Searching with a Drop-Shot
John Murray

What are the ideal conditions for the drop shot? Ask a hundred anglers and you’ll get a hundred different answers, some might even say never. In my many years of experience I have fished all types of waters, in all types of conditions and I’m hard pressed to find a time when the drop shot cannot be used effectively in some way. The problem comes when anglers choose to narrow down the uses of the drop shot and ignore the versatility of the technique. I love making long casts and fishing deep, but most drop shot rods on the market were unable to suit my needs. I worked with Powell rods to design a drop shot rod to be as versatile as the technique itself. We came up with a 7’3” spinning rod with the extra length needed to make further casts and get a better hookset on deep fish, but still provides the lightweight and sensitivity for which Powell rods are known for. 

As we approach the fall season, I like to use the drop shot as I would use a crankbait. It becomes a search bait to find active fish that have seen all the other hard moving baits and are unaccustomed to seeing my presentation. I will line up on a structure that would normally be a crankbait situation, but instead make a long cast with the drop shot and work it slowly back to the boat. Forget the limitations of the depth of a crankbait; the drop shot can fish all depths.  Another use of the drop shot in fall is for suspended fish that are chasing bait. A lot of times I’ll graph a group of bass eating bait fish deep -as deep as 50 feet- and I will use the drop shot to reach those fish. I have a lot of confidence when throwing this bait.

My usual drop shot setup includes my Powell 733 spinning rod, along with 6 or 8 pound Berkley fluorocarbon, a ¼ ounce Kanji tungsten drop shot weight, and a small drop shot hook. I love how much I can feel with the Kanji tungsten weights, they allow me to really get a good idea of the structure and bottom composition.  I use a small 4-6 inch Roboworm. When it comes to color and style I mix it up depending on the forage I’m trying to imitate. Roboworm makes every color I could ever need matching the hatch from Clear Lake to Lake Erie .

The best advice I can give you when using the drop shot is to experiment and find new ways to fish it. Don’t be afraid to think outside of the box, usually when someone wins a tournament it’s because they did something just a little bit different in order to separate themselves from the pack.  I must say that when you limit your applications with the drop shot you are really limiting how good of a fisherman you can be. Versatility is key in this sport, right down to every technique you use. During the Elite Series Empire Chase event at Lake Erie I picked up my drop shot rod and never put it down, over the three days I caught 60 pounds 8 ounces an average of just over 20 pounds a day. The smallmouth there were all over my drop shot, and I used several variations of fishing it in order to put together my limit.

This fall when the crankbait or spoon isn’t productive go ahead and pull out the drop shot rod and give it a try in the same situations, show the fish something they may not have seen or in a way they haven’t yet seen it. Don’t be afraid to drop shot differently.