DIY Buzz Baits for Giant Snakehead

Channa Micropeltes (Toman) is one of the largest species of snakeheads. It can reach up to 1.5 meters in length and can grow up to 20kg. It is native to Southeast Asia particularly near the Malay Peninsula and Indonesia. I don't believe it is a native specie in the Philippines. The first encounter with this fish and my first ever catch was around 10 years ago in Lakeshore's man-made lake in Mexico, Pampanga in Central Luzon. They were basically pets in the lake to attract weekend anglers.

Since then, the fish has spread to many parts in Pampanga and even up to Nueva Ecija, further up north of Luzon - perhaps intentionally released or maybe by accident through flooding. Nonetheless, they are now widespread and have grown in population as well as sizes. The biggest so far (that was caught by recreational anglers) was 10kg plus. (The IGFA world record is around 13.6kg from Malaysia.) They are now living in the wild and spawning aggressively and taking over their new habitats. After 10 years, I am quite certain that there are monsters out there --- 15 to 20kg fish. Quite honest, it is a tragedy for local fishermen but a cause for excitement for recreational anglers.

If you have tried fishing for these monsters, you will know that they are practically lure and tackle killers. They are friends of tackle-shops because after just one sizable fish, you can bet your bottom that your brand spanking new lure will be destroyed and if you are not careful, they will break your precious rods. My biggest catch in past was 4kg plus fishes in the confined pond of Lakeshore. I was using a Medium Heavy baitcast setup with 20lb braid and 30lb leader. Though tomans love loud topwater lures, e fight was ok and felt just like big largemouth bass when hooked. The preferred lure was buzz baits and loud knocking WTD lures.

Just recently, I was able to fish a secret not so secret wild Toman spot. The area was a huge marsh with lots of deep open water and lots of vegetation- perfect Toman habitat. I brought a slightly heavier toman tackle. I upgraded the line to 30lbs and the leader to 40 and used a Heavy 15-30 7ft baitcast rod from Graphiteleader. I brought a few brand new buzz baits and prop baits because I heard that these were the hottest toman lures for that area. Just after 15 minutes of casting my prop bait near the edge of the bank, I got an explosive strike and pulled drag from my Daiwa Fuego BC like it's just a UL spinning reel. The first run startled me and by instinct, I held the spool to stop the fish. It fled underneath the boat and pulled so hard that the rod tip got pulled underneath the boat. The last thing I heard was a loud crack of my precious Graphiteleader. Just after 15 minutes of fishing, the fish took my new lure, broke my Heavy rod, and it shattered my ego.  I had to go home. I did not bring a backup rod at that time.

The following day, I decided to return for round 2. I brought a couple of MH rods - A short MH Shimano Scorpion BC rod and a 6ft Lakeforce Stage MH BC rod. I also brought new prop lures and upgraded the hooks to #1 Owner ST046.  I was able to get a lot of hookups but they often get unbuttoned. A lot of the owner hooks got bent when they spin just near the boat.  These tomans are absolute fighters. Maybe because they are well fed and have a lot of exercise. They fight really hard compared to their Lakeshore cousins. After half a day, I only managed to land a small one.

After that trip, I decided to make my own lures. They have to be loud and their hooks should be huge Definitely either buzzbaits or propbaits. Because we can't source propbait hardware locally, I decided to make my own buzzbaits. I used the heavy wires from old Japanese surf sinkers. I had a few old buzzbait blades and made double bladed buzz baits for that extra noise.  One tip if you decide to build one, make sure the blades are counter-rotating. Don't use blades that rotate on the same direction. For trailer, I used a huge punching jig and attached a soft plastic. For the other one, I attached a 65mm weedless frog so I can cast to heavy vegetation.

The following weekend, I went back to the fishing spot with the new handmade lures. They cast great and they were relatively weedless. The absolute best thing was that they are loud and the tomans love them. After 5 hours of fishing, I managed to hook maybe 8 or 10 fish and landed 4. I wasn't able to catch the 10kg up snakehead but who knows, maybe on my next trip. Until then, I need to make some modifications on my lures. I need stronger hooks, heavier leader, and more practice.

Fast and deep jigging

I tried a new spot recently. I also tested a new rod and reel combo -- an Ocea Jigger 2001NRPG mounted on a Daiwa Catalina Airportable 59HB with 500m of PE3.
This was the first time I have seen the area. To be honest, it was scary travelling at night by myself and testing a new boatman. I was not expecting to catch anything considering it was my first and I am still getting used to speed jigging with a new setup. I didn't know how skilled the boatman was and how capable is the boat.

As soon as I arrived, we spared no time to load up and head out to the fishing spot. I tied a 200g pink speed jig with a single Vanfook 7/0 jigging hook. I tied the assist hook using a doubled-up 200lb Hinotsu assist cord. It was really deep. From my count, it was somewhere around 170-190 meters deep. The current was not that strong and with the boatman paddling against the current, the jig went vertical upon reaching the bottom. On the second drop, the line went limp at 120 meters. I knew instantly that something took the jig on the drop. I cranked the reel in panic and set the hook twice. It was a good hookup. I thought it was small, somewhere around 2-4kg because when I cranked the OJ2001NRPG, it seemed light and offered no resistance.  Perhaps the fish realized that it was being dragged to the surface, it made furious runs back to the bottom. I probably lost 50m of line on the first run. It was an absolute thrill. Everytime I was able to crank a few meters of line, the fish will take it back. The fight lasted around 15 minutes. It was no match for the setup I was using. The biggest fish I have caught through jigging. 12kg Amberjack.

Later in the day, the wind started to pick up and the current kicked in. IT was hard for the boatman to keep up. Aside from a hookup that I lost, there were no more bites that day so we called it a day -- around 3 hours of fishing. It's a good thing I caught the AJ otherwise I will go home pissed.

The Daiwa Catalina Airportable 59HB was very light and very powerful. If given a choice between this and my Daiwa Saltiga Coastal 60B, I would choose this for so many reasons. It is 2pc which makes it easier to transport, it is lighter, the butt is longer, and it seemed more suited for dual duty -- speed jigs and slow jigs.

I was also impressed with the Ocea Jigger 2001NR PG. I used to own 2 OJ 2001NR HG and both of the reels have this annoying back play in the crank such that I ended up selling them after a couple of use. Somehow this new PG reel doesn't have a play which is a huge relief. It was powerful and smooth, almost as smooth as my Saltiga Z20L.

I can't wait for my next jigging trip. I hope to catch a dogtooth tuna.

Trying Out Super Light Shore Jigging (SSJ)

After a series of tragedies that struck the family, I am trying hard to go back to normalcy. Losing my father, brother, and mother within 18 months is something that I am still trying to cope with. Going back to fishing and blogging, I figured, may help.

One of the new things I have tried recently is called Super Light Shore Jigging or SSJ. The technique is called 'super light' because it primarily involves micro jigs weighing round 7-20 grams. During the past year, micro jigs have grown in popularity. Micro jigging (on a boat) has been an 'in'-thing and a lot of anglers are hoarding gears, lures, and accessories. With the right spot, it is really effective. The technique catches multi species from top to bottom of the water column. Because not everyone has a boat, anglers adopted the technique and applied it while fishing from the shore. Just the same, with the right conditions, it is very effective.

As the title suggests, it's still shore jigging.  It involves the use of a long rod, around 8-9.5 feet that is very light, has regular-slow tip, and has a great backbone. The rod actually can double as an eging rod which is a plus. If there are no fish biting, you can target squid.

In the past, there were not much choices on rods with the required specs (~9.5 ft, max 30g lure, PE 0.6-1.0 line) but just recently, there are more and more rods with the SSJ classification. I think Majorcraft was one of the first big tackle companies to release technique specific (SSJ) rods - Crostage, TripleCross, and N-one.  I think the best one is N-one. It's very light, nice blank (Toray Nano blank), and full Fuji KR SIC guides. I am using the N-One 902SSJ and I have nothing but praises for this rod so far.

You can also use a seabass rod and there a ton of sea bass rods available in the market. Just be aware that sea bass rods are more brittle compared to shore jigging rods as they contain more graphite than glass especially on the tip section. Casting and jigging a 20g jig may break you rod.

I am using a Daiwa Certate Custom 2500 reel loaded with PE 1.5 Duel X4 (I also use the reel for boat jigging and eging). Ideally, try to use around PE 0.8 or 1.0. I decided to use X4 because it seems to fray less compared to the 8-weave (X8) braids. X4 PE also appears to be dry most of the time. It doesn't retain water very much which makes it a better casting PE. The leader I use is Flourocarbon ranging from 15-20lbs depending on what's biting. 20lbs for toothy critters and 15 for others.

For the kinds of jigs to use, it depends on the profile and size of the baitfish in the area. If there are plenty of small mullets or tamban that are around 2-3 inches, use a jig with the same profile and color. Just don't go over the specs of the rod. If the rod says 10-30g, try to keep it to 20g max. There are also 2 kinds of jigs that I use -- the regular fast jig and the slow jigs. Similar to boat jigging, fast jigs require faster jigging action whilst slow jigs is same as slow jigging technique.

Assist hooks are also very important. Because this technique can catch really big fish despite the size of the lure, you will need a high quality assist hook. I normally tie my own. I use Size 12 Chinu hooks (I prefer gold color) and a high quality assist cord  from 100-200lbs - Kevlar is nice. It floats and doesn't retain water. This keeps the assist hook from tangling with the jig. It also makes it swim more lifelike. There are a ton of Youtube videos on how to tie one. I am no expert but as much as I can, I try to keep the length of the cord not more than half of the length of the jig. It seems to make the jig swim more realistic. You may also use a treble tail hook but for me, it's not necessary and it will make the jig prone to snagging.

Depending on the spot, I normally try slow micro jigs first then if there are no takers, I would try faster, active jigs to trigger reaction strikes. If you wish to try this technique, check the youtube videos. Who knows, it could be your ticket to your next monster fish on light tackle.

Hope this short article helps. Fish on.