Spring 2024
JERK SHAD STILL CATCHES BASS
The first tactic up is the Jerk Shad. This was one of the baits that made the early plastics craze come to life. It is a bait that resembles a shad, one of the bass’ top forage targets day-in and day-out. Early fishing patterns were to Texas-rig a jerk shad on a straight hook and tie this to your spinning rod and reel spooled with monofilament line. When you look at this makeup, it was a top bass producer in its time, but when other bass tactics started to gain traction, it began to fall off bass fishermen’s radar.
Transporting the jerk shad into today’s mix, I still fish it on a spinning system, but now I use braided line and adjust my leader to get my jerk shad to act and fish differently according to the presentation and conditions I am faced with.
Prime areas to target you jerk shad presentation, dock areas, edges of pads, weed flats, weed edges, and deeper weed lines.
Upper Water Column: If I want to fish the jerk shad on pad edges or over shallow weed edges, I will arm my braided line with a mono leader. The floating characteristics of the monofilament line will slow the fall down, keeping it up in the upper bite zone longer and slowing down the bait’s action. I will team my jerk shad with a lighter wire EWG worm hook.
Lower Water Column: If I need to get my jerk shad deeper in the water column, I will switch to a fluorocarbon leader. Fluorocarbon has a sinking characteristic; that will slowly drop my jerk shad offering.
If I need to accelerate this sink rate, I will change and use a heavy-duty EWG Worm Hook. This hook is made of a thicker, stronger wire material, slightly heavier than a standard EWG worm hook. This adjustment will increase my sink rate and allow me to work my jerk shad deeper into the water column at a faster rate than before. It allows me to cover water faster, increasing my coverage and bite capabilities.
Jerk Shad Modification #1: A popular tweak that I use if I need to increase the action of my jerk shad or reach a slightly deeper depth, is to take a Storm Suspend Lead Strip and wrap this on the hook shank. This modification adds just enough weight so I can fish my jerk shad with a faster action and deeper in the water column.
Jerk Shad Modification #2: With more color options available today, adjust your jerk shad colors to match the forage in your waters. Pick and use colors that will attract to target and trigger the bass’ attention. A straightforward addition to attract more attention is to take a black or red Sharpie and put a round dot on both sides of your bait at the hook point level. This dot will create a focus point for the bass to home in on when it strikes.
Jerk Shad Modification #3: Another tip that I use to help trigger bites is to dip my jerk shad’s tail in chartreuse or red Spike-It dye. This adds an attractive color and scent to the bait, helping to trigger more strikes along the way.
SPLIT-SHOT RIG IS THE C-RIG’S COUSIN
The split-shot rig was an early follow-up to its deeper water cousin, the Carolina rig. This is a great option to fish when covering shallow water and looking for spawning bass early in the season or for roaming bass early or later in the day. It is a great rig to search around docks and inside weedline areas that hold feeding bass. When faced with fishing off colored water, this is one of the rigs that I grab to cover water and break down new areas. I can make long casts and drag my split-shot rig around looking for signs of bass. When I get a few bites in an area, that is a signal to slow down and pick apart the area better.
Plastic Lure Options For A Split Shot: When it comes to baits, I choose to fish a 6-inch finesse worm as my first choice. This bait will slowly dance up off the bottom, inviting bass to bite. If I am looking to change my bait options, I can use a 3-inch craw or 4-inch lizard. Both these added bait options will give the bass an unusual look and action. This is an excellent presentation when looking for spawning/ bedding bass, exploring new waters, looking for signs of bass that are on the move, and looking for food.
Split-Shot Rigging Option #1: The split shot can be rigged in a few diverse ways; I fish this on a spinning setup spooled with 10-pound fluorocarbon line. On my line, I will crimp a split-shot 16- to 18-inches up my line then tie a light wire EWG worm hook at the end of my line.
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