Drop Shot Rigs

I hope this isn't a stupid question but I'm leaving for Tennessee tuesday going to Center Hill Lake. They are catching smallmouth on drop-shot rigs in about 15-20 feet of water. What is a drop shot rig and how do you rig it?

Basically, a drop shot rig is a set up that has the weight at the bottom and the hook tied directly to the line above the weight, You adjust the distance from the weight according to what the fish want. Obviously there is more to it than that basic definition. Check out this page on my clubs website, it is a good starting spot for drop shoting.

[url]http://lickingvalleybassanglers.0catch.com/LVBA%20site/Stories,%20Articles%20and%20Reports.htm[/url]

Then click on the link on the left of the page to get to "Dropshotting 101".

I've been fishing a drop shot rig for 4 years now and can tell you it definately works. I have drop shot rod rigged in rod locker at all times and bought a rod and reel specifically for the technique. Its not magic, its just another tool to help you improve as an angler and become more versatile.

But I will say the drop shot can be killer on smallies. MY ex partner back in New England just fished the Stren Series on Lake Champlain last week. He was leading after the first day with a limit of smallmouth that went 18lbs - 14 or 15 oz. Caught them all on the drop shot rig. Finished the T at 13th.

It's basically putting the weight below the bait. The weight will hit the bottom first taking the weight off the bait. Then if you give more slack line the bait will fall slowly the last ft or so to the bottom. That slow fall the last two feet or so makes it more tempting to the bottom hugging fish and gives them more time to decide to bite. As compared to putting the weight above the bait making the bait fall faster with a thud into the bottom.

It's been around for many years but it's been rediscovered by this younger generation and given a fancy name.

We use to call it tightlining for crappie with a bass rod and reel. You let the bait down to the bottom and reel up two turns. Basically its doing the same thing we did years ago when I was only 8 years old. You are letting the bait sit above the fish and letting it sink slowly to the fish or just hanging it above the fish's head. Of course this works if the fish is on the bottom of the lake. But you can still hang a bait in front of a fish if you know the fish's depth and the depth of your baits. That's were good modern sonar comes in handy. That and a long rod that helps you measure out how much line you have out. A good 12ft rod comes in handy when the fish are suspended at exactly 12 ft down from the surface. Just let out enough line to get the bait to the end of your 12 ft long rod handle and you have 12 ft of line out from the tip end of the rod to the other end of the rod. Now fish with the rod tip right on the surface or let out another foot of line and fish 1 ft above the surface. Jig a bit up and down and you will cover the 11ft depth, 12 ft depth and even 13 ft depth. This way you can present the bait at the exact same level as the fish.

Float and fly is another method that has been rediscovered by the younger generation and giving a new fancy name. It's nothing more than crappie fishing with a slip bobber. LOL This method is deadly for the same reason as Drop Shotting. It puts the bait at the same level as the suspended fish and also gives the jig adds action as the bobber dips up and down and sideways with the winds and waves. It's effective on Large-mouth bass too. I have caught dozens of large-mouth bass while crappie fishing with a small 1/16 oz soft bodies jig and a slip float and bobber stop from Thrill. Even catfish will bit this setup at times.

Hope this helps.

Think of a weightless worm that's cast out and allowed to sink slowly to the bottom. This is something the fish just can't resist. But it would take a long time to get the worm down to the bottom in 30ft depths. So you use the weight at the bottom of the rig to get the bait down near the bottom fast and then let is sink slowly under it's own weight when the lead weight hits the bottom first. Once the lead weight is on the bottom there is nothing pulling the bait down anymore and it sinks slowly on it's own accord. That's where the fish are sitting right on the bottom at times.

Drop shotting is actually a deep structure technique and you will need a good topo map to work it effectively. Or know exactly where the fish are in the deeper waters. Ends of points or old now flooded river channels in reseviors are prime area to use the drop shot method.
Regards,

Moose1am

Not that it wouldn't work but I don't think I've ever heard of using a 12ft rod for drop shoting. I've used 12ft rods and light line for Steelhead fishing. I know the FNF guys use it for that method and the crappie fisherman use 12 footers for dipping their rigs, but I've never heard of it being used for Drop Shot fishing.

For me, a 6'6" or 7' rod works fine under any circumstance I've encountered and for any bait or line size considerations you may have. That being said, to each his own, whatever works for you.

However, there are few drawbacks you may want to consider. If your fishing a tournament you really have to be careful and check the regs, a lot of T's don't allow the use of a rod that long.

There is also the lost time to consider when netting a fish using a rod that long. You have to be able to reach the fish with either the net or your hand. If you have a 12ft rod in your hand and are trying to reach a fish, you will have your hands full (so to speak LOL)! Especially with a pissed off 4lb smallmouth, coming out of deep, 40 degree water using 4 or 6lb test!

Another things that I think would be a drawback is the loss of feel on a rod that long. When your fishing down 35-40ft using an ultra sensitive, 6 1/2 or 7ft rod, you have a good feel for the bite (a lot of dropshot fishing the bite is very light). But when you get a rod that is 12ft long you lose a lot of that sensitivity. Being off just a second can mean the difference between a solid hookup and a miss.

I am not sure if the rod lenght makes much difference with drop shootings. I guess that's a personal preference. It may depend on your boat's size and where you sit in the boat. I thought that when drop shotting you fished straight down below the boat? Do you all cast the drop shot baits? I would think you want to maintain good tight lines to the bait so that you can feel the bite in deep water. Deep water is 25 ft or deeper to me. If you have a lot of slack in the line between you and the bait it would be harder to detect the thump. That's why I like to fish with a tight line. If casting I like to cast out the back of the boat with the wind. I keep the line straight in line with the wind so that I don't get a bow in my line. Casting across the wind direction can put huge bows in the line an cause you to loose contact with even a heavy bait like a 1/4 oz jig. I prefer to use heavy jigs when fishing deep and when the winds blowing hard.

I was talking about two different methods of fishing. Drop shot and Float and Fly. I use the 12ft long rod for slow trolling and at one time tried to use it for float and fly. A long rod works good for sling the float and fly baits out. If you fix the float you can leave out 12 ft of line and have the bobber fixed at the 12 ft level and still be able to sling the cast out away from the boat.

I prefer a rod that has a large opening in the last guide on the rod which allows a thrill type bobber stop (String Type) to pass though the rod's guide without hanging up. If the bobbers stop is set for only 6 ft deep the stop can be wound up on the reel and sometimes hang up in the line on the reel or the guides and either stop the cast from going out or move the bobber stop to a DEEP position on the line. These thrill type bobber stops have a hard time getting tight on a thin diameter fishing line. You basically have a yard type cotton wrapped around mono slipper fishing line. You have to really tighten the bobber stop down on the fishing line to get it to stay in one place. That can make it harder to change depths later too. Also some mono lines have variarying diameters as you go along the fishing line. So the bobber stop can get tight at one spot on the line and three feet away it can be loose.


Regards,

Moose1am

I actually use a rig both ways. I cast it and work it down steep slopes and points, across humps, along weedlines, nearly anywhere you have an edge. You let it hit bottom, take most of the slack out and lightly "pop" or twitch the line, just ever so lightly taking the slack out and letting it back in. This makes the plastic bait dance on the line. Most of the time thhe fish seem to want it with as little movement as possible, sometimes just the bobbing of the boat. After a few moments in one spot I drag it toward me a few feet and repeat. I use weights from an 1/8th to a 1/2oz routinely.

Now if you find a brushpile, rock pile or standing timber and can see the fish suspended on you LCR you lower it down to them and shake it vertically. They were doing this method this weekend at the BASS T.

Most of the time the bite is just a heavyness on the end of the line, almost like it picked up a piece of grass or weed. Other times they will swim off with it or there is a little "tick". Every once in while they are really aggressive and whack it! If you keep it tight all the time you can take away a lot of the action of the plastic bait.

The rod length can make a difference when you work it this way. And no matter where you sit in a boat you still have that 12ft rod in your hand. I have friends that are FNF finatics and they all tell me that fighting a fish and netting a fish on that 12ft rod is a challenge. As is casting that FNF rig. I have a 19ft boat and a 12ft rod is almost 2/3rds of the length of the boat. As far as sensitivity, rod length really doesn't make that big a difference until you go over a certain point. After that point you will lose alot of sensitivity in a rod of that length. After all, isn't that one of the reasons to use a float? To suspend the fly and indicate a bite, right?(I'm asking, I have not done the FNF rig, hope to try it this winter if my health allows.)

To me deep water is a relative term. On some lakes deep can be as little as 6ft. I'm originally from New England and I'm not a stranger to deep water fishing. I've caught bass in 60ft of water and as shallow as 5ft of water with a jiggin spoon. Smallmouth on Winni and Lake Champlain would often be in 35-40ft of water, we

Thanks for the good info. I didn't realize all the technique involved...I guess you would have to use one of those 3-way swivels to rig this thing huh? I appreciate you guys taking the time to post this infi it will really help.

You dont need a 3 way swivel. You tie a drop shot hook (Octopus hooks) to the line using a Palomar knot and leave the tag end of the line about 1-2ft long. Then tie a weight to the tag end the length you need. Be sure to use an overhand knot to the weight so it breaks off easily if snagged, that way you don't lose your whole set up.

It really sounds more complicated than it is. Actually its quite simple once you see it and easy one you've used it. Check out that web page, there lots of info and suggestions there.

I have been using the dropshot quite a lot this year and it seems I have had better luck dropping it off a ledge really slow and then barely move the line causing the bait to move without dropping further off the ledge then just cause it to drop to the next ledge and repeat. 4" straight worm in garlic man makes me nervous just thinking about it:-) :-)