Tips how to rig plastic tubes to catch smallmouth, largemouth bass and northern pike

To the right is an illustration sent in by Dubie to show me how he prefers to rig his plastic tubes when he fishes the Rideau River around Kilmarnock. Fishing in the slop, he tosses this relative lightweight around, looking for patches of open water. Note the wire weed guard protecting the tip from catching on weeds or grass or lily pads. Rylake was the next contestant, posting a message that included this picture of a Mizmo tube that looks to be a 5.5 incher, texas-rigged on a worm hook.	Dubie's tubie - the inspiration to the contest
The bullet sinker can be pegged to your line with a splint from a tooth pick so that it stays snug against your tube. Keep a variety of different size bullet weights in your box because sometimes even 1/8 oz can make a huge difference as to how effectively you are able to fish this kind of tube - it depends on the kind of cover you encounter. I like to use rubber bobber stops to keep the weight snug to the tube. Other people like to have the weight sliding freely up and down the line (not me though). Rylake adds this... "Since the weight is more concentrated in the head with this system, the tube almost stands up perfectly straight on the bottom. It makes the tube dip and dive great, and the best part is that it is totally weedless."	Rylake entered the competition with this suggestion. We'll give credit to Mizmo Bait Company for the picture.
On that note, Dubie mentioned that his tournament partner likes to fish with a weight inside a plastic tube. This is something I started doing myself this past summer and I loved it for weedlessness (don't know if it is in the dictionary but it is a word used in my boat a lot) and the nice clean appearance of pure tube with no visible weights. I was about to post the "inside the tube" tip myself when Spinner jumped into the contest by sending in this picture of a yellow tube.	Spinner used this picture to demonstrate how a weight can be used inside a tube. This pic came from Bass Pro Shop	Then Spinner sent in this picture of a weight that could be inserted in the tube, again from the Bass Pro Shop site.
Did anyone try harder than Spinner to get his point across? He even sent me this picture that you see on the right. It being Hallowe'en at that time, I thought I was looking at a plan for a new ghost outfit. And it worked great too, except I wasn't keen on the huge 400/0 hook I had fashioned from a coat hanger, wedged firmly betwixt my cheeks. Did I feel stupid the next day when my headache passed and I could clearly see that Spinner was demonstrating how the weight sits on the bend of the hook inside the tube. And for those who like to work with bass-calling rattles, the weight can be replaced with a rattle chamber. This is a good point to show my own variation on the weight inside-the-tube theme. First, I start to rig with a 5/0 texposer in the same way as one texas rigs a worm. I squirt a shot of bass jelly inside the tube for lubrication and yummy flavouring - yummmm! I slide in the bullet sinker and push it to the top of the tube. I trim off half of the tentacles and attach a Uncle Josh Craw Frog to the texposer.	Above is Spinner's hand-drawn demonstration of an inside-the-tube weight. Below is a pic of the kind of rattle that could replace the weight if one was so inclined. Another Bass Pro Shop picture that is not as educational as Spinner's pic.

Bobber and I call it a Fat Ass Porker or something like that. Depending on the weight, you affect its rate of fall. As it spirals down, those little pork legs on back are just kickin' away - beautiful.

And does it catch fish? Yes!

The bass on the right was waiting for my Fat Ass Porker to slide off the edge of a lily pad, and when it did...SSSSLLLLuuuuuuRRRRRPPPPPPP! Pike sure love to nail it as well, and it looks awesome when it is simply retrieved back to the boat in a steady swim, or a twitching motion, or crawled slowly across the bottom. The versatility is exceptional!

Getting back to suggestions sent in by visitors to the site, SteveC said that a chunk of Alka Seltzer pushed inside creates a bubbling sensation that would cure the indigestion of any bass. Sounds like a cool idea to me!

Dubie mentioned another idea for tubes that I have never personally tried but certainly will next bass season, and that is drop-shotting. Whatever you can put on a hook can be drop-shotted, but I have never tried a tube before. Even so, I have no doubt that the technique would be deadly for smallmouth and deep largies. The trick is to know how much line is required between bait and weight to keep your bait off the bottom at a level where the fish want it. Start off with a foot and add six inch increments. When the weight is on the bottom, keep your line tight. Unless you are a mannequin, simply holding your fishing rod will cause your tube or worm or whatever to quiver on the hook. If required, a gentle shaking motion will really cause the bait to undulate. Practice watching what the bait does in shallower water beside the boat to be convinced that this is a deadly lazy-man tactic.

And I can't forget to mention the obvious way to rig a tube - with a jig, of course, tied on to the end of your line.

Rigging a tube in this manner is great for fishing deeper water where you don't expect to get hung up on grass or weeds or wood. To find out what the fish want on any given day, vary your retrieve or jigging motion until you determine what kind of presentation turns on the fish.

Sometimes I like to simply drag this kind of tube over the bottom, helping it over any snags that grab at it. Other times, a vertical jig of 12 inches or so works best. Always stay in contact with your tube by allowing no slack in your line, gently lowering it back down to the bottom. Usually fish will grab the tube as it falls.

What else can you do with a tube? Believe me, you are only limited by your own imagination - a demented imagination in my case. In the spring, I intend to try out a Happy Meal Barbie dressed in a modified red/black Fat Ass Salty Special - should be deadly for large pike at Pinecrest on the Ottawa.

Pardon me while I grab another refreshment.