If you enjoy the outdoors and love the ocean and fishing like we do, then you know that there is much more to fishing then just catching fish. And, because it is our desire to help you experience the truly important things about fishing; as well as help you catch “that one fish" more than just once in a lifetime. We have been busy working hard behind the scenes. We have new shapes and colors being released. These colors and shapes are currently in different phases of development and testing. We have created a new section on our website to feature these new releases. You can find this section in our Main Menu under “New Bait Shapes”. And, we invite you to take a few minutes to check-out this section. It’s our hope that you will come to more than just love our baits, like we do. For us the exciting thing about all of this is that we are just getting started with much, much, much more coming - our best baits and colors has not been released yet. (NOTE: This website is a work in progress - We are still editing and improving this website. Also, all orders are made to order, and we are working dilligently to get all of the orders out as quickly as we can. So if you need a bait shape or color right away please visit one of the retail locations that carry our baits. Thank you for your continued consideration, understanding, and support.

Fishing Weights and Fishing Pole Selection

On this page we will provide general information for you to make an informed decision about fishing weights and floaters in the areas you fish. We understand in many cases this information, as with all fishing equipment, comes down to personal preference and fishing style, but we hope it aids you to maximize and fine-tune the performance of your equipment so that you can get the most out of it. In this section, we will address weight selection and safety - which also affects line and fishing rod selection.   

A fishing weight flying through the air is a lot like a rock, arrow, or bullet flying through the air. The only difference is that this projectile has a line attached to it when in motion, and it isn’t intended to be used as a weapon. A fishing weight, when in motion, can hurt someone or break some thing. When fishing, always be aware of what is going on around you in the environment that you are fishing. Look for bystanders, swimmers, surfers, boats, floaters, and cars - basically anything that can be potentially hurt or damaged by a flying projectile. 

Weight selection affects the strength of the fishing line that you use and the strength of the fishing pole that you are using.  Proper equipment selection can make fishing even more enjoyable and fun.

Here is a simple formula that can be followed as a guideline when it comes to selecting the proper fishing weights and line:
For every 1 ounce of weight you will need approximately 10 lbs. of strength test in your fishing line. This is for safety. If you plan to use a 2 oz. fishing weight, you will need a fishing line that is a minimum of a 20 lbs. breaking strength, or what is commonly referred to as “test” in the fishing world.

Next you need to know how much weight your fishing pole can handle. This information is usually printed on your fishing pole. It tells you the design limitations of the fishing pole as established by the fishing pole maker. Here is picture of what you are looking for on the fishing pole:

 

Fishing Pole Information - How to maximize your fishing poles performance.

The printed information tells you the minimum and maximum fishing line strength that you should use as well as the minimum and maximum fishing weight/fishing lure to use to get the most out of your fishing pole.  It also tells you general information like the fishing rod length and once in a while it tell you the action of the rod. 

This particular rod is a 10 foot rod. The recommended line to use on this rod is 10 lbs. to 20 lbs. test. And the lure weight that is recommended for the pole is between 1/2 oz. to 2 oz. in weight. Lure weight equals the recommended lead weight to use.

To get the maximum performance from a fishing rod, you don't want to use the maximum lure weight that the pole can handle.  As a general guideline to get the "most" out of your fishing pole you would want to use a weight that is lighter than the maximum recommended lure weight of the pole to allow for the force that is used to cast the weight.

For this pole, I've found through a little testing that about a 1 oz. weight works perfectly. Since 1 oz. of weight is used on this pole, we would want a minimum line strength of 10 lbs. test mainline. I have used 20 lbs.test fishing line with a 1 oz. weight lure, and it was fine since the mainline exceeded the amount of the minimum amount of lead. If we were to use a 2 oz. weight, we would want to use a minimum of 20 lbs. test line to cast 2 oz. of lead safely. 

As far as casting distance goes, there are a lot of variables that come into play.  But to keep things simple, topics like wind resistance from the fishing line, aerodynamics, friction, reel design, reel lubrication for some reels, shock leaders, rod action, and a few other variables won't be discussed on this page, as it is not needed to catch fish. We are just going to keep things simple, and really you don't need to understand any of those detailed topics to catch fish. 

Fishing Weight Selection

 Fishing Weight Selection - Sample of Different Styles of Fishing Weights Used in Fishing In Hawaii 
Above is an assortment of different fishing weights used for fishing in Hawaii.  Each weight style has different characteristics that allows you to present each
lure in various water depths and with vastly different underwater terrain.

There are a few different functions that fishing weights have in fishing. For this section we are covering two of the functions: 1. Adding weight to help you get your lure or bait out to where the fish are. 2. Bait presentation.

1. Getting the bait out into the water can be a big challenge for many when casting. Casting for distance is solved using the proper technique and using equipment that is weighted correctly for the equipment being used. When you use proper technique distance is less of a challenge, but retrieving the weight/lure can be quite challenging, especially when there is a lot of reef and structure in the water.  And it becomes more challenging to fish when the water is both shallow and rocky. The selection of weights used for fishing and solutions to not having your weight or lure get caught on the structure in the fishing world varies widely in opinion and once again comes down to personal preference and style which everyone will develop over time the more you fish.

2. The selection of a fishing weight deals mainly with lure presentation in the water and the terrain, whether you're fishing among rocks, sand, or a combination of rocks and sand. There are all kinds of different weight systems available on the market, but no matter what weight system you choose, they all have the potential of getting caught on obstacles in the water – it's just that some do it less often. Some weight systems float, other systems sink, and some sink so slowly they are almost neutrally buoyant. All work well and some excel more than others in different situations.

Sandy Bottoms 

When you are fishing an area that has mainly sand as the bottom you can use just about any type of fishing weight and generally not have to worry about getting stuck on rocks or other bottom structure.

Rocky and Shallow Bottoms

Rocky and shallow bottoms can be very challenging when fishing. This is where the lighter lead weights, almost neutrally buoyant, and floating systems come into play and excel. You can use fast sinking weights in an area that has a lot bottom structure; however, you run the risk of getting it stuck on the structure if you are not careful. The Catch-22 in all of this is that generally speaking fish like to hang around structure. They use structure to hide in as well as ambush prey. It really doesn’t matter if there is a change in the depth of the bottom of a sandy beach or a point or pinnacle, along a ledge or channel, or the lone rock in or near the area where the waves are breaking along the shore - most fish like to be around some type of structure in the water. 

With some practice you can learn to maneuver a lead weight over structure and not get caught up on underwater obstacles. You may need to vary your retrieval speed, and occasionally lift the rod tip when you feel the lead come in contact with the bottom structure so the weight travels just above the obstacles.

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