Tips & Techniques
Hot New
Plastics from Lake Fork Tackle
from...
Pro Tom Redington |
 |
October, 2008
By
Tom Redington
Since I first started bass fishing as a kid, I’ve always looked forward to
the new Cabela’s and Bass Pro Shops catalogs each winter. Nothing stokes a
bass angler more than hundreds of pages of sparkly new creations that
catch the fish’s and the angler’s eye alike. While shopping for new lures
is not only a fun way to pass a stormy day, they can also breathe new life
into our favorite old techniques. On pressured waters like Lake Fork,
changing a jig trailer or a Carolina rig bait from the old standby to an
unfamiliar new one can be the difference between a few bites and catching
a lot of bass. With that in mind, here are a few innovative items that
I’ve started fishing with from Lake Fork Trophy Lures.
One of my new favorites is the Hyper Worm. This is one of the highly
anticipated new baits Mark Pack used to win the FLW Tour Wal*Mart Open
this summer on Beaver Lake. Based on the proven segmented body style of
the Live Magic Shad, the paddle tail of the Hyper Worm produces a very
wide wobble and a ton of water displacing vibrations as it swims along.
Available in 3 sizes, the Hyper Worm works well as a stand alone bait or
as a jig trailer. For a jig trailer, rig it with the paddle tail in line
with the jig hook and I’ll typically bite about an inch off the head of
the worm. Work your jig with a swimming retrieve like you would with a
spinnerbait, or fish it with sharp hops, similar to the way you’d fish a
jigging spoon. Either way, the flapping of the tail will give bass a look
they probably haven’t seen before. In addition, the Hyper Worm can be
rigged a number of ways to give your traditional rigs a new look. Fish
them on a weightless hook or a weighted Ultimate Swimbait Hook and fish
them similar to the way you’d fish any swimbait, wake bait, or a stickbait
like a Senko. They’ll come right through heavy grass and wood cover this
way and work well in traditional frog and buzzbait territory. Hyper Worms
also fish very well on Texas rigs and Carolina rigs, just give them a bit
more of a hop or a pull so you get that great tail wagging action.
Also new in the Hyper family of baits is the Hyper Freak. It combines the
cover penetrating compactness of the Lake Fork Flipper with the wild
flapping tail action of the Hyper Worm. With a massive tail, both sizes of
the Hyper Freak are my new favorites for flipping heavy cover on a Texas
rig or as a jig trailer. The large tail needs a fair amount of weight to
activate the tail, while the drag it creates still makes for a slow fall.
As a result, you can use a large bullet weight or jighead to make for easy
casting even in the wind, while maintaining the bite producing slow fall
of a much lighter lure. On the Texas rig, I’ll use a 3/8 oz sinker for the
regular sized Hyper Freak, while a ¼ oz bullet weight works best for the
Baby Freak. On jigs, I use 3/8 oz Mega Weight jigs when I’m fishing around
light cover or in shallow water, while the ½ oz size works better for
penetrating thick cover or in water over 15’ deep. Whether on the jig or a
Texas rig, the Hyper Freak works well both with swimming and a hopping
retrieve. The wide wobble of the tail calls bass in from a long way to
crush the bait.
On the other end of the action spectrum are the new Hyper Finesse Worm and
Wack’n Worm. With segmented tails like the Live Magic Shad, these worms
have a lively action. However, the thin flexible tails produce a subtle
shimmy for bass that are more finicky or pressured. The Hyper Finesse
Worm’s subtle action is perfect for shaky head rigs, finesse Carolina or
split shot rigs, and on drop shots. The segmented tail delivers a lot of
tail action with the smallest twitch of your rod, with a lifelike flutter
even when sitting at rest. For fans of the wacky rig or flick shake/wacky
jighead rigs, the new Wack’n Worm has the segmented action tail at both
ends of the worm, designed to give a double dose of quivering action at
both ends of the worm. When shallow bass are pressured, it’s now the first
bait I reach for to get a limit.
So the next time the bass seem to ignore your presentations on your
favorite honey holes, try the new profiles and actions of these baits and
you might just trick a few of those wary old lunkers. Here’s hoping you
catch the lunker of your dreams. If I can be of assistance, please contact
me at 214-683-9572 (days) or 972-635-6027 (evenings) or e-mail me through
my website,
www.LakeForkGuideTrips.com.
Tom Redington is a full time bass guide on Lake Fork and is sponsored by
Ranger Boats, Mercury Outboards, Diamond Sports Marine, Lake Fork Trophy
Lures, Minn Kota, & Humminbird.
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