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Comment by John Sheehan on December 18, 2012 at 8:06am

PICKEREL AMMO

Comment by John Sheehan on December 18, 2012 at 8:04am

Enjoyed reading this David ,thanks!

  I have had some success with Krocs; Pickerel ,Bass and an occasional Red Breasted Sunfish  and even a deep Summer Pumpkinseed are catches I remember.The Johnson Sprite and Weedless Minnow are super for Pickerel.I like glueing a reddish brown tube bait on my weedless minnow.The salamanders in the ponds I throw that bait in are reddish brown and I suspect are a favored bait for any fish that can catch and eat them .I may be wrong about the connection as some amphibians have a protective 'poison' or distaste for predators but when I tried the idea and specific color I promptly caught Pickerel.  Other Casting spoons I've caught Bass and Pickerel on are Dardevle imps,Midgets,and other models. Acme Cleos in 1/6,1/8 and 1/4 sizes and K.O Wobblers in the 1/4 oz sizes.Thicker gauge casting spoons are faster fallers so It can be a great trigger for an active fish already feeding .Keeping it in the fish's feeding zone is what needs to be considered .After casting I wrist snap the spoon and reel up the slack to tighten the line for the next wrist snap which may actually be the hook set on a fish . I often snap the spoon off bottom for coldwater fish and hook Yellow and White Perch and Bass in my home lake that way .For Pickerel in weeds I'm inclinced to use a thinner gauge slower falling flutter spoon or thinner gauge Dardevle Sprite so as not to get fouled up .The spoon calls them up out of the weeds .I call them up with Rapalas also  but feel the spoon falling back to the fish instead up popping up to the surface can be more effective at times.Casting from shore to suspended fish or clean bottom fish so you you dont lose your hard ware can work great.

  In the boat, slow drifts ,snapping the spoon off bottom can be a great cold water plan and some fish can be caught slow trolling the spoon, but Trolling I usually opt for a crankbait . Sometimes anchoring and vertical jiggin a spoon close to bottom is productive but its not a tecnique that covers a lot of water .However ,if  the fish are there ,stay there.

Comment by David, aka, "McScruff" on December 18, 2012 at 7:15am

Here's a mess of spoons for anyone who is interested. These are casting spoons, as opposed to flutter or trolling spoons. Casting spoons are, for the most part, thick and heavy.

The top three are Luhr-Jensen' Krocodiles,' in two sizes. A few weeks ago I hung a nice pickerel on one of these lures. The fish had been tearing up schools  of shad within 30-50 yards or so of my bank fishing spot. I was there to catch shellcrackers, but I rarely pass up the chance to catch another species. So with nothing else on hand to reach them, I started casting the Kroc. I had no idea what was chasing what; all I could see where the large swirls and splashes resulting from the chase. My logic was twofold: I needed distance (weight) and something that looked "fishlike" in the water. These 'Krocodile' spoons fulfill both needs. The  results speak for themselves....

 

The two uppermost lures are variations on the same theme. At the top I show the inside, showing the stamped labeling. There are copies available, but to get the real thing you need to know what to look for. These lures are made from solid stamped brass, too, not the steel that is common with knock-offs. They are very high quality and they come with the high end swivel you see attached. If you like the "good stuff," get these!

The second one of the upper pair sports a piece of holographic tape, for that added "something" in the water. In all other respects, these are the same shiny chrome spoons.

The the third one down is just the next smaller size in the line up. It sports the same mirror polish of the other two. I wanted these silver ones in particular because that is how the shad look in my home waters. These spoons mimic the very fish upon which the predators are feeding, as seen here...

 This shad took the spoon!

The last of the spoons is a 1/8 oz. Blue Fox Rattle Spoon in holographic chartreuse. These spoons are favored by Bill "Musky" Modica and form a cornerstone of his Bluegill Spooning tactics. On the one side they have a "naturalistic" fish look and on the other there is a small rattle attached to the shiny, concave surface. Also included in the package is a small Siwash hook, should you want to exchange the treble for a single. Nice touch, Blue Fox!

It was rumored at one point last season that Blue Fox was to stop making these; I don't know if that happened. Nevertheless, they recently came available at Overstockbait.com once more. They may have been some old-new stock, they may be back in production - I don't know. But I had a notification request with OB.com should they re-appear. That notice was delivered last week and I didn't want to pass them up. They are quite nice and finely finished... certainly they are top shelf quality. At 1/8 ounce, you wont cast them far. But they should do nicely on the sunfish once the water warms up. I caught nice bluegill on similarly sized Johnson "Silver Minnows" last season, so I see no reason these should not do as well.  

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