Some of the small details that make a difference
Part 1
Greg Myers

There are some things that make a difference that we usually don't think about. Some of these small details could make a world of difference in our success. One of the biggest that I think of is fueling up the truck and boat as we go to the lake. This leaves the smell of fuel on our hands. Our hands transfer the smell of fuel to our lures. Now trophy size fish are very aware of there surroundings. If they see our lure and pick it up, their smell and taste organs will taste the fuel smell causing the fish to spit the bait out before we can set the hook. I always fuel the truck up the night before and fuel the boat up on the way home from a fishing trip.

Changing the size of the treble hooks on crankbaits may affect the way the crankbait acts. The size of the treble hooks that come on a crankbait are tested and that size is used because the crankbait performs correctly. If you use too large or too small of a hook on the crankbait you might affect the way the crankbait swims through the water or suspends in the water. When you change hook size on a crankbait be sure and swim it through the water to make sure it is swimming correctly. A larger hook may cause a suspending crankbait to sink because of the treble hooks weight. I use a swimming pool to check how my crankbait swims after I modify it.

Another modification that you can do to a crankbait is to use suspend dots or strips to affect the way the crankbait suspends, sinks or rises in the water. Be sure and check the way that the crankbait acts after you add some suspend dots or strips and add or subtract until you get the action that you are looking for. Remember that a crankbait may swim the way we want it to today, but the next day we go fishing, it may not act the same. Colder water is denser than warmer water. This affects how a crankbait will act from day to day.

One of the things that I see a lot is an angler fishing too fast. The thing that comes to mind is fishing a worm down a moderate to steep slope in the water. They swing the worm out and over the fish making the worm land several feet down the slope if it even gets back down to the bottom before they move the worm again. Another place this happens is when they are fishing a creek bank and when the lure comes off the creek bank, they swing the lure over the fish. I recommend just shaking the worm down the slope and over the creek bank. This will allow the fish to see the lure and possibly strike at it.

Be sure and read Part 2 that will be published within a few weeks.