# Slabbing



## shadslinger (Aug 21, 2005)

I had a request from Longhorndaddy for some jigging tips.
Here are the best ones I can think of, ones that I usually tell customers who have never jigged before and some who have, but could use some tips.

The concept behind jigging a slab spoon( a spoon made of a molded lead, painted, with a set of treble hooks in an oval or oblong shape) is that it mimics the action of a dying shad. An easy meal for predator fish.

If you have ever watched any dying fish in an aquarium etc... you can probably remember that it fell to the bottom looking up and then shot up when it's tail touched the bottom in an effort to swim again.
The motion of a slab jigged up and down on the bottom imitates this action.

I see people use a wide variety of slabs, and they all seem to work for people who have faith in that slab or color. I like chartreuse and white.

I like 1oz or 2oz slabs that are long and skinny, some people like the oval shaped ones.

Start off letting your jig/slab drop to the bottom and adjust the amount of line you have out until the rod is 12" or so from the water and the slab is on the bottom.
You can tell if it is on the bottom when the line stops peeling off of the reel and it goes slack.
With the slack out flip your jig upwards with the rod tip, try to use just the tip of the rod and follow the slab back down with the line all most tight, don't impede the fall of the jig/slab, but watch the line closely for any indication of a hit.

Knowing what a hit feels like is the first lesson in catching fish by jigging. Some times the fish slams the jig and it is hooked.

_Most of the time the fish will hit the slab with a light to moderate "tick" you have to lift the rod with a sharp upward sweep and hook the fish right then, and start reeling, not wait for it to take the lure harder or anything else, hit the fish hard and fast right when it ticks the slab._

Stripers often hit the slab differently, it is more of a "flick", or, they railroad it and are on like a fright train.
They flick it, or, tick it like a white bass, more often when vertical jigging and slam it more when you cast the rig and retrieve it.
_
The more subtle hits that white and striped bass do are the ones that knock the slab upwards, or, they stop the slab on the way down. 
Ether way it will make the line act funny, like your slab is on the bottom but it's not far enough down to be on bottom, hit he fish right then, don't wait for anything else._

When you can hit those fish who are striking on the fall or stopping the jig in the middle of the water column you will more than double the amount of hook ups you have.

Another tip is dead sticking a jig, or letting it hang in the water column with out any jigging motion. I like to do this with just the hooks hanging on the bottom and wait for a fish to come by and hit it.

You can also let the jig rest on the bottom for a few seconds and then give it a good flip up to get cranky fish to hit.

The last tip I can think of at the moment is that a lot of people set up a short cast away from the fish and make a short cast to them and hop the jig back or drag it slowly to get a hit.
The type of feel is different than vertical jigging, as the fish makes a more pronounced hit on the lure most of the time. 
It is still often subtle and you have to have to hit the fish right back,right now! If not, it will be gone.

See you on the water.

SS


----------



## shadslinger (Aug 21, 2005)

I ran past the time limit on editing and left some tips out, but I bet some other jigging pros will chime in.


----------



## Kickapoo Duke (May 15, 2010)

Best tip I can offer:
Jig within 2 feet of where Shadslinger is jigging


----------



## longhorn daddy (Nov 10, 2009)

Thanks Loy


----------



## shadslinger (Aug 21, 2005)

I'm hoping someone posts up a good late summer jigging tip, every year they go through a fit where they are not slab friendly, trolling seems to catch them however.

The more I fish Livingston for white bass the more I think it is because of the ever changing thermocline that develops at the same time of year they get weird about hitting slabs.
And trolling reaches the suspended fish better in most cases.
I only troll as a last resort as I just don't enjoy it as much as catching white bass other ways.


----------



## Danny O (Apr 14, 2010)

Thanks SS.

I've gotten in the habit of a double twitch on the way up, just to change up the presentation to be more erratic. Even then, it only comes 12-18 inches off the bottom. Like you said, control the speed of the fall so you can feel the bite, and keep the rod tip low so you have room to set the hook.


----------



## Lonestar Proud (Oct 26, 2010)

When fish are holding tight on a drop off, I like to pitch the slab up on the top of the flat and hop it back down, using the rod to work the slab down the slope by picking it up 3-5 ft and letting the slab flutter back down on a semi tight line. Trying to find what the fish want is the challenge. 

-LP


----------



## Whitebassfisher (May 4, 2007)

I think too light of a slab makes it harder to tell what is happening. Of course there are limits to how heavy to go, but in general it is easier to keep track of a heavier lure, especially for people newer to slabbing. 

I firmly believe that when casting rather than jigging under the boat, you should cast to shallower water and hop it to deeper water, rather than the other way around. 

And yes, setting the hook quickly is important. A white bass mouth is not that hard, and is easy to set the hook in, but you still need to give a jerk. There are times I must reel quickly and jerk at the same time until I feel the resistance.


----------



## longhorn daddy (Nov 10, 2009)

Whitebassfisher said:


> I think too light of a slab makes it harder to tell what is happening. Of course there are limits to how heavy to go, but in general it is easier to keep track of a heavier lure, especially for people newer to slabbing.
> 
> I firmly believe that when casting rather than jigging under the boat, you should cast to shallower water and hop it to deeper water, rather than the other way around.
> 
> And yes, setting the hook quickly is important. A white bass mouth is not that hard, and is easy to set the hook in, but you still need to give a jerk. There are times I must reel quickly and jerk at the same time until I feel the resistance.


 what slab do you recommand for "newer slabbers"?


----------



## Whitebassfisher (May 4, 2007)

longhorn daddy said:


> what slab do you recommand for "newer slabbers"?


Well, the long skinny slabs such as the Mann-O-Lure seem to fall easier and quicker, so a 1 ounce minimum for them. For the oval shaped slabs such as the Bomber Slab or equal, I prefer the 1 & 3/8 ounce size. The heavier or falling fasting lures are easier to keep track of, especially on windy days.


----------



## CmackR56 (May 30, 2009)

The later in the summer, the less movement I put on the slab, Sometimes I try to only make the slab flip over on the bottom, a movement of only a couple of inches.


----------



## Red Tuna (May 19, 2007)

Great info, thanks...


----------



## tbone2374 (Feb 27, 2010)

Great information,Loy. Thanks!


----------



## TexasTom (Mar 16, 2011)

That is some great info. Thank you Loy and all those who contributed.

Tom


----------



## fishin_envy (Aug 13, 2010)

When teaching kids how to slab, the best way that I have found is to describe it is to ask them if they have ever teased a cat with toy on a string. Same principle. Pretend there is a cat on the bottom and you are trying to entice him to swat at the toy.
As far as type and color of slabs, I like a heavy( 1.5 - 2 oz) yellow slab, but if your rod is limber, a lighter slab is easier to work. When windy, almost always got to use a heavy slab to feel the ticks.


----------



## RAYSOR (Apr 26, 2007)

No Jigging pro here, but my favorite method is to get close enough to Loy where our shoulders are touching, then I start catching fish, when he pushes me away I quit catching fish. lol


----------



## Meadowlark (Jul 19, 2008)

IMO, just as important as the slab and perhaps more so, is the other stuff required to make the best possible presentations....the terminal links, the leader, the type of main line, the R&R...all contribute to the quality of your presentation. 

The leader is particularly important in clear water such as we have right now on Livingston. Flouro is the least visible material we have and hence it makes the best leaders. I generally tie on about 6-9 feet of flouro on my jigging rods. 

The main line is also important...its functions, in addition to enabling you to bring the fish in, is to tell you when a fish has hit and to enable you to get a quick, firm hook set. Mono has a lot of stretch....just pull against something solid and you can immediately see the stretch. Stretch is not good when it comes to setting the hook while jigging. The very best line I have found for both hook setting and communicating fish hits is braid. Try a test sometime....let someone take your mono out 100 feet and have them lightly flick it uner tension...and then do the same with braid....the difference is remarkable.

Terminal links...tie the slab directly to the line or use swivels or rings or whatever? Through a lot of experimentation I've found it is best to use a snap ring on the slab and tie to that. This helps give the slab a better action and for me actually makes for less tangles than tieing directly and is far more reliable than a swivel...snap rings generally do not fail unless they have been visibily sprung. 

Another item in the category of terminal links is the use of a teaser fly above the slab. This improves your chances, IMO, of fooling a fish, especially when they have seen hundreds and hundreds of slabs thrown at them. The teaser sometimes catches fish but its main function is as a tease, to promote those reaction strikes that put fish in the boat. 

I've had the privilidge of fishing the last few days with a fine youngster who before this had never done anything but live worm fishing for bluegills....never even been out in a boat. Put the above described equipment in his hands and show him how to put the slab down on bottom and jig it and he immediately produced results.... 4 stripers at 7.5 pounds...and he had an absolute blast.


----------



## oilfish (Jan 23, 2010)

SS, great topic! All that have chimed in that is a lot of years worth of experience. The only thing I might add is when you know you are on the fish and they are scattered be sure and stop your retreive a couple of times on the way up to the boat. I have caught a ton of suspened fish simply by after jigging on the bottom and no hits reel up several feet stop reel up some more and stop. A lot of times the fish will hit the jig just before you pull it out of the water.

Oilfish


----------



## Lone Eagle (Aug 20, 2009)

Great post, Loy and there are some very good posts about technics added. This is the time of year that slabbing can be tough. One thing I have been working on in late summer for two years in a row is deep diving crankbaits. I throw as far as possible (60 to 75 feet from the boat with cranks that get 18" or deeper) and try to get below the thermocline when the lure is at it's deepest poimt. The strikes occur when the lure is going down through the thermocline on it's way down or when coming back through it on it's way back to the surface. Getting a crank bait deeper requires lighter line; 8 to 12 pount test. Be prepared to lose expensive crank baits too. For this reason, I rarely do this on guided trips as it is NOT cost effective.

Causes for lots of work but it is one technic that will work when slabbing is tough.


----------



## Gofish2day (May 9, 2006)

Good post - Nice stripers Meadowlark


----------



## Lonestar Proud (Oct 26, 2010)

Another little tidbit that could be helpful to some newby slabbers.... Treble hooks increase the odds of staying hooked up, but they also will get ya hurt when getting into the whites fast and furious or when trying to get a handle on a thrashing stiper.
A lot of times I'll snip off one of the hooks and smash the barbs on the other two. I also have some of my slabs that I have removed the treble altogether and installed a size 1 short shank Live Bait hook for whites or a 1/0 for striper/hybrids. 
When luck is with me and I find surfacing fish, I always have a couple trap rods rigged with the smashed barbs and the rear treble removed......I sure don't want to be wasting time getting a pair of barbed trebles out of a fishes mouth while all hell is breaking loose on top water!!!

-LP


----------



## shadslinger (Aug 21, 2005)

A trick for fussy fish is to "float" the slab along just above the bottom and not to let it touch the bottom if possible, or just let it touch once or twice during the retrieve.


----------



## oilfish (Jan 23, 2010)

Lonestar Proud, when they are schooling on top try a johnson silver minnow, chrome or gold....... You can cast them a mile have your rod tip up high 10 or 11 O'clock and reel. Only the one hook so you dont waste anytime removing the hooked fish.

Oilfish


----------



## Git$um (Feb 11, 2008)

This tip may already be posted, but one thing that i do is cast a slab around the boat {20-30 feet out in each direction** before I give up and move to another spot. Having fished for black bass with plastic worms {for years**, I "worm" the slab back to the boat and I have good luck doing that and really enjoy it. Sometimes the fish are there, they just are'nt directly under my boat. This also gives you a little more fight for the fish as they will often run to the sides when hooked.


----------



## shadslinger (Aug 21, 2005)

Meadowlark told me about this trick, a bite tippet, to keep stripers from gill cutting your line. A striper over 18' can cut mono line up to 20# with ease by using their sharp gill razors on the outside of their gills covering. 
There are two small, but very sharp, points with knife edges on them, white bass have one.`
I use mono, and those who use line of stronger material, like braided line or fluorocarbon, probably don't need a bit tippet.
I use 20# on my reel and a bite tippet made of 30 to 40# mono about 8" long tied to my slab.
It takes some getting use to because the knot may hang in the guides, after a couple of times you get used to not reeling it through the tip.
You can also grab it with your hand to swing small fish in the boat.
I tie it to the mainline with a uni knot on both lines and take care to snug them down slow and with no slack before pulling the knots tight.


----------



## Whistling Dixie (May 24, 2009)

Thanks Loy for starting such a helpful thread. Thanks to all the contributors as well. I just learned more in five minutes than I've learned in the couple of years I've been fishing for white bass.


----------

