Selecting the Right Stupid Tube Jig Head

We’ve proven the Stupid Tube is a great way to catch bass!  With so many new customers, we’ve been running into a common question, “What’s the BEST size of Stupid Tube Jig Head?”  Is it 3/0, 4/0, or HD…heavy or light?  We wish there was one cut and dry answer we could give everyone, but the answer is, “It depends!”.  This article should help eliminate some of the confusion and get you pointed in the right direction.

Selecting the right jig head for your Stupid Tube or Stupid Craw

The first question we ask is which of our Secret Lures Stupid Tubes do you like to throw?  Each tube has a preferred hook for it.  The Classic Stupid Tube (ST37 products) are designed for the STH series of hooks.  Both 3/0 and 4/0 STH hooks work well in the ST37 tubes.  If you like to fish the larger Flippin’ Stupid Tube (FST42 products), we reccomend the HD version.  Although it is still a 4/0, it is a heavier gauge Mustad hook, which is slightly longer than the standard Gamakatsu.  This hook has very little flex, a good wide bite, and a great fit for the larger series of tubes.  Our Big Dummy Stupid Tube (BDST45 products) can fit either the HD or the Stupid Tube Ledge Head.  The HD works best for shallow pitching, flipping, and cover fishing.  The Stupid Tube Ledge Head was designed to allow the Big Dummy to be fished deeper, more like a jig or football jig presentation.  The Ledge Head is the only version available in 5/0 and it features a horizontal line tie.

We also like to ask, “How do you like to fish it?  If the answer is a bait casting reel and pitching, flipping, casting, we usually jump to the 4/0 STH series of jig heads.  The standard STH series of jig heads feature a medium wire Gamakatsu hook and the 4/0 is slightly longer and slightly heavier guage of wire.  When the bites are likely to come in shallow water, and likely to be met with a hard hookset, we like that little extra length and stiffness of the 4/0 over the 3/0.  We’ve found spinning rod anglers, or those dragging tubes deeper, prefer the 3/0 STH series.  The hooks is a slightly smaller wire, and “sticky” sharp.  Softer hooksets, longer casts, and young/new anglers all seem to benefit from that lighter hook, and the less pressure required to set it into the fish.

The weight portion of selection is really up to the individual angler and the conditions.  One thing we will note on this topic is that the heavier you go, the more of that “death spiral” or “gliding action” you remove from your presentation.  As a rule of thumb, we always select the lightest weight we can keep bottom contact with.  Overall, the 3/16ths oz Stupid Tube Jig Head is by far the most popular size, so if you still aren’t sure, start there!

Just remember…”If you’re going to do something STUPID, do it RIGHT!”

Secret Lures Partners with the Western Kentucky University Bass Fishing Club

The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers Bass Club is the most recent college fishing team to join the new Secret Lures “funraising” initiative. This new program combines school spirit with a proven staple that should be in every angler’s tackle box, the Secret Lures Stupid Tube ®. These collaborations are resulting in great looking baits, with an even greater purpose. The goal of the program is to provide each school with a bait that is uniquely their own and provide a mechanism for the clubs to raise funds for collegiate bass fishing travel expenses. In 2020 the WKU Hilltoppers will be competing in a variety of events, including the Bass Pro Shops Collegiate Bass Fishing Series, the Carhartt Bassmaster College Series, as well as the FLW College Fishing Series, presented by Yeti.

According to Caleb Mulzer, President of the WKU Bass Fishing Club, “We started a conversation with Secret Lures this past summer about working together and it has really blossomed into a great opportunity for our club. Our tubes look awesome! Our team settled in on the name Topper Tube in honor of our program and we were able to incorporate our signature red and black colors into an all-new “Smoke” offering by Secret Lures. We’re excited to not only start raising some fish up on this new Stupid Tube but also raising some funds for our club.”

Danny Blandford, President of Secret Lures, added, “We’re really getting excited about this program as we talk with different college and high school fishing teams. It seems to be a simple concept that hits on what these programs need the most, which is additional funding. Bringing together school spirit with a great bait allows these teams to reach out to their supporters and offer a custom branded product as a fundraising item for their programs. We’re seeing customers get excited because they know our Stupid Tube is a great bait, but their dollars are also going to a great cause, so we’re helping everyone involved to catch more fish and have some fun.”

Topper Tubes can be purchased directly from the WKU Bass Fishing Club by sending an email to bass.fishing@wku.edu or reaching out to any club members directly. Secret Lures will also host a “Funraiser” section within the Stupid Tube menu on www.Shop.SecretLures.com, where the new Topper Stupid Tube and other unique academic collaborations will be hosted and available for purchase to benefit select programs. Blandford went on to add, “We have several new Stupid Tubes in the works for various programs in our region and we hope that folks will buy directly from the programs themselves, but in the event they want to order from us, we’ll also earmark a portion of the website sales for the college or high school fishing teams the products are listed under.”

College or high school fishing teams that would be interested in learning more about this new program may contact Secret Lures at info@SecretLures.com.

Swim Jig Fishing Secrets

Northern Swim Jig Fishing

By Mike Raber

Swimming a jig has become increasingly popular over the past decade. For good reason, this technique catches big fish.  The swim jig has been responsible for several elite level tournament wins in recent history. Perhaps its effectiveness is due in part to its versatility and adaptability. Anglers have employed swim jigs to catch winning sacks of bass from North to South and coast to coast. When I started fishing a swim jig many years ago, I learned the braid sizzling action of the south doesn’t always translate well to Northern waters. Creating a “system” for Northern swim jig fishing has been paramount to my successes with the technique.  What I’ve learned is it really boils down to two simple facts.

  1. You can’t hook bass that don’t bite
  2. You can’t land bass that don’t stay hooked

Getting Bit

Perhaps the most important yet most simple aspect of any technique in bass fishing is getting bites. The swim jig is great at this as it covers a ton of water and offers more realism than its counterparts. There are additional things you can do to tip the odds in your favor for getting more bites, however. Matching the hatch is very important in clear water swim jig fishing. For swim jigs, matching the hatch boils down to two things, the color, and the trailer.

 

Jig Colors

I keep my colors very simple, stocking only a few options to imitate bream and a shad pattern or two. My absolute favorite jig for imitating bluegill in the Midwest is the Candy Craw color in the Secret Lures MVP Swim Jig line.

Honestly, this has been the jig I’ve reached for time and time again over the past 5 years and it flat gets bit. Having a jig you can rely on is extremely important but the jig is only half of the puzzle.

Jig Trailers

Swim jig trailers come in many shapes and sizes and I’ve narrowed my selection to keep it simple and effective… catching the theme here?  The trailer should complement the jig in multiple aspects. The size, action, and color of the trailer should be coupled with the jig to create the most attractive package possible. Recognize that you can completely change your presentation simply by changing your trailer. That may sound quite complex, but I have a few favorites that seem to cover nearly all situations.

1 / 4 Ounce Swim Jig

Top trailer choices: Rage Craw / Reaction Innovations Little Dipper

The Rage Craw gets the nod in dirtier water where more water displacement is needed. It also serves well in situations where I’d like to keep the jig up in the water column and moving slowly. The Little Dipper is more versatile and serves well in any visibility 2 feet or more. This trailer helps to get the light jig a little deeper and allows it to move a little faster than the craw without blowing out.

 3/8 Ounce Swim Jig

Top Trailer Choices: Keitech Fat Swing Impact

This one is very popular and predictable and it works! My favorite situation for the 3/8 ounce jig is fishing outside weed lines on our natural lakes. The extra weight allows me to keep the jig in the strike zone longer and fish it at a faster speed.  I pull it out when I feel like one or the other subtle changes in retrieve or depth will make a difference.  That size jig, coupled with a 3.8” Keitech is a heck of a package for clear water green fish.

Keeping Fish Buttoned

If you’re new to the technique or you’re using the wrong equipment, losing fish with a swim jig can be a huge problem. It is important that your rod, reel, and line are all working in unison to put fish in the boat.

Secret Lures MVP Swim Jigs

Rod Suggestions:

Use a rod that has plenty of backbone but also allows you to reel into the fish and load up on the hookset. In my opinion, the best swim jig stick on the planet is the Denali Kovert LT 723WJ. The rod handles both 1/4- and 3/8-ounce jigs very well. People vary some on their rod choice here, but I strongly suggest using something at least 7’ and something in the Medium Heavy range.  Choose a swim jig rod you believe in and build your system around that.

Line:

I try to streamline everything as much as possible. For both 1/4 and 3/8 swim jigs I throw 15lb Fluorocarbon about 80% of the time. This allows me to transition from fishing a light jig up dirt shallow to slow rolling a heavier jig on deep grass lines by simply tying on a new jig. The situation where I consistently turn to a lighter line is in very cold water, where I’m looking for every advantage I can find to get a bite.

Reel:

This is the simplest part of the system. Use the fastest reel you can buy. When a five pounder inhales your jig from behind and runs at you, you’ll thank me.

 What Makes a Good Swim Jig?

The three things I look for in a swim jig are realism, balance, and efficiency. I’ve used dozens of different jigs and while many of them work, I have settled on the Secret Lures MVP Swim Jig for a couple of reasons.

 

Realism – A swim jig must look like the baitfish it imitates. The water is usually clear when a swim jig bite is on and fish will often trail your jig before deciding to eat it. For this reason, I look for every advantage I can get.  I like a jig to have realistic eyes and a lively skirt. The trailer should do the bulk of the drawing in but when that fish gets close, it can easily be the details that make the difference.

Balance – Balance comes more from the head design of the bait. Make sure the head of the jig allows it to keel upright in the water and track true at all speeds. Nothing will hang up quicker or look more unnatural than a jig swimming sideways.

Efficiency – Efficiency is all about the business end, the hook. The Secret Lures MVP Swim Jigs are one of the few that I’ve found to actually tailor the hook to the head size.  That may seem like a small detail, but it is key.

A 1/4-ounce jig should sport a hook with light enough wire to not overpower the bait but should also be able to lean on a kicker and not straighten it out. A 3/8-ounce jig should do the same, but you want a stronger/heavier hook to compensate for the extra weight in the head.

Their 1/2-ounce version is actually built with a saltwater grade heavy duty hook, but I personally don’t have a lot of experience with that one…YET.  With that said, all you have to do is hold one in your hand.  It screams HEAVY DUTY and is just begging for braided line and big bass!

Each of these things is something I learned to be important over time with this technique. Put these pieces together and you have one heck of a swim jig.  Give them a try this spring and I think they’ll quickly become one of your Secret Lures.  

Keep it Simple

In summary, swim jigging truly is pretty simple if you start with a good product. You cast it out, you wind it in, it gets bites. If you take this system and make it your own, I’m sure your northern swim jig fishing will improve. Find a rod that works for your style. Find the line that you trust when your tournament is on it. Experiment with jigs and trailers until you find what you like but if you’re looking for a great place to start, look no further than the MVP Swim Jig.

If you are in my neck of the woods, Northern Indiana, stop in and see Reid and the folks at The Angler in Hudson, IN.  He turned me onto these baits several years ago and he keeps a great selection of the jigs and trailers mentioned here.   Make your swim jig fishing less complicated this year. Get bites, make them count, and tell us all about it when it works.

New Stupid Tubes for 2019

The Stupid Tube Goes BIG Time in 2019

The secret of the Secret Lures Stupid Tubes is leaking out at a pretty steady drip these days.  Three trips to the Bassmaster Classic, a BFL All American Title, and televised coverage have a way of doing that.  We’re expecting 2019 to bring a flood of successful bass fishing stories and bass tournament wins.  In part, because “The Secret is Out”, and in part, because of the Secret Lures HD Stupid Tube Jighead and Flippin’ Stupid Tube.

Secret Lures Stupid Tube and Flippin' Stupid Tube

(Original Stupid Tube vs Flippin’ Stupid Tube)

HD (Heavy Duty) Stupid Tube Heads: This one is something we’re excited about, and we know customers will be too.  It is built on the same design principles that have taken three anglers to the Bassmaster Classic, won a BFL All-American, and countless other titles, but heavy duty!

 

Secret Lures HD Stupid Tube Head

Secret Lures HD Stupid Tube Head

The new HD Stupid Tube Head is designed for pitching and flipping bigger tubes in heavy cover with heavy line and flippin’ sticks.  If you’ve liked flipping tubes in the past, you’re going to love it now.  Although still a 4/0 in size, the HD features a medium wire Mustad hook with more bite and less flex.  It fits perfectly in the new Secret Lures Flippin’ Stupid Tube.

 

 

 

 

The 4.2 Flippin’ Stupid Tube: A HD Stupid Tube Head in any other tube is only half right, so we took it upon ourselves to finish up the “system.”

Secret Lures Flippin’ Stupid Tube

 

By using our same proven recipe for hand-dipped salted tubes, we’ve come up with the ultimate flippin’ tube.  The Secret Lures Flippin’ Stupid Tube maintains the same proportions and texture that made the Stupid Tube famous but scaled up for the HD Stupid Tube Head.  Inside diameter increased by 50% and 1/2 inch 0f total length was added.  We’ve started with four proven colors and look forward to working with customers and dealers to expand our color palette in 2019.  If you’ve got a killer color combo you’d like to see, drop us a line, we’d love to hear about it and help make it a reality!

The 4.5 Big Dummy Stupid Tube:  This one was born out of the testing phase of the Flippin’ Stupid Tube with Terry McWilliams and Matt McCoy.  They are two of the most qualified Stupid Tube experts you’ll ever meet.

(Top to Bottom: Big Dummy, Flippin' Stupid Tube, Stupid Tube)

(Top to Bottom: Big Dummy, Flippin’ Stupid Tube, Stupid Tube)

They take tube fishing to the Ph.D. level!  Every time we sent them a new batch their response was the same, “These are awesome, BUT, can you make it bigger?”  That quest ended when these arrived at their doors.  Although we were skeptical of a tube that size, the first trip to the lake proved them right.  The Big Dummy is double the inside diameter of the Stupid Tube and closer to 4.5 inches long.  It’s bulky but not long.  There are times and places that a tube this size produces quality bites.  Rather than shelving them, we did a limited run for folks to try out.  What makes them different is that they are big and fat, but not thickly walled.

The Big Dummy collapses quickly with minimal pressure and that translates into good hookups.  Like the Flippin’ Stupid Tube, we’re going to let our customers help us decide what colors to make next.

For the die-hard Original Stupid Tube fans, we also took care of one of the most common requests!

Heavier Stupid Tube Heads: Lots of folks wanted to fish the Stupid Tube in deeper water and/or heavier current, which makes sense.  The more fish you can show a Secret Lures Stupid Tube, the more fish you can put in the boat.  We figured out how to squeeze a ¼ ounce of lead into the 3.7 Stupid Tube.  It makes for a fat head without hindering that proven action.  You can now get the ¼ once version in 3/0 and 4/0 light wire Gamakatsu hooks.

Get all the products mentioned here FIRST at Shop.SecretLures.com!