Selecting the Right Lure for the Job
When it comes to selecting the right lure regardless of the species of fish I’m fishing for, I try to keep it simple by following four simple rules:
1) Size – We’ve all heard the term. “Big lures catch big fish”. While this may be true from time-to-time and at certain times of the year, however, more fish and more big fish are caught using lures that are the same size or smaller than the natural forage that the game fish are accustomed to seeing within their home water body. You also have to take into consideration the species you’re fishing for. For example, if we are fishing for perch, we’re not going to cast a northern pike lure such as a #2 Len Thompson lure, 2 1/2oz Spinnow, 32oz Lucky Plug, or an XXL SteelShad. Your presentation is going to match the size of the species you’re fishing and the natural forage they’re used to seeing and feeding on.
2) Vibration – Regardless of the lure, you’re fishing, you will never get a fish to bite your lure if the fish doesn’t first feel your lure is in the water. Anglers should select lures that give off a good amount of vibration as they are retrieved, jigged, or trolled through the water column. Fish feel vibration through the water column in their lateral line. “The lateral line is a system of sense organs found in aquatic vertebrates and used to detect movement, vibration, and pressure gradients in the surrounding water. Fish use their lateral line system to follow the vibration produced by potential prey”. Understanding how fish feel potential prey in the water column will help you select the right lure to fish.
3) Flash – The flash of your lure is also very important to take into consideration. BuzzBomb, Len Thompson, SteelShad, Lucky Bug, and Northern King lures, all have a great deal of flash combined with a thunderous vibration when fished. All these lures also come in a variety of sizes and are ideal lures for a wide variety of fish species. My favorite colours to use are whites, golds, silvers, yellows, pearls, brass, chartreuse, or a blend of the two mentioned colours together. Not to say other colours don’t work, but these colours reflect light and give off a tremendous flash, and are my confidence colours, especially during low-light and slow bite conditions. In my opinion, these lures are the perfect one-two punch. They give off an eye-piercing flash and a thunderous vibration through the water column attracting predator fish from long distances away.
4) Scent – Scent or scent attractants is something that I’ve used over the years, however, Liquid Mayhem is a scent attractant that in my opinion, stands alone at the top of all fish scent attractants.
I apply Liquid Mayhem on every lure or bait I use, including live or frozen baits and using the natural biodegradable product has tripled my hook-ups on every species. For the two or three seconds it takes to apply Liquid Mayhem, why wouldn’t you use it?
The fish species you’re fishing, and the size, vibration, flash, and scent of the lure you’re fishing should be taken into consideration before you ever take the time to tie the lure on.
