big tear drop or small tear drop?

[ryfisher]

which works better for gills? bigger or smaller tear drops. i figured that the usually feed on very small organisms so smal would be better. but i catch them on some huge ones sometimes. what do you think??

later
ry

[Bluegill_Bob]

I find that when gills are in a negative mood the smaller the better. 1# line or less and size 12 or 14 hook size tear drop.

When they are feeding well you can use up to 4# line. I use 4# yellow stren line for my main line because it is easy to see on the ice and also in the water so you can detect a bite while your bait is falling. I use about 18 to 24" of clear 1 or 2# line for a leader, and # 12 or #14 hooks with very small tear drops that I make myself.

In this case anyway big is not better.

Good fishing
Bob

[ryfisher]

how much would it be to get some of your tear drops?? thanx for the help.

[resophonic]

small teardrop #14 use a wax worm and completely cover jig. The only reason for using jig is for the weight. 1# line and never more than 2#

[ICE_FISHERMAN_3094]

any good ice fisherman knows that bluegills are aggressive eaters and fighters.  i have caught huge bluegills on crankbaits, rapalas and plastics in the summer, but on the ice, you need to down-size your bait.  i use a 1/16 oz charcurse or yellow jig tipped with 2 maggots to cover the hook or wax worms, both work great.  if you use a larger jig, larger fish will find and eat it, but for bluegills, smaller is the key.  good luck

[RSQCAL]

I stick with the small tear drop covered with a waxworm. Usually use a light green/yellow color, but I fish one lake were pink usually out does them all. I keep an ready assortment of colors to try but I stick with the small tear drop and light line.

[mnfishman]

I use small glow jigs all the time.  I have tried black or jigs that don't glow and they just don't produce as well as glow jigs do.  I smaller is better 1/32 or 1/64 oz jigs tipped with a wax worm.  I used to thread the wax worm on the hook but now I just hook it from the head and let it hang below the hook.

Plain hooks also work well if they are biting lite.  Tip them with a wax worm as well.

[drewhon]

If anyone is looking for some cool tear drops look this site up nice quality and there only 40cents each..
    jamminjigs.com
 
               Drew

[mod_auger]

Here is what i've found about jig sizes:

The small jigs are great for finicky gills. coupled with light line they can be deadly. Although, a small jig will not work well when searching for fish in heavy cover like heavy weeds. a smaller jig will not capture the attention of fish that may be far away.

With larger jigs: very good for searching for fish. you are bound to find a few aggressive fish that will hit a larger jig. once you have landed a fish or two, you can start refining your presentation.

I have found different fish on different lakes have different likings, it's just a matter of finding what they like at a particular time.

[waterwolfed]

littler is better is this case if u catch my drift

[ICE_FISHERMAN_3094]

hey everyone, if you look on the first page, you will see another post that i have.  in there, i remarked about having a smaller sized jig, and you will produce more fish.  small and lighter is the key for catching bluegills.  c - ya all!

[AlgaeKilla]

I use a palomar knot and tie on of each on. Its legal in my state and works for a multispecies presentation.

[acsacmboy]

smaller seemd to be better for me. they just suck it right in

[iceintheveins]

I like to try one that's a little bigger at first, say a #6 demon. If they shy away, something like a 10 or 12 demon or poppee works better. Generally tear drops need to be baited with small waxies or maggots/spikes. Smaller tears should get just a single maggot or spike. Judging what the fish wants or not is all a matter of seeing how they react to it on sonar. Bluegills can be pushovers and gobble up anything, but sometimes, especially through the ice, they can be quite fickle and skittish.

Tyler

[PERCH_INC.]

I use small jigs with a no-knot. 

[jigginstick]

I let the fish tell me . But I like to start with the smallest I can use and still get a good reading on the vexilar FL 18.