Lure action changed by leaders or changing hook size?

[scuro2]

I will be trolling 5 inch plugs with leaders for toothy critters down south. Do leaders change the action and would thin titanium do better then thicker fluro? Also would like to remove the front hook since most fish down south attack from behind. (I'll be in an inflatable...the less hooks the better!). Would removing one hook or changing sizes of hooks change the action of the plug?

[pike slayer]

i wouldnt worry about a steel leader affecting the action, it might a bit but not enough to be noticeable. i have noticed the action of a lure change when i have changed the treble hooks to a different size. taking im off will probably make an affect. usually if they are like an xrap or something they are balanced.

[aplumma]

The more drag difference between the front hook and the rear hook then the wider the wobble is. The split ring on the nose can be changed to an oval split ring and then using a snap steel wire will give it all the action it needs.

 

 

Art

[splashhopper]

Looking for John F to report on his POOL TESTS here.... :dunno: He did a bunch of testing about this in his pool this past summer I think.

 

I notice a BIG difference in spoons ans spinners if I have a leader on or even a swivel vs directly tied to the lure.

[Fishnwire]

On a good sized (5 inch or better) plug I wouldn't expect a steel leader to affect the action too much. Some people will even tell you that the snap on the leader allows the bait to move more naturally then affixing the line directly to the bait with a standard clinch knot or whatever. I really like the confidence a steel leader brings when I'm after decent sized pike too.

 

Hook size will make a difference, but won't necessarily completely kill the action of your baits. I often go one size up from the factory hooks when they need to be replaced and haven't had any major problems. I've even read in magazines that a lot of pros do that automatically with every crank bait they get. If it was me I would leave both sets of trebles because they're there to hook fish, not inflatables.

[Greencoachdog]

I will be trolling 5 inch plugs with leaders for toothy critters down south. Do leaders change the action and would thin titanium do better then thicker fluro? Also would like to remove the front hook since most fish down south attack from behind. (I'll be in an inflatable...the less hooks the better!). Would removing one hook or changing sizes of hooks change the action of the plug?

 

 

A heavy leader will change the action of a plug... but it's gotta be real heavy.

 

Also would like to remove the front hook since most fish down south attack from behind

 

I think you have the fish confused with them "Blue Belly Yankees"!!! Most fish attack prey head first, so they can swallow it without the dorsal spines sticking in their mouth or throat.. you would have a lot more hookups by removing the rear hook!

 

Pike are the worst fish for "T-boning" prey, then they swim off and turn the victim around to swallow id headfirst.

 

Experiment with your plugs in the bath tub or something.. maybe throw it out on top of the ice and see what kind of action it has eh?!!!

 

All joking aside, removing the back hook will be your best bet and it won't impede the lures action!

[JohnF]

Looking for John F to report on his POOL TESTS here.... :dunno: He did a bunch of testing about this in his pool this past summer I think.

 

I notice a BIG difference in spoons ans spinners if I have a leader on or even a swivel vs directly tied to the lure.

 

I have to admit that when I was doing the pool testing I didn't have a lot of baseline exerience to rely on. That being said I certainly noticed a difference in the movement between using a tied loop and a split ring or a tight knot for the Rapalas and the AC Shiners. I can't remember actually trying a leader in the pool. At one point I had put split rings on all my floating minnows and realized (in the pool) that it did affect their action, tied loops were best.

 

With other manufacturers floating minnows (mostly cheap ones) there was such a disparity between supposedly identical units that I spent all my time just playing with the tuning and didn't get to comparing the action with split rings vs a loop.

 

I did play a bit with putting a dressed tail hook on Original Rapalas and thought the action was off. As well even putting a size larger hook on the tail or removing the front hook made the lure a tail dragger and changed the action.

 

Not sure how much that helps, and for that matter I'm not sure how much I'd rely on my less than scientific methodology and limited experience. But it was all fun.

 

JF

 

Now that the question has been asked I can't imagine why I didn't spend more time observing these differences. I guess I was so busy just learning how the different lures worked that I wasn't too much into playing with hook sizes and nose attachments.

[Raf]

switching the trebles out for single siwash will really loosen up those baits and make it more inflatable friendly. you probably wont notice a change in hooking %

[scuro2]

My experimentation with colouring plastics end soon after I field tested the hand coloured baits. I smiled reading about pool testing. Sounds like something I might have done. How did you watch the lure from the side while reeling in?

 

Yozuri makes the Tobimaru plug with what I thought was hugely oversized hooks. Bigger hooks lead to less wiggle, and perhaps hook size is a choice of the manufacturer to create the right type of movement for each lure? It also sounds like removing one hook will create a different balance...all stuff I hadn't really considered. thanks!

Edited December 15, 2009 by scuro2

[splashhopper]

[

 

Now that the question has been asked I can't imagine why I didn't spend more time observing these differences. I guess I was so busy just learning how the different lures worked that I wasn't too much into playing with hook sizes and nose attachments.

 

 

But did you catch more fish

[JohnF]

My experimentation with colouring plastics end soon after I field tested the hand coloured baits. I smiled reading about pool testing. Sounds like something I might have done. How did you watch the lure from the side while reeling in?

 

The best way was for two of us to work - one pitching and reeling while the other walked along at poolside. I would sometimes hold the tip down at the water with about 4-5' of line out and walk along the edge. It probably affected the action though with the short line.

 

JF

[JohnF]

But did you catch more fish

 

I dunno. I fiddled around with so many different lures and presentations that I think I shot myself in the foot catch-wise. I'm always looking for single hook solutions as I have a kind of aversion to tossing a whole batch of trebles at creek bass. They always seem to end up with more hooks stuck in their hide than in their mouths so I'm kinda partial to plastics or single treble lures. And most of my trebles have the barbs bent down.

 

JF

[splashhopper]

I dunno. I fiddled around with so many different lures and presentations that I think I shot myself in the foot catch-wise. I'm always looking for single hook solutions as I have a kind of aversion to tossing a whole batch of trebles at creek bass. They always seem to end up with more hooks stuck in their hide than in their mouths so I'm kinda partial to plastics or single treble lures. And most of my trebles have the barbs bent down.

 

JF

 

 

that shooting ones self in the foot thing must be getting around.... I targeted bass all summer and can't catch a dang thing this trout season