Thread: Soft plastic for small panfish??

one inch " sliders " on 1/32 jig heads . trout magnet . go-go minnows in pearl white on a 1/32 road runner .

Black 1/32 oz roostertail

Prop Blade Rooster Tail(R): 1/32 oz. - Single - Yakima Bait

Bob's jigs has plenty of small baits. Also, Slabanator jigs has scent sticks, small plastics infused with scent/flavor that work well.

So many great baits to choose from and not enough time to fish them all. The micro stuff is getting popular because everything eats the tiny stuff, even big fish. I tip my tiny jigs with a piece of Berkley power wiggler that I cut up into tiny pieces. They add scent and color to the bait and fish hold onto it longer giving you more time to react and set the hook.

I like 1" Gulp Minnows or 1" Power Nymphs with a 1/32 jig head with a size 8 hook. I throw this on 2 or 3lb mono/flourocarbon. I get good distance with the 1/32 head. Trout magnets work great also. Lots of options you can use.

My go to are:
Trout Magnet (duh)
Trout Magnet bugs
Eurotackle EPF swim
Eurotackle EPF grub
Eurotackle EPF minnow
Beetle Spins. (Tried and true classic)

Jig heads in:
1/24, 1/32, 1/48, 1/64, 1/80

1lb to 4lb monofilament line.

What it comes down to for any fish - especially fish in cool water - just a few things should be remembered IMO:
1. slow gets it done. If curl tails get nipped but not hooked, it's because the lure must be moved at a steady speed for the tail to flap. Better to cut off the tail and use only the body than miss stikes. (examples below)

2. the many jig size suggestions are consistent with:lighter is better. A 1/8 oz. jig isn't going to cut it using small plastics that have to be worked slowly in one spot before moving another 20' and testing. Fish are our fish finders. Catch one and most likely more will follow but only as long as the lure is in place again and again.

3. Sonar complements lures at finding fish as well as the area types they're found - IOW, patterns. (i.e. shallow, off points, near docks or pads, etc.) Regardless of where fish are found and caught, the first and second reminders above don't change. One good lure design can and will catch fish all day or all week long but only if worked where semi-active fish are. (BTW, lures make fish turn active by provoking them to strike via their amazing senses.)

When it comes to subtle lure actions when fish are less than active, many shapes come to mind.
Believe it or not, but a grub body with the curl tail removed does great when rigged on a 1/32 or 1/64 oz. jig:



I even cut off the flat tail of a lure I pour and used the bulb shape to catch many fish of all species. The waddle is the key action for no-tail grub bodies.

(Of course, flat tail grubs catch just as many fish as other good grub tail shapes.)

Spike-tail shapes produce good subtle quivers such those of Bass Assassin Tiny Shad and 2" Pro Tiny Shad.

A wonderful surprise was catching a bunch on Mann's Shadow Minnow rigged on a 1/32 oz jig:

The action is the closest to a minnow I've ever seen (though most likely not the reason fish attack it).

There are 15 other lure shapes that catch all kinds of fish in many sizes, but you get the idea. Key is slow unsteady retrieves with pauses.

The hooks for the panfish magnets are longer than the ones for the trout magnets.