WHAT SOFT BAIT TECHNIQUES DO YOU USE

hi guys ,ive spoken to a few people lately and asked the question ,what techniques do you use when softbaiting ,do you cast ahead and retrieve with slow intermitint jerks ,not allowing the softbait to hit the bottom ,or do you let the softbait trial behind and use the rod to give the bait action,how do you work your rod to get the best action ,or do you cast sideways ,how far do you cast, how long do you let the bait sink for ,or do you use a combination of all of these ways etc etc
maybe some of you could explain your technique and what you have found works for you,
also what softbait brands/patterns/hook sizes and hook wieghts do you use,
how do rig the leader,hook and placement of the bait on the hook
a days softbaiting can get quite expensive if your getting hit by fish you are not targeting (cod,barracuda etc)
by explaining the above questions this may help some of us to keep our baits in the right strike zone longer and out of the areas of those pesky fish that only chomp the bottom of your softbait or leave it shreded
cheers PJ

*tisk tisk I have been using a bit of bait lately as softbaiting hasn't produced a lot in the manukau of late.


I cast ahead of the drift as far as i can, I cast with the same hand i hold the rod with so if i get a strike im ready, I wait about 5 secs after the lure hits the water before cranking the reel making the bail arm flick over once the lines tight if im fishing deeper water i let the lure "swim" down on the tension of the line before commencing to cast spells with the graphite wand. My rod action varies from lure to lure. Jerk shads I tend to jig, swimming lures and pogy style lures i will jerk and wind a couple of times. My Jerk action varies from solid jigging action to waving the rod around ( casting spells)

Casting into wash and kelp etc I will only let the lure sink for a second or two before I start winding to avoid snags and to lure the kelpies out.

on the Gear, i pretty much mostly use the lightest jighead i can for the conditions, normally Nitro jigheads. I also fish mainly berkley softbaits, My Favourites are the Chartruse swimming mullet, 7inch watermelon neon shad (use with 20oz heads) white pearl swimming mullet, nuclear chicken grub with swimming tail, pink shine jerk shad, nuclear chicken brine shrimp, White glow pogy.

has anybody had success by anchoring up ,using a berley bomb on the anchor ,and casting soft baits as far back into the berly trial and allowing the bait to sink before working the bait while retrieving the line ,cheers

ive had to fish softbaits that way heaps of times fishing with "grumpy old men" fishermen in their boats... no where near as much success as drifting, but still the odd hit on the cast and retrieve's.

try a gammie jig head from top catch 22-oz and gulp new penny/or slam pumpkin spot

Hey Pete, my first year and a half softbaiting was anchored up with burley as the other guys on the boat where bait fishing and I had spent most of my years anchored up straylining as this was certainly my preferred method. Truth be known I actually miss the excitement of strayling when you feel the fish pick up your bait then you wait wait wait and boom strike!!!! But hey softbaiting and Jetskifishing is where it's at!!

Over winter I outfished most of the bait fisherman 10:1 with the softbaits (converted all my mates to soft baits in no time!) and some trips if it were not for the softies we would have returned home fishless. All of this whilst at anchor, using basically the method you described but the deepest water we were in was about 14M and usually were fishing around 6 - 8 Metres, so I do not know whether this changed things at all. I would usually use a Nitro Jighead with owner hook (dark hook only, not the light coloured galvd looking one) and weights usually range from 1/2 oz through to 1 oz. In winter if casting in around wash areas or kelp lines in shallow etc I drop to a 1/4 oz.

If casting right out the back use the method you desribed but also try casting right out and putting the reel into gear (or bail arm over) as soon as it hits the water and maintain a tight line so it has a huge pendulum swing back towards the boat and the bottom this can be incredibly effective and covers a big area of water. Hold on though as this is when you get smashed !!!!

I cast up against the current and the line usually drifts past the ski and can hook up just as it hits the bottom or when it drifts past the ski. Sometimes I keep letting more line out and then get hooked up, but I have only been soft baiting since Mid Jan 09 so still learning.