Holiday Homework Project - Free t-shirt and Hat and Jig Scent for articles

[it's a goodn]

Thanks Ed, Got my stuff today and can't wait to try it out!!!!!!!!

[poppop]

Got my package today also...done wore my Crappie.com hat to Wal Mart. Thanks for the offer.

[NIMROD]

Thanks again for a great forum. Thank you for the wonderful prizes also. Can't wait to try the scent on my jigs. Got a place on my boat for the sticker. The shirt and hat will get attention like always at tackle shops like Academy Sports. You site is getting well known around these parts.

[luvtofish]

It was dark and foggy when I got to the launch on my local lake that morning. As I waited in line I got out of the truck and walked down to the launch. My buddy Greg was there having just unloaded his 18 ft. Skeeter boat. I didn't know you were going this morning he said or I would have called and you could have gone with me. When I asked him where he was fishing this morning he said I am going to Pine Hill area. I told him that it was so foggy that I was going to just fish here near the ramp until the fog lifted and that I would come to Pine Hills after the fog was gone. After I got my boat unloaded it was just starting to get light, but you could still only see about 100 ft. in any direction. As I was just floating near the ramp my cell phone rang and it was Greg. Come on out and find me as I am just out from the ramp. I have my GPS and you can just follow me out to Pine Hills. Like the sucker I am I agreed. I idled out onto the lake and soon there was Greg. Lets go he said. Now take in mind that Greg who has an 18 ft. Skeeter with a 115 hp. Yamaha and me in a 14 ft. jonboat with a 15 hp. Johnson. Off we go and Greg who has a hotfoot setup in his boat is paying attention to the GPS and not to how fast he is going. I kept him in sight for a little while then he disappeared into the fog. UH OH! I thought to myself. Now what? Here I am in the middle of the lake and I don't have any lights on the boat. I figured if I idled in the direction I was already headed that sooner of later I would have to find land again. As I idled through the fog I finally saw a faint light and headed for it. When I got closer I began to make out a small cove and for the life of me I couldn't figure out exactly where I was even though I had been fishing this lake for years. As I sat trying to figure out where I was I occasionally saw a boat easing along through the fog. I also began to make out a long pier in the fog and finally realized that I was straight across the lake from where I put in at the launch on that side of the lake. I eased down and tied up to the pier to wait for the fog to lift. All of a sudden my cell phone rings and it is Greg asking where I am. I am at the ramp across the lake from where we launched I told him. I couldn't keep up with your boat. I tell him I am going to get close enough to see the dam and I am going back across the lake to the ramp where I launched and fish the channel where it comes in close to the boat ramp. I finally made it back to the other side of the lake and got out the jig poles and started fishing. I fished for the longest time and never got a bite although I was watching a guy and his son slowly fishing back and forth in the middle of the channel near me catching fish pretty often, but being the fisherman I am I would never interfere with their fishing by getting in their area. After a while they eased down the channel in the other direction and when it looked like they were not going to come back toward where I was fishing I eased out to the middle of the channel and started to ease back and forth. It wasn't long before I started to catch some fish. I fished back and forth in about 100 ft. stretch of the channel catching one here or there. It wasn't long before I started to notice that the 28 qt. cooler that I usually take with me was starting to get full of fish. About that time Greg is motoring back to the ramp and gives me a call. How are you doing he asks. I am catching some I tell him. I only have 9 fish he says. I am calling it a day. I think I will fish a little longer I tell him. Well I fish about and hour longer and call it a day myself. When I got home Greg called to see how I had done. I had around 40 or so fish. Not bad I thought to myself. To be lost on the lake in the fog and to still manage a good catch. Maybe I should get lost in the fog more often....

[theoutdoorsman2]

I am not no big bass fisher like my papaw was.sadley he died when i was a baby and all my life I have grown up hering the stories of him and his brother fishing. papaw had a small bait n tackel shop in fayetteville Ga called Theoutdoorsman Tackel with his own brand of plastic worms and grubs called The OUTLAW (wanted by all big bass!)being the slogan but the thing I remember most of his stories that I have herd from my uncles it did not matter what they went after he was going to catch the biggest or the most and this is were the in my blood comes from every time I go fishing I am eather going to catch the big fish of the day or the most fish of the day if not both.I have a pretty good list of fish including a fifty pound cat a over ten pound bass that a half gallon milk jug will fight in its mouth and a seventeen in. 2.6oz. crappie and my latest acomplisment was a fourty four inch 26lb. king mackeral their was only three fish caught that day and the other two were only 29in long and 34in .I dont think its luck i think my papaw and the big man up stairs like to see my gren from ear to ear when the line tightens and the drag starts to screem.

[AtticaFish]

As Old Man Winter’s frosty grip tightens across the country, the crappie begin to spread out to large, deep water flats and other winter homes, making some fisherman scratch their heads as the fish move away from their traditional locations. The dropping temperatures & strong winter winds cause large numbers of fisherman to reconsider trips to their local lakes. Lake levels drawing down to winter pools and muddy water are also other factors to go with the in-climate weather. There is always ice fishing, but lets face it, this is not for everyone! Many simply stay home to watch the snow fly, waiting for the Earth to begin its slow tilt back towards the sun, when it will warm the waters and persuade the crappie - and fisherman - to return to the shallows to begin the cycle again.
There are many things to do on those homebound winter weekends; new electronics to install on boats, taking inventory of gear, creating orders for new tackle, re-stringing poles, cleaning out your tackle boxes, and the list goes on. But as the weeks draw out to months, there is only so many times you can re-arrange your tackle…… that’s when the dreaded cabin fever begins to set in.

Aside from a few ice fishing trips or considering to relocate the family somewhere farther South, there are other ways to beat the winter blues. I, along with many other crappie fisherman, turn the light on over my work bench and sit down in front of my vise to create my own lures. The art of creating artificial baits from thread and various other materials has been around a very long time, but this hobby is not just for those people who own fly fishing equipment. Simple chenille and marabou jigs have proven to be very effective tools to convince crappie to join you on the bank or in the boat. The entire process of tying jigs can be very simple and easy to learn, especially with the guidance from the helpful members of the Jig Tying Forum Board on Crappie.com. As with all hobbies, the overhead cost of tying your own jigs can add up, if you wish to delve into the many different materials available today and creating intricate designs to replicate the forage of your local watersheds. My attempts fall somewhere in-between the K.I.S.S. (Keep It Simple Stupid) method and a match-the-hatch way of thinking. For my own jigs, I create simple, proven fish catching jigs and also make attempts to push the traditional jig closer to the realm of fly tying using some of the skills I have learned from other fly fisherman.



In making your own lures, you have the capability to create color combinations you know work on a particular lake. You can also come up with a new mixture that you know the fish have never seen. In my experience, I have come up with some winning combinations and some turn out to be total flops. The jigs that end up not catching any fish end up in a separate box that are later recycled, cutting away the materials using a razorblade, and retied with new materials. You also have control of size, shape and weight of the jig heads you use to create lures suited for your fishing style and presentation.



I fish mostly clear water reservoirs that have no feeder creeks to muddy them up after big rains. As a result, most of my favorite patterns usually have white, gray or silver in them somewhere to keep with a natural presentation. Black/silver fishing lures are pretty popular items and can be found at most any place that sells tackle, but I have tried using a brighter color along with white, gray or silver and have had good results on days. For example; silver/chartreuse, silver/red, white/blue, olive/chartreuse and a few others.



To get started tying your own simple jigs, there are not many hardware items needed, a vise to hold the jig hook is the first, and perhaps most important thing you will need. You can spend several hundred dollars on a top of the line vise, but you can also find many that are suitable for jig tying in the $30-$100 range. My first vise was purchased at a yard sale for $5, and I also have seen outstanding jigs created by people who have used a pair of vise grip pliers mounted in a bench vise to hold a hook. Your vise selection should be based on the types and sizes of lures you plan to make. The only other specialized equipment needed is a bobbin to hold a small spool of thread. Most bobbins are not expensive, but many jig tiers prefer a ceramic tipped bobbin that starts out in the price range of $10-$12 and up. Some other items you will want to have handy are; sharp scissors, super glue or clear nail polish and a nail or dart tip to apply glue and move materials on the hook. Other items can be purchased to make the process easier as well as to tie more advanced baits.



There is a wide variety of materials that can be used to create your own jigs. Tails for jigs can be made from marabou feathers, hackle feathers, various types of fur and silicone skirts, as well as other materials. Flash material can be added to the tail to give color reflection and extra attention. The body of the jigs can be made from many materials, chenille being the most popular but also including; thread, yarn, dubbing material, mylar, EZ braid, hot glue, raffia, fur, hackle feathers, peacock herl - the list of materials is huge and is always open to experimentation using your own imagination. The body and tail materials can be found at low cost in nearly any variety store, sewing supply or craft shop. The materials used specifically for fly/jig tying most times are higher quality and have a large variety of colors to choose from. They can be found at the large chain fishing/hunting supply stores or tackle making shops. CrazyAnglerTackle.com

is a business owned by a member of Crappie.com that caters directly to crappie fisherman who tie their own jigs. You can find nearly anything you need on this one website. He offers outstanding service, excellent pricing and is very willing to give you information to help get you started. He also is an active member on the Jig Tying board sharing his tips and tricks with all.



As mentioned before, you can spend as much or as little as you want to get into this hobby, but use caution, it can become a very addictive way to pass the time. There are always new material colors and options that come to your attention that you just have to try. You will also find that after learning the tricks of the trade, the jigs you create will last much longer and be much higher in quality than jigs tied overseas on machines. If you would like to see some excellent craftsmanship from some of the members here on Crappie.com, check out the Jig Pictures thread in the tying board. I have no doubt that you will see something there that WILL catch fish on your local lake.



Either way you go with it, you can not beat the feeling of catching fish on jigs that you create with your own hands. It sure beats staring out the window at a pile of snow, waiting for old man winter to loosen his grip.

AtticaFish

[shipahoy41]

Nice article Attica. You just may have inspired more people to start tieing jigs. Well done.

[AtticaFish]

Nice article Attica. You just may have inspired more people to start tieing jigs. Well done.

Thnx Ship! Was shooting for at least inspiring people to read the whole article.... I rambled on longer than I thought I would. lol