Fishing Articles
Tom Redington's
Lake Fork Bass Guide Service
 214-683-9572
tom@LakeForkGuideTrips.com
Full Time Licensed Professional Bass Guide
Serving Lake Fork and Lake Monticello

A Few Things I Learned in 2010 By Tom Redington Every fishing season I learn about a few new lures or I end up having a lot of luck with old lures in new situations. With so many baits and techniques these days it is nearly impossible to be a master at all of them. However, it certainly helps to add a new presentation or two each season to become a better angler. Following are a few techniques that I either started using or that played an increased role for me in the past year. Beefy Shaky Rigs: Traditional 1/8 oz light wire jigheads with 4” Hyper Finesse Worms have been my go-to shaky rig when the fishing gets tough, especially in tournaments. It seems like the co-angler weapon of choice this year on the FLW Tour was a ¼ to 3/8 oz jighead with a bulky trailer. Not only did this larger offering often catch bigger fish than a standard shaky head, but sometimes it also caught more fish. 5” Hyper Worms, Top Dog Lizards, Baby Fork Creatures and a host of bulky creature baits work great. Moreover, one of the hottest techniques at Lake Fork this year was using 3/8 to ¾ oz jigheads with 10” Fork Worms, Zig Zags, and Hyper Sticks out in 18 to 30 feet for summertime offshore lunkers. Power Dropshot: Similar to shaky heads, upsizing to bigger baits on your dropshot will produce bigger bass too. 10” Fork Worms work great with a ½ oz sinker, as do Hyper Sticks, Lizards and other bulky baits. Instead of rigging this on a spinning rod like my normal dropshot, I move up to a traditional worm rod like the 7’ 4” Dobyns Extreme 744C and upgrade to 15 to 20 lb FluoroHybrid Pro line. Light Carolina Rig: Definitely not a new rig, but a ¼ oz Carolina rig with about a 12” leader is a very versatile weapon in the spring. The more I use it, the better my results. I rig it with 15 lb FluoroHybrid Pro on a 7’8” Dobyns Extreme 784ML rod so I can whip it a mile. Around skittish spring lunkers on beds that are too deep to see or are staging on points and creeks before and after the spawn, this rig is highly effective. Traditionally I have rigged a Magic Shad, Zig Zag, Lizard or Baby Fork Creature on it. With the wild tail action of Lake Fork’s new Hyper Stick worm, it is my new favorite. Big Spinnerbaits Out Deep: Lake Fork legend Tony Clark turned me on to this little variation for offshore fishing, and a great way to catch a lunker. Simply remove the skirt on a 1 oz spinnerbait and trim the bait with a 4.5” Live Magic Shad. The heavy spinnerbait gets deep quickly and puts out a lot of flash to attract bass. Once they come in on it, the baitfish profile of the Live Magic Shad seals the deal. For bass that are chasing baitfish, either count this down to their level and slow roll it back, or let it go all the way to the bottom and try a swim and stop retrieve. Live Magic Shad on Jighead: PAA pro Justin Rackley got me hooked on this little number. It’s another great technique for offshore fish, especially when they are coming up schooling. Simply rig a 3.5” Live Magic Shad on a ¼ to 3/8 oz ballhead jig and you get the swimming action of a swimbait at any depth you desire. Count it down to the depth of the fish and use a very slow retrieve and mix in a few stops and starts. You want to launch this rig out there to land it right on schooling fish, so I rig it on a 7’3” Dobyns Champion 733C rod spooled with 10-12 lb PowerSilk mono. Open water allows me to get away with lighter line, and the small diameter and zero memory of PowerSilk allow for super long distance. Vibrating Jig/Live Magic Shad: This is now a bait that I have tied on for the entire year because it is so versatile and so productive. From prespawn fishing around grass to skipping docks to deep water, I can cover the entire water column with a ¼ oz to ¾ oz vibrating bladed jig like a Phenix Vibrator Jig or Bohonk’s Echo Magic with a 3.5” or 4.5” Live Magic Shad trailer. The unique vibrations and tail wiggle of the jig and swimbait combo almost always produces at least a few strikes and normally big fish. I’ve found the 734C Dobyns as the perfect rod for this rig, using braided line around grass but I prefer FluoroHybrid Pro in more open water situations. Hopefully a couple of these tactics help you catch a few more fish in 2011. If I can be of assistance, please contact me at 214-683-9572 or e-mail me through my website, www.LakeForkGuideTrips.com.

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