Drop shot rig for eyes

[PFUNK]

Planning a fishing trip up to Canada this summer for eyes and pike and was doing a little research on the drop shot method. I heard it works well for fishing rocks, which we will be. Anyone use this technique often who could tell me a little more about their set up? For example, what size hooks do you use, size of weight (we will be fishing shallower water 10-15 feet), soft plastics or real minnow (ours would be dead and salted), type of line, etc. Any tips are appreciated.

[slipperybob]

Use either set up for jigging or lindy rigs. Experiment with length setting. I usually start with only about 4 inches and work my way up to a foot or two.

[Stick in Mud]

Instead of reinventing the wheel and retyping all the good information, I'll just direct you to the bass forum, where there are almost weekly threads about drop shotting. Just do a quick search there and you'll find oodles of good info.

But they do work very well for walleyes, too. I use them in the river, and I've caught walleyes on them while using them for bass.

[PerchJerker]

Hey Jeremy.

I do quite a bit of dropshot rigging for bass and catch quite a few walleyes doing it too. It's a great technique for bass fishing and picking up other fish.

I've also done some dropshot rigging in Canada on walleye trips but I really don't like it as much in that situation. Because of the short hooks and the sharp teeth the line gets knicked up a lot and I find myself retieing a lot. Pike will really knick the line. It's a lot quicker to retie a jig than it is to retie a dropshot rig, so I don't use them all that much when I'm targeting walleyes. For walleyes I usually prefer jigs/minnows, jigs/plastics, live minnows on a split-shot rig, or even blade baits over dropshotting.

If you are going to try it I'd go with flourocarbon or a tougher mono like XT to try to combat the knicks problem. I use Standout hooks, they're great for dropshotting, in size 2, 4 or 6. If not using the Standout hooks then I use an octopus style hook, either a 4 or 6. I only use plastics --- 3 and 4 inch flukes or gulp minnows are great, especially in white. I also like 4 inch ringworms. Weights are very similar to jigging weights, maybe just a bit heavier - 1/4 to 1/2 ounce, maybe as small as 1/8 ounce. If you use the round weights made for dropshotting you won't get line twist, but if you try it with other styles/shapes of weight you can really twist up your line.

Hope that helps and good luck!

[PFUNK]

Thanks for the info. Checked out the bass forums and found some stuff on there, but I posted it here because I was curious to see if walleye fisherman had a different way of approaching it. I am hoping to get a little more info on technique. For example, after you bring the line tight and wiggle the plastic around for awhile, do you completely let the line go slack and allow the bait to fall to the bottom and lay there? Or do you wiggle and then hold the line tight but keep it still? Also, if you keep the line tight between the wiggling sequences, would it be better to use a floating plastic as opposed to a regular gulp minnow or something? Or is it better to use the regular plastics and allow them to sink to the bottom? Do you leave it still while it is on the bottom and try to watch for your line to move, or do you continue to wiggle it while leaving it lay on the bottom? Stuff like that. Totally new to the technique so trying to see what is a good technique to start with. Obviously if that doesnt work I will mix it up and see if I can find a method that does work. Also, if you are casting this rig and using a more horizontal approach, is it better to use a longer tag line to allow the bait to sit higher off the bottom. I would imagine if you have a short tag line and are making long casts, the angle of the line will not bring the bait very far off the bottom.

[slipperybob]

You have to let the fish tell you, but I've found that all my bites comes when I've stopped shaking or jigging the bait. Only on a few rare occassions would I get a bite as I just being to lift the bait off the bottom.

[PFUNK]

I also just checked the regs for Ontario and found that up to 4 hooks can be used on one line. Would it make sense to use a jig head tipped with a minnow instead of a lead sinker. That was they have two options of what they want to eat? Just a thought. Never been able to do that so not sure whether I will even try it or not, but seemed like an idea. Get a plastic and a real minnow down there at the same time.

[Stick in Mud]

As far as casting them, I don't usually throw them all that far...certainly not as far as a crankbait or a jig. I'm no expert, though, so I'm curious to see if others have more success casting them farther.

[slipperybob]

I only cast far when I'm shore fishing or fan casting to figure out the area.

[KidMoe]

I used to do this exclusively when i was a kid spending vacations in Wisconsin. The only difference was we used crawlers and hit them with a worm blower to make them float. Usually 1/4 ounce sinkers and about 18" to the hook. Lately, do well on the river with minnows and 1/2 to 3/4 ounce sinkers. As mentioned you do end up breaking off quite a bit since your fishing the bottom.

[Wayne Ek]

PFUNK; This is an older article, but it might give you a couple of ideas.

Smorgasbord Fishing

A Simple Rig To Use

By Wayne Ek

During a season of guiding, 40% of our trips are what we call smorgasbord trips. In other words, my clients want to catch fish, but they really don’t care what kind. They would be happy catching bass, walleye, northern or panfish, just as long as it pulls on their line. These are probably the easiest and most enjoyable trips to take out, as everyone catches fish and everyone is happy.

Most smorgasbord trips involve novice anglers. For guiding novice anglers I’ve found one rig that is trouble free to use and flat out catches fish; the drop-shot rig.

So what is a drop-shot rig? It’s basically a dropper rig, not unlike the wolf-river rigs used for trolling, but without the 3-way swivel. Or it’s similar to the old style catfish rigs made up of a heavy sinker and a short dropper-line. That’s the basic concept behind the drop-shot rig, only with a little more finesse. On a drop-shot rig you have a weight on the very end of your line where you would normally expect to find the hook, then above the weight you find the hook. Although a drop-shot rig can literally be fished anywhere, it excels when used as a deep-water finesse rig.

One of the first things you learn about drop-shot fishing is the importance of using a quality rod. Since all bites are detected via the rod and fishing line, you will just detect more bites by using a quality rod. I like to use a 7-foot rod for this presentation for a couple of reasons. First, drop-shot fishing is primarily a vertical presentation and a 7-foot rod just moves the presentation a little farther away from the boat. Second, a longer rod is more forgiving when fighting a fish, which is a big plus for novice anglers or young children. I use the same size spinning reels that you would use when rigging for walleyes when drop-shot fishing.

I like a quality super-braid as the main line on drop-shot rods for a couple of reasons. First, remember all bites are detected via the rod and fishing line and a super-braid transmits those bites up the line and to the rod better than any other line on the market. And second, a quality super-braid handles line twist better than monofilament or fluorocarbon lines. I like to add 6-feet of fluorocarbon to the super-braid as a leader. Remember, this is all about detecting the bite and the combination of a super-braid main line with a fluorocarbon leader does this better than any other thing I’ve tried.

Try to keep your terminal tackle simple. For hooks I stay with black/bronze size 4 and 6 hooks. For weights I will use the thin pencil style drop-shot weights in weeds or the round drop-shot weights on deep weed lines or rocks.

We don’t use live bait when drop-shot fishing; we use all plastics. I think you’re only limited by your imagination in the choice of plastics to use, but I have my choice narrowed down to just a few. In order of preference, Bungee Twin Tail Grub, Gulp leech, Tiny Fluke and Drop-shot worm.

So where are you going to use this simple rig? How about any deep water structure, coontail covered humps, bare rock bars or deep cabbage weed lines. Any deep structure where you can effectively fish a vertical presentation is a perfect place to try the drop-shot rig. If I had to pick one place where the drop-shot really shines it would be on a deep cabbage weed line. On a couple of our area lakes fishing the drop-shot at 22 to 28 feet is not at all uncommon.

The drop-shot is generally fished vertical, not unlike a jigging spoon or live bait rig. Just lower it to the bottom, take up a little slack line and hold it there. With clients I tell them to jiggle the rig less and lift it more. Finesse plastics wiggle and shake with the slightest rod movement. Drop-shot rigging is not a power fishing technique, you have to fish it slowly, very slowly, ever so slowly… are you following the theme here? It’s not at all uncommon to move along for 15 or 20 minutes fishing a piece of structure and then look up to find that you’ve only moved the boat 50 or 60 feet from your starting point.

Hopefully, I’ve piqued your interest in this simple but productive technique. As always, stay safe and we hope to see you on the water.

[h8go4s]

By coincidence, I recently re-read a 2004 In-Fisherman article on the late great Bill Binkleman. His conclusion on drop-shot rigs was that "a short leader produced more hookups than a hook tied directly to the main line via a palomar knot". Also, "In-Fisherman staff members have observed the same phenomenon". There is an illustration showing leaders of 8 to 14 inches. No mention of how the leaders are tied to the main line, maybe a 3-way swivel? This probably wouldn't work well with plastic baits because they'd just hang down on the leader. Since Binkleman was a crawler fan, I'd guess a blown-up crawler would have been his choice. I wonder if a leech or tail-hooked minnow would swim away from the main line and look pretty appetizing. I might have to give it a try.

Ron.

[fishhunter197]

A month ago i went out to Arizona for one to go somewhere warm and two learn some drop shop. This past summer when the water got warm i found myself cathing less Bass and figured Drop shot could help out around here when the bass go deep. Anyways i hired a guide that uses drop shot alot down there. We fished in about 20-30 foot of water, he had us cast out and pull line out till it hit bottom ( this way it would fall straight down) then real up the slack till you could feel your weight. Then we held it there for 15-30 sec ( no shaking or jigging just ) If no bit you pull slowly a foot or two at a time holding the bait there 15-30 sec each time. Some of the fish i caught i didnt even feel them strike and other just a little nudge. from what i learned when you think you are going slow you have to slow it down some more. Cant wait to try drop shop up here.

[kg2]

fishhunter197, were the AZ fish suspended or on bottom? (How long of a drop from hook to weight?)

[fishhunter197]

They were on the bottom we fished some points that came out some and small bays that were shallower ( Lake pleasant ) We had the hook 8-12" from the weight and used cylinder weights cause it was really rocky. He said by draging the weight on the bottom it hits rocks and makes noise so then the fish swim over to check it out. We used a 5" salted worm and that helped it float even with a little slack line the worm floated. It was alot of fun but no lunkers

[Lakeside_Nelson]

I use it quite a bit for walleyes as well. Usually I set it 8-16inches up. I even use this as a nice bobber rig too. I just barely lip hook the minnow or use a 3in gulp minnow.

[Stick in Mud]

What's the benefit of using a drop shot with a bobber????

[PFUNK]

I was wondering the same thing actually...

[Lakeside_Nelson]

On one of the rivers I fish it helps to keep the minnow in the strike zone, giving the minnow a free 360 degree range to swim but not up and down. I guess its not really needed, but its effective in current for us when the fish are inactive.

[PFUNK]

Just thought of something I hadn't considered before. I assume the spawn will be winding down about the time I am up in Canada but there should still be walleyes shallow guarding their beds. Would it make sense to be throwing a drop shot rig, which seems to be a very slow, finesse tactic? Or would it be wise to stick to a traditional jig pitching approach as you can cover more water quickly. That way you improve your chances of throwing a bait on a spawn bed because you are making casts more frequently and covering water quickly. Obviously I will give both a shot to see what is more productive, but it was just a thought that popped into my mind that maybe the drop shot will be hindering how much water I can cover.

[Jackpine Rob]

Unlike bass, walleyes don't guard their spawning grounds. The advantage of slowing down for walleyes (as in drop shot) early in the season would come primarily pre-spawn, where they are often holding deeper and sometimes tight-lipped, or post-spawn when there is often a several day window where they don't seem too interested in eating. Of course, since the walleyes don't all spawn at the same time, there are usually post-spawn fish that are eager to gobble up even while some are still having the proverbial cigarette.

[PerchJerker]

I agree, walleyes don't have spawning beds.

What you will have if you're close to the end of the spawn is walleyes in transition -- ie. moving from the spawning areas to feeding areas and then to summer areas. Look for fish on shallow and rocky shorelines, and on major points connected to shallower shorelines. Fishing close to inlets is something else to try. If you can find sand flats they can be dynamite.

At that time of year walleyes are moving and scattered, which can be good because it can make it easier to find fish (ie. there's probably some fish almost everywhere, opposed to earlier in the spring or later in the summer, when they're probably grouped up more). You might also find fish on the first offshore reefs and humps and saddles that are close to shoreline breaks and major points.

[PFUNK]

I agree, walleyes don't have spawning beds.

I was not aware of this. I thought that the males stayed to guard the spawning areas while the larger females moved a little deeper during the day and came back up shallower at night. Good to know. I agree about the sand flats. We will definitely be trying to find those with than H'bird we got from you perchjerker. My dad said it worked real well for him up on mille lacs his first trip with it. Is there a trick to distinguishing between rock and sand on the sonar? I would imagine if it is large boulders you would be able to see that on the sonar, but other than looking for double echoes etc, how can a guy distinguish between sand and rock on a sonar? I guess there is always the option to drag a bait across the bottom and feel for the difference but it would be nice to be able to use the sonar and cruise around in search of sand flats.

[PerchJerker]

The males aren't hanging around to guard anything ..... they're hanging around letting nature take its course (ie. hoping to get lucky).

It's hard to tell sand from rock on the sonar, they're both hard bottoms. With rocky bottoms you'll get harder sonar returns, but that can be hard to distinguish. With rocky bottoms you'll also get an uneven bottom reading, but any wave action causing the boat to bounce will also make that indistinguishable. It's easier to mark fish on flat hard bottoms, you don't have rocks sticking up above the bottom so it's easier to get separation of the fish above the bottom. If the fish are right in the rocks, especially in "shallow" water, it can be almost impossible to mark them.

As you said, the best way is to use your jig to feel what's down there. And you can look at the shoreline too - sandy beaches or sand banks are usually a good tip-off.

Another good idea is to take a little time with your new HB and try to learn what it's showing you, and adjust the settings. Get over a bottom you know is rocky and see what it looks like, and adjust the settings to tweak it for the best performance. Same thing with a mud or sand or weedy bottom. If you spend 30 or 60 minutes just focusing on your sonar and getting it dialed in and learing what it's showing you ---- and not fishing for those 30-60 minutes --- it could really pay off for you on the rest of the trip.

[delcecchi]

Uh, walleyes don't guard their beds. They don't even make or use beds. They just hit and run and take no responsibility for their offspring.

I think walleye are setting a bad example for the youth of this country.