Come learn how to rig a drop shot for bass fishing. Drop shotting is an amazing technique for targeting bass. If you watch many tournaments on tv you will see this rig in play at almost every body of water.
That said, this is a tool that you need to add to your bass fishing arsenal.
A drop shot rig is simply a hook that is tied to your line with a tag end that allows for a weight to be hooked below the hook. This allows the bait to flow freely on the line above the weight and presents a finesse approach to the bass while allowing the bait to be fished in place or dragged.
When you know you are around fish and they aren’t wanting to bite, the drop shot can be magical.
Like the video above showed you can use a palomar knot to tie the hook on you line, but make sure you leave a long tag end, or the end you would usually cut off of your line for the weight to attach.
How Long to Rig Your Drop Shot for Bass
A rule of thumb that I use is that I have a longer tag line for my weight, up to 18 inches in clear water that is warm. I typically go as short as 6 inches when I am fishing colder water. You can play with the length of the weight from the hook to see what your bass like.
The more length you have between the line and the bait the more movement and action you will have. That is why I go shorter in colder water.
How to Rig a Drop Shot for Bass – Another Thought
Another thing to think about when you are rigging a drop shot for bass is the type of cover you are fishing in. If you are on a clean bottom it is always best to have an open finesse hook like the Owner Mosquito hook or the VMC Neko hook. You will have a better hook up rate with the open hook.
If you are fishing in an area with a lot of grass or brush on the bottom I would use a weedless hook and Texas rig it. You will tie your hook on the line the exact same with either hook.
I show that rig in this video below.
If you fish an open hook around and through a lot of cover it will drive you crazy and you will likely quit fishing the drop shot due to the frustration of always breaking off and having to retie. If you can get away with it you will catch more fish and have better hook up rates when you don’t have it weedless though.
I have a whole article about the best drop shot baits and how to rig them here.
If you are wondering what baits to use, I have some of the best drop shot baits in another article and the hooks that I like to use for them.
Example of How to Fish the Drop Shot Rig for Bass
Just two days ago I took out a new project boat to test it out on the water. While we were out there we took advantage and fished the evening. It was overcast with a 7-10 mph wind and so we started with reaction baits like the Alabama rig and the spinnerbait. We are in December so it is a winter pattern.
I was even hopping a blade bait off of the bottom for about 20 minutes. After a couple of hours of throwing reaction baits, including crankbaits and underspins, we tied on the good old drop shot.
It wasn’t five minutes later when we had bass on.
They wanted the worm fished deep and slow close to the bottom. My tagline was 6-8 inches above the weight.
I started with an open hook and did hook up with a bass, but after breaking off I switched over to the weedless rig. We ended up fishing for 40 more minutes and caught all of our bass and one flathead catfish as a bonus in this short time.
We were fishing them slowly by just dragging them on the bottom. Very little action needed to be added. When the water is cold the fish want less action. We were throwing a 4-½” Robo Worm in morning dawn and desert craw colors.
Sometimes the drop shot rig will save your day of bass fishing when you can’t get them on anything else.
If it was the summer, I may throw a curly tail and go to a 6” worm or even bigger. You can play with the sizes and types.
Final Thoughts About How to Rig a Drop Shot
My suggestion is to get good at tying the palomar knot with enough line left for the weight. Do it at home over and over until you get comfortable and can get the hook to stand out horizontally on the line. This way when you are out on the water you can tie it fast and don’t get frustrated with the little things.
The less frustration you have on the water the more you can pay attention to the fishing and become a more effective angler. This is a big key to bass fishing success.
Go out and grab some hooks, drop shot weights, and worms and go get your drop shot on.
To your fishing success,
Jonathan Burke