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Nowadays, silicone baits break all records in terms of catchability, despite the fairly affordable prices, when compared with wobblers and other types of spinners.
Modern silicone baits in appearance, as well as in the game in the water column, are practically no different from live fish. The thing is that this material is quite flexible. In addition, silicone baits smell the same as live fish if they are made with flavorings.
Silicone lures for zander fishing
Pike perch, like many other fish species, is not indifferent to products, especially those made of edible rubber, and actively bites on them.
Twisters and vibrotails are quite catchy silicone baits, with the help of which both pike perch and other fish are caught. At the same time, each fish, like pike perch, has its own preferences regarding the shape, color, weight, aroma and size of baits.
During periods when pike perch is not particularly active, baits made from edible silicone show good results. The natural aroma of fish or shrimp has a defiant effect on pike perch and arouses his appetite, in cases of high passivity.
As a rule, small lures are used when catching pike perch, since pike perch do not eat large food objects.
It is believed that twisters and vibrotails with a length of 2 to 5 centimeters will be the most catchy.
An important point! When catching zander, especially during the active period, the color of the baits does not play a decisive role, and the fish can attack the bait of any color. If the pike perch is passive, then it can be stirred up with brighter colors.
In winter, pike perch is caught on small silicone lures. At the same time, the game of bait during this period differs from the game of bait in the summer, in terms of organizing long pauses.
TOP 5 silicone lures for zander
Bugsy Shad 72
This vibrotail is used for catching trophy zander.
The model is made of edible silicone and features a mackerel flavor. For the manufacture of such a catchy bait, the material of the highest quality is used.
The vibrotail can be used in various types of rigs, including as a jig bait with a classic jig head. Trophy zander are caught with this type of bait early at dawn.
When using a Texas rig, this type of bait is applied with a minimum load, which allows the lure to provide an attractive game.
Tioga 100
This is a twister, with a body length of about 100 mm, so the model is designed to catch only large individuals, and zander is no exception. The bait has a good game and very catchy, especially when used in a Texas rig.
Ballista 63
The model is a hybrid of a twister and a worm. When moving in the water column, it is more like moving a leech. In cases of stepped wiring, pike perch becomes indifferent to this bait. In the manufacture of the bait, edible silicone is used, which is distinguished by the aroma of shrimp.
LONG JOHN 07,90/PA03
The model of this silicone bait exudes the aroma of mackerel, so it actively lures a large predator. When the bait moves in the water, it imitates the movement of a fish. Often pike perch does not disregard this bait if it moves in the water column.
DEEP PEARL 100/016
This bait is rather large, but it allows you to catch trophy individuals. The model is made of ordinary silicone, so it does not have its own aroma. In this case, you can use attractants, the aroma of which corresponds to the aroma of fish, shrimp, mackerel, etc.
Top 5: the best vibrotails for zander fishing
How baits are mounted on rigs
Silicone lures, both regular and edible, are considered versatile because they can be used with a variety of fishing techniques. In this case, it should be noted the most popular, catchy equipment.
Texas rig
The Texas rig works great in areas of the water where frequent hooks are possible and conventional types of rigs do not give positive results.
The basis of the equipment is an offset hook, a sinker in the form of a bullet, which are mounted on the main fishing line.
The sinker is not mounted rigidly, with the possibility of sliding, therefore, at a distance of 2 centimeters from the hook, a stopper is attached, which serves as a slip limiter for the sinker. Due to the fact that an offset hook is used, the bait is mounted in such a way that a non-hooking snap is obtained. Even in areas very cluttered with snags, the equipment rarely clings to snags, so you do not have to pull branches out of the water every time or cut off the bait. As a rule, it is the cluttered, crooked places that attract various predatory fish.
Carolina rig
This type of equipment has some similarities with the Texas equipment, but the distance from the sinker to the hook is not 2 cm, but as much as 50, or even more.
To mount this type of equipment, it will take very little time and a minimum of skills. It is done like this:
- A sinker in the form of a bullet is installed on the main fishing line and a swivel is immediately attached. A leash is attached to this swivel, 0,5 to 1 meter long, with an offset hook at the end.
- A silicone bait is attached to the offset hook. The most effective is the step wiring.
Unfortunately, the Carolina rig has a slightly higher percentage of hooks than the Texas rig, so it is undesirable to use it on snarled sections of reservoirs.
Retractor Leash
This equipment perfectly copes with its functions when catching zander on silicones.
To get such a snap, you need to mount the gear in this order:
- A sinker is attached to the end of the main line.
- At a distance of about 30 cm from it, a leash is attached, 0,5 to 1 meter long with an offset hook at the end.
- A bait made of ordinary or edible rubber is attached to the hook.
When catching zander, you can use a regular hook, since this predator hunts in clean areas, so hooks, although they happen, are very rare.
The use of jig heads
The jig head represents 2 elements in one – it is a sinker, spherical shape and a hook, connected rigidly, on which the bait is mounted. The size of the jig head and its weight is selected depending on the conditions of fishing. When catching zander, as a rule, quite heavy jig heads are used, since they are caught from the bottom and here it is necessary that the bait sink to the bottom as quickly as possible. In addition, it is necessary to take into account such a factor as the presence of a current. The stronger the current, the heavier the bait should be.
Interesting to know! When catching pike perch on jig heads with silicone lures, any type of posting is used.
Features of fishing for “cheburashka”
This is actually the same jig head, but in the “cheburashka” the load and the hook are not rigidly fixed, but by means of a winding ring. The use of this type of rig can significantly improve the game of the bait, especially if the bait does not have its own game and needs to be animated.
In addition to the fact that such attachment of the bait increases the chances of bites, it allows you to easily change damaged hooks, as well as ordinary hooks for offset ones.
Catchable silicone lures for zander
Useful Tips
- Pike perch prefers to lead a flock of life, therefore, having caught one copy, you can hope for a few more bites.
- There are 2 types of silicone lures – active and passive. Active baits lure the predator with their unique game, while passive baits have practically no game of their own, so its catchability depends largely on the skill of the spinner. When the zander is not particularly active, it is passive baits that allow you to catch the zander, which at this moment does not want to pursue its prey at all.
- Pike perch is a predator that prefers to hunt at night in complete darkness. It is this time of day that can bring significant catches in the form of trophy individuals. At the same time, the color scheme during this period of time does not play any role. The main thing is that the bait makes attractive movements.
- It is believed that edible rubber, compared to conventional, is more catchy, although it is more expensive. Therefore, when going fishing, you should take with you baits made of edible silicone, and it is desirable to have different flavors.
- It is very important to choose the right perspective place. The search for pike perch should be carried out using fast postings. If you find fish, you should move on to slower variable wiring.
Silicone lures are very popular among anglers, because their price is not high at all, and their catchability is high. This is especially true for models made of edible silicone. They allow even inexperienced spinners to fish, when the nature of the wiring is not decisive.
In conclusion
Even baits such as silicone can be of poor quality. This applies to fairly cheap models, made almost in a handicraft way. Such baits show a fake game, so the fish refuses to attack them. In addition, they may not be made of high-quality silicone, so the bait quickly loses its qualities and its presentation.
Although many anglers say that color is not decisive, practice shows otherwise. Brighter and, moreover, non-standard colors attract predators more, despite the fact that pike perch is in complete darkness, and even more so at night. The same can be said about other predators: lures with brighter colors, they attack much more often.
Catching pike perch in spring with silicone lures in still water