Jerkbaits: Overlooked Bait

HOW TO FISH JERKBAITS

Jerkbaits are long, thin minnow lures that have diving lips and treble hooks hanging from the belly 
and tail. The most popular style of jerkbait is plastic, measures approximately 5 inches, sports 
three treble hooks, and has a rattle chamber in the body. On a steady retrieve, this bait dives 3 to 
4 feet. When the retrieve is paused, it rises slowly toward the surface. Examples include the Bomber 
Long A, Xcalibur Xs4 Stick Bait, Xcalibur Xt3 Twitch Bait, Storm ThunderStick, Rebel Minnow.
There are also several variations from this standard. Some jerkbaits are made from balsa; they dive 
shallower and float back up faster (Normark Rapala, Bagley Bang-O-Lure). Others have longer diving lips and dig deeper (Rebel Spoonbill Minnow, Bomber Long A Deep Runner, Storm Deep ThunderStick). 
Still other jerkbaits are shorter than 5 inches and feature two treble hooks instead of three.
The name "jerkbait" stems from the special method by which this lure is retrieved. Rather than use a steady pull (like a crankbait), experts work a jerkbait with a continuous yanking-pausing action.
A quick yank with the rod tip sends a jerkbait scooting erratically through the water. It looks like 
a minnow that's lost its equilibrium. It just can't get started. This action draws bass' attention 
and gets them excited. Then when the bait pauses, they strike.
The jerkbait is the only bait that you can hang in front of suspended fish. It flashes and darts, 
then it just stops like a real shad that's dying. This is why, at times, this bait is the absolute best thing you can throw. It's as good as it gets.

CONDITIONS FOR USING JERKBAITS

Use jerkbaits anytime bass are holding around cover or structure in water that's 7 feet deep or less. 
Now granted, certain times of the year are better than others, but jerkbaits will catch bass year-round if the fish are up.
The very best time to throw jerkbaits is from late winter through post-spawn. This is when bass are 
moving up to nest, and water is warmer around the banks. But after they spawn, most fish return to 
deeper structure, and jerkbaits aren't too effective then.
In fall, shad migrate back into embayments in many reservoirs, and bass follow them. Again, if bass 
are relating to shallow structure — natural banks, riprap, vegetation, standing timber or whatever, 
you can catch them on jerkbaits.
The next important condition for using jerkbaits is water clarity. These lures work best in clear 
water, since their appeal is more visual than aural. The clearer the water, the better.
Time of day has little bearing on when to cast jerkbaits. If other conditions are favorable, these 
lures will tempt fish anytime from dawn to dusk.
Water temperature is important, but only as it relates to the seasons. Jerkbaits work best when the 
water temperature is somewhere in the low 50s to the low 60s. And when do you have this range? In 
early to mid-spring and again in the fall. As water temperature climbs higher than this range, action 
on jerkbaits drops correspondingly.
Anglers agree that sunny days are better for fishing jerkbaits than cloudy days. The bait reflects  more sunlight when the sky is blue, and this increases its visibility to the fish. 

TACKLE AND TECHNIQUES

Most anglers fish jerkbaits on baitcasting tackle.
A good choice is a 5 1/2 foot long baitcasting rod with a fairly light action. Most jerkbaits have 
light wire hooks. Also, the fish do a lot of slashing at this bait, and they don't always get the 
hooks solidly, so you need a rod that will play them gingerly. If you use heavy tackle and try to 
horse them, you'll lose a lot more fish. Many anglers routinely spool 12-pound-test line on their 
jerkbait rig.
Pros stress that jerkbait users should never tie their line directly to the lure, since this dampens 
its action.
When it comes to retrieve methods, old jerk-jerk-pause cadence is easy to do. It's effective and it 
doesn't wear you out. After you make a cast, pull and reel the bait down under the surface. Then 
point the rod tip toward the water and snap it straight downward twice, then pause. Each snap moves 
the bait 8 to 12 inches, and each pause should last 1 to 2 seconds.
Another method is to make short, fast, hard jerks, really causing the bait to pop and jump. After a 
cast, let the bait sit on top for a second or two; then pull it down, pick up the slack, and pop it 
two times or four or five times real hard and fast. You don't know what direction it's going, and it 
doesn't either. It's flashing and jerking in all directions.
If bass aren't reacting to this erratic action, switch to another, more traditional retrieve. This is just a standard sweep-it-down-and-pause method. Pull it down and let it sit. Pull it down and crank the slack. But usually when you sweep it down, still pop it at least once to give it a little extra action.
If you ever watched a shad dying in the water. It doesn't just swim down a couple of feet, then float 
back up. It'll do some twitching somewhere, and this is the action you want to try to imitate.
Strikes on jerkbaits take some finesse to feel, since most come during the pauses in the retrieve, 
and there's slack in the line.
Sometimes your bait just goes light, or you feel a little weight or some different sensation. Other times they hit it like a ton of bricks. But usually your line just gets heavy. Whenever you feel 
anything different from how the bait normally feels during a retrieve, set the hook.
The proper hook-set with a jerkbait is no rear-back-and-cross-his-eyes process. Rather, it's more of 
a sweeping pull-back with the light rod. Usually the fish hook themselves. When you feel pressure, 
just bow your rod and pull back. Then play the fish nice and easy, because a lot of times it won't be 
hooked solidly.
Because of the no-jolt hook-set, micro-sharp hooks are critical to pierce a bass' bony mouth tissue.
Some jerkbaits come with VMC treble hooks, and they're pretty good right out of the box.

STRATEGIES FOR JERKBAITS

Jerkbaits are stay-on-the-move lures. Anglers should hold the boat close to the bank or cover edge, 
keep the trolling motor on and make continuous parallel or quartering casts over the bow. Just keep 
trucking when you use jerkbaits. Cover a lot of water and pick off the aggressive fish. Fish the bank,
similar to the way a lot of people use a spinnerbait.
This is the standard jerkbait technique for spring and fall, but a number of variations suit other 
seasons and circumstances.
Fish jerkbaits around boat docks in the summer. Bass like to hold under docks in the shade, and you 
can draw them out by pulling a jerkbait parallel to the sides of the docks.
A similar situation is when bass are hiding in or next to submerged timber or brush. That's when you 
want to run a jerkbait over or around the sides of those trees. Depending on their depth, you may want to use a bait that will run and suspend deeper than your standard jerkbait. Sometimes you can even add weight to your baits to get them to do this.
A third special situation is fishing bluffs and steep rocky banks in creeks in late winter on clear 
upland reservoirs. This can provide some of the very best jerkbait action on big bass. You use a 
big-lip bait like the Rebel Spoonbill and weight it so it'll swim down to 10 to 12 feet. Then you 
cast it parallel to the bluff or bank, crank it down as deep as it'll go, then just sweep it, pause 
it, sweep it, pause it. This is an awfully good method to catch some fish most everybody else 
bypasses.
Spawning time presents another special jerkbait situation. Now the fish are exceedingly finicky, so 
the presentation should be slower, even annoying. This is when the balsa baits are best. And you 
really fish them sort of half-and-half between a topwater and a jerkbait. The best technique with 
these baits is to "dabble" them over spawning areas.
After a cast, let the bait rest on the surface for several seconds. Then pull it slightly, let it rest a few more seconds, then jerk it down and pop it a time or two. After that, wait for it to float all the way back to the top, and repeat this process. Because the fish are so finicky, you've got to fish this bait super slow, but they will bust it.
Yet another special situation for jerkbaits is when bass are schooling over main lake structure in 
late spring and summer. This requires clear, deep water. If you can find suspended fish, jerking is 
a great technique to try, even with the shallow-runner.

KEYS TO SUCCESS

What's the main key to success with jerkbaits? Getting the right action, the right vibration and flash. The secret with jerkbaits isn't color or size, but action. When retrieved properly, the bait bursts forward and then stops, like a minnow that's trying to get started, but can't.
Also, anglers who start out using jerkbaits should realize that this is no lazy man's way of fishing. 
You have to work the bait constantly. But this isn't difficult if your wrists hold up.
If you're unfamiliar with jerkbaits learn to fish them under the most ideal circumstances. Start out 
with them in March or April, when fish are shallow and feeding. Find the best possible banks, then 
cast jerkbaits until you're blue in the face. This way you'll get a good feel for the bait, and you'll catch some fish on it. Once you've got the knack and the confidence, you can add a jerkbait to your normal routine, and you'll catch a lot more bass because of it.