How To Use A Paddletail Like A Pro (And Catch More Fish)
- By: Wyatt Parcel
- on
Paddletails are some of the best search baits around.
You can cast them far and retrieve them quickly, which helps you cover lots of ground and find where the feeding fish are.
And in this video, you’ll learn how to catch more fish with these lures, including how to rig and retrieve them.
Check it out below!
Paddletail Tips [VIDEO]
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You can cover a lot of ground with a paddletail.
In fact, you can make 3 to 4 casts with full retrieves in the time it takes to cast and retrieve a jerk shad properly.
With a paddletail, you’re able to feel out more areas in less time to find fish.
If you don’t find any fish, then you can quickly move on to another zone and start fan casting your lure.
This is called power fishing!
The Paddletail In Action
If you’ve seen our underwater footage, you’ll know that sometimes a constant retrieve with a paddletail is not the right technique.
But that’s okay because you can switch it up by incorporating short pauses and twitches.
Since most of the predator fish you’re targeting like to ambush their prey, you’ll get a lot of strikes on the drop just after a pause.
Paddletail Rigging
Depth control is very important when using a paddletail.
You want your lure to sit just a couple of inches from the bottom where the predator fish are holding.
Here are my go-to rigs depending on depths:
Very Shallow Water (2 ft or less)
Shallow Water (2 – 3 ft)
Deeper Water
Conclusion
Don’t forget that fishing is a numbers game.
The more area you cover and the more casts you make will ultimately increase your chances of catching more fish.
Our Slam Shady paddletails have been catching a ton of different species and in numbers!
Have you been using a paddletail more to cover ground?
Let me know down in the comments!
And if you know someone who loves to use paddletails, please TAG or SHARE this with them!
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Wyatt, we miss you in NC! Lol! I noticed that you were using a drone for this video. Do you know if it is legal for me to use one in North Carolina?
Michael, trust me, I miss NC too!!! I wish y’all weren’t so far away!
As for drones in NC, I never was able to find any legislation the prohibited them, and I actually knew a few guides that used them regularly to record trips as well.
I don’t recommend them to try and spot fish and then go after them, because it’s actually really hard to see fish on that little screen if you don’t know they’re already there, but if you’re looking into extra insights for WHILE you’re fishing, a lot gets revealed on the drone when you watch the post-catch footage.
Tried the Sam Shady this past week for the first time. Had another angler in the boat (my daughter!) and had her fishing a popping cork and Gulp shrimp. The Sam Shady outperformed the Gulp hands down for trout. Next day, in a different location, it outperformed again and I caught a very nice king mackeral with it. I’m sold. It works. You are so correct on the depth control. When I had it nearer the bottom, my results improved. I went with 1/16 oz jigheads, but needed something heavier in 4′ of water as you suggested. Great tips. Thank you.
How awesome! Yes, it’s not uncommon to hear this scenario occurring often. The paddletail just allows you to cover more ground at a much faster rate. The numbers favor this approach, and more often than not the paddletail wins out!
As you mentioned, depth control is key though! It’s an extremely versatile bait but it has to be in the strike zone to get hit, so depth is key!
Great video. Love the edits and animated parts, too. Keep up the great work, Wyatt.
Thanks so much Brad! I always try to incorporate new angles! There’s a lot to learn from a different perspective like that!
Just wanted to know what kind of boat you are fishing from, looks like some kind of skiff.
It’s a 2008 J16 Carolina Skiff!
Great video! Awesome shots from above with you inserted. But I have question – about a month ago I was down in the Bradenton area. I rented a pedal kayak to see if I liked it. (It was Awesome – I immediately order one) And of course I had my rod along baited up with the Slam Shady 2.0. My wife and I went up a stream off the bay. I would stop and cast to points and of course the 3 Bs (boils, birds and bubbles) without much luck. But my wife would keep paddling and I couldn’t keep up with her. So I just casted the SS2.0 behind my kayak and trolled. In the next hour I hooked into 3 snook, a bunch of lady fish, and one monster (black drum???) that got off the hook near the kayak. So my point is, I hardly ever hear you guys (Luke, Tony, Austin, Joe, or you) talk about trolling from a kayak with a paddletail. It was VERY productive for me that day and would seem to be great way to locate productive areas. What’s your thoughts?
Thank you Roger! As for trolling, we’ve actually covered it quite a bit in Inner Circle calls and a couple tip videos (like this one: How To Troll The Flats (For Redfish, Snook & Trout) ) but I think we’re all in agreement that trolling is a fantastic way to get on fish!
Wyatt, I can attest to the search bait and amount of water it covers. So far this spring on a 3” Slam Shaddy (version 1), 1/8 oz jig, inshore slam several times but also a tarpon, while catching trout, over a hundred pounds. Ran him down in open water and he actually hit the boat on last jump.
Fort Myers
That’s awesome Jamie!! It’s truly a fantastic lure!
Great tips Wyatt. Awesome footage. I really like that you covered the water column with suggested jigs’ / hooks’ weights. Thank you!
Thanks J! You’d be surprised at how many fish you can miss by using the wrong weight in the right area. Dragging the bottom and pulling up grass and debris or running too high are mistakes all too common that I see. Got to be in that strike zone!
I can personally attest to that, Wyatt. Correct depth is key and your video was very helpful for matching depths and jig weights.
Great Info Wyatt! Awesome video!!
Thank you Jesse! Paddletails are a simple lure, but I could make 100 more videos about their functionality and technicalities, so I hope to have more videos for ya soon!
Thanks Wyatt, I am only recently getting comfortable with artificials and found this very helpful. Yes, I’ve been using the paddletail to cover a lot of ground and have been very pleased with this functionality. It’s caught me a lot of fish so far this season.
That’s good to hear Angelo! It’s definitley a fantastic lure for covering a ton of ground quickly! Hope to see more catches from you in the Community soon! Tight lines sir!
Wyatt – dude – you did an awesome job with this recap!
Thanks a ton Rex! Glad you enjoyed it sir!