Small Baits, When and Where

[skeetbum]

I have long been a fan of little baits. I slayed the fish one day on a 1/8 head and a BGBS. Two days later I caught 3 and they wouldn’t touch it again. 1/16 head and I caught a few, 1/32 and it was game on again. Same bait, same place, same fish. They just wanted a slower presentation. Most folks that go to smaller baits tend to fish them at the same pace as the larger. When you go small you have to be patient and let it work, or let em look at it or whatever. I now fish a lot of 1/64 and those Itty Bitty Slab Slayer and Itty Bitty Swimmers with very good success. I use a #8 sickle hook in the head and this connects me better, especially on the bigger fish. One slayer that works well has an iced tea colored body and a pearl tail, and is on the floor in one of the pics. Don’t know what it resembles but they like it. I find that I can cast them much better with 2lb line, and don’t let that number scare you. It’s tougher than you might think. Shakespeare Micro series rods and a $20 reel and some 2lb Stren Crappie and you’d be in business. I’ve broken the 2lb mark on Crappie and 3lb for largemouth. An absolute blast when the bluegill are stacked up. Here’s a pic of the keepers from a day when all the planets aligned and a friend and I caught 75 gills, 5 good crappie, and 5 golden shiners, all on 2lb line and 1/64. Have fun with it. The shell cracker Ws dead on a pound and the LMB gave a heck of a fight on the little stuff.