Westernbass Magazine - June 2012, Page 13

Westernbass Magazine - June 2012, Page 13

across the deck, i would have lost it had i been further away. after reeling in a 1.5-lb spot, i dropped ‘er back down and this time i just held it there in a dead stick mode. it sat for a minute or so and i got slammed again. This time a 2-lber. Well, for the next couple hours i caught a bunch of nice bass dead sticking a Baby Basstrix. This was done on my 7-ft medium Powell spinning rod with 6-lb Berkley fluorocarbon line and a Shimano spinning reel. i started experimenting more with these fish since i was just fun fishing. That day the water was clear and the water temp was 51. The fish were 40- to 65-feet deep with pockets of shad on creek channel bends. Most of the fish were suspended around 40-ft and i got tired of waiting for my ¼ -oz sinker to get down there, so i changed my setup. This time i went for a 7-ft Powell bait casting rod, medium-heavy with 10-lb fluorocarbon line, a 2/0 dropshot hook and a 5/8-oz pencil dropshot lead. When i hit free spool the bait was down to 40-ft in less than 20-seconds. i was still dead sticking and getting the same results as i was

with a much lighter set up; but now i could yard them in and get right back down there for another fish. it was as fast as spooning, but more effective at that time. So if they are not eating your spoon very well try this set up. it’s not only effective, but a lot of fun. i have done this for many years now in many situations all with a different twist. one of my favorite ways to fish this set up is to use it as search bait. i use the 3-inch Basstrix, but many other variations of baits that i have tried work. Stick to shad type baits in these patterns. When you are in areas such as backs of creeks, say 150-feet or less, use your maps and find the creek channel on your graph and you will find springs bubbling up. take your dropshot set up with at least 3/8-oz weight and make a long cast, keep a tight line and just keep a close eye on your line. You will see a light twitch in the line and he is likely there. Funny thing is, if you don’t see the twitch he will grab the bait and keep swimming with it and you think it’s still sinking, but it’s really the bass swimming with it. This gives him time to chew it and spit in and you never knew you were hit; so pay attention. The bait falls like a pendulum and

Issue 3

June 2012

13