The where of jerkbait fishing?

[Dando]

I've tried a few times. Deep Clear Rocky Highland lakes, unfamiliar to me, with smallmouth, spots, and lm......and I was probably nowhere near a fish to begin with.
BUT, I have tried jerkbaits over deep open water. Bluffs, bluff ends, deep humps, and just open water.
Basically, for what I understand a suspending jerkbait was intended.
And never done much good.

IMO: If my jerkbait doesn't touch something during the retrieve, I have very little confidence in it.

Anybody think the same? Or do most of y'all catch em' out over deep water?

[Flippin 416]

The best lake we have around here has plenty of vegetation is in. With that being said I have caught them around the grass and also while fishing through the grass....just bumping the top of it.

[Dando]

The best lake we have around here has plenty of vegetation is in. With that being said I have caught them around the grass and also while fishing through the grass....just bumping the top of it.

Smallmouth?

[Rude196]

For smallmouth and kys I usually do better on the open water bluffs points etc. Largemouth just the opposite.

[572 Fitter]

Mostly suspended in the winter,on feeding flats the rest of the time(SM/LM)

[Dando]

About the only brown fish I've caught on a JB was at Greers Ferry. (deep, clear, rocky, and most generally sucky). But, even then I was throwing into buckbrush in 3ft of water, and getting the hit as it cleared the brush line.
So, shallow....

[ohmegabass]

I've tried a few times. Deep Clear Rocky Highland lakes, unfamiliar to me, with smallmouth, spots, and lm......and I was probably nowhere near a fish to begin with.
BUT, I have tried jerkbaits over deep open water. Bluffs, bluff ends, deep humps, and just open water.
Basically, for what I understand a suspending jerkbait was intended.
And never done much good.

IMO: If my jerkbait doesn't touch something during the retrieve, I have very little confidence in it.

Anybody think the same? Or do most of y'all catch em' out over deep water?

By the looks of it I would not change to much.

[Dando]

By the looks of it I would not change to much.

That was on the Arkansas River. Very clear is 2ft and Very deep is 8ft.
So, my jerkbait fishing isn't very normal I don't think.

Just wondering sort of "where" everybody else throws them? Considering most jerkbait guys probably fish deep, clear, rocky lakes.
If somebody wants to show me how a jerkbait "is done" on Bull Shoals or Table Rock? I'll be more than happy to make the drive, and bring "thouest holliest of colors" as a gift.

[Thermodude]

I've had decent success for both LM and SM throwing them over flooded timer and especially around boat docks but one of my favorite times to use them is during the spawn, that's when I really do well...........

[slaunch]

Either way it sounds like i need to make a trip over and let you teach me your ways.

[Dando]

That was on the Arkansas River. Very clear is 2ft and Very deep is 8ft.
So, my jerkbait fishing isn't very normal I don't think.

Just wondering sort of "where" everybody else throws them? Considering most jerkbait guys probably fish deep, clear, rocky lakes.
If somebody wants to show me how a jerkbait "is done" on Bull Shoals or Table Rock? I'll be more than happy to make the drive, and bring "thouest holliest of colors" as a gift.

Word of warning though. If anybody takes me up on this offer? An hour into our day, you may realize a $25 gift just isn't worth another 15 minutes of putting up with me.

[DanR]

For Smallmouth where I fish, they are DEADLY in the fall off rocky points, grass edges and for working current where I would find gravel to larger rock transitions with sparse weeds. The farther in to fall, the deeper they go so I will use the D300J KVDs until I'm dealing with 14 feet and they are not suspended, then I switch to other tactics. This past fall, the jerkbait DOMINATED the bite so I had no choice but to use it. I would try other stuff but 8 out of 10 fish would be on the jerkbait. I have about a dozen spots that all have similar types of structure and in the fall the bass stack on those spots and they're all good quality fish.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BbaVuXAD...richardfishing

From one of those spots..

[slaunch]

That was on the Arkansas River. Very clear is 2ft and Very deep is 8ft.
So, my jerkbait fishing isn't very normal I don't think.

Just wondering sort of "where" everybody else throws them? Considering most jerkbait guys probably fish deep, clear, rocky lakes.
If somebody wants to show me how a jerkbait "is done" on Bull Shoals or Table Rock? I'll be more than happy to make the drive, and bring "thouest holliest of colors" as a gift.

I am the farthest thing from an expert on any fishing technique but every once in awhile i will get lucky and catch a few of them on Grand on a jerkbait. typically im fishing a fairly shallow point or 45 degree bank. it seems as though when your in that depth where just barely tick a rock at the deepest part of your retrieve is where i get the majority of my bites. I don't hardly ever fish them over deep water without something there like a dock or a brush pile.

[Dando]

I am the farthest thing from an expert on any fishing technique but every once in awhile i will get lucky and catch a few of them on Grand on a jerkbait. typically im fishing a fairly shallow point or 45 degree bank. it seems as though when your in that depth where just barely tick a rock at the deepest part of your retrieve is where i get the majority of my bites. I don't hardly ever fish them over deep water without something there like a dock or a brush pile.

Sounds like me. For me to have any confidence, that bait has to touch "something"

[Roosterman]

Sounds like me. For me to have any confidence, that bait has to touch "something"

Define "something", grass maybe? Lol....Inquiring minds want to know.

[slaunch]

Sounds like me. For me to have any confidence, that bait has to touch "something"

That is typical of how i fish in general and most of the time it has to be visual.

[Dando]

Define "something", grass maybe? Lol....Inquiring minds want to know.

Think of ANYTHING you would "hit" with a crankbait. That's a ton of stuff and any of it is what I want a jerkbait to "touch". (not hit though)

At Degray a couple of times, when it was low. You could see a few limbs sticking out of the water, which meant there was a huge brushpile connected to them, underwater.
Throw a slow rise Vision 110 around the twigs sticking up.
As soon as we touched the brush, stop and wait to give the lure a chance to float up so as not to get hung.
If we didn't get snagged, we got SLAMMED! (mostly 2 to 3lb crappie). But, big bass were in there with them.
Wish I could find that again somewhere. Just for the crappie!

We came back one day with 40 crappie. All of them over 2lbs. And they will hit a jerkbait harder than a drum.

[okiebass]

best in clear water. have done very well on Tenkiller and Broken Bow here in Oklahoma. Hard to explain but when you see a rogue bank you just know it lol . 45 degree banks good as well as bluff points and points. this year did very well on FT Gibson before the deep freeze hit and Gibson has never been that great for me on jerkbaits before. Im not one to fish them ultra slow either, a 5 second pause about as long as i will let it sit. Dont give up on jerkbaits they do work !

[Dando]

best in clear water. have done very well on Tenkiller and Broken Bow here in Oklahoma. Hard to explain but when you see a rogue bank you just know it lol . 45 degree banks good as well as bluff points and points. this year did very well on FT Gibson before the deep freeze hit and Gibson has never been that great for me on jerkbaits before. Im not one to fish them ultra slow either, a 5 second pause about as long as i will let it sit. Dont give up on jerkbaits they do work !

I can be at Tenkiller in a matter of 100 minutes!

[ohmegabass]

When Ky Lake had grass they where very good in front of the mat edge sometimes even doubles . But I have never had much luck calling them up out of deep water. But to my dismay I have seen it done on suspended fish