Recently I was approached by a gentleman named Rick Lawrence, who is the owner of Fish-N-Fool Lures, a small tackle company trying to make it to the big time, asking me if I might be interested in his new line of lures. Rick believes he has created “The next big thing” as far as fishing lures go and he may just be right.
He is an avid Bass, Pike and Muskie fisherman who has wrote several bass fishing articles and an inventor of bass fishing lures, fishing knots, his knot won Knot Wars, and fishing techniques. He’s regular at fishing trade shows, giving seminars and have been a guest speaker on fishing radio shows and has done some local TV shows.
Rick has volunteered to be a guest writer, to share his knowledge and experiences with my readers and I graciously accepted his offer.
Thanks for visiting my site, be sure to tell your friends and come back often.
Until Next Time, Good Luck and Tight Lines To Ya!
With that I give you The Boob Tube Rig by Rick Lawrence:
Move over Alabama Rig there is another innovation to bass fishing that could possibly change fishing forever. This article will give you step-by-step instruction on how to build and fish “The Boob Tube Rig”. I’m Rick Lawrence the owner of Fish-N-Fool Lures, inventor of the Fish-N-Fool knot and many inventive bass fishing lures and techniques, including this new “The Boob Tube Rig”.
This exciting new technique is a new twist on fishing an old standard, the tube bait. I came up with method a few years ago for finicky bass on beds and it has turned into a killer technique, from catching Monster Largemouth on clear California waters to some giant Smallies back on lake Erie. In the photos below you will find all the required parts and rigging instructions for this technique.
You can use any make or color of tube you like, but larger tubes that can hold more air work the best for this method. First cut a piece of old worm or grub about a 1/2′ long to make a plug out of it. Any round bait that you can cut up into 1/2″ chucks will work for this. I have found for colder waters the tube will collapse from the air shrinking, so I use an old earplug, just roll it up tight and slide it into the head of the bait and then it will expand to make a tight fit. Then I use clear silicone seal it up or one of the worm glues, so the bait stays soft but airtight. A plug cut from a non-Salt would work best for this, like off a grub or powerworm. It is stronger plastic then a salt bait to hold the hook better and it is lighter so it floats as well.
I set up a standard Carolina rig with the exception of the casting weight and hook up my boob tube with my gammy finesse hook into the part that I put the plug into. (like in the 5th picture) I go in the center of the plug and out the side of the tube making sure the hook does not go into the air chamber. This makes the tube float straight up giving it the best action. I like about 6″ to 24″ of line between the hook and the swivel , shorter for bed fishing and longer for rocky or weedy waters. This makes the bait float up above the bottom of the lake.
If you give the bait a little slack it pulls line through the weight and floats up, tightening up on it pulls the bait down and makes the beads clack on the weight and the skirt on the bait flares out give bass something they have never seen before. You can work this rig up and down clacking it and making the bait skirt flare, as you inch it across the bottom. The rig is killer for smallmouth on the Flats and for weeded up lakes it works great with a little longer line from the hook to the weight. I use a large bead next to the swivel so it slides over the knot and does not rest on it, so it can’t damage your knot. Then a smaller bead for more clack. I make up the baits ahead of time so when you need a new one it only takes a sec to rig up.
Here is what you will need to make the Boob tube rig, first a tube you like, a
scrap worm to make the plug out of, a large casting weight with an swivel eye on one end, a hook (I like the gammy red finesse 1/0), 2 beads one large and a smaller, and a barrel swivel.
Cut your plug about 1/2″ to 5/8″long
If you want put in a glass or plastic rattle and then glue the plug in place. I like to make up baits before I hit the water and have a few verities of colors and sizes to pick from.
With the plug in place it will look like this.
The hook goes in from the center of the plug bottom and out the side of the tube.
That way when you fish it, it will look like this.
So this is how the rig works if you let line out, the tube will pull line through the weight and float up. I heavier weight works best for this like a 1 oz so the bait moves and not the weight when you pop it. Pull on the line and the tube will go back down and the skirt will flare out each time you pull. It looks a lot like a crawdad sinking in the water. When the swivel hits the beads against the weight it makes a loud clack. Plus you can pop the bait while it is floating up to make the rattle in the tube clack. The Smallies seem to love this rig over here in N. Idaho and a white tube rigged this way is my “go to” rig for sight fishing finicky L.M. on beds now. As you can work the bait up and down in the bed without ever moving the weight. Sooner or later they have to eat it.
You need to be a line watcher with this rig, as when a fish takes the bait the line will slip through the weight so the fish will not feel the weight at all if you keep a little slack in the line and you will just see the line going out in a hurry, when that happens SET THE HOOOOK!!!! LOL, Hope you will all give the “Boob Tube Rig” a try.
Wanna Catch Fish? Don’t be a Fool!
Tie on a Fish-N-Fool Lure & get bit.
Fish-N-Fool Lures
Owner Rick Lawrence
rick@fnflures.com
www.fnflures.com
