We’re going to answer another question today from our readers. This one concerns slowing down your presentation. There seems to be some folks who are finding that, due to limited time on the water, they can’t narrow things down to an approach that will work. This is nothing unusual. I still get the shakes before I take that first cast in anticipation of the first strike of the day. However, I’ve been doing this long enough now to realize that this doesn’t always translate into a more productive day, or several hours, of fishing.
If you’re a baseball fan you know that the best hitters in the game tend to be those who have learned to be patient enough to swing at only the good pitches. You just can’t hit every pitch that is thrown so swinging at all of them will more than likely earn you a strike out as opposed to a hit. So how does this translate to fishing?
Anglers have to learn to approach those lure choices that are designed as finesse techniques with the same patience as a big league hitter.
A case in point is a buddy of mine who fishes almost exclusively with soft plastics. Why? Because he has read that there are more tournaments and money won on the cast for cash circuits with plastics than any other genre of baits. Okay, can’t argue with him there. But, he fishes a shaky-head as fast as I fish a spinner-bait. You can probably guess the outcome of that strategy! He’ll get the occasional bite but when we go head to head, I tend to out catch him 3 to 1.
I’m not bragging, we just fish this rig two completely different ways. The reason for this explanation is that the question I’m attempting to answer is, “How slow should I fish a shaky-head rig?”. This is paraphrasing, but it is the core concern that we’re going to try to shed some light on in this article.
Slow It Down…WAY Down
The short answer is, as slow as you can without allowing rigor-mortis to set in. Given that you have found the fish and the water clarity lends itself to this technique, a shaky-head can be a very effective presentation at this time of year. When I was first learning how to fish this rig, I had to train myself to move my bait inches at a time and then kill it and shake it on semi-slack line before moving it again. This can be tough to master when you’re used to running and gunning.
One of the ways you can practice this before you put it into play is taking your gear out to the back yard. Make a cast across the lawn and see if you can move your bait no more than two inches at a time. Learn how far to move your rod tip to limit the lures movement to just a couple of inches. When you have that perfected, practice moving the lure, then barely shaking it for 10 to 30 seconds before moving it again.
When you have both components of this retrieve, time it beginning from when the lure hits the ground to when it is within a few feet of you. This will give you an idea in real terms of how long one cast and retrieve should take you when you’re on the water. Now all you have to do is to replicate what you’ve already done. This simple process is what it took for me to start catching fish on a regular basis using the shaky-head technique.
I know that this sounds a lot like watching paint dry but it can be extremely effective for sluggish or heavily pressured fish. No, you’re not going to get into the Guinness Book of World Records for most casts in the shortest period of time using this method. But that isn’t the point is it.
You’re doing this because you aren’t catching any fish by moving quickly and realize you’ve got to slow down to get those bites! If you take the time to learn to do this, an added benefit is that this presentation can be used with more than just a shaky-head. It translates well to a whole host of other baits and techniques like drop-shotting and dragging.
Let us know how you’re doing with this. We enjoy hearing the follow-up.
See ya’ on the water …
