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Ultra-Light Lure fishing/buying

Richard Reeve

Firstly I would like to assure you that I am not going to waffle on too much about technique or fish location; you've heard it all before! Therefore the main subjects I intend to address are those of lure buying, Ultra-Light tackle, and the odd ultra-light tip!

To me Ultra-light is the most enjoyable aspect of this sport as it allows the chance of a wide range of species to be caught: Trout, Grayling, Salmon, Zander, Pike, Perch, Chub, etc.

Although it is possible to catch almost anything on an UL (Ultra-light) lure (I catch Gudgeon quite a lot in the summer!) the species that most of us are restricted to are Pike, Perch, and Chub. These are therefore the species that I will focus my attention on.

Buying Lures: Calling All Lure Fishers!

I find it astounding how much lure fishers are willing to pay for their lures. Ultra-light lures are by far the cheapest, but I still think they are too expensive! Additionally there is quite a small selection on offer from various 'specialist' companies.

Ladies and Gentlemen WE HAVE ONE OF THE STRONGEST CURRENCIES IN THE WORLD!!! Therefore it actually works out cheaper to import most lures from those countries with weaker currencies because the exchange rate is so good! The US is a fairly good start; if you have access to the Internet your days of buying very overpriced lures from English outlets are over! Remember the Yanks spell Ultra-light Ultra-lite! Go to a search engine (msn.com is good) and type in any of the following: bass-pro, cabelas, Ultra-Lite! The first two are American outdoor superstores that ship to the UK. Provided you are buying a few lures, postage is negligible. You will find that it is far superior in choice and price than any UK outlets! Therefore it definitely makes sense to Import from there! You will find you can buy a lot more decent lures for your money overseas than you can in the UK! For those of you without Internet access I will leave postal addresses at the end.

Ultra-light Tackle

I cannot advise you on what you feel most comfortable with so I will just list the various tackle and classifications I use and let you draw your own conclusions. Needless to say I get my tackle from the US mainly, as it is cheaper and more geared towards all the classifications of Lure fishing:

Rods - For years I have been using a Shimano Stradic 1500 ultra-light Spinning rod. 2 piece, Casting Weight 1-7gms, Length 5ft. it is by far the best rod I have ever owned, but sadly is a bit dog-eared now, and unfortunately a discontinued model. Bass-Pro has some excellent rods on offer for all weights of lure fishing.

Reels - Balance is critical in all types of lure fishing. For those of you who don't know how to test balance, all you do is mount the reel on the rod and test to make sure that the rod stays horizontal when you balance it on your index finger in front of the arm of the reel. I recommend taking your rod to a tackle shop and trying various weights of reels to see what balances. Once you have found the reel that suits your rod, take a note of its weight and see if you can get it cheaper in the US!!!

Line - I use 10 lb 'Spiderwire Braid'. Many people use 15 lb for their UL fishing but I don't think it's necessary. I prefer to fish very clear waters where line visibility can be a factor. I have never had a fish break me of; most of the tiny hooks used on ultra-light lures will straighten before the line breaks! That isn't to say you can't land big fish on UL tackle; rather that you must be aware of the limitations of your tackle. Use a decent reel and set the drag sensibly! And as for snagging, most hooks on UL lures will straighten if you pull hard enough! If not, it's not the end of the world! - Small lures with tiny hooks are unlikely to cause an ecological disaster! Additionally they are fairly inexpensive to replace.

Traces - I use a 15 lb test trace wire (Drennan Pike Wire) with size 14 swivels and Berkeley snap links. I use the wrap and heat method to fasten the wire to the snaps and links (see the back of the wire pack!) I recommend a minimum length of 10".

When surface lure fishing I use carp rig rings instead of swivels to reduce the weight of the trace and thereby not corrupt the tiny surface lures weight.

Lures/ Lure size - With size there seems to be a great deal of confusion in making distinctions between the various classes of lure fishing; SUL (Super Ultra-light), UL, L (Light), ML, M (Medium), MH, H (Heavy). Everyone has their own ideas on what sizes and weights fall into which category. I can't say who is right but here are the categories I have formed for my fishing:

SUL - Lures 2gms and under: weighted flies, Jigs, (00) spinners, 1" and under plugs, 1" grubs.

UL - Lures 2-5gms: (0) spinners, jigs, 1"-2" grubs, plugs under 2 inches, Rubber worms 4 inches or under.

Tips -

• Use a scent/attractant on your lures - smeared on a plug or worm, or rubbed into a dressed treble. It really makes a difference!
• Retrieves that work will vary from day to day. Start with your smallest; working them fast, and then try a slower retrieve if you have no joy. If you still have no joy, try a bigger lure retrieved slowly. If you have no luck, speed it up.
• A jerky retrieve normally results in pike, with the odd monster perch. Try a steady, slow retrieve for and chub.
• Try removing your trebles and install an appropriately sized single at the rear. You can compensate for the loss of the hook weight on the lighter lures by clipping a split shot onto the ring where the middle treble used to be. Unhooking is easier and you can also tip the hook with a small rubber grub, or a few live maggots/ chopped worms for added appeal.
• Fishing is generally best on those warm overcast days before a storm. I haven't a clue about the science of this! Apart from the obvious, such as fish preferring low light conditions - it has just been my observation over the years.
• Always use stealth when approaching the bank. Fish are incredibly wary when there are figures on the bank, don't think that just because you cant see them that they can't see you!
• Look for likely cover for fry; where the fry are the predators will be too!
• Do not be afraid to work your lures fast! There is an increasing trend in people recommending 'slowing it up', this does work, especially for chub, but most of the time I have more success with a jerky, fast retrieve
• Its summer, with a wealth of small waterfowl, bugs, and small rodents UL surface lures have come into their own! My favourite lure at the moment is the Heddon Teeny Torpedo (38mm). Dark colours work best. Try a medium to fast jerky, twitchy, retrieve. Perch and pike both love this lure. I haven't tried it on chub yet but I'll keep you posted!

Many waters do not allow lure fishing for various reasons. Most are not fair! I feel it is our duty to gain access to as many waters as possible. I am not suggesting we protest or inflame the situation, but often the various authorities are quite reasonable and can be brought round. By speaking calmly to bailiffs etc. and suggesting conditions, for example, in the case of spinning for perch when pike season is finished, you could ask to for permission on the premise that you use lures 1" or under, and weedless, barbless singles only, and of course a 6"+ wire trace.

Believe it or not this has been known to work

My Top 10 UL lures:

Ultra-light Fat-A (1 ½") Chrome/blue: - Great for pike, and especially perch and chub Heddon 

Teeny Torpedo, 38mm - pike and perch can't seem to resist this at the moment. (Believe it will catch, and you will catch!) 

Mepps Aglia (00) & (0) Silver: - Great for perch 

Blue Fox Vibrax (7/64 oz) Silver: - Perch in deep water love these! 

Ondex (0) Silver/Red/Black: - Perch and Pike cant seem to resist this when retrieved slow 

Rebel Minnow (1 ½") Silver/Black: - Anything that swims! Retrieve it really slow for perch Weedless 

Triple Ripple Stump jumper (1/16oz) Red/White: - My No.1 for perch! 

Ugly Duckling Minnow 30mm - perch love 'em! Bound to work on Chub C.C. 

Wee Shad (1 ¾") Perch/Gold: - works well on pike 

Yo-Zuri Princess M (f) 2": - anything will take this!

N.B. Ultra light surface lures do work extremely well if given the time of day. No one so far has written any article, that I have read, explaining this fantastic aspect of UL. Give it a go, not as a last resort, go out on a warm overcast day and chuck one out over weed and drop-offs and see what happens. To me a surface take is the most exciting take there is!

And as promised the addresses for the mail order overseas tackle dealers:

Bass Pro Shops, 

2500 E. Kearney Springfield,

M0 65898-0123

USA

Cabelas,

One Cabela Drive,

Sidney,

NE 69160

USA