By Capt. Jodie Gay
If you are not pulling at least one dredge in your trolling spread you simply are not doing everything you can to attract fish into your spread.
Teasers are a time proven method of helping you catch fish. Dredges are super-sized teasers. Most successful bill-fishermen have used dredges in their arsenal for years, but the same things that attract billfish attract all game fish. These are commotion in the water, and bait. Your boat, along with the commotion and shadow that it creates, are the biggest teaser of all. The boat passing overhead or nearby gets the attention of the fish, but single baits may not be enough for them to see.
Dredges simulate a bait ball that is much easier for the fish to see than single baits are. This gets them in closer or raises them up into your spread. Once you get him looking remember that the dredge doesnât catch fish, it attracts fish. For this reason always position a hooked bait or lure just behind your dredge with others in close proximity. If a fish is spotted in the spread that doesnât soon take a bait, pitch an additional bait to him while removing the dredge.
Some captains will pull multiple dredges, often stacked one behind the other, along with teaser chains and spreader bars. Many very successful captains believe more is best, and as long as the crew can orchestrate the spread without tangles there is no such thing as too much.
Obviously the bigger the boat the easier to pull multiple dredges. However, small boats should not dismiss this proven technique because they have limited space or believe outboards make it impossible.
Several styles and materials are used in dredge construction and nearly all depend on a weight in front of the dredge to help hold it down. It is important to use a weight specifically designed for use with dredges.
The single best advice I can give dredge fishermen is: Do not use the normal trolling weight with the swivels molded into the lead! Lead is soft and the drag of the dredge will pull the swivel out of the lead causing you to lose everything.
Weights with the hole through the middle with 400 to 500 pound test cable passing through the hole are necessary. A squid skirt is usually placed over the weight to add appeal.
Dredges are 4, 6, or 8 arm stainless-steel or titanium âumbrellaâ frames. Natural baits, usually mullets are attached to the frame, often with skirts over the nose of some or all to create more flash. Natural bait dredges, while very effective, are also time consuming and can be fairly expensive to build.
Artificial versions of the mullet dredge can be constructed of 9â or 12â plastic shads like those manufactured by Blue Water Candy. These are generally less expensive to use over time since the plastics are more durable than the real thing.
The above mentioned dredges are those usually stacked or pulled in tandem, and specialized dredge reels are usually necessary, due to the bulk, to retrieve and deploy them.
Dredges constructed of plastic squids such as the Mauler from Squidnation are gaining in popularity and can be used when predominate bait natural to the area is squid.
Some lighter weight alternatives that can easily be retrieved by hand or downrigger are constructed entirely of multiple skirts such as bling skirts by Blue Water Candy used to simulate a bait ball. These flashy mylar skirts are extremely lightweight and visible from long distances.
The âStripteaserâ dredge features mylar strips of fish and ballyhoo replicas. These lightweight dredges have been around many years and are a favorite in many parts of the world.
A combination of the two lightweight dredges above is rapidly becoming very popular. It is called the âBazzingaâ and can be seen at www.dredgesandteasers.com. Donât be fooled into thinking that the lightweight flashy dredges mentioned are a compromise to the bulkier versions discussed before. I think it is a fair statement to say that the flashy versions raise as many fish as the natural or shad dredges, but usually donât keep their attention as long.
Due to the popularity of dredges, some manufacturers are building items geared for use specifically with dredges. These include swivels with longer tag ends (TFP) so that the connections can go on and off quickly without opening the snap, and skirts with holes large enough to slide over the loop of a haywire twist (Instigator by Blue Water Candy) and many other products that make dredge fishing easier.
Get at least one dredge, and plenty of other spreader bars and teasers into your spread. Your reward will be many more fish in your spread and screaming reels.
The author and his family own lightuptherip.com and bluewatercandylures.com.
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