How many of you guys have thought that it would be interesting to Drop-shot a lure that would imitate a 9" stocked trout? I'm sure it could be an effective approach, once the logistics are worked out. Imitating a sickly trout that barely has the energy to swim 2' before falling back to the bottom should get the attention of any big bass in the area.
The only problems are related to the logistics of presenting that size bait while still being able to stick the fish when (not if) it hits. In normal DS we use a small worm and a very sharp small hook to help stick fish with even a poor hook set as often happens with DS. So a trout size bait would use a larger hook but still a smaller hook than you might use on other techniques just to allow for poor hooksets. I have thought about using a Tora Tube, but it isn't a realistic enough looking bait for me to have confidence that an educated bass, with all the time in the world to look it over, will eat it even if I do slather it in scent. Most other baits that could imitate that size bait well, either have a bunch of hanging trebles (not good for Drop-shotting) or are a massive solid hunk of plastic. Such a hunk of plastic would either require a massive worm hook (not my idea of the easiest thing to set into a monster bass), or nose hooking (with the dis-advantages of having the hook only in 1 small end of the lure, possibly missing a lot of bites and hence tearing up/off a lot of plastics). Some of those torn-off plastics will undoubtedly be eaten by Bass, possibly killing a few of them from the intestinal blockage that such a big lure would cause. Do any of you have a suggestion for a trout sized plastic that looks good and is set-up for the use of a more normal sized worm hook? I think a hollow lure with a 3/16 to 1/4" wall thickness and a realistic look to it would be perfect. Is anyone pouring or able to pour something like this?
The next problem is what gear to use to present such a bait. I suppose I could start off with my usual swimbait stick and go from there. The only thing there, is the thought that a typical sissy-bait Drop-shot rod has a completely different action. Is this difference in action going to be enough to make it too hard to stick a big girl? Should I use Braid with a 4-5' Flouro section, or my usual mono? How much weight do I use?
Tight lines,
Wade
PS: Sorry about the novel, I'm just trying to cover the bases and get feed-back. What's your opinion?