Bottom Bumping

[Dave Reed]

Thank you for the feedback.

[TN Dave]

TN Dave, fine suggestions and thanks for suggesting the National publication...it is greatly appreciated!

Phil

I have had a subscription to “The National Spoonplugger” newsletter, when is was available, since the early “70’s”. The newsletter is truly a treasure trove of information from Real Spoonpluggers from their actual on the water experience!!

As one of the Volunteers at the ten years of the Jamborees in Chattanooga, I always recommend the newsletter and taking the Basic Spoonplugging Course from one of the CSI’s. Explaining that being taken out in the water for and hour or two was just a small introduction to Spoonplugging. (Note: All the Volunteers were on their own time, money, boat, gas, etc.)

All this would fall on deaf years (other than an experienced Spoonplugger); seems as if these folks wanted everything for free. Disconcerting, especially for those of us who struggled to pay for Spoonplugging classes. Of course struggling to pay for the classes is why we valued them so much!

There is no “Shortcut to Success” in Spoonplugging. However, time/effort/studying Mr. Perry’s written material, a subscription to NSOA, and taking the Basic Spoonplugging Class
will certainly lessen the learning curve. Believe me when I say, from hard earned experience, it is much easier to learn Spoonplugging the right way the first time around. It saves so much time, effort and frustration.

Good Fishing

TN Dave

[Harold Standish]

I never met Mr Perry. But ihave heard toward the end of his SP teaching caeer he was very worn out ...by the very people he was trying help. I know the feeling in my dog training business the dogs .that were the easy part of the equation. It was the people who would fight and srtuggld with the whole process of helping their dogs be all they could be. there are no short cuts in sucessful dog training or Spoonplugging....

Hal

[MuskyAddict]

It was the people who would fight and srtuggld with the whole process of helping their dogs be all they could be. there are no short cuts in sucessful dog training or Spoonplugging....

Hal, that is true in so many disciplines in life. One of the things that attracted me to spoonplugging, this forum and the mentors who post here is the consistent emphasis on “putting in the work and following the procedures “. I wish I knew who coined the phrase “it takes a year to get a years worthy of experience “. I’ve believed that most of my adult life. But, when it came to fishing, I had experience but not knowledge. Buck’s teachings is helping me with the basics. Working hard and following the proper procedures is putting me on the path to real knowledge.

Do the work, be consistent, stay disciplined and don’t take short-cuts - a recipe for success in anything worthwhile.

Ken

[Mapper]

I understand why bumping bottom with a particular number spoonplug is the great way to learn the depth of your lure. I have read that some people believe they get more bites when the spoonplug is continually bumping at the bottom. Do you guys feel you get more bites with a spoonplug bottom bumping than when it is free swimming up a foot or two off the bottom?

Dave,
The old adage “work smarter not harder” has definite application where Spoonplugging is concerned. Merely as a suggestion, I would say, do yourself a favor and take full advantage of the technological advancements in communications that are at your disposal. At your fingertips (literally) you have access to the most advanced, certifiable knowledge base that exist on the planet. Take advantage of ALL of it. Here, you have access to finding out about, correct reading material, on-the-water instruction and feedback from the most experienced of Spoonpluggers.

Moving Forward:

* Clear your mind of all outside sources other than Buck Perry Material - Purchase the Home S-T-U-D-Y Course, now!
* Read the HSC, take the tests, then go back and study all aspects until you have a comprehensive grasp of what’s before you.
* Connect with a‘Spoonplugging Instructer’, if possible, or a solid knowledgable veteran. They’ll save you much of the grief you would experience working through the ‘kinks’ of ‘getting it right’. Any investment in money you may need to make for this service will be money WELL SPENT.
* Study the HSC where it relates every time you come off the water with questions. And study your structure maps, and Mapping & Interpretaion 1&2

I felt compelled to share these suggestions because I speak from experience about learning Spoonplugging on your own. It’s a very gratifying experience, but also one that’s time consuming and trying at times.

All the Best, Walt

[Steve Craig]

Walt said...."I felt compelled to share these suggestions because I speak from experience about learning Spoonplugging on your own. It’s a very gratifying experience, but also one that’s time consuming and trying at times."

Boy.....that is a true statement if ever there was one Walt!!! Excellent post!

[John Bales]

When the three of us were reading the green book, the internet did not exist. We never even saw another spoonplugger for quite a few years. We had one place to go when we came to a stand still and that was to write a letter to Buck. Like others from my era, anyone who wrote Buck got a letter back, every single time. I have every letter he sent me plus loads of them once he asked me to do some teaching. The best lessons in life are learned from making mistakes. I've made plenty. After 50 years of doing this, I still get skunked now and then. At the end of a tough day, I know it may have been something I failed to do(depth and speeds), or the conditions did not allow for a catch. Mr. Perry would have known to stay home that day but knowing it could be a tough day makes a person work harder and longer to make a catch. That can be rewarding also. Buck gave us all of the guidelines needed to catch fish consistently if we put forth the effort to learn them. The hard part is getting to that place.
There will never be another Buck Perry. Very few humans have a mind of a genius. His ability to solve problems were far above the rest. We are very lucky that he put enough fishing knowledge in written material that you and I have a chance at catching a fish. Most fishermen do not know what makes a fish tick, what they do daily, seasonally, and how to put him in the boat consistently. They know very little about weather and water, water color and how that one thing can make catching a fish much easier, depth and speed control, structure, breaks and breaklines and all the other important subjects we need to know about. Trolling is scoffed at by a lot of fishermen but Mr. Perry stated that trolling is our teacher. He was right again.
We are the only group of fishermen that have these guidelines and the greatest thing is that we are willing to share. Fishermen are a greedy bunch for the most part. I could spend all day talking about how lucky we are to have the opportunity to get this knowledge. I wonder how we would go about our fishing if Buck Perry had not done all the hard work for us? Looking at this snow is getting to me. John

[Fran Myers]

I mostly will be trolling deep 25' to 40' for walleyes. Should I expect to hang up a lot until I get used to trolling breaks and should I make up some sort of "stump knocker" or something else to free my spoonplugs? I had originally planned on using the 12# NoBo for 15 foot or less and 15# monel wire deeper than 15 foot for running the smaller sized spoonplugs and jigs/twister tails on 3 ways deep. Does that sound doable or is it too light?

Hi Dave,

To answer your question about snagging…
It depends on your body of water. In a natural lake, the deeper you go the less likely you will get snagged. A river or reservoir..more than likely. This is where the presentation side of things compensate for snags.

As to the bumping side of the equation…there are contexts to that. The general rule is…after 10’ depth you want to keep your lures as close to the bottom as you can without plowing. Just a tick not dragging furrows.

Now…
At this point SPECIES makes a difference. There are some species that prefer a free running lure that close to the bottom…say within a foot or two. Bumping will HUGELY reduce catch.

Some care less but most of the time bumping is good. Walleyes to be specific like bumping but more importantly is bumping with SPEED control. Such as using 3-way rigs at Erie with weights or spoonplugs pulling the stick/jerk bait down AND manipulate the three way to be able to cover multiple speeds.
Ala the Don Dickson River Rig technique most of us know.
When I do this on Erie, I don’t mind doing 3 foot droppers from the 3 way.

There’s a lot more to this but a lot of info here