Rattletrap Help

[Doc Marshall]

Hey Y'all,

I was fishing from a kayak today and I lost probably the most enormous bass I've ever hooked(!). He jumped a few feet from me and threw the lure.

I've noticed that I've lost a few smaller fish on rattle traps...is there a technique for avoiding this?

I actually hooked TWO bass on one of those things the other day. That was a first for me.

[hogdawg]

Better hooks on the back and try your best to keep them from jumping out of the water. Keep their head down.

[TNtransplant08]

I would either sharpen the hooks or put new hooks on. I was having the same problem until I switched hooks. They also could just be slapping at the lure. If that happens often changing the size or color works. Or even change up the retrieve.

[Travis C.]

They also could just be slapping at the lure.

Lipless crankbaits are my pain in the butt because of this Doc. I have never seen a lure a fish will smack and not get a hook in them like lipless.

My guess is they are trying "stun" the bait fish to either slow it down or turn it so it can eat it. Sure you can still have those that flat out miss but that is rare. How many times do you miss your mouth with a cheese burger? They can't eat food with spiny dorsals from behind or risk it getting hung in their throat.

Definitely put some good hooks on it. You shouldn't have to give it the ole worm fishing jerk when a fish hits just pull the rod to the side similiar to Carolina rig fishing. The fish will hook itself. Next time, when one smacks it compose yourself and let it flutter a bit then change the retreive up to make it seem wounded.

[90titans89]

Easy on the hook set, and make sure you have a good rod when using the traps. I like using a mojo crankbait rod. Your going to lose some, just the nature of fishing traps.;)

[banjopkr]

I have fished traps for years and used to always change out the hooks first thing using just about any good,sharp,turning type hook,the newer versions for the most part have a lot better hooks than the old ones,I also change the split ring to an oval or larger round,dont want it to bind up as any leverage during the fight will reduce your chances for keeping fish buttoned,I like a 7' MH BPS Crankin Stick for a rod,they have a good crankbait type bend when loaded as seem to work really well,I also use a Mojo but it has a little softer action than I prefer,it seems to be better for lipped baits,one of the problems with fishin the trap is you can throw it so far if you get bit on the long part of your cast you need a fairly stiff rod to have a decent hookset,I recently tried a Revo Winch on my trap rod but it seems slow to me,I will stick with my 6 to 1 reels,having said all this there are still times they come off,but these things seem to better your chances,hope this helps,banjopkr

[Reel Tune]

A lot of good replies here. I would change hooks first. My preferance are Owners. Next if you feel the bump and no take let the bait free fall for a second then then if nothing uses a few short quick jerks, and when you feel that tug don't use a straight up and down hook set just sweep to the side, and keep downward or side pressure on the fish until he is boatside. Good Luck, and some days we just miss more fish for no known reason.

[Doc Marshall]

Excellent, thanks for the tips, guys.

[bd-]

Rattletraps are one of my favorite bass lures. My in-laws are down in Florida, and when we go down in the fall, there's nothing like getting on the lakes at daybreak and chasing schooling bass with rattletraps. I've had days where I've caught them by the dozens all day long.

I think the most important thing is to not let the fish jump if you can help it. Rattletraps have a lot of weight, and that makes them easy to throw. There's just a lot there for the fish to sling around in an attempt to work the hooks loose.

For a while, I think Bill Lewis Lures even manufactured a rattletrap where the line went all the way through the bait and tied onto the hook below, so that a jumping fish would just sling the heavy bait up the line without throwing the hook. I haven't seen those in a long time though - I guess they didn't sell well.

You can put bigger treble hooks on them, but it seems to slow down the vibration so they don't rattle as well. I think the best thing is to just keep the hooks extra sharp and put the rod tip in the water to force the bass's head down whenever you feel him heading toward the surface to jump.

bd