Spider rig ?

Question for you veteran spider rig users.

I made myself a rig over the winter and finally got the oppurtunity to try it out today. I really enjoyed this style of fishing. My question is, can you guys give me some hints on keeping the fish on while taking the rod out of the rod holders. I started out fishing with minnows and lost almost every fish I hooked. I then switched some of baits to jigs (with sickle hooks) and had much better luck connecting with fish. Let me know your experiences and give me some hints as to what I'm doing wrong.

When removing the pole from holder try not to let slack in the line.

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i agree slack will cause you to loose a lot of fish hook size on minnows is real important also i never use under a 1/0 aberdeen hook i also use 3/4 to 1oz of weight and on my jigs i prefer #2 my rod holder swivels at the back so you stay in contact with the fish when lifting the rod out of the holder another thing make shure you do not try to lift the fish dip them.

most beginners tend to let the rod tip dip a bit when they take it out of the holder, this gives a good crappie all the slack it needs to slip the hook. Be carefull to keep your rod tip up, even if it means you are slower getting it out of the holder, good form is much more important than swiftness. I keep my rod butts barely hanging on the edge of the holder that is facing me, when i get a bite i actually push and lift the rod out of the holder at the same time. hope this helps.

Thanks for the info guys. I had a blast fishing this way yesterday, so I guess I'll just have to keep practicing til I get it down pat. ;-)

X3 on watching the slack. Long rods amplify your movements from butt to tip so 1/2 inch dip with your wrist can mean several inches of slack on the other end. Once you put your hand on the rod focus on the tip and watch for the slack, won't take long for the movement needed to get the rod out of your holder without dipping to be habit.

Another thing I've learned the hard way. First instinct with crappie is don't hoss 'em. Casting or fishing minnows under a cork I've found that a stout pull as close to horizontal as possible sets the hook and normally the hook goes to the side of the mouth. Tightlining has you pulling at a different angle. The hook may be heading for the roof of the mouth which requires more pressure to get a good set. Switching to the jig gave you a different angle than a straight bait hook. Also, if you're fishing your weight above the bait, especially with minnows, they may just be holding on to it and not really hooked ......... basically what I'm saying is you might need to give the rod a bit of a snap when you pick it up.

If you bump into this again try to see where the hook is when they come undone and look at the fish you do get in the boat, if the hook is the roof of the mouth and he comes unglued then you didn't get a good set, if it's in the side of the mouth then you are probably giving them too much slack.

And the obvious .... SHARP HOOKS! I recently got some jigs from lightwirehooker on this site. They're poured on fine wire hooks that bend easily but they are also sharp as the dickens. You can definitely tell the difference in hookups!

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Originally Posted by papadave

Also, if you're fishing your weight above the bait, especially with minnows, they may just be holding on to it and not really hooked .

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That makes sense. A number of the fish that I lost on minnows seemed to just be holding on to the minnows. You're right it will take a little practice to develop that "muscle memory" to remove the rod from holder without letting it dip and then snapping the hook set. I'm certainly willing t practice! One thing I did observe is it seems like you have more time to get the rod out of holder/set the hook than you might think when spider rigging. Casting with a slip bobber you usually have to be on it pretty quick, but I observed yesterday while pushing you often have several seconds to get to the fish. I would guess that might change as the water heats up and they are less aggressive.

Lot of good info in this thread , thanks mjm76 for asking the question!

Proper adjustment of the holders will help some, butyou seem to have that. The right rod holder makes it easier also. I tried several brands that were hard to get the rod clear from. Once I found those I now have, clearing the holder is no longer an issue. I won't hijack the thread, but if you want more info, shoot me a pm.

To get a clean hookset and steady pressure on the fish with tite loks and driftmaster is "one hand in front of the reel and straight up". The rod will come out smooth everytime. If you can't do this, your holders are probably too high or too far forward. Rod tips low to the water and about 1 inch of the handle sticking through the holder also help.

This probably applies to other holders as well.

Another reason you may not be hooking fish is that you may not be seeing the bite until too late. Lots of times the fish aren't gonna give you much notice that they're on and multiple poles require undivided attention to see the rod tip bob up or the vee ripple of lines running in the water change direction.