Ever since its introduction, the Gary Yamamoto Flappin' Hog has been putting bass in the boat for anglers around the globe. Available in two sizes, 3.75” and 4.5”, the Flappin' Hog is a great crawfish imitation. It is an incredibly versatile bait that can be rigged in many different ways and fished under a wide range of conditions.
The Flappin' Hog makes an excellent jig trailer on the back of a stout flippin' jig or as a complement to a lite wire structure jig. It fishes equally well on the business end of a Carolina Rig or as a punch bait. It is because of this versatility and the fact that I can rely on the Flappin' Hog to get bit, that it has earned a place in my arsenal.
I know there are a good many bassin’ guys and gals who’ve made the same discovery I have.
What is it? That there are times and places where a tube type plastic lure can be just about as effective as anything you can hang on a line for both smallmouth and largemouth bass.
No, it’s not an every time out thing. But then what the heck always is? There are a few baits, I’m thinking of the variety of Senkos Gary Yamamoto came up with, that admittedly get more than their share more often. But there are no guarantees in this business of putting bass in the boat. And I’d be willing to bet Gary would be among the first to agree.
What ever happened to split-shotting? It was the hottest fish-catching technique for years and now, no one does it? I was fishing the other day at Clear Lake in Northern California and caught an 11lb 3oz bass off a dock corner on a 4” split-shot worm. I was play fishing, not getting ready for a tournament, just out to catch a few.
I was trying out a new split shot rod I’d made and I knew it was going to be deadly. I rigged up a DX 792 SF Dobyns Extreme (include link from Dobyns Rods) with a Robo Worm and got after it. I hadn’t thrown a split-shot rig in probably five or six years. It did not surprise me that my second cast caught a 4 pounder. I went on to have a great numbers day and caught a limit over the four pound mark, the best was a six-pounder. That day really got me thinking - the forgotten split-shot technique has accounted for hundreds of major wins in the West over the years, but I hadn’t heard anyone talking about “split-shotting” in years. How could this happen? The technique obviously still catches fish, I’d just smoked them on it.
