Advice needed... What am I doing wrong?

[Zzippper]

I am hoping someone can help me out with some advice.

I'm getting a handle on finding the fish (LM Bass)... where, structure etc.
I'm getting a handle on what lures to use (I think).
The fish are hitting my baits... and holding on.

But... I am consistantly loosing them before I can get them to the boat.

I am using braided line and a variety of baits. Spinnerbaits, buzz baits, jigs with plastics and chatterbaits (a personal favorate),

Am I not setting the hook hard enough? Or too hard?

Am I setting the hook too soon? Too late?

Am I letting the line go too slack while I am trying to reel them in?

Please Help!

[almontefisher]

Those all might be happening...Are your hooks sharp??? Do you wait to long or not long enough before setting the hook( that depends on the lure)...Many questions can create this situation. Try setting the hook hard a few times and if they keep coming off you may be setting to hard. It is really hard to say without seeing you fish. Keep trying be patient tight lines and rod up. These are the best adives I can give you without seeing you fish. Others will surely have things for you to try..but most important is keep trying. People have different hook-up rates...mine is about 80-90% but some may be lower. The last question would be if your hooks were barbed or not.

What do others have to say??

[toobinator]

It would also help if we knew what action of rod you were using. A lot of guys use light action rods, but find they don't have enough backbone to bury the hook.

Ed

[Zzippper]

Hooks are barbed and sharp - I sharpen them out of the package and check them regularly.

Rods - medium and medium-heavy. They seem to have plenty of backbone. Bait casting reels.

I suspect that I am not reeling in enough line immediately following the hookset and that the slack line is given them enough leeway to get away.

The only other thing I can think of is that my drag isn't set high enough so the spool feeds line instead of burying the hook.

[1lastcast]

Oh the joys of fishing.

I just started using fireline on most of my rods. The biggest pro of this type of line can also be a real con. Im talking about stretch there is none with braided line. This means that while you feel everything. A hard hook set can rip a fishes jaw apart. even a hard fighting fish can rip a hole around the hook causing it to fall out.

If you are setting the hook hard. Id say you are ripping the hooks from the fishes jaws. If your not setting the hook hard. Then Id say your hooks are to small or dull? What size of hook are you using? Bigger is better for LM bass.

I wouldent worry about top water misses. Thats normal.

I have a friend that uses a spary scent "BANG" to keep the fish on a little longer. It seems to work too.

Hey if keeping fish on your line is all the trouble your having. Id say the rest will come easy. finding the fish and getting the bit is the hardest thing to master.

[toobinator]

Zzipper: There's your problem, the slack line. I suspect you are dropping the rod tip after the hookset, giving the fish slack line. Keep your line tight and reel the tip down (am I making sense???) Any slack line and the fish goes bye bye.

Ed

[Zzippper]

Zzipper: There's your problem, the slack line. I suspect you are dropping the rod tip after the hookset, giving the fish slack line. Keep your line tight and reel the tip down (am I making sense???) Any slack line and the fish goes bye bye.

Ed

I understand exactly what you mean.

I think you nailed it with that explanation. I think I am dropping the rod tip after the hookset.

Thanks!

[CrappieKeith]

I agree on the last comment.Slack in the line will loose that fish. Keep your tip up .When the bass jumps ,he'll try to spit the hook .Make sure you reel on it when it's mid air or you' ll really see hooks get spit out.

My buddy likes to watch the jump only he stops reeling & the hook goes flying.

[SteveO]

Great post Zzipper and I hope you get a higher landing percentage.

It sure is a common mistake; I'll even say "rod tip up, line tight" when my fishing buddy is bringing in a good one and I like getting the reminder myself. ...A good little reminder when you are otherwise caught up in the excitement.

Concerning barbs, when I am fishing for walleye and pike I often go barbless and in my opinion barbless does not impact the percentage of fish landed. Plus your line is back in the water quicker because the hooks pops out once the fish is in the net. Bass....different story.

[YakAttack]

The suggestion I'm going to give applies to many problem solving scenarios -- eliminate one possible cause at a time. Sounds like you're going to try to not drop the rod tip after the hookset. You should do that and keep everything else the same.

If that didn't solve it, try bigger hooks. If that didn't solve it, try lighter hooksets, etc, etc.

If you want to gain an understanding of the problem, change one thing at a time until the problem is solved. That's the only way to figure out what the problem actually was, and in so doing gaining a better understanding.

Prolly not news to many of you. Just my two cents.

[Graembo]

What's the gear ratio of your reel??....if its too low it'll be easier to not reel enough line up after your hookset is maxed out (upwards). Just a thought to improve on what you've figured out already.

G

[wolfe]

Hey Zzip...

You know what I used to do when I got a good hit? Rather than giving a real good, solid hookset, I'd give a set but basically just be reeling in really fast almost simultaneously. I think this was like a reaction to the strike. It took some concentration to put the good hookset first before the excitement of retrieving began.

Interestingly, we see Tyler (my older son) doing this very same thing once in a while and we have to remind him to set the hook well.

The point of keeping your rod tip up on the retrieve is a valuable tip. And when you've got a smallmouth launching itself into the air, this is a challenge and a lot of fun to kind of "stay ahead of him". And like Hitman Hill noted, I tend to lose a larger percentage of surface lure-hooked bass.

You sound like you're doing a great job; keep it up!

W.

[fisheye lens]

If it's bass then reel in and don't stop, no room to play with these guys and that's the problem a lot of people have as are too used to the trout playground. Any kind of bass are like work in the bag. Reel 'em in, net 'em, club 'em, eat 'em. Doesn't really matter if your rod is high or low. Just keep winding and grinding.

[Scumking]

Hey ZZ, Listen to ED,the slack will kill you every time .I lost a hgood this past saturday when I gave him too much slack .

Ron