Swimbaits & Jig Spoons...2 Separate Q's

[dtrs5kprs]

Couple of basically unrelated Q's for any and all...

1) Am looking for a way to turn more of my spring Redfin followers into Redfin eaters. One of the deals I want to play with is the Spro Shad Swimbait (floater) and a few others of the "mid size" hard swimbaits. Watched some video online of these big beasts and it looks like you can wake them more or less like a fin. On the slow sink models looks like they will swim back right under the surface. Thought that might be useful when the wind is blowing a bit. Either version should be easier to throw than a fin.

Am I off base with these? Anyone try them. I know the big soft plastic swimbaits worked pretty well last spring, but thought that might have been more of a high water thing.

2) Completely unrelated, a Q on fall /winter...Keep running into people who tell me they are spooning docks in Oct/Nov. First couple times I thought they meant corners or cables (which I have done), also was not sure they weren't joshing a bit. Could basically make a list at this point of people whose info I trust that have talked about it, most indicating they are more or less pitching and flipping jig spoons just like a jig & sawing them up and down on cables, posts, etc. Tried it a bit, but have next to zero confidence in it vs spooning a hump or a gut.

Any help on this would be great. Wanting to try it more seriously next fall when at the lake. Can anyone recomend any of the guides who could help teach it? Thanks all.

[dblades]

Couple of basically unrelated Q's for any and all...

1) Am looking for a way to turn more of my spring Redfin followers into Redfin eaters. One of the deals I want to play with is the Spro Shad Swimbait (floater) and a few others of the "mid size" hard swimbaits. Watched some video online of these big beasts and it looks like you can wake them more or less like a fin. On the slow sink models looks like they will swim back right under the surface. Thought that might be useful when the wind is blowing a bit. Either version should be easier to throw than a fin.

Am I off base with these? Anyone try them. I know the big soft plastic swimbaits worked pretty well last spring, but thought that might have been more of a high water thing.

I think Cap. Don was recommending a Mikey Jr last year for this .

[Tom Spence]

dtrs,

I was paired with Wayne Fowler in a pro am in Oct of 2007 on Table Rock. It was a lesson in dock spooning. I had never doen it before and watching him work it around docks was a treat. Just like you I had worked the cables and corners before but had never seen anyone flipping it back deep in stalls, under floats, and around lifts and other such obstacles like he did. He treated it like a jig in the way he got it in areas where the fish were.

[focused fishing]

dtrs,

I am excited to see how the new hard swimbaits work this spring as weel. Puchased a couple of Tru-Tungsten swimbaits this winter and can't wait to throw 'em. I love to throw a fin but the tunning process can be a nightmare, took the new swimbaits out and they ran great right out of the box. The wobble isn't quite as wide as the Red Fin so that is my only concern.

Like t1365 said, treat the dock just like you would with a jig, flip / pitch to every possible place you can put a spoon. Use heavy line, 20# fluoro, and plan on loosing a bunch of spoons.

I will post how the Swimbaits work once the bite gets going.

EP

[Bill Babler]

Donnie, gave me one of the Micky Finn's last year. I have decided to put gas and oil in it and use it for a kicker motor, I'm sure it is at least 4 HP.

All kidding aside, I know he catches lots of fish on it, but that darn thing scares me to death. If you have confidence in a bait it will work. I am working up the nerve to throw that thing.

I don't believe the soft plastic Swimbaits work here, just to big.

[dtrs5kprs]

Thanks all. I'm kind of in awe of this spoon and dock deal, and way too many people (as above) are telling me to try it. I make my own spoons anyway so the only expense is really the time and the gamakatsu. Any input on how braid might work for that? Would think it is basically a reaction deal so the visibility might not matter as much.

The soft swimbaits I have used are smaller...the 4 or so inch Bass Magic and some that are basically large sassy shad types with a big leadhead. The shad types remind me a bit of the white hair jig and trailer deal that sometimes works, or a swim grub writ large. Of course that was in the high water when I was also flipping 7' ribbontails for brownies. At least the big hard swimmers should throw better than a fin.