By Jonathan LePera
Special To BassFan


Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know that since arriving from Japan, the dropshot technique has revolutionized bass fishing. It’s now part of the growing finesse genre of the sport where light line, light weights (if any) and down-sized baits are used to entice bites from finicky or pressured fish.

It’s no surprise that Californian Brent Ehrler is among the technique’s biggest fans. Who knows, he'll probably have one tied on for the Lake Havasu Elite Series this week.

Geared Up

While you don’t need cutting edge tackle to fish a dropshot, it definitely helps. Ehrler prefers Daiwa’s Steez EX 301 spinning reel.

“I like the bigger spinning reels because you have more control over the fish, cast farther, and they’re barely heavier,” Ehrler said.

He’ll pair it with a medium-action 7-foot Daiwa Steez AGS rod to form what he believes to be the perfect match as it feels natural in his hand and does not lead to fatigue.

“The entire set up of carbon fiber guides weigh equal to the amount of 1 titanium guide of another, so they’re really light,” he said. “If you decrease the weight on the rod tip, you are increasing sensitivity and carbon fiber will transmit vibration better.”

Terminal Tricks

Ehrler’s top choice for a main line is 12-pound Sunline SX1 braid because it “casts farther, is more sensitive, and provides better hook-up ratio on a long cast especially when fish bite on the sink, and most importantly, no line twist.”

He ties on a 7-foot leader of 8-pound Super FC Sniper fluorocarbon with an Alberto knot that must be outside the spool on the cast.

“If your knot is inside that spool, when I make a hard cast because the fluorocarbon will shoot off the reel in big arcs and when it meets up with that smooth braid it shoots ahead of itself and wraps around the first guide stopping it dead in its tracks,” Ehrler noted.

A 1/4-ounce Reins Tungsten cylinder weight is his mainstay unless he’s in heavy current or fishing super deep as tungsten helps him to telegraph the bottom composition. He’ll use lead where snags are consistent.

Typically, he’ll nose hook dropshot baits with a Gamakatsu Split Shot/Drop Shot hook but will try wacky style when faced with high fishing pressure or if he feels the fish need to see something different. If there is any cover nearby, be it brush or grass, he’ll Texas-rig baits on the Roboworm Re-Barb hook, which is a straight shank Gamakatsu O’Shaughnessy hook sporting a barbed bait-keeper.

Ehrler keeps bait and color selection simple; a strategy that has paid off in spades.

“I always use a straight tail worm on a dropshot,” he said. “The only time I do something different is when I’m up in the Great Lakes when I’m using a goby-style bait and even then it's a straight tail.

“I like natural colours like Roboworm’s Aaron’s Magic or a variation of green and hues, Ehrler’s Edge included, or green-pumpkin in the Yamamoto Slim Senko.”

Enticing the Bite and the Hook-up

Anglers struggle to find a consensus as to whether dropshot rigs should be still or shaken. Ehrler is quite matter of fact in his assessment.

“The only time I’m not shaking it is when I’m reeling in the slack as the bait moves forward,” he said. “Anglers think that when top-level anglers are shaking the bait that they are hopping it, but they aren’t. That weight is in constant contact with bottom and the worm is shaking.”

To set the hook, he’ll pull into them hard but there is no snap or slack in the hook-set.

“I set the drag fairly soft to account for that medium rod that is a little bit stiffer than most use,” he said.