How to retrieve soft plastic lures for perch

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lochhopper
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How to retrieve soft plastic lures for perch

Post by lochhopper »

How do you guys retrieve soft plastics for perch?

My standard perch lure is a Mepps 2 or 3 with a steady retrieve. However, I would like to try something new. I got myself some 2" shads recently, but haven't yet been able to get the perch to take an interest.
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Re: How to retrieve soft plastic lures for perch

Post by Flipflopjoe »

I’ve just started down the perch lure fishing road myself and I’ve had a little success mainly using soft plastics.
I’ve been twitching the rod tip up, 2-3 jerks, then a few winds on the reel handle as I return the rod tip to its original position.
I’ve found, limetreuse(green), white or pearl and redheads seem to attract the most attention for me when using softs.
Good luck with it mate :thumbs:
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Re: How to retrieve soft plastic lures for perch

Post by Monts »

lochhopper wrote: Tue Jul 09 2019 12:05 -
How do you guys retrieve soft plastics for perch?

My standard perch lure is a Mepps 2 or 3 with a steady retrieve. However, I would like to try something new. I got myself some 2" shads recently, but haven't yet been able to get the perch to take an interest.
I tend to only fish like this when it really cools down and on small rivers. I use the lightest jig head I can get away with and it's normally 1.5g with a two-inch shad. Cast out and feel the lure down, very often if your casting to a known spot you will get a slight tap on the drop. Then a slow lift and feel it down again, small retrieve and repeat. It's not a method I can fish for long as it requires a fair amount of concentration and I struggle with that. But it does catch you fish, but your waters seeing as your user name is "Lochhopper" I guess are very different to mine.
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Re: How to retrieve soft plastic lures for perch

Post by ChrisWales »

Monts wrote: Tue Jul 09 2019 18:27 -
lochhopper wrote: Tue Jul 09 2019 12:05 -
How do you guys retrieve soft plastics for perch?

My standard perch lure is a Mepps 2 or 3 with a steady retrieve. However, I would like to try something new. I got myself some 2" shads recently, but haven't yet been able to get the perch to take an interest.
I tend to only fish like this when it really cools down and on small rivers. I use the lightest jig head I can get away with and it's normally 1.5g with a two-inch shad. Cast out and feel the lure down, very often if your casting to a known spot you will get a slight tap on the drop. Then a slow lift and feel it down again, small retrieve and repeat. It's not a method I can fish for long as it requires a fair amount of concentration and I struggle with that. But it does catch you fish, but your waters seeing as your user name is "Lochhopper" I guess are very different to mine.
You mean bouncing it on/off the bottom?
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Re: How to retrieve soft plastic lures for perch

Post by Monts »

ChrisWales wrote: Tue Jul 09 2019 18:58 -
Monts wrote: Tue Jul 09 2019 18:27 -
lochhopper wrote: Tue Jul 09 2019 12:05 -
How do you guys retrieve soft plastics for perch?

My standard perch lure is a Mepps 2 or 3 with a steady retrieve. However, I would like to try something new. I got myself some 2" shads recently, but haven't yet been able to get the perch to take an interest.
I tend to only fish like this when it really cools down and on small rivers. I use the lightest jig head I can get away with and it's normally 1.5g with a two-inch shad. Cast out and feel the lure down, very often if your casting to a known spot you will get a slight tap on the drop. Then a slow lift and feel it down again, small retrieve and repeat. It's not a method I can fish for long as it requires a fair amount of concentration and I struggle with that. But it does catch you fish, but your waters seeing as your user name is "Lochhopper" I guess are very different to mine.
You mean bouncing it on/off the bottom?
Not really bouncing it, feeling it down and trying to keep in contact with it at all times. I don't like bouncing it as in my mind's eye the lure is too erratic. You tend to get takes as it slowly glides back down. The takes can be ever so subtle when a Jack hits it you know. Then just inch it back and repeat if that makes sense? I do find it hard work as said above. When and if you try it, you can feel the subtle difference etc. I'm by far an expert but playing about over the last 8/9 years that's what works for me.
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Re: How to retrieve soft plastic lures for perch

Post by ChrisWales »

I noticed I was getting a few Perch in a similar way, just getting snagged a bit was furstrating
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Re: How to retrieve soft plastic lures for perch

Post by Esoxuk »

Chris,
Fish it weedless with a cheburashka jig head, it gives more movement and won't snag up nearly as much, there's plenty on youtube detailing the method.
You can also fish creature baits such as small crays for instance, perch, chub and pike all like these.
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Re: How to retrieve soft plastic lures for perch

Post by lochhopper »

Monts wrote: Tue Jul 09 2019 18:27 -
lochhopper wrote: Tue Jul 09 2019 12:05 -
How do you guys retrieve soft plastics for perch?

My standard perch lure is a Mepps 2 or 3 with a steady retrieve. However, I would like to try something new. I got myself some 2" shads recently, but haven't yet been able to get the perch to take an interest.
I tend to only fish like this when it really cools down and on small rivers. I use the lightest jig head I can get away with and it's normally 1.5g with a two-inch shad. Cast out and feel the lure down, very often if your casting to a known spot you will get a slight tap on the drop. Then a slow lift and feel it down again, small retrieve and repeat. It's not a method I can fish for long as it requires a fair amount of concentration and I struggle with that. But it does catch you fish, but your waters seeing as your user name is "Lochhopper" I guess are very different to mine.
> but your waters seeing as your user name is "Lochhopper" I guess are very different to mine.

In fact I live in Germany now... southern Germany... meaning a population density like southern England + almost every fish caught gets taken for the table :sad:

Where I live it's mostly pretty big lakes, at least a few miles long. Some are deep and cold and also contain powan and lake trout, and others have also got shallow areas with bays with reeds and weed. No nice rivers like what you are describing. It's almost all boat fishing, so that means for me drifting through the better looking bays until I find the perch by chance.

> The takes can be ever so subtle

Interesting. I don't think I've ever had a subtle take from a perch.

What you describe sounds a bit like what I've seen in some vids too. I guess either I've been doing it wrong or doing it where there are no fish. Maybe I should swap straight to a shad the next time I find them with the Mepps, so that at least I know I've got fish in front of me.
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Re: How to retrieve soft plastic lures for perch

Post by Mark_Houghton »

Watching this thread with interest :thumbs: I`ve asked similar questions elsewhere previously as I struggle with soft plastics too, and the answers you get are vague at best. Ask about rigging, or tackle though and you get inundated with replies :roll:
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Re: How to retrieve soft plastic lures for perch

Post by winniethepooh »

I hop shads across the lake or river bed far more than I retrieve shads in mid water.

I work the shad with the reel as I find using the rod tip to provide the action puts too much slack in the line, perhaps I'm just too heavy handed? Working the shads is simplicity itself, I hold the rod tip up so the rod points at something like 10 o clock and the rod will stay pretty much fixed in that position, it's then just a case of winding the reel fairly quickly to lift the shad off the bottom and then pausing to let it drop back to the bottom and as soon as the shad touches the bottom repeat. I normally start off with two turns of the handle before pausing and then try different speeds, different number of turns, different jig head weight etc.
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Re: How to retrieve soft plastic lures for perch

Post by ChrisWales »

Esoxuk wrote: Wed Jul 10 2019 08:32 -
Chris,
Fish it weedless with a cheburashka jig head, it gives more movement and won't snag up nearly as much, there's plenty on youtube detailing the method.
You can also fish creature baits such as small crays for instance, perch, chub and pike all like these.
Cheers, looking into it
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Re: How to retrieve soft plastic lures for perch

Post by Monts »

lochhopper wrote: Wed Jul 10 2019 10:53 -
Monts wrote: Tue Jul 09 2019 18:27 -
lochhopper wrote: Tue Jul 09 2019 12:05 -
How do you guys retrieve soft plastics for perch?

My standard perch lure is a Mepps 2 or 3 with a steady retrieve. However, I would like to try something new. I got myself some 2" shads recently, but haven't yet been able to get the perch to take an interest.
I tend to only fish like this when it really cools down and on small rivers. I use the lightest jig head I can get away with and it's normally 1.5g with a two-inch shad. Cast out and feel the lure down, very often if your casting to a known spot you will get a slight tap on the drop. Then a slow lift and feel it down again, small retrieve and repeat. It's not a method I can fish for long as it requires a fair amount of concentration and I struggle with that. But it does catch you fish, but your waters seeing as your user name is "Lochhopper" I guess are very different to mine.
> but your waters seeing as your user name is "Lochhopper" I guess are very different to mine.

In fact I live in Germany now... southern Germany... meaning a population density like southern England + almost every fish caught gets taken for the table :sad:

Where I live it's mostly pretty big lakes, at least a few miles long. Some are deep and cold and also contain powan and lake trout, and others have also got shallow areas with bays with reeds and weed. No nice rivers like what you are describing. It's almost all boat fishing, so that means for me drifting through the better looking bays until I find the perch by chance.

> The takes can be ever so subtle

Interesting. I don't think I've ever had a subtle take from a perch.

What you describe sounds a bit like what I've seen in some vids too. I guess either I've been doing it wrong or doing it where there are no fish. Maybe I should swap straight to a shad the next time I find them with the Mepps, so that at least I know I've got fish in front of me.


I can't really offer you any advice on big lakes I'm afraid as it's not something I'm very familiar with. As regards the subtle takes, with spinners I tend to get that tap, tap, tap and a fish is hooked. Again I do not fish these much, my preferred method is small crankbaits. Again you may get a telltale tap, tap, tap so just keep on winding. At other times the lure will just stop acting as it's supposed to and stop as if you've pulled into some blanket weed, these I strike at. Plenty of larger Perch seem to do this. Why? Perhaps they have just grabbed it and are holding stationery deciding whether or not to eat it. So yep strike.

If you give the soft plastics a good go, you may well be surprised how soft the takes are. It's all about the feel if that's not to poncey a way to describe it. Of course, some will gulp it down. It's just trial and error. Good luck regardless. :thumbs:
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Re: How to retrieve soft plastic lures for perch

Post by Daniel »

My most successful retrieve for perch is pretty simple.
Cast out, count it down to about two thirds of the swim depth, retrieve with nothing more than a single turn of the handle, pause for a second or so, single turn of the handle, pause for a second and repeat.

If you start dragging on the bottom then start the retrieve earlier, make the pause shorter, speed up the retrieve, fish a lighter jighead or a combination of these things.

There's really no need to be scraping the deck in warm weather, perch are well up for a chase so fish with a bit of speed and cover as much water as possible.

I prefer cranks in summer, I spend an awful lot of time dragging softies about very slowly in winter so prefer something different in summer!
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Re: How to retrieve soft plastic lures for perch

Post by andrew_nagel »

winniethepooh wrote: Wed Jul 10 2019 13:54 -
I hop shads across the lake or river bed far more than I retrieve shads in mid water.

I work the shad with the reel as I find using the rod tip to provide the action puts too much slack in the line, perhaps I'm just too heavy handed? Working the shads is simplicity itself, I hold the rod tip up so the rod points at something like 10 o clock and the rod will stay pretty much fixed in that position, it's then just a case of winding the reel fairly quickly to lift the shad off the bottom and then pausing to let it drop back to the bottom and as soon as the shad touches the bottom repeat. I normally start off with two turns of the handle before pausing and then try different speeds, different number of turns, different jig head weight etc.
I use small curly grubs and shads in the same way - off the reel than the rod. This way seems to keep better contact with the lure. I use this perching 'jig' set up to feel around the lake bed when I'm piking. I catch enough perch of all sizes to know it seems to work.
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Re: How to retrieve soft plastic lures for perch

Post by fishder »

Alot off perch i catch seem to bite
on the pause when the soft plastic is resting on the bottom.
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