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Soft plastic fishing lures don’t degrade, don’t decompose, even after two years of being discarded, and are being found both in nature and inside fish
.
Can you use soft plastics for beach fishing?
The short answer is yes, while the longer answer is that
soft plastics can actually be more effective in the surf than a lot of other lure presentations
.
What happens when a bass eats a soft plastic?
Bass have strong stomachs, but can’t digest soft plastic baits. Texoma Hatchery owner, Bob Lusk, observed a very thin bass and the biologist in him couldn’t resist investigating. After dissecting the fish, he found a soft plastic lure blocking its digestive tract.
Do plastic worms harm fish?
The results were eye-opening. Twenty-eight percent of bass caught on Carolina-rigged plastic worms died, compared with only 16 percent caught on Carolina-rigged live bait.
The plastic worm even killed more fish than the 25 percent that died after taking live shiners rigged on floats.
Are fishing lures toxic?
So after looking at all components that make up the majority of fishing lures –
yes most fishing lures are in fact toxic
. You should not be leaving them in waterways, lakes, rivers or really anywhere in the environment as they will leach and cause harm over time.
Do fishing lures go bad?
What should you do?
Soft plastics will go bad and melt if stored in a hard plastic tackle box
. If they are stored outside, they will dry out and get hard. Storing your soft plastics in their original bags and saving them in a compact transparent box is the best solution for these problems.
How do you fish with soft plastics?
How do you fish a big swell?
Can you catch whiting on soft plastics?
Because whiting are predominantly bottom feeders, many anglers like to weigh down their soft plastics so that they can bounce them along and over the bottom. This does work at times, but I have found that
if I lightly weight the soft plastic it will slowly sink to the bottom
.
Why do bass like plastic worms?
For the life of me I couldn’t figure out why bass would strike at anything remotely similar to a long slimy worm. To say that bass strike plastic worms because
they resemble a natural food source
suggests that bass think as humans, that they follow some sort of reasoning which goes something like, I’m a bass.
Why are fish attracted to worms?
Worms Attract Fish
With Their Scent
The natural scent of worms makes them a target for fish both big and small, as they can detect the smell of worms and know a protein-rich meal is waiting around the corner. Bloodworms are especially good for this reason, as they are rich in blood, iron, and protein.
What is the best time of day to catch bass?
What Is the Best Time to Fish for Bass? In general, the best time of day to fish for bass is either
early morning or later in the evening (dawn or dusk)
, because bass tend to bite in low light environments where they are adapted to hunt and feed.
Do soft plastic lures break down?
Environmental Cost
The reason for the concern is because traditional soft plastics use PVC which is a non-biodegradable plastic. This means that
the PVC stays in the environment and can even start to build up concentration levels over time
.
Does artificial bait hurt fish?
A bit unlucky, sure, but
the odds of fish swallowing artificial baits is much lower than with live bait
. Consequently, more fish die needlessly when live bait is used.
What are soft plastic lures made of?
“The majority of soft-plastic fishing lures are made from
plastisol, which is a vinyl plastic
,” Mike says, “You can make lures as soft or hard as you like by simply manipulating the ratio of resins and plasticizers to change the plastic’s durometer.” Both hand-pour enthusiasts and injection machine operators use a …
Can you reuse soft plastics?
Reuse Plastics
One way to use your soft plastics until they are unusable is to..well.. actually use them
. If a soft plastic worm gets bit in half, you didn’t lose one worm. You gained two downsized worms next time you target bluegill, a jig trailer, or a tip for under the ice..
How do you keep soft plastic from melting?
Don’t store soft plastics in direct sunlight
. Keep them in their original packaging. Avoid storing them in tackle trays (depending on the tray material, it may melt with the lure) Put an oil-based fish attractant like menhaden oil or Pro-Cure in the bag to keep the lures slimy (dried out lures can become deformed)
Are plastic baits good?
Soft plastics are inexpensive and great for catching bass
. Plastic worms make up a large part of this category, and they are one of the most effective bass lures. Plastic lures have a realistic action that triggers strikes from bass and other species.
Do you need a sinker with Soft Plastics?
You do use a sinker with soft plastic lures based on certain fishing scenarios
. Adding a sinker to a soft plastic worm, lizard or crayfish can turn your bass rig into a Texas or a Carolina rig and mean the difference between catching big bass all day and going home without having any bites.
Do I need a swivel with Soft Plastics?
Soft plastics generally track straight, so
no swivel
and no snap, and if I can see to tie one, a loop knot gives them the perfect action.
How do you fish with Soft Plastics in saltwater?
Do fish like swell?
A heavy swell is perhaps the biggest challenge Mother Nature throws at the surfcaster. Of course there is a point where too much swell will write off fishing altogether, but up until then there can be very good reasons to fish, because a good ‘stir up’ will often bring fish on the bite.
