November 2017 Simple Strategies For Maximizing The Flash Factor Of Your Spread With many anglers nowadays employing advanced electronics, line counter reels, and any number of depth control devices, precisely presenting lures in the strike zone is a fairly simple task for open water trollers. Presenting each individual lure precisely is a good way to boat a lot of fish... sometimes. Many times, however, it is how your lures work together that makes all the difference. For open water fish especially (i.e. trout, salmon, walleye), anglers can optimize the visual and audible appeal of their spread by strategically implementing Mack s attractors, more specifically Flash Lite Trolls. Flash Lite trolls are a modern improvement upon traditional cowbells as they provide substantial flash with very lightweight, counter-rotating blades. This will allow you to run Flash Lite Trolls with lighter tackle, experience lower drag, and reduce line twist. Drawing Them In On one noteworthy day last August, I was trolling for steelhead on the Central Basin of Lake Erie alongside my brother, Nick, and Captain Dean Cushman of Hard CORE Charters. Our trolling rig was nothing out of the ordinary; a couple of downriggers, a pair of diving planers, and a pair By John Littlefield of segmented leadcores (5 to 7 colors) running wide on inline planer boards. The business end of these rigs was a diverse array of spoons, ranging in sizes from 2.5- to 4-inches. This may seem fairly elementary, but one simple piece of our trolling spread made all the difference in how many fish went in the cooler. Use 4-Bladed Flash Lite Trolls to enhance your spread and imitate schooling baitfish. Our portside downrigger was HOT that day, taking most of our steelhead and sticking enough walleye to choke a horse. This rod was rigged with a 4-Bladed Flash Lite Troll, Mack s Lure s newage cowbell-style attractor that has proven to be absolutely deadly for Great Lakes trout, salmon, and walleyes. These Flash Lite Trolls put off a TON of flash, which imitates schooling baitfish perfectly. I find success by fishing the Flash Lite Troll toward the center of my trolling spreads to draw fish in from a distance. Open water fish are always on the move and searching for their next meal, so make it easy for cruising fish to locate your trolling spread. Even if the Flash Lite Trolls aren t taking fish (which is rarely the case), their flashiness is often enough to draw fish into view of the other naked lures (no attractors) behind your boat. It is a very, very rare day that a Flash Lite or two isn t integrated into my Great Lakes trolling spread. Flash Lite Trolls are arguably the most versatile attractor rig on the market, and the reason is because they can effectively be fished in front of any lure. Highdrag offerings (i.e. crankbaits), which would deduct from the action of a dodger, can be fished behind a Flash Lite without losing any of its action. Spoons, crawler harnesses, plugs, crankbaits, and hoochies are just a few options that will benefit from a set of Flash Lite Trolls. Tighten It Up To have repeatable success in trolling for open water gamefish, you need to be conscious of how your entire spread appears, feels, and sounds to the fish. Setting each individual lure to fish by itself often does not produce as well as setting each lure to work as a part of the team. To emphasize this point, I once again look back to that August Continued on Page 2 Page 1
Continued from Page 1 day on Lake Erie. Not only did we employ Flash Lite Trolls for visual enhancement of our spread, but we were employing strategic lead lengths to create a schooling effect. By manipulating the lead lengths and weighting methods within your trolling spread, you can place all of your lures -- both vertically and horizontally -- to fish more effectively alongside each other. Let s approach this from another angle: If you were to view your trolling spread from the fish s perspective, would it look like a single baitfish swimming by or would you see a school of baitfish? Mack s Lure offers multiple ways to give the illusion of a larger-thanreality baitfish school. Regardless of what you use, the idea is still the same -- fool the fish into thinking there is a school of minnows swimming by, not just an individual. This will draw more gamefish into your spread. Nick Littlefield with one of many Lake Michigan lake trout to fall victim to a Flash Lite Troll and spinner combo. Putting It All Into Action Embrace the technology. Credit for this advice goes to my BUS1100 teacher during my senior year at Michigan Tech. This phrase was repeated so often that I graduated with it forever etched into my mind. This advice will not only help you stay on top in the modern business world, but also in the world of fishing (catching, actually). If you are not taking advantage of modern fishing technology, then you are behind the 8-ball. Advanced sonar, GPS, line counter reels, depth probes; you name it. If you can afford it, USE IT! Nowadays you can even view accurate dive curves for all your favorite crankbaits. There is an app for that Fool them into thinking it s something it s not. Show the fish what they want to see. They want to see a school of baitfish, and they want to see an easy meal struggling to keep up with their buddies. Give it to em! Mack s Lure offers many options to create the schooling illusion behind your boat. Something to consider. Try lagging a spoon or plug behind the rest of the spread. Do this to create the illusion of a struggling or wounded baitfish, an easy meal for any self-respecting gamefish. This can be done in a variety of ways, but leadcore is always very easy and usually effective. Be cognizant of your lures vertical and horizontal positions. It sounds fancy, but all this means is keeping your school looking as lifelike as possible. If the schooling effect is what you re after, then knowing the 3D position of your lures is critical. Note the common denominator when you catch fish. This is generally common sense, BUT if you remove a lure from the water and you stop catching fish, put it back in the water. Even if it didn t catch any fish, if it appealed to the auditory, vibratory, or visual sense of your quarry, it may have been the dinner bell. Put the dinner bell back in the mix and see if you go back to catching fish. Even if it does not catch the fish, isn t it worth the sacrifice?so the next time you want to learn how to fish for a certain species, whether it be Salmon, Steelhead, Walleye, Kokanee, Trout or Panfish, seek out a fishing guide and you ll be glad that you did!! Stan s Space Those Bluegills Are Memory Makers By Hall-of-Fame Angler Stan Fagerstrom Part 1 The first fish I ever put on the bank of a North Dakota pond so long ago was a little catfish. My first bluegill came along not much later. There s nothing unusual about that. I expect tens of thousands of other fishermen around this wondrous country have had similar experiences. Like me, most have likely gone on to concentrate on the larger species of sports fish. Even if they have, I ll bet bluegills still retain a fond spot in their fishing memory book for panfish. Ask an experienced panfish angler the following question sometime. How do you rate bluegill when it comes to fun and fight? Watch the eyes of the person to whom that question is directed. Chances are they ll light up like mine do whenever my thoughts turn to those scrappy little devils you find in the majority of lakes, ponds and puddles all over the United States. If another fish has provided more angling fun for millions of Americans, I don t know what it would be. I ve never known a serious angler who didn t have a high regard for the pugnacious bluegill. If they were the same size, those little devils would run every bass out of the lake and eat carp three times a day. Scrappy little bluegills are often the first fish kids get to catch. Continued on Page 3 Page 2
Continued from Page 2 Bluegill aren t big. You re never going really enjoy fishing for them unless you scale down your tackle to match the size of the fish. I ll take a look in my next two columns at the basics of bluegill fishing. I ve caught thousands of these good eating, hard fighting panfish over the past half century. I ll share some of the thoughts I ve come by as a result. You can, of course, catch bluegill on natural baits. Worms fished on a small hook beneath a light float catch bluegill wherever they are found. But it s my contention natural bait isn t a necessity. It lowers the sport to its lowest common denominator. You can catch all the bluegill you want on small artificial lures. The two best ways to go about it are with a light spinning outfit or a fly rod. In this first column we ll consider only bluegill fishing with spinning tackle. Ultralight spinning gear is made to order for bluegill. Get a light action rod of 5 ½-feet to 6 ½-feet. Equip it with a lightweight open-faced spinning reel. Load the reel with 4-pound test line and you re ready to do business. A lightweight spinning outfit is a super way to go after bluegills. A word about finding bluegill before we get into how to catch them. If you know the lake you re on holds these wonderful little panfish, ease along the shoreline and watch for feeding activity. Bluegills sometimes give their location away by dimpling the surface as they feed. They make a distinctive little glurp as they take something off the top. If you spot such activity, don t run over the feeding fish. Stay back 30-feet and cast into the area where the fish are. Bluegills aren t loners. They like company. All year long where you find one there will likely be others, often lots of them. Whenever you catch one, work the entire area carefully. Hit it right and you may wind up catching 50 fish or more without moving your boat. You won t catch those 50 fish without knowing what lures to pick and how to use them. Often the most effective small lures I ve found for gills are miniature plastic curly tailed worms used behind tiny leadhead jigs in the 1/16 th -ounce to 1/32 nd - ounce class. The one you ll need depends on the depth at which the fish are holding. If they are fairly deep, use the 1/16 th - ounce head. If they are up near the top, switch to the 1/32 nd -ounce head. Whichever leadhead you select, check its hook size carefully. A number 10 hook is ideal for darn near all kinds of bluegill fishing. It s small enough to catch average or larger bluegill, but it s too big for those teensy little guys you don t want to mess with in the first place. Don t hesitate to add a Smile Blade out in front of your bait or lure when you are fishing deeper water for bluegills. Vary the size and color of the Smile Blades until you start getting results. Use a Mack s Stop Knot & bead to position your blade. If you aren t getting results, don t hesitate to add a Mack s Lure Smile Blade a few inches to a foot out in front of your lure. The gills are curious little critters and that Smile Blade just might get em going. Stick with the smallest blades in bright colors. I like to carry at least three basic colors in miniature plastic worms I throw for bluegill. They are black, white and yellow. I ve caught fish on other shades, but these three will usually get the job done. How you manipulate the worms is as important as the color you select. If one color doesn t get results, switch to something else. Let the fish tell you what they want. As I ve mentioned, once you ve got a bluegill school pinned down, stay back and cast to it. Let your jig sink, then start a slow retrieve. Make little flips of the rod tip as you reel. The lake I lived on the shore of in southwest Washington State was loaded with bluegill. I don t how many thousand I caught there in five decades of fishing, but it was a bunch. I often fished with a barbless hook to save time and to make it easier to handle the little buggers. Examine your leader with care. If you find the slightest potential problem, just reach for your Mack s Lure Pip s Box, pull out a new rig that s all set to go and you ll be back in the water in seconds. No sports angler catches fish without having a line in the water. The more time you spend with your line and lure out of the water is certain to result in less fish. The highly regarded pair of Mack s Pip s Boxes is a big help in that regard. You ll not have the slightest problem finding experienced anglers around the country who will tell you the same things I ve had to say as I wrap up this recent column series about the Mack s Lures Pip s Leader Box and Caddy. Page 3
Sonic BaitFish (SBF) Tips & Techniques Mister Twister And The Sonic BaitFish By Captain Pete Rosko Pete Rosko There is no doubt that the Twister tail was one of the greatest inventions ever for the freshwater sport fishery. Over the years, the Twister tail, and other brands of twister tails such as the Berkley Power Bait, Grubs and Gulp have caught more freshwater species than any other lure. During my younger days, a plain 1/8 oz round leadhead, sleeved with a three inch white or black twister (grub) tail, out-fished anything else that was hanging on the pegs at the local bait shop. Basically, I fished this rig with a slow steady retrieve, just enough for the tail to wiggle sideways. By now you must be wondering what this has to do with the Sonic BaitFish (SBF). To answer that question, grab your favorite 3 inch grub tail and a 1/10 oz SBF. Attach your snap to the nose of the SBF, on one rod, and your grub tail to your second rod. Hold both rods in one hand with one rod tip 6-12 inches shorter than the other rod tip. Then slowly pull both lures through the water where the result can easily be seen. Swimming pools work great. Three distinct differences should immediately be seen 1) The SBF swims like a live baitfish better than the twister tail. 2) The SBF looks like a live baitfish - not the twister tail. 3) The SBF creates more vibration than the twister tail. The bottom line is that if you caught fish with the twister tail, you will catch more fish with the Sonic BaitFish. An angler s success is directly proportional to the knowledge of how a particular lure works. Knowledge equals success it s the same with anything else in life. Take your SBF to the deep end of a swimming pool, or off a deepwater dock with clear water, and vertically jig it from all three attachment points. Become familiar with its different actions. Personally, I fish almost exclusively with the snap attached to the nose with a single hook attached to the tail. I consider the other two attachments (back & tail) as insurance in case I need them. This rig never ceases to impress me. After you become familiar with your lure s action, it is important to become knowledgeable about your target species and the equipment necessary to achieve success. As frequently mentioned by me, the SBF has all the moves to consistently catch fish whether cast, jigged or trolled. It is the most versatile lure-type in sport fishing. Mack s Lure is serious about your success! The Sonic BaitFish Tech Guide is loaded with valuable information. It s available by Googling it or accessing it on Mack s Lure website. Use it! Snaps There are three chronic equipment mistakes that I see on the water when fishing with metal jigs ( jigging spoons ). They are: a) The use of flimsy, whippy rods rigged with monofilament instead of a 5 ½ to 6 ft rod with good backbone and a fast-action tip spooled with no-stretch braided mainline (better for sensitivity and hook-sets); b) Not maintaining a needle-sharp point on the hook (carry a fine-tooth file and use a light touch to remove the roughness); c) Not using a wide bend snap. Snap was previously underlined twice in the twister tail article to stress its importance for your success with the SBF. These are the two main features of your wide bend duo-lock SBF snap: 1) The wide bend duo-lock snap maximizes the action of the SBF. (When anything is attached to the SBF, it reduces the action of the lure. This includes hooks, bait and tying your line or leader directly to the lure). By using the thin rigid wire snap, attached to the thin rigid wire insert of the SBF, you are permitting the lure to function with its best possible action. On the other hand, directly tying heavy line or leader to your lure seriously affects its lively action. This is especially critical with small, lighter-weight SBF which can have their critical flutter and vibrating action killed. Loop knots are not as bad as a direct line tie but are still poor relative to the smaller diameter of the snap. Only use a wide bend snap ( C shape) and not cross-lock, or coast-lock, types with an angled bend ( U shape). The angle reduces lure action. 2) Snaps eliminate lost time with cutting and retying line to the lure during lure changes and/or reattaching to the other attachment points on the SBF. Bonus snap tip for casting or trolling the SBF: Contrary to the large eye of the siwash hook, equipped with your SBF, most hook styles have very small eyes and Page 4
Continued from Page 4 cannot move freely when attached to the lure. As a result, they cannot be used on the SBF. However, especially in an emergency, many of these small eye hooks can still be used with the help of the wide bend duo-lock snap. Here s how: a) Unhook both clips that lock the snap; b) Slid your small eye hook onto the end with the smaller bend and reattach that clip; c) Use the end of the snap, with the larger bend, to attach to the lure. Note: I have even used this rigging when vertical jigging with consistent success. However, it s best suited for horizontal presentations as in casting and trolling. Note on snap swivels I exclusively fish with braided mainline to minimize line twist, and stretch, and to maximize sensitivity. The only time I use a snap swivel, to avoid potential line twist, is when I troll the SBF. But, when fishing with mono mainline, line twist can be a constant problem, best relieved with a swivel. The only time you should attach a snap swivel to the SBF is when casting or trolling. When vertical jigging, attach a swivel between your mainline and leader then only use a snap attached to the lure. This prevents hook-toline fouling when vertical jigging. Thank you for subscribing to the Mack Attack and join us next month for the December issue. Happy Thanksgiving...Pete Gary s Fishing Corner Fall Trout Fishing In Northern California By Gary Miralles Often I m asked, What are your favorite lakes to fish throughout different seasons? Of course, Shasta Lake often comes up as my favorite; I guess that s why I lived there for 40 years of my life. That being said, I do also enjoy many other great fisheries located throughout Northern California. With November now upon us, Eagle Lake is a great fishery for this time of year. This 22,000 acre lake sits at 5,000 feet of elevation and about 20 miles north of Suasanville, Calif., in Lassen County. Eagle Lake is relatively shallow, reaching maybe 60-feet at its deepest point. The fish hold in the south end of the lake in the summer months but migrate north into the shallow water bays when the color temperatures set in. November is my favorite month to fish this beautiful and peaceful lake. I primarily fish north of the little town of Spalding in areas called Halfmoon Bay, Bucks Bay, Troxel Bay and the North Basin during the fall months. The shoreline in most of these areas are covered with cattails or tules, which provide good cover for hungry trout as they feed on the abundant population of tui chub, the primary food source on Eagle Lake. It s important to keep in mind, however, that the water in these areas is no more than 12-feet deep, so toplining is the only method used. The Cripplure, Hum Dinger and Pee Wee Wiggle Hoochie are the best lures for these areas, as you re able to fish them right on, or just below, the surface. Typically, I will spread out four rods out the back: a 1/4 oz Cripplure about 100-feet behind the boat, another Cripplure at 150- feet, a Hum Dinger at 200-feet, and a Pee Wee Wiggle Hoochie with a small split shot 3-feet in front of the lure out the back. Another good setup is a set of Flash Lite Trolls or Troll-Lite Flashers and a Wedding Ring spinner tipped with a night crawler. For best results, I usually troll just off the edge of the tules. I have even stopped the boat just off the tules and casted a Cripplure into open areas inside the vegetation with great success. The trout in this lake often weight 2- to 4-pounds with an occasional catch over 6-pounds. My favorite Hum Dinger and Cripplure colors to use on Eagle Lake include: Brass Crushed Fire, Brass Prism, Brass Red Prism, Brass Crushed Midnight, Red Gold Sand, Brass Red and Black Red Sand. When using the Pee Wee Wiggle Hoochie look for the Pink Flamingo or Flame Orange and gold Flash Lite or Troll Lite blades. At such a high elevation, the weather is cold this time of year, so be prepared and always check road conditions. For current conditions and fishing reports for Eagle Lake, contact Mack s Lure pro staffer Ed Fisk of Fish Tales Guide Service at 530-559-7175. Page 5
HOT DEAL OF THE MONTH Mack s Lure Line Tamer Spend more time fishing and less time rigging with the Line Tamer, an easy-to-use, stackable spooling tool that can be secured anywhere. This month only, get 2 Line Tamers for $9.99. Click Here. Question of the Month Have a question? We d love to answer it! Contact us at MacksLure@MacksLure.com if you have a question you would like to see featured! Q: I m looking to get out on the water for some fall walleye. What gear do you guys recommend this time of year? A: That s a great question. This time of the year is a really good time to be out walleye fishing, as they re going to go on the bite very soon. It s starting to get cold and a lot of the plankton and weed growth is starting to die off, which is where all of your food base is. Thus, the food base will start moving to other cover and spreading out rather than being kegged up in the weeds. The walleye will still be around these Photo of the Month weed lines, but will be moving much more than usual while also being more aggressive, eating anything they can find. Therefore, we would recommend trolling any of our larger profile products, such as the Double Whammy Walleye, Smile Blade Super Slow Death Rig and Wally Pop. The larger the profile, the better this time of year. You can also try to throw a Sonic BaitFish at the edges of the weed lines once you ve found the fish and vertically jig. Best of luck! Video of the Month Click Here to view our latest video. Fitted with a crank-style Wiggle Hoochie Bill and a 1.5- inch UV body, this kokanee, trout, salmon and walleye lure has an irresistible action. Troll the Pee Wee Wiggle Hoochie behind a dodger for deadly results. Visit MacksLure.com to view the entire line of Pee Wee Wiggle Hoochie products. If you have video s to share, we d love to see them!! Send your video links to: MacksLure@ MacksLure.com. Ken Hopper caught this 8.4-pound rainbow trout on New Melones Lake in California using a Cripplure in nickel and fish scale. What a catch! Send your photos to media@mackslure.com for consideration to be included in a future Mack Attack edition or on Facebook. Page 6