NZ Fishing World

Soft baits from then to now….

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Graeme Paterson has been following the evolution of soft baits from day one. But just what has changed over the last seven years with this very popular form of fishing?

When soft plastics, or soft baits as they are now known, first hit New Zealand shores they were picked to be a five minute wonder - a fad that would vanish faster than it arrived. I have to admit I was one of these skeptics. Well that was over seven years ago and the soft baiting scene in New Zealand has gone from strength to strength, as has the technology and terminal tackle to go with it.

Look back to the beginning

It could be argued by the purest that soft baits first arrived back in the very early 80s with the original Mister Twister Sassy Shad baits. Back then we had neither the specialist gear nor the terminal tackle to fish them effectively. Instead those who gave it a go used the old Kiwi adage of opting for the same gear they fished blood baits or live baits on. This would normally consist of 15kg plus nylon and a broomstick fiberglass rod. Both of which have the sensitivity of a Pit Bull and they disappeared before it even began.

For me and many keen soft bait fishermen and woman, the true birth of the modern soft bait scene in New Zealand was kindled in the summer of 2003-2004 when Pure Fishing strategically launched the Berkley range into New Zealand. This was made up of baits, rods, braid and jigheads paired up with then the latest range of Abu spin reels. It was the introduction of the Berkley scented Power Baits that really set things burning.

Pure Fishing followed this up with nationwide soft bait seminars to show the gear and how to use it and quickly packed out fishing clubs and tackle stores. These evenings saw the new range walk out the doors in droves by those keen enough to give it a go.

Fad to Friction

As it turned out it wasn’t to be a five minute wonder or fad, in fact it was marketed so well with the seminars and road shows that there came a wave of sales for any tackle store that stocked the gear. In some parts of the country it had soon taken over conventional baits for a while. I went from skeptic to true believer.

But what are the Kiwi conditions and how are they related to the gear we use and require to consistently improve results. Since rods are what I do best I will start with them. Many of the rods that hit our shores were designed for "finesse fishing" in fresh water overseas or light inshore areas where the average size of the fish simply wouldn’t make table fare here in New Zealand. The rods had very soft tips and lacked the power to set a hook in a hard-mouthed snapper which is our most common North Island table fish. Also, as Kiwi’s we generally tend to fish our gear hard and as a rule we catch bigger, stronger fighting fish. It’s not until you have to set the hook and stop a 15lb-plus Snapper from busting you off on the rocks and kelp while wash fishing that you understand the true meaning of Kiwi conditions.

What‘s hot on the market today

In terms of soft bait rod advancement from eight years ago, today’s buzz word is “Nano technology”. Simply put, Nano technology is simply microscopic helical shaped particles added into the resin of the prepregged carbon cloth. When the blank is baked in the blank oven, the resin with the Nano particles fills all the voids in the carbon cloth fabric, making a strong bond between the resin and the carbon layers. The results mean a stronger, more responsive and more sensitive rod.
The other big change we are now seeing is a move to faster taper rods with more backbone and lift and a reduction in parabolic action. The main reason for this is cleaner hook sets, remembering that there are only two points of give in a good soft bait setup; one being the rod and the other the drag washers in the reel. The braid provides a near non-stretch connection between these two points and a soft tip will simply fold away when the strike is made as will a rod with a very parabolic action. Both will require extra energy to set the hook but by having a rod with faster taper and slightly stiffer tip, the hook is set faster with less energy.

Having a stiffer tip doesn’t mean a loss in sensitivity and the new carbon technology combined with Nano particles produce lighter rods with added sensitivity so the user can feel the slightest of bites.

Rod lengths now are nearly all between 6’6” and 7ft. Gone is the need for a long 8ft rod to gain any advantage in casting distance as all the latest rods will be using, or should be using, materials designed to get casting distance from a shorter rod.

Rods to look out for today.

• Berkley Veritas (Nano Technology)
• Shimano T-Curve range
• Synit Banshee range (Nano Technology)
• Daiwa Coastal range

Reels

As the soft bait rods have advanced, so have the reels. We now have new generation reels from nearly all the leading manufacturers that are lighter, stronger and designed with harsh fishing in mind. Features like carbon drag washers, titanium-coated line rollers, digital machined gearing, waterproof sealed drag washers and stainless anti-corrosion bearings are now the norm and we look for and expect no less in a good reel.
While brands are a personal preference, it must be said there is now not a lot between the top range reels - no matter who the manufacturer.
Even the entry level reels from Shimano, Daiwa and Abu Garcia have smooth, powerful drags and as you move up the price range the level of specifications and features offered increases dramatically.

Reels to look out for today:

• Shimano Stella, Shimano Twin Power, Shimano Stradic CI4, range from 2500 to 4000 size models
• Daiwa Certate 2500 and 3000, Daiwa Luvias 2500 and 3000.
• Abu Revo Premier, Abu Soron STX.
• Pflueger Patriarch

The Baits

The Berkley Power Bait started it all off and this is by no means a promo for Berkley, it’s simply recognising the market leaders here in New Zealand. With a huge budget it wasn’t going to be long before we saw them produce the most popular and effective soft baits to date. The Berkley Power Bait was soon replaced with what has become a phenomenon. Their new baits called Gulp had an estimated US$10 million put into their development and both anglers and fish took to them in epic proportions. Gulp was the modern day version of sliced bread it worked so well in both in fresh and saltwater it was banned by many overseas professional bass fishing competitions. Here in New Zealand we saw the rise of one particular Gulp bait named the “Nuclear Chicken”. The demand for this coloured bait outstripped supply and special orders had to be made to restock the tackle store's shelves.

As Gulp went from strength to strength, other importers and manufacturers were hard at work getting other brands to ride on the shirt tails of this method of fishing. We even saw a few Kiwi designed brands hit the shelves. Catch Baits and Slam were both designed and engineered in New Zealand by Kiwis. Catch still has a market share here but Slam has since disappeared and been rebranded Gladiator after the original Slam baits struggled to muscle in on Berkley’s stronghold. Over the years we have seen other brands come and go and for the hardcore soft baiter it doesn’t take long to figure out what will work and what won't. If it doesn’t work it’s a sure fire fast trip to the tackle store bargain bin. But some new soft baits brands have risen to the surface; baits like Z-Man and Strike King have been getting awesome results and I had the chance to fish the Z-Mans in the late autumn/early winter just a few weeks ago. I will save the best part of this for a full review on the Z-Man but from first impressions it’s a winner for a number of reasons. Strike Kings are made from the same ElaZtech material but the Z-Man comes with a secret sauce attractant; both in the bait and in a squeeze bottle as an additive. Good marketing and a good product has seen the Z-Man grow in popularity.

Berkley now offer the Gulps in both tear open re-sealable pack and a convenient tub with Gulp Alive juice that doubles as a recharge container to boost those used bait back into life.

It has long been said that soft baits don’t work in the winter months but in my opinion they work just as well as in the warmer months. It’s a simple matter of choosing the correct size and type as the fish slow down in there metabolism. Nine times out of 10 soft baits will require more than movement and colour alone to attract fish. Baits with a good, powerful scent will triumph over non-scented baits in these colder months and for me it’s my favorite time of year to target good fish in the wash areas on soft baits.

Bait to look out for today:
• Z-Man
• Gulp
• Strike King
• Trigger X
• Catch

Braid and leaders

There has been a few changes in this area and Berkley have just released the second generation of Fireline called Fireline Exceed. This braid is rounder in profile than the original and packs well onto small spooled spin reels. It is also offered in new kilogram rated sizes of 3kg, 5kg, 6kg, 7.5kg, 10kg and 14kg.

Other brands also have some nice product in the tackle stores. When it comes to braid it’s usually a matter of finding what suits you best and then matching the line weight to rod and reel.

Leader hasn’t really changed from day one; it should always be fluorocarbon and it should always be of good quality from a trusted manufacturer. As always, match your leader weight to your braid size. This really helps when tying knots and for bait presentation. For example, if you are using 8lb to 10lb braid a maximum of 20lb fluorocarbon leader will give best all round results. If you are in foul structure then maybe move up to 25lb.

Braid to look out for today:

• Berkley Fireline original
• Berkley Fireline Exceed
• Rovex Viros
• Suffix
• Stren Microfuse

Terminal soft bait tackle:

There has been a huge release of soft bait terminal tackle in the past few years, both for shallow waters to 25m and for deep water to 100m. Jigheads and worm hooks of all sizes and shapes are now available from all good tackle stores but look for ones that will hold the baits secure and not tear the bait to shreds after the first strike. The deepwater setups have seen the most growth with painted glowing lead heads, teardrop shaped sinkers with stranded stainless steel wire attachments and pieces of glow tube to hold the hook above the sinker. For me it’s a matter of keeping it as simple as possible - the more joints there are, the more opportunity the fish has to break them. Deepwater rigs need to be robust and simple. One such rig is the Cyclops deepwater rig with a worm hook and powerful split ring. These have proven to be a great and simple development that works really well on snapper. If I had to choose just one significant advancement in soft bait terminal tackle it would be the Cyclops and other similar deepwater rigs.
Other tackle that has been developed to make the sport easier are quick change Genie clips, but I have found these can deter fish at certain times of the year when they get shy of anything that doesn’t look 100 percent natural.

Soft bait terminal tackle to look out for today:

• Berkley Nitro jig heads
• The “Captains Elevator” deepwater rig”
• Catch Torpedo jig heads
• Cyclops Deepwater rigs
• Berkley Elevator heads
• TT Tournament jig heads

This has been a quick snap shot of where things have come in the last seven or so years. It has given the recreational angler something new to put in their arsenal and the fact that the sport is always changing means there is bound to be new things to try. Soft baits will never overtake natural blood baits here in New Zealand like they have overseas, but it sure is an exciting and active way to fish.