Ballyhoo Magic

Turn a tough day on the water into success with a swimming ballyhoo
by Chris Dummit



After repeated deep drops for the bottom-dwelling tiles, there was no
telltale tug from the mud, no action except the repeated bob of the rod tip.
The anglers aboard the Rhonda K V could only stare trancelike and listen to
the dentist drill drone of the electric reel.

At 12:30 p.m., they had enough. The hundreds of other boats off Palm Beach
County were drifting live baits. All the crew had were squid for the
tilefish, one frozen package of ballyhoo and one bag of strip baits.

It was time for something different.

Trolling expert Ray Waldner pulled out a plastic container full of
pre-rigged wire and monofilament leaders. The captain brought out the boat
rods.

With five rods trolling the plain offerings, the anglers captured a skipjack
tuna, sailfish and 30-pound wahoo within two hours.

Their primary target: Waldner's swimming ballyhoo.

One of the most natural-looking baits in the water, the swimming ballyhoo is
not difficult to rig. But it takes a little time and patience. Here are the
steps you need to know:

Wire leader: If you're going to put the bait down behind a trolling weight,
planer or downrigger, you'll want to use a wire leader.

You'll need a Mustad 3412A needle eye hook. Hook size will be determined by
bait size, but a hook in the 6/0 to 8/0 range is standard.

Use about 7 feet of No. 7 wire (you can go down to No. 6 or up to No. 9
depending on bait size.) Thread the wire through the hook eye and make about
five haywire twists and 10 barrel wraps.

Place a small egg sinker (one-quarter to three-quarter ounce) on the wire
leader. Bend the tag end of the wire around the sinker with a pair of
pliers. Finish the rig by making 10 more barrel wraps in front of the
sinker, then form a one-half-inch wire pin pointing in the opposite
direction of the hook.

Before rigging the bait, wind a trace of copper wire around the rigging wire
near the sinker. That gives you the copper strand you will wind around the
bait's bill to hold everything in place.

What's special about this rig is that it puts the hook about 1 to 1 1/2
inches farther back in the bait. Fish that strike at the bait's tail won't
miss the hook.

Monofilament/cable leader: The hook choice is a Mustad 3407 in a 6/0 to 8/0
size. Waldner warns, however, that you should use this rig only with tackle
under the 50-pound class because the hook will straighten. ............



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South Florida Sport Fishing Magazine
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