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By Terry Battisti

April 2, 2002

One is always met with anticipation when making an intrepid trek to a new lake! Especially a lake that is a far journey from your home. Such was my heightened sense of fishing adventure this past October as I traveled my way down from Idaho to Amistad Reservoir, which has its northern shore in Southwest Texas, and its southern bank in Mexico!

The trip was to meet up with a bunch of Internet fishing friends on the sprawling reservoir that's nourished with flowing waters from both the Rio Grande and Devil’s Rivers. Unlike many Texas reservoirs, Amistad is unique in that it resembles the long canyon lakes with deep crystal clear water which are found in the Western US, but hardly typical of Texas.

Arriving at the end of my journey, I got out of the truck at the lake launch ramp early in the morning. I was brimming with excitement due to the 10 m.p.h. steady wind. Knowing the lake had clear water, full of of shad, good rock structure and hydrilla, I just tingled with excitement that I would be able to get on a good jerkbait bite that day. Little did I know how quickly the bass of Amistad reservoir would confirm my expectations!

Slowing the boat down off plane, my partner for the day told me to take the front deck and run the boat. I smiled wide as I picked up my Loomis Popping rod rigged with a Lucky Craft Staysee 90SP jerkbait and dropped my first cast off a large point of hydrilla. Three jerks on the bait, and I was fast on to my first ever Texas largemouth! By the end of the day, my partner and I had boated over 100 fish from 2 and 4 pounds. Our best 5 went over 18lbs. On the same day, Anglers Choice was holding their year end fish-off and 14.9 lbs. was leading after this day. The two following days ended up better than the first with me being able to post a 19 lb. limit on Friday and a 21lb. limit and big fish honors on Saturday. As a comparative note, the Anglers Choice team that won the boat weighed in just over 28 lbs. for the tournament.

ROD SELECTION

Proper rod selection is of more importance with jerkbaits than with some other bait types. For me, a jerkbait rod needs to be at least 6.5 feet in length, fast in action, while at the same having a parabolic bend. My favorite jerkbait rods are G. Loomis PR844C and PR8400C popping rods. These rods, both 7 feet in length, have exactly the action described above. Long, limber rods are important for the same reason as in fishing crankbaits. They act as shock absorbers and aid in keeping fish pinned when a fish has not taken the bait completely. The longer rods also allow for longer casts in stiff winds.

LINE SELECTION

Line is another tackle consideration that needs not be overlooked. Personally, I go with the lightest line I can get away with when fishing jerkbaits. Light line allows the bait to achieve deeper depths along with more lively movement of the bait. Heavy line will tend to float a bait higher, which is good if you want that bait to stay shallow, but can also hamper the action of a small or suspending jerkbait. I have found that when fishing smaller jerkbaits like the Lucky Craft Pointer 78, or suspending jerkbaits, or deep-diving jerkbaits, 8lb test is what I turn to the most.

On the other hand, when I need to fish vast weed flats with high-floating jerkbaits like the Bomber Long-A, heavier line is required. As mentioned before, heavier line tends to float the bait better thus keeping you out of the weeds more. Heavy line is also required when fishing areas where large amounts of wood are present, to keep fish from bulling you into the snags. For these applications, I find myself throwing 12 to 15 lb. test line.

PRESENTATION

Once the proper rod has been selected and you have the right line spooled for the situation, one cannot go out and haphazardly throw these baits anywhere and expect to be met with complete success. I cannot overstate how important the proper retrieve is when fishing these minnow-shaped baits.

To work a jerkbait correctly, one must fish the bait on a semi-slack line, much like you do when fishing a Pop-R or Zara Spook. By fishing the bait on a semi-slack line, you allow the rod tip to attain almost top speed before the line tightens and moves the bait. This tip speed allows the bait to "instantly" move from a dead stop much like a live minnow floors it from 0 to 60 when spooked.

In order to accomplish this, hold the rod at roughly a 45 degree angle with respect to where the line is going into the water. Make sure that the line is semi-tight at this point. Next, force the rod tip forward and quickly jerk back on the rod making sure you use only your wrist. The reason for this is you can move your wrist much quicker than you can your whole arm. Once you have moved the bait forward and you are at the end of the stroke, stop the rod abruptly, push the rod tip forward and reel up the line making sure there is still a good amount of slack. By stopping the bait in this fashion, water resistance at the head will slow the bait down and the tail, still having some forward momentum (imagine stopping a bicycle with the front brakes only), will move the head of the lure to one side. Jerk the rod tip back again in the same fashion as before and complete the entire process all the way back to the boat. These are the same physics that allow you to "Walk the Dog" with a Sammy or Zara Spook but now you are doing it under water with a jerkbait. It's a similar concept, except you may not necessarily be able to track and fine-tune the jerkbait cadence by eye as easily as you can watch and adjust the antics of a Spook or Sammy.

That concept of cadence is another thing that is very important when fishing hard jerkbaits. For most of my fishing, I start out with a 1L-1R-2S~ 1L-1R-2S~ 1L-1R-2S~ balanced, rhythmic cadence back to the boat. By this I mean I’ll jerk the rod long once (1L), reel up slack (1R) and then give the rod two short jerks (2S) in quick succession without reeling. This retrieve has proven consistently effective on active fish from prespawn through fall.

In the winter months though, I find that a much slower methodical retrieve is best. For this time of year, I use mainly long-billed suspending lures like Lucky Crafts Staysee 90SP. This bait is perfect right out of the box and needs little or no adjustment. During this time of year I look mainly for points that lead to deep water. I’ll cast the bait well past the point and reel the bait down a few cranks to get it down. Once the bait is at its operative depth, stop reeling and let the bait pause from 10 seconds all the way up to a minute. This is where a perfectly suspending lure shines as it will stay in the strike zone and not tend to float up. To move the bait, use the same method as described above with the slack line but do not move the bait as far. Strikes will generally come when the bait is motionless and will be detected as either a light tap, as in worm fishing, or the line will start moving when it is not supposed to be!

RIP IT GOOD

Another tactic that has been talked about in the past but is not bandied about anymore is a technique called ripping. Ripping was made popular back in the mid-80’s by Denny Brauer after winning a BASS Invitational using the method. This method requires the use of a heavier action rod (i.e. a 7 foot pitching stick), heavier line, and shallow-running jerkbaits from 5 to 7 inches in length. Originally, Rapala Magnum Floaters in sizes F13 and F18 were used for this method but any large shallow-running jerkbait will work too.

The beauty of this ripping technique is that it seems to excel on days when there is lots of wind. I look for flats that the wind is blowing against and position the boat to drift across the flat. Once an area like this has been found, cast the bait as far as you can and work the bait back to the boat in long hard sweeps of the rod. There is no need to worry about maintaining slack in the line with this presentation. This is a big fish technique, thus the heavier tackle required, and strikes are generally violent.

Shown top to bottom left: FlashMinnow 110; SPRO Prime Minnow 45; Rebel F20S Minnow; Smithwick Suspending Rattlin' Rogue; LuckyCraft StaySee 90SP Ver. 2; LuckyCraft Staysee 80SP; Shown top to bottom right: Rapala HJ10 Husky Jerk; Rapala Husky Minnow (discontinued); LuckyCraft Pointer 78; Hellcat (discontinued); Daiwa TD Minnow SP; Mega Bait
Photo by Russ Bassdozer

CHANGING JERKBAIT COLOR TO MAKE THE FISH EAT

In the early 80’s I had the chance to fish with the best jerkbait fisherman I have ever met. During that time I was in Michigan for a month of vacation. Needless to say, I went fishing every day. As in many parts of the U.S., one can fish local evening tournaments during the week and this was the case back then. Before the first Thursday night tournament I was to fish with my buddy, he warned me that one guy named Herb had been winning all the local tournaments for the last month. All on jerkbaits. That night was no different. The next day I saw Herb at the tackle shop and asked him how he was doing it, winning everything? Herb told me to meet him at the ramp that evening and he would take me out.

I arrived at the ramp with rods in hand ready for my first lesson in jerkbait fishing. I loaded my rods in the boat and noticed Herb had 6 or 7 rods all rigged with jerkbaits of different colors. I didn’t say anything but I was pretty amazed at what I saw.

On the water he picked up his first rod and made a cast towards a weed point. A fish followed the bait up, but turned away. Quickly, he reeled his bait in, picked up a second rod and threw back on the fish. The fish ate the bait and Herb boated the fish. Upon getting the fish in the boat, he noticed the fish was on the rear hook and muttered, "That’s not the bait they want." He released the fish, picked up a different rod with a different color, and he was hung on another fish. Getting this fish in the boat, Herb showed me that this fish was hooked on the front treble. He stated decisively, "This is the bait they will eat." His theory was if a fish follows a jerkbait, you can get it to eat by changing up colors. This is a theory that I have used time and again, and it works. If you find you are either getting followed on the jerkbait or you are hooking fish and losing them (they are eating the rear treble), change colors until you get the fish to eat the front hook of the bait. A fish that eats the front hook is committed to eating the bait. A fish that eats the rear hook is only trying to get it away from him. You can change a fish's attitude by changing color assuming you have the right retrieve cadence.

MY FAVORITE BAITS

In the last twenty years of jerkbait fishing I have fished every jerkbait made. They are all good at times, but I find myself throwing mainly two baits nowadays. They are LuckyCraft (www.luckycraft.com) and Bomber (www.lurenet.com).

For the past four years most of my jerkbait fishing has been done with LuckyCraft baits. This is mainly because I don’t have to do anything with them. Every baits runs true out of the box and their finishes are unbelievable. The baits I fish are as follows.

Pointer 78 and 100: I fish these baits when I need a bait that doesn’t dive more than 4-5 feet under the water and suspends. The size of the bait is dependant on the forage size in the lake and how aggressive the fish are. The more aggressive the fish, the larger the bait and visa versa. Colors I use are Aurora Pro Blue, Ghost Minnow, Nishiki (Clown), Chartreuse Shad, and Table Rock Shad.

Staysee 80SP and Staysee 90SP Ver. 2: These are long billed jerkbaits that will dive 8-10 feet deep. I use these baits when I need a bait to go deeper than a Pointer or during the winter months. These baits suspend and can be worked very slowly without worry of them floating to the surface during the retrieve. Again, my favorite colors are the same as above.

FlashMinnow 110: This is a large shallow running bait (4.5 inches in length) that runs 2-3 feet deep. I have had my best luck on this bait while fishing large, wind blown flats. Because of the counter balance weighting system, you can fire this bait in the strongest of winds with accuracy and distance. This bait walks perfectly under the water and will not flip up or come out of the water when using the ripping technique described above.

Bomber Model 15A: This bait is the old "stand by" jerkbait and has been around since the early 80’s. I cut my "jerkbait teeth" on this bait and it has provided me with too many great days on the water to mention. This bait is 4.5 inches in length and floats. It can be made to suspend by using the weighting technique mentioned below. This bait walks under the water very easily using the "slack line" method. Colors that I use are Pearl Black to Grey/Orange Belly, Clear Blue Nose, Silver Flash Orange Belly, Chartreuse Flash Orange Belly, Bengal Firetiger, and Silver Flash/White Back Red Head.

WEIGHTING FLOATING JERKBAITS

Before the advent of suspending jerkbaits, people had to add weight to every floating jerkbait in order to keep them suspended. Ways to weight these baits varied from drilling holes and adding shot, to applying lead tape, or weighting hooks with lead wire. Over the years I have developed a technique for weighting these baits that works under most situations.

First though, water density needs to be covered. Water density changes depending on temperature, with its highest density being at 39 degrees Fahrenheit. This means a bait that may suspend during the winter months will actually sink during the summer months. To alleviate this problem, I do all my of my bait modifications at a water temperature which is roughly the highest I encounter during the year. For Idaho, this is around 70 degrees. In other states, you may want to use water of a little higher temperature depending upon what your high water temperature is for the year).

To adjust floating baits to suspend requires some time and effort but will pay off in the end. First, I locate a spool of 0.025 inch lead free wire at a fly tying shop. Then, I fill the kitchen sink up with water, making sure it is at the proper temperature. I then cut two lengths of wire and loosely wrap these sections around the front hook (or front and middle hook on three hook baits). I add wire to the hook(s) until the bait just barely floats to the surface. Once I have the correct length of wire, I take the hooks off the bait and sit down in front of my fly tying vise. Wrap the wire around the shank of the hook tightly against the previous wraps. Once the wire is on the hook, place the hook in the vice and take 3/0 fly tying thread (I prefer red thread) and wrap the wire completely finishing the tie off with half hitches or what fly tiers call a "whip finish". Once the thread is secured on the hook, coat the thread with clear nail polish or head cement and let dry. Then place them back on the bait.

As said before, the bait should slightly float at this point. In order to get the bait to suspend, add one Suspend Dot or Strip to the bait between the front hook and the bill. The reason for not making the bait suspend with the wire is the fact that if you encounter water temperatures higher than what you tuned the bait for, it will sink. So, by making it slightly lighter than required, you can adjust the weight by adding only one dot or strip to the bait, thus eliminating a large buildup of lead on the outside of the bait which can hinder its action.

CONCLUSION

I hope you find the techniques and tips in this article help you jerk more fish into your boat. As with any new technique, just remember that time and patience are the most important aspects to learning. With these tips, hopefully you will be able to go bag a good limit your first time out this spring using jerkbaits!

Good Fishing and let us know how you do!

- Terry Battisti

About the Author

Terry Battisti of Idaho Falls, Idaho stays busy with his job at a nuclear research facility, and owning/operating SnakeBite Custom Fishing Tackle (http://www.snakebite.net) hand poured lure company.

Terry first started bassing at the age of 12, joining his first bass club in Southern California by age 14. Still a kid at 38 today, Terry fishes the Idaho B.A.S.S. Federation circuit plus Open Team Tournaments all over the state. He has fished in over a dozen states and even made a long trip to Italy specifically to bass fish.

In his job as a chemical engineer, Terry publishes plenty of technical articles based on his research. This heavy writing experience has helped Terry to expand his writing skills into two of the best bass fishing magazines, Gary Yamamoto's Inside Line and In-Fisherman. When not fishing, writing, engineering chemicals or hand pouring lures, Terry can be found on the BFHP (http://www.wmi.org/bassfish) helping fellow anglers learn more about techniques and strategies.

The photo shows Terry with a 4.25 lb. smallie caught on a LuckyCraft Staysee 90SP Ver. 2 in Ghost Ayu color.

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