Fishing with artificial Bait?

[Coreyhkh]

Hello everyone, I need help I have been fishing for almost 20 years now but have always used live bait and I have always had good luck, but this year I would like to learn to catch fish using artificial Bait. Anyway so far I have been trying jigs with twister tails as well as a number of lures and I have caught fish but not very many, what am I doing wrong. I have been fishing for crappie and they hardly ever bite the fake stuff, and I know there are fish there because I can see them.

I have seen the Gulp Alive stuff and it says it out does live bait? I find that hard to believe but they cost alot so what ones should I buy first.

Any tips would be much appreciated

 

[efka]

, and I know there are fish there because I can see them.

maybe the problem is not in the bait.


anyway try using small bait, if you tie a jig and add a twister tail, thats already too big for crappie, except the odd big one.

 

[PainInTheBass]

Success depends on what your primary goal is. In general, i find that I catch larger fish with artificials. If your target is larger fish, then keep on plugging away and you should see your success increase. If youa re going for numbers, then you will likely fall short.

The thing with live bait is that you dont have to do anything - the bait does it all for you. Using artificials requires that the angler impart some of the action into fooling the fish into striking what appears to be live bait. Your job as an angler is to impart the action unto the lure that adds enough realism to make a fish take the bait.

With plastics, there is action built into the bait, but the angler must give the bait some movement in order to cause the action. Think of twister tails; if the bait does not move, then the tail does not undulate. You need to move the bait to make the tail swim. This brings a variety of options to the angler: swim the bait to simulate a fleeing baitfish; hop the bait on bottom to simulate a baitfish feeding or a crawfish fleeing or an invertebrate on the lake floor. Part of the challenge of using artificals is in the variety of presentations and in deciphering what it is that the will elicit strikes. Fishing with live bait is easy (for the most part) - cast out and wait for the bite.

Hard plastic baits are another class of artifical that is designed to fool fish into thinking that they are real prey. But these too require that the angler impart the proper action (swimming - stop and go action, and speed) in order to get the fish to bite.

Whatever you do, re-examine your idea of what success is, then move forward with realistic expectations. Artificals can outfish live bait, depending on the skill you develop with the presentation, and what your idea of success is.

I hope that helped.

Good luck!