Assorted Rigs

[JBlaze]

Well, this past week I finally got to take a few of my Tn rigs to the lake and try them out. We didn’t have much luck catching bass, not even small ones. They are dropping the water fast and the fish seem to have pulled out off the banks and suspended. My worst nightmare. So here is my opinion of the plain old three wire Tn Rig as made by me. It ain’t for me, this is not my style of fishing. Not sure what I expected from it, but it didn’t have any action or do anything that impressed me. I threw it out and let it sink and slowly reeled it in. Other than the fluttering and or wagging of the grub and swim bait tails, the only action this thing had was that which I imparted to it with jerks and pauses. I can almost see it catching fish for me in the fall when the bass are up shallow and chasing shad in the shallows.

Anyway the making of it was an interesting endeavor.

I also made a couple with a chatter style blade. One was made with a balsa wood head and the other one had a lead head. On the balsa wood head, I made the wire eye too small and blade movement was restricted. On the lead headed one, I made the wire eye a little larger and it chattered and clattered very well. I think this one will get the job done.

Merry Christmas.

John

[cadman]

Hey John,

I saw all the hype with the "A" rig, and I didn't make any to try out as it didn't do anything for me. Maybe I'm old school. Although I don't have anything against them as long as the guys in the tourneys fish them acoording to state and tourney regs. With that said the "A" rig brings me back to the chattwerbait craze about 3 years ago. Although everyone and their mother was making them and selling them, I had tried them and heve never caught a fish on them, so that is probably why I didn't pursue anything with the "A" rig as it didn't do anything for me and I definitely wouldn't throw it. After years of fishing crankbaits, I finally started fishing jigs and my numbers have doubled these past two years along with fish quality.

On your chatterbait idea, that is unique and seems like it would add an extra wiggle to the flukes (or whatever) on the back of the bait. let me know how you do with it when you get to really try it out. I am always curious about baitmakers that try out different things.

Have a Merry Christmas as well.

Ted(Cadman)

[JBlaze]

Thanks Ted, Not sure that it makes them wiggle more but it sure puts out some strong vibrations.

I too went nuts over the chatterbait, I made them and never caught anything on them for a couple of years. But like you, I seldom threw it. My nephew took me out one day and he was skipping my chatterbait (I called it a clatter blade) way back under the limbs of the willow trees and was catching a bass almost every cast. I did catch a couple that day but mostly caught limbs. havn't caught one on it since. My favorite method of catching bass is also like yours. A jig. I just don't think any other lure consistently catches the quality of fish that a jig does.

Hope you have a Merry Christmas as well. John

[Clint M]

Like your chatter rig. May have to copy that on one just to see how it works. I was gonna tell you both not to make you mad or brag but i caught fish on both of these lures in question this last week. My best was a 5.8 lb largemouth followed by a 3.1 smallmouth on the a rig. Then saturday when it was colder and the fish wouldnt bite i backed off in about thirty five feet and threw a chartreuse chatterbait and caught about 15 fish. I feel you on the hype. There is a lot of hype. But im telling you that a rig is the dope. Its just like anything else it has quirks and days it will not work. Same with chatterbait. I had absolutely no confidence in the chatterbait until this year. Merry Christmas and love the baits you made blaze!!!

[cadman]

Clint,

Not mad here, I guess when the chatterbait craze came out, no-one in our area was using it as I was the first one to try it out, and being first using it I thought that I would at least catch something with it since the fish have never seen it by us. Unfortunately that wasn't the case. I may have used it religiously for about 2 weeks and then sporadically after that with no success. After the first year I never went back to it. Now when I was making them back then, a guy from our club bought 5 of them from me in all yellow chartreuse. He was smokin' fish like you wouldn't believe and he came back and bought more. So apparently they do work just not for me or maybe not with my prsentation. At the time I was using the chatterbait I was a diehard crankbait user and was catching bass with my cranks, however I wasn't bringing in the quantities and quality my fellow tourney guys were. So I spoke to one of my friends and he turned me on to a jig/pig or jig and plastic trailer. I stopped throwing cranks and started catching more bass and better quality of bass with the jig/pig and have never looked back. Now I have thrown the chatterbait on and off last year but nothing to show for it, however I will throw it occasionally.

[JBlaze]

Clint, I'm not mad either. If I was worried about someone making one like mine or even similar, I would not have shown or posted it. The Chatter/Clatter Rig just naturally evolved from what someone else has made. Thanks for the compliment. Just let us know how you do on it.

John

[smalljaw]

Clint,

Not mad here, I guess when the chatterbait craze came out, no-one in our area was using it as I was the first one to try it out, and being first using it I thought that I would at least catch something with it since the fish have never seen it by us. Unfortunately that wasn't the case. I may have used it religiously for about 2 weeks and then sporadically after that with no success. After the first year I never went back to it. Now when I was making them back then, a guy from our club bought 5 of them from me in all yellow chartreuse. He was smokin' fish like you wouldn't believe and he came back and bought more. So apparently they do work just not for me or maybe not with my prsentation. At the time I was using the chatterbait I was a diehard crankbait user and was catching bass with my cranks, however I wasn't bringing in the quantities and quality my fellow tourney guys were. So I spoke to one of my friends and he turned me on to a jig/pig or jig and plastic trailer. I stopped throwing cranks and started catching more bass and better quality of bass with the jig/pig and have never looked back. Now I have thrown the chatterbait on and off last year but nothing to show for it, however I will throw it occasionally.

I feel like you do, the assorted rigs JBlaze made are pretty good but I didn't attempt as in my state they aren't going to get much attention. I did and still do make chatter style baits but only for myself and a friend of mine, I use the 3/8oz snootie head and use a double split ring set up and they work here. The double split ring set up really gives it a pronounced side to side movement when burned and where it really has done well for me is in areas with laydowns that have a lot of limbs on it and in the water. It is easier to get the chatter style bait though the limbs than it is to get a spinnerbait and even around weeds but I think it has to do with very few people throwing them. I know the chatterbait was just a fad or craze but for me they work pretty well and I use them a good bit.