Fishing big plastics

Fishing’s like anything else; there’s a time and a place for everything. When it comes to dealing with tough bites, one of the things we tend to think of automatically is downsizing. There certainly is a time and a place for that, but it’s not the only solution.

Sometimes, going big will get you where you need to be.

That’s the logic behind YUM’s new bait — the Magnum Christie Critter.

We’ve taken a proven bait, one that I have a lot of confidence in, and we’ve upscaled it. We’ve almost doubled it in size. Same kicking legs, flappers and swimming tails, just more bait to attract those really big fish.

Will this be a bait for every lake? No, some of the lakes we fish, like Beaver, probably don’t have enough big bass to make this bait applicable. But there are plenty of lakes where you won’t have to look far to find the kind of fish that’ll eat a big bait.

I’m thinking about Guntersville, Kentucky Lake, Toledo Bend, Falcon Lake. These are places where you know you can run into big fish, so you want a big-fish bait on your deck.

What’s interesting is that, while I was filming a promotional video for this bait, I actually caught a bunch of little fish, in addition to some good ones. So, this is not solely a big-fish bait, but it’s definitely a bait you can use to target the big fish when you get around them.

That’s a key point, because as a tournament angler, I pull into a school of fish that may have 30 fish in it, but I don’t want to have to catch 15 of those to catch five good ones. I want to catch the five biggest ones and then save the rest for the next day.

It’s called managing your fish. If you burn through the school in one day, you may get five good ones, but you’re not likely to get many more the next day if most of the fish have been hooked.

It doesn’t always work out that way, but I think when you use a big bait, the probability of catching a bigger fish is higher.

Summer is definitely the peak time for this bait. It’s ideal when the weather’s hot and the fish are deep. You can drag this bait along ledges and show the fish something different.

Just think about it: Historically, we haven’t had a lot of choices for ledge fishing with soft plastics. It’s a worm and a worm and that’s about it.

The Magnum Christie Critter is a big creature bait, and it’s something the fish haven’t seen. That’s particularly important when you’re fishing pressured fish. Like I said earlier, the norm is to downsize, but you also have the option to upsize.

That’s where this concept came from — to show them something bigger.

Realistically, this is not a bait that I expect to go out and catch 100 fish on. Ideally, I’ll get 10-20 bites a day, and they’ll average more than anybody else’s fish.

As far as rigging, I’ve typically Texas rigged the original size Christie Critter for flipping, but with the Magnum version, my favorite way to rig it is on a YUM Pumpkin Head, which is a large shaky head. That’s a good way to fish this bait over ledges, shell beds, rocks, etc.

Now, if I flipped it into trees, I’d have it Texas rigged on a 6/0-7/0 Trokar TK130 hook. I’m excited to see anglers use this big bait and figure out even more ways to rig it and fish it.

I can even see people dragging this on a Carolina rig. On lakes like Sam Rayburn that are well-known Carolina rig lakes, putting this bait on a big hook a dragging it around offshore structure should be very productive.

Even next spring, I can see this being a very productive bed-fishing bait. I can see getting around a 7- to 9-pounder, flipping the Magnum Christie Critter in there and getting a good bite.

Whenever you fish a big bait like this, the mindset is almost like trophy hunting — you’re not after a lot of animals and you’re not after a lot of fish. You have to be focused because you’re going to get fewer bites, but when you get that big bite, the reward is a lot higher.

You have to be focused so you don’t miss your opportunity when it comes.

In a way, it’s a lot like the deer hunting that I enjoy during our offseason. I’ve shot a lot of deer, so these days I let a lot of what I see walk because I’m looking for a trophy-class buck.

In fishing, I’ve caught a lot of bass and hopefully, I’ll catch more. But I’d rather have fewer bites and catch bigger fish.

One thing to keep in mind with a big bait like this is the hook set. You have to remember that there’s a lot of plastic on that hook and, unlike a little finesse bait that the fish can suck in with minimal effort, he’s going to need a little more time to get that Magnum Christie Critter in his mouth.

In most cases, when I get a bite, it’s an immediate hook set. On a bait that has a lot of plastic, I like to give them a second to a second and a half to make sure that they get the head of the bait with the hook all in their mouth.

Here’s a tip that’ll help you make this bait more effective: When I rig the Magnum Christie Critter, I don’t leave the hook point inside the plastic. I go through and skin hook it so the fish doesn’t have to push the hook point through the plastic.

Also, make sure that you use a hook that has a bite (depth from the point to the bend) big enough to compensate for that big piece of plastic. A good rule of thumb: I want the bite of my hook to be twice as big as the thickness of the plastic.

When you get that big bite, you want to make sure you have enough hook to get that fish in the boat.