped Bass. I've used them in 5" & 6" a lot for chasing Stripers, and the smaller baits are usually considered as a panfish bait. I have some in my tackle that are 1" to 4" in length that I've used for bass & Crappies.

I'm glad to see that they've worked for you. IMO, they represent small shad very well due to the higher profile.

Mr. Twister has a good variety of those Sassy Shads. 

[coldfront]

agreed.  but way better tail wag on the keitechs...  plus, the bait-monkey 'thanks me'...

[njpaulc]

I always carry an light panfish rod and a panfish box for the small bait bite.  The hard part is finding small jig heads with strong hooks with a large gap.

[bigjim5589]

agreed.  but way better tail wag on the keitechs...  plus, the bait-monkey 'thanks me'...

Well, "better" only if they're getting you some bites.  IMO, all these different baits have a slightly different tail wag and that's not necessarily a bad thing. 


I pour jig heads with a variety of hooks, so can make them to fit any bait. I agree, it's not always easy to find an off the shelf jighead that works well with all baits, which is one of many reasons I began pouring in the first place.   

[apenland01]

I've caught a few fish on those sassy shads, especially in the bottom color you show and the red versions.  I probably have 200 packs in my tackle room that I bought on closeout....

[FD]

Larry, I use that type and size when we have a shad spawn.  The bait fish are so small it's the only way to down size enough.

Here's the secret.  When they are schooling on minnows, put it on a heavier jig head.  You can get past the smalls and down to the bigger fish that are below the smalls.  I've had days where I've caught 20+ 3 and 4 pounders under the schoolies.

Sent from the very edge of civilization...where I belong

[Larry Francis]

Love the conversation.

I went out with them on summit lake here local on a high pressure blue bird sky with Cold temp just starting to let go.  First warming day kinda.

I had 5 fish total, 3 on these new shad baits fished very slow and 14 ft deep around grass. The other 2 were on the trick worm that has worked well in this area. 14 inches was the biggest. I spoke with 2 other gents and one had one and the other had none. So that makes for a good day. The experiment continues.