Losing Fish..Could use some advice.

I’ve transitioned from vertical jigging blade baits to pitching them. The other day I was throwing them onto a slope that started at 5ft and worked down to 35 ft. Just inside the current seam. most of the fish were coming from the 20-25 ft zone. I was casting a 5/8 blade (BPS) and I was getting hit but could not consistently put them in the boat. The 4 that I did land were all in the 5-6lb range (24″-26″). My setup is a 6’3″ St Croix Elite MXF, Diawa fuego 100), 8lb diawa braid with 3ft of mono leader. Any thoughts as to why I’m losing so many fish? I’m headed back to the area soon. I have some ideas but I’d like to hear yours first.

Thanks.

I dunno. Most times I start losing fish is because of 1 of 2 reasons.

1) I drop the tip during the fight and give them slack and they shake off.

2) My hooks need sharpening.

As a catch and release guy I really don’t pay much attention as to why I lose fish. I chalk it mostly to being a lousy fisherman.

Pretty common issue on blade baits, as the hard line and xf action of your rod offers very little shock absorber. Your leader does help, but often times on a reaction bite like that, the outside membrane of the mouth is darn fragile.

If you could step down to a medium action on the 5/8 weight, you might have a bit of improvement. Also back off on your drag some too.

I agree with a longer lighter action rod for sure. I have also had days with ripped raps that I had to really change the way I fight fish. I did a guided trip over in Green Bay a couple years ago and I was getting hit but could not keep the fish pinned. The guide finally told me not to pump the rod. I was in the habit of reeling down somewhat then fighting the fish to a high rod tip and repeating. He told me to keep a higher rod tip and to reel keep the tension. More of a steady reel if that makes sense. It is somewhat hard to explain.

Mono helps too.

I’d use mono. You need more stretch or give. I think a fast action would be better than extra fast. The heavier the bait, the easier it is for the fish to shake it out. That weight gets swinging as the fish shakes its head and the leverage and momentum created pops the hook out.

I switched from a graphite rod to a glass rod last year for lipless cranks. My catch rate went up from 50% to 90%. That extra flex in the rod was a total game changer for me.

Thank you everyone for your input. I’m going to be going to a little lighter rod (medium lite). I have a 2500 reel too that I might begin to use also. I figured that I just don’t have enough stretch or give. I generally like to think of myself as being good at fighting fish. I commonly fish our fall King salmon with barbless hooks and there is a ton of weight flying around (11″ flasher, 10oz. cannonball, and a lure) but walleye are different. Hooks are also new and good quality. I thought I read somewhere that lightening up the blade can get you better bites. Something about fish being able to catch up to it on the fall or inhaling it better.

The first thing I do when I buy a new bait (including blades) is pull the hooks off and put some top quality Mustads on.

With that said Dean is probably the foremost authority on here and his advice should be heeded.

I assume BPS = Bass Pro Shop if so, cut all the junk hooks off and replace. I use all gamakatsu on my blades, but even an Eagle Claw common round bend would be a HUGE improvement