By David A. Brown
Special to BassFan
Is it a crawfish? A goby? A small perch? Well, if I big smallmouth bites it, who cares?
That’s the premise behind one of the most user-friendly, yet versatile baits you can offer the brown fish – a tube. Generally designed with a baitfish profile and just enough backside action for a lifelike presentation, the tube merits inclusion in any serious smallmouth pursuit.
Consider a few key points for optimal tube performance.
Head Games
Matching body size and color to local forage, northern pro Charlie Hartley typically fishes 1/4- to 3/8-ounce heads, depending on depth. Although he has gone as heavy as an ounce, his strategy employs just enough weight to maintain bottom contact.
"If you're in shallow water where there's not much current and not much wind, you don't need much weight to stay in contact with the bottom," he said. "If you're in deeper water with a lot of current and a lot of wind, you need more weight; but I’d rather be too light than too heavy.”
Head design also matters, so let presentations guide your choice. With the most common tactic of dragging, use a jig head with a 60-degree line tie, which keeps the head angled downward for the steady plowing motion that allows you to cover lots of bottom.
For more targeted presentations, vertical tube jigging calls for a 90-degree line tie. The up-and-down motion works best when you’re pulling from the top of the jig head. Exaggerating this form with high hops yields the audible attraction of “cracking tubes” – a smallie-calling tactic that leverages hard surface impact to trigger aggressive responses.
Vary the Look
Effective smallmouth strategies often integrate both tube presentations. Dragging does the bulk of the work, while cracking may finish off the rally with a few stragglers. The former generally gets your feeding bites, while the latter is all about the reaction.
Hartley said the ruse probably mimics a baitfish running from approaching predators. Take gobies, for example: lacking swim bladders, they spend most of their lives hugging bottom. When danger threatens, their best play is a quick surge off the bottom. Crawfish exhibit similar behavior, while most other forage species also use rapid surges to avoid predation.
Now, turning this dynamic on its head, Hartley said he expects a lot of his strikes on the tube's initial descent. Regardless of which presentation you’re intending, a falling bait resembles a potential meal running back to cover.
"A lot of times, a tube will not get to the bottom," Hartley said. "So with that initial drop, always be aware that you can get a bite on that initial fall.
"I drag tubes 90 percent of the time, but if you're getting bites on the way down, that might be a good indication that cracking it or hopping it is the way they want it."
Hook Clearance
FLW Costa Series angler Jason Ober knows that a tube can potentially mar hook sets, so he cuts a 1/4- to 1/2-inch slit in the tube’s body along the inside edge of the hook shank. By allowing more space for hook swing, he minimizes the annoying impediment.
“Cutting the side of the tube gives it a better hookup ratio because there’s less plastic getting in the way of the hook,” Ober said.
Also, Ober trims 1/8- to 1/4-inch off the bottom edge of his tube’s skirt.
Trimming the tentacles on a tube ensures that all of them will be separated to provide better action and also means there will be less plastic to interfere with hook sets.
“I cut the tentacles off the back because it gives the bait a smaller profile and helps the action of it,” he explained. “Sometimes the tentacles on these skirts aren’t fully separated, so trimming the tips ensures that they’re separated. Bass bite the tube from the back end, so with the tentacles cut off, you have more area for them to hook up with less plastic getting in the way.”
Presentation and Response
Most favor dropping tubes on a controlled slack line, as this promotes that natural spiraling motion while maintaining just the right tension to detect strikes on the fall.
Also, consider that dragging should mimic a forage fish scooting across the bottom. Don’t confuse the occasional hopping/cracking interjections – most of the time, no action is the right action.
For perspective, Hartley suggests holding the rod as if it were leaning against the gunwale, or stuck in a rod holder. The boat doesn’t try to adjust, absorb or overwork a dragging jig, so neither should you. Let the tube naturally traverse the bottom with all the bumps, tugs and surges – this is when you’ll get the most bites.
Ober agrees and adds this advice: “Let your rod do the work. Anytime you’re using an exposed hook – a tube, a dropshot, a wacky-rigged Senko – when you wind down and load up, you can instantly tell if you have (a bass) or if it’s just something pecking at the bait. If you feel it load up, just wind.”
After every fish, check your line closely for nicks and inspect your hook for a rolled point. Impacts with rocks and shells can damage both, so make sure you’re ready to stick ‘em and boat ‘em. Remember, tackle failures only happen on the big bites.
