Tips for Soft Plastics - When to Set the Hook?

[UnkleRob2020]

Good afternoon everyone,

I posed this question in the "St. Mary's is heating up" thread started by Big Mike, but I thought I would also post it here. I am terrible at fishing soft plastics. I caught my first fish ever on a soft plastic this past Saturday at St. Mary's. The bite was so incredibly subtle that I was surprised that when I set the hook that a fish was on the line. It was so much fun :---) I am now curious if I have had fish on soft plastics, such as grubs, swimbaits, paddle tails, senko's and plastic worms that I never detected the bite and just thought the lure was not working?

Thank you to the people who have already responded. I am planning to focus on soft plastics this coming weekend as it is a rather glaring weakness in my fishing arsenal. I would be grateful for any tips.

Thank you,

Unkle Rob

[Huntrava]

In terms of setting the hook, I think the type of lure is less relevant than the type of line (braid, mono, fluoro, etc.) and the type of fishing (cast and retrieve, walk the dog, flipping, drop shot, fishing the bottom, etc.). All of those factors affect when and how I'll set a hook, but I've never really considered whether soft plastics are involved.

[UnkleRob2020]

Perhaps I am not using the correct terminology. I am generally able to detect hits on crankbaits and spinnerbaits without much trouble (at least I think). When fishing grubs, paddletails, Senko's and others, it is less of an obvious "strike" by the fish.

[jsnyd86]

That's a tricky one to explain. As Huntrava mentioned, many things are involved. With soft plastics specifically it possibly comes down to the weight you're using and if the fish is biting on slack line.
For example, when Im targeting bass I like to fish weightless senkos. Generally, the fish will bite on the fall, or when Im not paying attention, and with no weight its hard to keep tension on the line and keep the bait in the strike zone at the same time. Unless they grab it and run directly away from you, its easy to miss it. Even if your line is tight it takes a lot of jigging finesse to feel the subtleties of grass, a twig, or a bite, especially when the bass are spawning. Males wont run with it, but rather strike, spit it out, and go back to the bed.
What works for me is bright yellow braid with a 4-6ft leader. When I tie my leader on I fray the tag end of the braid to make somewhat of a floating strike indicator. Or you could just use strike indicators like fly fishermen use. That way it doesn't matter so much if you dont feel it. If that tag moves strange, and the line is moving in another direction, swing for it.

[Mark]

UnkleRob2020,

As you've noticed, when you keep baits moving during the retrieve, strikes are easy to determine. The fish attack a moving bait fast and essentially hook themselves. That's even true for soft plastics, like paddletails on jigs with exposed hook points that are trolled or cast and retrieved with a more or less steady pull.

It gets a little harder to detect strikes on plastics that are rigged weedless and retrieved slowly. That's because fish can suck in the bait and not feel the hook. They'll take it subtly and may swim slowly away with it. In fact, some fish like pickerels and snakeheads will hold the bait in their mouth without clamping down on it heavily at first. In that case, it pays to wait before striking until you notice your line moving in a direction other than your retrieve.

Let them run with it for a second or two or three or even four before you set the hook, remembering that you have to drive the hook through the lure first and then into the mouth of the fish. That takes more patience than many anglers have until they are experienced. Our natural inclination is to strike fast and hard at the first hint of movement. In lieu of doing that, I actually drop rod tip when I see a fish moving my line. I give the fish a little slack before striking so that it doesn't figure out it has plastic in in its mouth instead of a live meal. If I tighten up immediately, I'll more than likely pull the lure from the fish's mouth.

As Ron said, time on the water will improve your technique. I've explained to you precisely what I do. But you'll have to do it yourself to develop the touch and timing needed to land fish. And even then, you'll miss fish occasionally. I do too. To me, it's finesse fishing and I enjoy the cat and mouse game with the fish much more than a simple cast and retrieve.

And here's one more hint when fishing a soft plastic lure weedless -- Offset the hook point slightly. That makes a world of difference. An offset hook has a better chance of grabbing the upper or lower lip of the fish than a hook point that is straight in line with the shank. Try it and you'll see.

[dsaavedra]

UnkleRob2020,

As you've noticed, when you keep baits moving during the retrieve, strikes are easy to determine. The fish attack a moving bait fast and essentially hook themselves. That's even true for soft plastics, like paddletails on jigs with exposed hook points that are trolled or cast and retrieved with a more or less steady pull.

It gets a little harder to detect strikes on plastics that are rigged weedless and retrieved slowly. That's because fish can suck in the bait and not feel the hook. They'll take it subtly and may swim slowly away with it. In fact, some fish like pickerels and snakeheads will hold the bait in their mouth without clamping down on it heavily at first. In that case, it pays to wait before striking until you notice your line moving in a direction other than your retrieve.

Let them run with it for a second or two or three or even four before you set the hook, remembering that you have to drive the hook through the lure first and then into the mouth of the fish. That takes more patience than many anglers have until they are experienced. Our natural inclination is to strike fast and hard at the first hint of movement. In lieu of doing that, I actually drop rod tip when I see a fish moving my line. I give the fish a little slack before striking so that it doesn't figure out it has plastic in in its mouth instead of a live meal. If I tighten up immediately, I'll more than likely pull the lure from the fish's mouth.

As Ron said, time on the water will improve your technique. I've explained to you precisely what I do. But you'll have to do it yourself to develop the touch and timing needed to land fish. And even then, you'll miss fish occasionally. I do too. To me, it's finesse fishing and I enjoy the cat and mouse game with the fish much more than a simple cast and retrieve.

And here's one more hint when fishing a soft plastic lure weedless -- Offset the hook point slightly. That makes a world of difference. An offset hook has a better chance of grabbing the upper or lower lip of the fish than a hook point that is straight in line with the shank. Try it and you'll see.

Could not have said this any better!!

[DanMarino]

Good question. A lot of it depends on if you are fishing a moving bait, or letting it sit on the bottom. Strikes are much easier to detect when the bait is moving. On spinning gear I always use braided fishing line. For me braid is more sensitive and gives me better hook sets because the line does not stretch when I pull up and reel in. I like to use circle hooks and nose hook a soft plastic worm. With circle hooks you feel the tap of the fish eating your worm and you just reel in and gently sweep the rod to the side to set the hook. Super easy. The other thing I do a lot when fishing jigs with crawfish trailers or dragging worms on the bottom is to watch my line. Braided line floats. Keep an eye on the line and you will see (and feel) when a fish eats your soft plastic bait. When that happens I immediately set the hook and reel in. So watching your line is key. I have found bass not to be afraid of brightly colored yellow or orange braided line. So those bright braided lines would be easier for you to watch for fish tapping or swimming off with your line. I have caught thousands of river smallmouth bass on soft plastic tubes and 1/8 ounce tube jigs inside of them. Just cast it out and let it bounce along the bottom of the river. Best wishes. Soft plastics fishing is fun and effective.

[dsaavedra]

Great advice in here already. I'll add two things... 1) Unless you are fishing a "moving" soft plastic like a paddle tail or something, if you feel bumps while you are actively moving the soft plastic worm with your rod or reel, more times than not that is you moving your bait into a stick or weeds or something. With "slow" soft plastics like worms and creatures baits that you crawl along the bottom and pause, the fish will generally strike the bait on the pause. If you do feel bumps while moving your bait, stop moving it and see if the bumps continue; if they do then it's a fish - give them a second or two longer to chomp your bait then set the hook. 2) When in doubt, set the hook anyway! You seemed to learn this first hand in your original post but I think it's good to reiterate it. No one will laugh at you for setting the hook on non-fish... I guarantee every fisherman does this at least a couple times every trip. Like Gretzky said, you miss every shot you don't take.