Episode 614: Ten Soft Plastic Lure Fishing Hacks With Greg Vinall

This is a trailer for an ALF PLUS episode that is available to Team Doc Lures members. The Plus episode runs for an additional 30 minutes and covers an additional 7 soft plastic lure fishing hacks.

Doc’s Soft Plastic Lure Hacks #1: Use Attractant (Properly)

• Adding attractant (not scent) to your soft plastic lures is a well-proven strategy for getting more bites, especially if you’re fishing your lures relatively slowly.
• Not all scents are effective – some can even repel fish. Take time to figure out which ones work for your style of fishing.
• Don’t overdo it. A little is great, too much is like adding too much chilli to your food. If it’s overpowering it can have the opposite effect and repel fish.
• Smear sparingly on your lure every 10-12 casts!

Doc’s Soft Plastic Lure Hacks #2: Straighten Your Lures

• Soft plastics often get deformed in their packaging or even in a tackle tray if they get crushed. Deformed plastics don’t track or swim properly and need to be fixed.
• PVC based soft plastics can be dropped in a pot of boiling water for a couple of minutes and then hung out to cool. Gravity will straighten them out to their original shape and once cool they are ready for fishing again.
• Thermoplastic elastomer lures aren’t so easily fixed and often have to be discarded if they become deformed.

Doc’s Soft Plastic Lure Hacks #3: Rigging With Twistlocks

• Some hook styles, such as Jigman SoSo’s, are sold with a twistlock lure holder that allows the soft plastic to be attached without putting the point of the hook through the plastic.
• These twistlock wires can be purchased cheaply and added to any EWG weedless worm hook. It’s not a bad plan to put a bunch of them in lures before you leave home, as it makes switching lures super quick and getting them perfectly centered in the lure is simple.
• The twistlocks not only hold the lure very securely and prevent it from sliding down the hook, they also reduce damage to the front of the plastic, especially when using weighted hooks. 
• Another advantage is that the twistlocks hold the lure further forward on the hook, enabling the angler to use a larger hook size in situations where that is an advantage.