Pitching Blades and Sheepshead…

Question for you blade pitching experts out there. I feel like something is either off on my blade pitching technique or my location selection. A standard day of pitching blades or plastics for that matter on pool 4 will often land me a walleye or two but I’ll get 10 sheepshead or whitebass per walleye. My best days will usually only net a half dozen walleyes at most. I figure this is below par for what success I could be having and am trying to figure out what I can change. If I am catching sheepshead and white bass does that mean I am working the bait correctly and just in the wrong spot, or could I be slamming those species and still presenting the bait incorrectly to have great walleye success?

typically that just means you’re around a lot of sheephead and white bass. I’ll keep pitching until I find areas holding more eyes. Sometimes you just have to sort through the trash to get to the eyes as well.

The only other thing is, sometimes those fish will be a little more aggressive and working a blade too hard can trigger more of them. When pitching blades I seldom ever lift the blade more than 12″, usually it’s more like 6-8″.

If you ever seen a video BK has done you will notice there are little to no walleye among the sheepshead and zero sheephead among the walleye. Just an observation , I guess those videos are educational after all Thanks BK

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If you ever seen a video BK has done you will notice there are little to no walleye among the sheepshead and zero sheephead among the walleye. Just an observation , I guess those videos are educational after all Thanks BK

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Are you sure that isn’t a time of the year thing Jesse?
What time of the year was BK’s video shot?

I’ve seen many, many instances where we found walleyes, saugers, white bass and sheapshead all in one location. More often than not actually.

During late, late fall, winter & very early spring, we rarely catch a sheapshead mixed in with walleyes & saugers. But the rest of the year, it’s common.

The biggest fish i cameraed this winter were all directly adjacent to large schools of sheephead or cat fish, i more oftern than not could the 2 mixed. That said they are a plague, i think they just get the bait before the eys do at times.

Dont get frustrated chances are you are doing the right thing with the blades but always play with you technique some days they want it worked very aggressively other days they might want it pumped slowly close to the bottom. What you are probably experiencing is that the locations that you are catching lots of sheeps and bass in is that there is just lots of them there and they will generally always be more aggressive. As always move around and try to find areas that have more active Walleyes or just come back to the area later to see if the walleyes are more active.Hope this helps build your confidence a bit and never give up. Tight Lines.

Paul Delaney
http://www.lateeyessportfishing.com

I have found spots on the Mississippi near Red Wing where every other fish will be a sheephead, then a walleye. I just assumed they both like eating the same thing. There are times when a crawler will produce more sheephead than walleye, then it’s like they changed their mind. Switching to minnows or plastic sometimes makes a difference, but sometimes not. I just use the extra fish as practice, and when you don’t know for sure what’s on your line, you are a bit more careful in what you do.

Sheephead really like Marshalls color and presentation of a blade!

Very seldom down here do we find them mixed. Its either lots of walleye/sauger and a few sheep, or lots of sheep and a few walleye/sauger. I’ve never seen it where we are catching both steadily.

But heck, this time of year every fish in the river is after the same thing… shad. Find the shad and you will find every species in the river around them.

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Sheephead really like Marshalls color and presentation of a blade!

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Don’t be hating. Keep practicing and someday you’ll develop the sheephead touch. I make my own blades because the store bought ones just don’t appeal to the sheephead as much.