Enhancing Forward Facing Sonar by Marc Marcantonio, Page 5

Enhancing Forward Facing Sonar by Marc Marcantonio, Page 5

Winter 2024

®

Hobbs Jr. and I together developed a winning technique called “DropSwimming”.

In short this is the use of a lightweight drop-shot rig that you cast and retrieve for suspended bass in the middle of the water column. Often the use of a one-sixteenth ounce or one-eighth ounce QuickDrop dropshot weight is used with about six to eight inches of leader between the hook and weight. The Scope Shad is nose-hooked preferably with a tiny #2 or #4 Gamakatsu G-Finesse Dropshot Hook.

DropSwimming involves casting to the bass, letting it sink to the level of the bass, and then shaking your rod tip while constantly and slowly turning your reel handle to

retrieve the shaking bait

just above the level

of the bass. If you

haven’t tried

DropSwimming, you are missing out on a lot of bass that are difficult to catch any other way.

Certainly, the Scope Shad can be effectively fished in the traditional dropshot manner. A one-quarter or three- eighths ounce QuickDrop weight keeps the bait at the bottom where feeding bass are often located. These bass are sometimes difficult to see on FFS as they can blend into the bottom, and often when fishing a dropshot on the bottom while watching your FFS screen you will see the bass appear out of nowhere and react to your presentation. The Mega Floater Formula is ideal to use with a dropshot rig especially with a long leader to float the Scope Shad above a weed bed making it visible to feeding bass.

Time to get on the train and maximize the value of your Forward Facing Sonar with the latest tools designed specifically for FFS. The new Yamamoto Scope Shad will put more smiles on your face, and bass in your livewell! Ciao! •

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