Discussion: Fishing Rubber, covering all the Bases

[finchaser]

I thought some of ya's might like to talk about rubber and how it fits into the fishing you do.....

OK condom man^^^^I've gone through about 40 packs in the last month and a half what do you suggest no profile BS either

I never use shads too expensive I use Rip tide 5" mullet on a lead jig head or Berkley Havoc's mullet on a lead jig head or DOA 5 /2" jerk baits on a jig head

SS you cant beat a 5" pink finesse or zoom fluke in pink when rain fish are present

[DarkSkies]

Condom man????
Actually I love it....the things you mooks come up with there are some of the most creative in the internet universe....
Don't hold back, keep em coming....


Fin, I would anwswer your post by saying I don't think I have met an angler so far in my years fishing who could out-fish you in the salt, with rubber.....the subtle things you do....really put you at the head of the rubber class......and your political views and rants and raves put you not too far from the rubber room....



If any of ya's are fortunate to fish next to the old geezer, take notes...for it's a lucky few who get to do that and see a Master at work....











******
That being said, we do fish different water...and.... at times.....

these things can matter.....very grateful for your experience and opinions though....

[porgy75]

Learning so much from this thread. Fin chaser would love to watch you fish one day. Thanks a lot guys!

[storminsteve]

I'm going to save my rubber till these blues are gone. I may give it a try when they thin out but I wouldl rather save money (no offense finchaser and dark) and toss metal or bucktail. You can put grubs on the bucktail. Sometimes I do. The pork rind lasts a lot longer though.

[DarkSkies]

Good responses, all. You cannot expect to be a good surf fisherman without learning how to fish rubber.

This is from a recent post:

I switched to rubber shads and nailed a fish close to legal size. This gave me the motivation I needed. I had been definitely feeling down about my night fishing trips. That activity continued for the next 1 1/2 hours.



Attachment 15875

Attachment 15876
Managed 3 bass to 11#.
Released all.
Biggest fish came on a bottle darter, the other fish came on rubber shads. First time for me, that I have gotten fish on shads, since the Spring.

I fish rubber a lot, but the most productive places for me have been in rivers, rips, inlets, or deeper water drop offs...

In addition to the surf zone when small bait is around, and the tsunami eels or small fin-s is the only thing they will hit......

This is my experience only, and others may feel differently. I like the plug bite because of the savage hits you get sometimes. It's very addictive to me and fits my personality.

Rubber is something I tend to rely on heavily when the water is colder, or the fish are closer to the bottom. In those cases it can be a premier presentation, even better than bucktails.....

**Right now, with all the smaller fish, and fish nosing in the sand close to the bottom, rubber should be one of the first things out of your bag...










** One of the best anglers to fish rubber out there is Finchaser. Before we crossed paths, I thought I was pretty decent fishing rubber. Wrong.....When I think of what I learned fishing rubber, much of it is due to his benevolence and patience. For that I am extremely grateful.

Anyone can fish rubber. Similarly, when the fish are very active it's easy to catch them. What separates that kind of catching, from a slow or scattered bite is the ability of the fisherman.

The subtle nuances, and things you do when fishing, is what often separates a skunk trip from a productive one....and there are few out there who can match the OGB's rubber jigging skills, either in the surf or on a boat...... With rubber, he will often outfish other anglers 3:1...even when they're fishing the same thing....This is a testament to why technique/presentation is so important.....

[hookset]

Anyone can fish rubber. Similarly, when the fish are very active it's easy to catch them. What separates that kind of catching, from a slow or scattered bite is the ability of the fisherman.

The subtle nuances, and things you do when fishing, is what often separates a skunk trip from a productive one...

True dat. Presentation is everything. The way you fish as well, the way you hold the rod. Some of the bigger shads have 2 eyelets on them, For jigging I use the top eyelet. For a smoother retrieve so it swims on a more even keel i use the eyelet on the front. Definitely makes a difference.

[gjb1969]

well i got some rubber lures now i like the way they look but with the way fishing went for me i have not tryed them still in packs sad but true how many of u guys out there seen or tryed these wave fishing tiki shadick 9 in was at a fishing flea market i took all the vender had he gave me a good deal now i gave a pack to dark so he would be the only guy i know of who has fished them but i dont know how he has done they look like the bass would beat the crap out of them i have a few colors but the one in the pic is purple the are salt covered and have a strong sent i just have not seen many guys useing them it seems odd the shape and and the way it can be fished so if any one wants to try let me know i haev a pack or two i can let go just let us know how u do

[Rip-Plugger]

my rubber box is so damn heavy,it must weigh 4 pounds.
I fish rivers 99% of the time so,i mostly need to get the rubber down.
my rubber of choice is the saltwater assassin sea-shad in 6-10 inch size.I use from a 5/8th oz leadhead to 1-1/2 oz depending on the tides speed.
with the moons influence I have to go heavier to get down deep in some holes I know well.
when I am at a more shallow spot I will throw the 5/8ths head.combined with the rubber it is an ounce or a bit better.

some of these holes are 45 feet deep and some are just 8-15 feet current speed dictates how heavy the head needs to be.
now,I get the heads from bass pro shops,they have a larger hook on the 5/8ths than most,and that size leadhead is hard to find in a bait shop.
I also use the standard shad bodies that I customize with a sharp knife or razor blade.makes them cast farther and smoother,no tumble.

BPS has a shad body that looks just like a baitfish,i forget the name right now but,it is a killer,,,,I have a shot of one,will post it in this post.
the sea-shad has the wobble tail that throbbs when it gets a hint of movement and when holding it in current down low/deep it will get slammed hard by a bass without you doing anything but,holding it.
MK and I have used this tech many times and love doing it.let the water work it for you.

in shallow,I will throw it waay out,let it settle and the line become straight then bring it home slow/steady,they hit it like a jackhammer.
I have also taken fluke at night with it a few times and caught an eel once too.
at this time of year it is what I would throw and let it stay low,bring it home slow.


1-sea-shad
2-BPS shad

R-P

[baitstealer]

What about the rubber shads that everyone is catching them on now. Does it matter if the surf water in close is dirty or clean? Thanks in advance.

[Rip-Plugger]

What about the rubber shads that everyone is catching them on now. Does it matter if the surf water in close is dirty or clean? Thanks in advance.

Hi Stealer,

as I said I ffish rivers mostly but,if it is stained or dirty I will use a bright color to attract them,maybe white or bright yellow or even grass green.


R-P

[Monty]

I am a terrible Bucktail Fisherman and not much better at fishing Rubber Shad types of artificials.
Any thoughts at when you would use one of these over the other? Advantages at times of one over the other?
Times they are interchangeable?
I have more confidence fishing the rubber shad types of artificials. Have a better feel of them. And have caught more fish on them than bucktails.
The big drawback for me is BLUES and rubber. The rubber shads get taken off first sign of the yellow eyed demons.

[basshunter]

For a shad I just bring it in as slow as possible. No movement from me because the tail has all the action. When they are there they will whump it!With a bucktail I keep the retrieve steady and try not to get hung up on the bottom. They are fun too because bluefish seem to love them. weakfish too.

[J Barbosa]

I love rubber shads but once the bluefish show up I take them out of the bag to resist the temptation of throwing them.

[DarkSkies]

***

[DarkSkies]

Spring Rubber Tips......


OK thanks to the internet Nazi Ryan F.. ..I'm now segmenting this thread into seasons.....
So this is the kick off for the Spring....
Many guys will be using clams or bloodworms the first few weeks, but as the back bay temps climb to 42 and above there will be opportunities to catch early season bass on rubber........

Usually slow and low is a good plan....
At the end of a day where you may have some water warmed by the sun.....

Presentation and where the fish are....

[/B]1. At different times of the season, day, or moon phase, fish will be sitting in different levels of the water column.
2. Your job as a fisherman is to figure out where that is.
3. If you don't present to them where there are sitting you will never know that they are there.
4. In general, (my experience) colder weather, or a cold front, tends to put fish down, where they will sit closer to the bottom.
5. In my experience, this will hold, in general, unless they are feeding actively on bait, at which point they may rise to the surface.
6. There are so many variations for this, that the best thing I can say, is you need to understand the water you are fishing in front of you, and think about moon stage, time of day, current flow (during strong current flow fish at times tend to stay on the bottom or sides where current is less strong), water clarity, water temperature, day vs night time fishing, and some other ones I probably forgot to mention.
7. If you can figure this out, for the place and time you are fishing, it will allow you to work your casts more efficiently.
8. You will only be working on the part of the water column where the fish are most highly concentrated.
9. If you really try to keep disciplined about this, you will see that it will result in more hookups, and more fish.

[DarkSkies]

I'm a little behind in my posting....,meant to put this up earlier....
Summer Rubber Tips......

The most exciting kind of artificial fishing for me....is plugging.....many have different preferences, this is just mine....
There are times in the year, when I protest as I make the shift from plugs., to rubber and bucktails...
But a good fisherman has to adapt, as mentioned above...so I do it....but not without protest....

Almost every one of the nicer size legal fish I got this summer, came from rubber being worked slowly...in some cases, rubber won over even the classic methods of fishing bucktails....
This may have been entirely due to the areas where I was fishing, (and your experiences may be different)....

However, there was a point when a few of us noticed that rubber was the only thing that seemed to win out over all other presentations, in the warmer water.......so we rolled with it, persisted, and unless there was a reason to throw big swimmers (like when bunker appeared briefly), we threw rubber and caught some fish that we might otherwise not have known were there.....

[DarkSkies]

Fall Rubber Tips........

So far, for me, it has been a slight continuation of the summer pattern, as the water in some areas is still warm.....

Anyone else want to add anything?


What rubber are you throwing this Fall?
What will you be throwing based on the forage that is moving through your area?

[finchaser]

I throw the same year round no matter what the forage

[DarkSkies]

^^ Yeah, but when they made you they broke the mold......and now that you're older....there's a lotta mold.......







The sand eels are finally starting to fill in. The bite is inconsistent....but as the nights go by and the water gets colder the areas where they are setting up will become easier to find............

Sluggos......Eel imitations.,....what rubber are you people having the most success with in the surf? Let's hear about it.....

[J Barbosa]

Shads are my goto if I want to know if the fish are there...especially bluefish.

Caught my first 2014 bass on a 4" rubber shad rigged on one of my ball jigs.