RINGWORMS – TAILS UP OR DOWN

I was just talking to a friend last night who was told the correct way to put on a plastic bait (ringworm, twister tail, k-grub) was with the tail facing down away from the hook. What does everyone prefer. I never heard of this and my tail always face up with the hook, or does this matter. I know I catch a lot of fish with my way. I will be going out tomorrow in Genoa and will try both.

Boat is ready and the first trip on the open water after four hours of sleep. When you fish it doesn’t matter how little sleep you get.

Tail down.

Any way but sideways.

Down

down…but I don’t know why?

I dont think it matters one bit! up or down shoot i dont even look and see on a ring worm! as far as a twister i always put them up! but hay do whatever you have confidence in!

confidence in what your doing is more important than anything!

if your confident your rigging right you will have the patience to fish the bait properly!

Tail-down.

Tail down. Not sure if it matters so so much on ring worms. On k grubs it is so the tail does not get hung up on the hook.

Tail down on everything for me.

I was waiting for James or Dean to chime in but I think for some applications the tail goes down and others the tail goes up hence the difference between pitching and dragging

Down.

interstin post and quite honestly I’m surprised by the results from some of the river guys. I’ve always put it up but based on the response from some cats I know put fish in the boat, I’ll have to try down.

Down (away from the hook) when casting. Up when dragging for me! When you’re dragging, put them in the water both ways next to the boat and see which you like better.

always down for me, especially with bigger tailed baits like K-grubs. IMO, it keeps the tail out of the way of the hook. I don’t end up with the tail caught on the hook as much with it tail down. I don’t think it matters as much on a ringworm since the tail is small and already a ways back from the hook anyway.

90% of the time, I fish with the tail down. Always down with bigger twister tail style plastics.

About the only time I fish with the tail up on a ringworm is when the bite is really slow. It’s hard to quantify, but it seems like I can pull a few more fish out on some days when the bite is slow with the tail up.

Very interesting. I usually rig everything down, but I’m going to have to change things up as well.

If I’m pitching them to holes in cabbage weeds,it makes no differnece up, down,or sideways.

for dragging in the river, I run it up, but I also use a very different style jig than everyone else.

Out of the water, it doesn’t matter. If its going in the water, its tail up for me. Less gravity pull on the “tail up” in the water.

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Out of the water, it doesn’t matter. If its going in the water, its tail up for me. Less gravity pull on the “tail up” in the water.

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Boy reddog, you’ve got me scratching my head with that one!

Well you see if the tail is up, it is further from the center of the earth than a downward pointing tail, therefore there wouldn’t be as much gravitational pull on the tail. And it would not bend the whole ringworm down as much. Could that be what reddog meant???? I think I am having a serious case of brain fog.

1st day on the water this early season and it did not matter in my boat. i was out from 1pm to 330pm and we caught 20 eyes and saugers. Mostly eyes today in 15-20fow in Genoa. i rigged half the ringworms one way and the other half the other and it did not matter why i was vertical or dragging. we kept 8 today and threw back three piggy females 20-23. all i can say is go slow. best color was midnight blue with pearl tail, pepper chart., and purple hair.

Joel how is sauk city havent been there for awhile, i am originally from baraboo.

I haven’t been able to get out below the Prairie du Sac dam or anywhere else yet but heard from friends that its good one day and poor the next. Spent this weekend visiting in-laws in Manitiwoc.
I heard the same thing from below the Dells dam. Some good and some bad mixed in with plenty of little ones.

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Out of the water, it doesn’t matter. If its going in the water, its tail up for me. Less gravity pull on the “tail up” in the water.

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Boy reddog, you’ve got me scratching my head with that
one!

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Pretty much what Dave G said. If you look at the jig out of the water with the tail down it looks natural. If you look at the jig out of the water with the tail up, it appears unnnatural, the tail doesnt stand well, and it appears want to lay over to the side, right?

When you put the tail up jig in the water, the tail stands up nice and proud and runs perfect, right behind the hook. Its been tail up for me, forever.

Do I really and truly think it makes a difference to the fish, no. But it makes a difference to me. It’s a confidence thing. What I do believe is more important, is that the body is threaded on the jig perfectly straight, whether its tail up or tail down, the hook needs to go thru the body, dead center, and in perfect alignment with the mold seams in the body, which is also in direct line with a tail up or tail down installation To me, that is the key to more fish.

reddog – good point about how the ringworm is threaded on the hook. I’d have to agree with you on that for sure!

If I want to fish it slow I will always put it tail down. When testing the two methods I observed that it took less current/effort for the tails to make the correct action.

I do fish them both ways though.

FDR

Interesting, I always fish with my ringworms tail down. I don’t know why, but it works so I don’t question it. That’s about as scientific of an answer that I can give.