|
|
Posts: 32
Location: Appleton, WI | Hey guys, I recently purchased a phantom glidebait with a soft tail on the back after hearing how easy they were to glide and work. The bait I purchased seems to never wants to work as advertised. Any suggestions to make the bait glide better? |
|
| |
|
Location: Northern Illinois | Solid wire leader and a jerkbait rod for best results |
|
| |
|
Posts: 32
Location: Appleton, WI | I tried using a solid wire leader on a jerkbait rod and the action wasnt any better, i have many other jerkbaits and those work just fine |
|
| |
|
Posts: 461
| phantoms
less = more
try minimal pulls, almost a tap and see what you get
easy to over work the lure |
|
| |
|
Posts: 2089
| Use the reel handle in combination with little taps like Kevin mentioned and it'll come alive. Short turns of the handle. Tap downward also. One of my top 5 baits of all time. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 149
| Did you buy the deep model ? |
|
| |
|
Posts: 177
Location: ON | Half turn of the reel every tap. Don't over work it.
They are one of the easiest glide baits to work.
|
|
| |
|
Posts: 64
Location: Crystal Lake, IL | Slack line, short quick snaps. It'll just click one day and you'll wonder how you worked it wrong the whole time. Great baits, great action. I always give it a hard snap and let it glide out about 10-15 ft from the boat when you can see it... give the fish a chance to crush it before you get boatside. Don't get caught in the cadence during the cast either, you don't want to lull the fish to sleep. Keep the cadence changing, 2 taps, short pause, 3 taps, short pause, 2 taps, long pause etc... Have fun with it, you'll love the results! |
|
| |
|
Posts: 750
Location: Minneapolis, MN | I bought my first Phantom (a 6.5" soft tail) this year and I can't get it to do anything but hop forward... I have no problem making my top water WTD baits work properly, but I can't for the life of me work the Phantom. I'm also really disappointed because I had high hopes for it. I"m using Stealth Tackle Spring leaders, maybe that's my problem? |
|
| |
|
Posts: 1360
Location: Lake "y" cause lake"x" got over fished | dami0101 - 7/18/2014 11:42 PM
I bought my first Phantom (a 6.5" soft tail) this year and I can't get it to do anything but hop forward... I have no problem making my top water WTD baits work properly, but I can't for the life of me work the Phantom. I'm also really disappointed because I had high hopes for it. I"m using Stealth Tackle Spring leaders, maybe that's my problem?
No, stealth leaders are awesome! That's not your issue. I think you are pulling it to hard when you try to work it. Slack in the line and ultra light taps is what gets these baits working great. If there is to much tension on the line at the time of "tap" then it will just hop forward as you said. Be gentle with the phantoms. the lighter the taps, the better. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 750
Location: Minneapolis, MN | FAT-SKI - 7/19/2014 9:20 AM
dami0101 - 7/18/2014 11:42 PM
I bought my first Phantom (a 6.5" soft tail) this year and I can't get it to do anything but hop forward... I have no problem making my top water WTD baits work properly, but I can't for the life of me work the Phantom. I'm also really disappointed because I had high hopes for it. I"m using Stealth Tackle Spring leaders, maybe that's my problem?
No, stealth leaders are awesome! That's not your issue. I think you are pulling it to hard when you try to work it. Slack in the line and ultra light taps is what gets these baits working great. If there is to much tension on the line at the time of "tap" then it will just hop forward as you said. Be gentle with the phantoms. the lighter the taps, the better.
I just meant maybe I should be using a full jerkbait leader instead of the spring one. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 409
Location: Almond, WI | Almost guaranteed that if you're not getting glide, you are overworking the bait. By short taps, we mean use your wrist and only move the rod tip 3" or so. If you really have trouble, use a solid wire leader and a shorter rod. Also I add a split ring to the eye. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 233
Location: Iowa | The 6.5"ers are a little tougher to work than the 7.5. They need shorter taps like some of the others are saying.
IMO, I wouldn't get too hung up on the leader. Solid wire does make it a easier. I usually work them with a fluorocarbon leader just fine. My 6 year old loves to throw phantoms or anything that walks the dog or zig-zags for that matter. All I have on his pole is a titanium leader.
Jeremy |
|
| |
|
Posts: 1023
| Probably lean towards user error as the phantoms are very easy to work.
Where are you located? Best thing to do might be to take it to a bait shop on a lake and have someone show you how to work it. Or find a fishing partner who uses them and ask him to show you.
It is tough to tell someone how to work one, it is easier to show them.
As stated on here. Little taps, slack line and quick flips of the reel handle make it all happen. Less is certainly more. And once you get the "cadence" down, you'll have it for life. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 750
Location: Minneapolis, MN | I don’t doubt that I’m over working it. Like I said, I have no problem with a topwater WTD like a Big Mama, but I can’t make the Phantom do its thing. My latest thought is that it has to do with the fact that with a topwater, the line stays slack except for when you reel, whereas with a Phantom, the line starts to loose slack almost immediately as the bait starts to sink after each snap. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 1224
Location: Okoboji | try a hound. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 203
Location: Germantown, WI | Try working it a little faster than you think you should. Once you get a steady side to side rythm going you can slow down. If you are working the bait the same way you would work a WTD topwater that is probably too much. I know that I have to give a much harder pull on a Weagle to get my desires side to side action versus a glide bait like a Softail Phantom. I actually think the 6" Softail Phantom is much easier to work than the 7.5" Softail Phantom. One rule of thumb that I use is that the larger the glider usually the slower you need to work it, at least for the way I do it. It's easy to get into a hypnotic rythm, but you really need to throw in some pauses and some erratic pulls to trigger those fish. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 1039
Location: North St. Paul, MN | Dami - I live in North St. Paul and could show you some time if you're interested. I fish them, almost exclusively (and probably to my detriment of numbers of fish) in the fall. If you're ever over to the east side, I live right across the street from a small "tiger" lake. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 31
| Kinda off topic but what does everyone prefer, the 10" or 7 1/2"? I have a couple 7 1/2" and love them and im thinking of getting the 10". only problem is I live in Winnipeg and they only sell the 7 1/2" here so I would have to order it which gets a little pricey. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 1360
Location: Lake "y" cause lake"x" got over fished | I very much enjoy the larger gliders. But if I throw a larger one I usually go with the Squirko XL, MAG muskie treats, Super appealers. ect. Its not that I don't like the bigger phantoms, I just think there are better "large" gliders out there. The largest Phantom I toss is a 7.5". I bought a new style called the "playmaker" Which I think is going to be one of my go tos this fall. Not really sure who made them exactly, I bought it at the lure swap here in MN. All hand made, and just beautiful. I'll try to post a pic later |
|
| |
|
Posts: 1039
Location: North St. Paul, MN | Those "playmakers" are made by Chris Mueller, "muletrain" on here. I was too late at the swap when I got there and he had sold out the one I wanted. Chris made one up for me and got it to me before my trip to Canada in late June. Definitely a sweet look. I think they run more like a reef hawg than a phantom...kind of all over the place, side to side, up and down...will get eaten this fall! |
|
| |
|
| The only additional input I can provide is that the issue may be related to your gear ratio and line pick up. In the past I've always used reels with a 5.0:1 gear ratio, so my line pick up was in the mid-20s. Tried a high speed reel this year and surprising it was a major adjustment. Most of the people on here seem to prefer high speed reels but I still favor a reel with a moderate retrieve rate. Could be solely personal preference, but potentially something to consider. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 1360
Location: Lake "y" cause lake"x" got over fished | I'm with you C&R. I prefer to have a 5.4:1 gear ratio for my gliders, I feel like I have a little more control over it. I tried high speed and it felt like I was a rookie trying to glide the bait. I'll take the moderate retrieve any day every time. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 335
Location: Minnesota | While moving (.7 MPH?), you could toss it out about 20 feet from the boat, then just practice jerking the rod and getting it to move side to side without reeling in any line to see how it works.
You have to have slack line when you start your tap - if the line is taught - the lure will be facing you - if you tap it and give it slack, it will glide to the side - if you jerk it too hard and don't give it slack it will come toward you - might bounce up and down but not side to side.
I agree with everyone else here - Abu 6500 is a good reel for learning phantoms - slack line and small taps. I usually have my rod pointed more straight down than towards the bait too - it helps with the short taps. If you point your rod towards the bait, you will be tempted to use long sweeps instead of short taps.
I think the soft tails are harder to work than the regular phantoms.
Good luck |
|
| |
|
Posts: 156
| Lots of good info how to work the bait here
A couple tips on tuning the lure that I have found helpful
The post that holds the soft tail has to be straight in line with the bait - feel the soft tail to see if this is true to the bait
Also, make sure the lure eye rings for hooks, and attachment are not twisted or bent
I prefer a softer rod for phantoms
Jim Saric on Musky hunter - stated it well - when working glide baits, give it pull then feed the rod and controlled slack back to the lure to achieve maximum glide
Also, not sure if this was mentioned - skip the swivel on the straight wire leader
They are great lures and catch fish
|
|
| |
|
Posts: 1767
Location: Lake Country, Wisconsin | Make sure you can view the bait throughout your entire cast to learn to get it to do exactly what you want it to do....I have noticed not all of them run the same way for reasons unknown. I get better action on the 6" model then the larger one personally....it can be just a killer bait worked through weeds, have caught many, many fish on these baits.... |
|
| |
|
Posts: 300
Location: Minocqua, WI | Not sure if this was mentioned by anyone, but experiment with the tail section and how it's applied to the rear. Rather than go for the eyelet, I've always been able to tune my baits this way so they run better with side-to-side. Simply bend the metal collar as needed which then adjusts the direction and angle of the tail. Experiment, and it will eventually run as well as the day it was bought - or better.
Musky Brian taught me how to work these things awesome and yes, he has caught tons of fishes with them. |
|
| |
