Drop shot

[Riverfishin]

has anyone ever tried dropshotting while Icefishing, i was just thinking about it and it seems like it would be pretty good for walleyes.

[ScottND]

Yes...I did it while fishing for crappies. Use a spring bobber (strike indicator) and no matter which direction they move the lure it moves...WORKS GREAT!

[PikeTipper]

How heavy of a weight did you use? I tried it too and had decent luck.

[hanson]

I've been thinking about this all morning trying to come up with a situation where this presentation would excel and I'm still stumped.

I think the benefits of a sensitive deadstick rod, spring bobber, or neutrally balanced ice buster will beat a drop shot presentation in an ice fishing situation.

The basic principle of a drop shot is to suspend the bait in front of the fishes face. This basic principle is also accomplished with a deadstick or a float- the bait is presented to the fish a given distance off of the bottom.

Alot of the bites I get are when the fish comes 'up' with the bait. If your bait is anchored to the bottom with a weight, that is alot of extra resistance that will probably cause the fish to drop the lure.

I do believe you will catch fish with a drop shot presentation, I just think there are better options out there to detect a bite, especially a light one.

[Dan Thiem]

Hanson,

How about if you were fishing in an area with some current? Maybe it would work in that situation.

Whatever, at least the ice fishing forum is still being watched!

Come on hard water!

[PikeTipper]

I used it with a spring bobber, you have to be ready to set the hook but when the fish just sucks in the bait it will make the spring bobber move. If you have a little slack in the line then the fish usually doesn't move enough to feel the weight. It works great for perch fishing when I'm on the move, I never have to reset the depth when moving spots or worry about a bobber stop catching on the eye of the rod.

[hanson]

PikeTipper-

That was one of the applications I was thinking about. You can move quick and no matter what the depth, your bait will be within that set distance of the bottom. I would say if you don't have a flasher, this might be a good way to go.

But you mentioned perch fishing. Perch love to chase your bait up and out of the zone. It can be a little game of keep away sometimes to get them to bite. I like to watch my Marcum and get the fish to chase it up 3, 4, 5 feet or however far they are willing to go at times. I don't feel I'd be as successful with a weight suspended under my lure in this situation.

[PikeTipper]

The weight isn't suspended, it is right on the bottom so there is a little play in the line for the fish to hit but you can still see it on the spring bobber. I only use this for a 2nd line, I'll jig with the other and use the Vex in that hole. I love to mess with them too, sometimes it seems like they will follow your jig right into the hole before they hit!

[katoguy]

By leaving the little extra play in the line you can use a larger weight. This will enable you to drop to the bottom very fast when hole hopping or dropping quickly through school of little guys to get to the bottom & the big ones.

[Bruce Mosher]

I've used the Foam Walker as my weight for Drop Shottong in a river. The bait was about 1 foot above the bottom. The Foam Walker stands upright by itself and this system worked out pretty good. Or you can use just the Foam Walker with a short snell length of 1 to 2 feet with a smile blade (from Mack's Lure) spinner or something light weight that spins in slow current. It works pretty good! Bruce Mosher

[Mr.Seaguar]

I use a drop shot rig for sightfishing finicky panfish. With the dropshot you can make very precise jigging motions.