[oldschool]

One of the most effective post spawn lures is the exposed hook dart head jig and worm combination. Darts are a presentation very popular out west and you don't read much about them elsewhere. Owner makes a very good darter head and the 1/8 ounce is a good size to star with. You use standard med/fast action 6 to 61/2' spinning rod and 6 to 8 lb mono or fluoro line. The worms should be a curl tail type 5 to 6" finesse type. The ring worms work well at times because they tend to create vibrations and can give the lure more profile.
The dart head is designed to stay level in the water column and sink slowly. You simple cast the dart head on breaklines of cover or structure, let it fall to the desired depth and slowly retrieve with a stop and go or steady retrieve. This is an in the basses face type of lure and post spawn bites are a pressure feel or slight tick. When you feel a spongy bite, just reel set, the exposed hook is a high percent hook to strike ratio. When bass suspend during the spring and summer, the dart is very effective.
Tom

 

[Oldfart9999]

Tom, that sounds like swiming a grub with a round head jig that some of us do for smallies. I got the idea from Infisherman & last year tried it on some prespawn smallies on Erie. It worked well, I was able to boat about 18 legal fish over about 3 hours. It was during a trophy smallmouth season tourament out of Buffalo. My fish were the legal 15 inches but were'nt big enough, by the time I decided to move to a deeper reef it was to late. I was using a 1\4 oz. ball head jig with a Kinami 3" silver/w black flake curly tail grub, I let it hit bottom in about 12 to 15' & swam it just fast enough to make the tail move. Thanks for the idea, I'll pick up some darter heads & try it.
Rodney

 

[oldschool]

You might want to try Roboworms;
http://www.roboworm.com/snframe.htm
http://www.roboworm.com/zjframe.htm
http://www.roboworm.com/crframe.htm
color ZJ-113G sounds like it would be good for you.
My favorites are Aarons magic/red flake. MMIII, Oxblood/red flake, bluecrawler or peoples worm.
Tom

 

[Ouachita]

I like the way Dart Hedz is balanced to keep the plastic horizontal. What are you using, Tom? Any cheaper than those? Jim

 

[oldschool]

Barlows Tackle has a 4" ribworms and un painted dart heads are cheap and work well. Worms about $1.70/10 or $8/100, with discounts for 5 or more pkg's.
Tom
http://www.barlowstackle.com/pdf/molded-heads.pdf
http://www.barlowstackle.com/pdf/soft-plastic-worms-01.pdf
Gamakatsu bullet jig, 1/8oz 5/$2.20 or 25/$10.25, .41C ea.

 

[Ouachita]

So the unpainted heads work well for you, or are you painting your own? Barlow's does have some fair prices. Jim

 

[oldschool]

So the unpainted heads work well for you, or are you painting your own? Barlow's does have some fair prices. Jim

Shad are the primary bait fish in the lakes I fish and plain heads work fine. Sometimes I paint them pearl white and add eyes.
Tom

 

[fish4funinfl]

Reviving another thread with good info

 

[Ash]

yeah Dartheading dont work :grin: My "Go To Bait" for this technique is a local Hand Pour Called Pro-Worms it is a 4" paddle tail worm with a thick head and a great paddle the prism shad color is the color I start with. The other great color for me is Arons Magic or witches T.

The Throw grubs on dartheads as well, the difference is the Action a p-head has a tendancy to fall or swing back toward you. The dart head, by design, darts eratically in the water, different wieghts and different baits will give different presentations. The key to a great darthead is balance it should be balanced evenly when hanging from the line. A great lil iggy with this technique is to tie a rapala loop knot, this way when you are shaking the darthead on the slack line it is quivering back in forth for BIG action, and when deadsticking above the structure it will find its center. Definatly a great way to get to suspended fish. I fish as light as 1/16th up to 1/4oz, but like tom indicated 1/8thoz is typcially where I start.

For a real inside iggy whatever you do never dart head a leach or 3" senko on a 1/16th with 4-6lb esp in the summer over suspended fish, thats just crazzzyyyy talk :cheers:

 

[Swede]

I've used V&M's Ringworms for 5 plus years now and they are my go-to bait any time of the year. I buy them by the 100 count and you will never find me without them. When small minnows are the bass snack of the day - not a better bait around. Due to Florida's vegetation - exposed hooks are usually more pain than production so I fish TX-rigged (1/8oz Parasite and Gami 2/0 offset hook).

I used recently on Florida's Clermont Chain - after catching three I had to give as few to my partner as well. I was fishing for fun that day but had I been in either tourney fished on this chain this day - would have placed 1st in one and 2nd in other.

Fished them on Lake Tarpon in a Tuesday night tourney two weeks ago - three of five of our fish including our big one caught on this bait.

Will have to give the jighead a try when I get out of grass land. If I had one bait to throw - the ring worm would be it.

 

[Angry Bob]

I swim a grub with a ball head for the majority of my smallie fishin. I'll have to give the darter a try, and see if I'll like it.

 

[oldschool]

The dart head jig is primarily a swimming jig because the bullet shape tends to wedge into rocky crevasses and hang up easily. If you are fishing smallies in the rocks, keep the jig moving or skipping along the tops or just above the rocks.
The ring type worms with curly tails are ideal for darts. Roboworms 4 1/2' curl tail in oxblood red flake and Aarons magic red flake are both good smallmouth & largemouth colors for darts.
Tom

 

[UGA Bassfisher]

You dont want to put a Yamamoto grub on there ... unless you want your arm broke!!! :cheers:

 

[crankinitup]

so i have been reading this post and i am wondering what are dart heads??? and what brand do you use?

 

[TEX]

so i have been reading this post and i am wondering what are dart heads??? and what brand do you use?

I was going to ask the same thing. Were can we view some pictures of the dart heads?

 

[bigun]

Here ya go.


bigun :twl:

 

[crankinitup]

thanks, now were can i buy them???? they sound like they will really help me with fishing in my local lake

 

[Ash]

That looks like a revenge dart head pulled from TT. Here is the entire article http://www.tackletour.com/reviewrevengedartheadz.html

Also too a standard darthead like http://img.tacklewarehouse.com/ProductImages/GDH.JPG works well. I have mine custom poured with larger hooks then standard.

 

[UGA Bassfisher]

thanks, now were can i buy them???? they sound like they will really help me with fishing in my local lake

http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage-RDH.html

 

[Ash]

Whatever you do dont purchase any revenge baits in the PMS color they just dont work!!!!!