wdsm
02-17-2006, 09:04 AM
Fish attractors that last forever
When fishing is superb, anglers sometimes say, “It was like fishing in a barrel.”
Granted, those experiences aren’t frequent but they happen occasionally. According to Missouri’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR), attractors greatly concentrate fish making them easier to catch.
At Barkley Lake in Kentucky, fisheries biologists learned that crappie, bass, and channel catfish congregate near cover. A survey at Missouri’s Long Branch Lake determined twice as many bass and crappie were caught around cover.
In Virginia, a similar study showed largemouth bass spent 80 percent of their time around manmade fish structures.
No surprise in the above, seasoned Ozark anglers are already aware of the penchant our gamefish have for cover.
DNR recommends bushy trees like osage orange, pin oak, post oak, cedar, and Christmas trees, anchoring them with concrete blocks or rocks.
“I can’t imagine anyone using brush like Christmas trees,” said Jim Duckworth, renowned Tennessee guide.
He believes there is an excellent alternative to brush.
“Brush holds fish but it is hard to fish because of frequent snags, broken line, lost jigs, and the time it takes to retie,” said Duckworth. His alternative is plastic or PVC pipe.
He makes fish attractors from black or white PVC pipe, and places them strategically in a number of lakes near his Tennessee home.
“PVC lasts forever and an attractor placed in proper seasonal locations will always hold a few fish, and they don’t show up on a depthfinder,” said Duckworth.
He has been making fish attractors with PVC for several years and experience has taught him that simplicity is best.
“Attractors don’t have to be complicated; they just need to provide a little cover and a place for algae to grow. That’s what kicks off the food chain,” said Duckworth.
Longevity, simplicity, productivity, and secrecy sound like excellent reasons for lake area anglers to build a few PVC attractors.
The process is simple; all you need is a container to use as a mold to hold some PVC and concrete until it hardens. Plastic buckets or automotive oil drip pans are excellent choices.
“The PVC pipe doesn’t have to be new, used pipe works just a well,” said Duckworth.
He prefers smaller white pipe, in the 1 to 1 1/2-inch range for most of the risers. Black plastic, the kind that comes in rolls, works quite well also.
“Bass show a slight preference to black plastic while crappies prefer white,” said Duckworth.
Sometimes, Duckworth uses a 3- or 4-inch diameter pipe standing upright in the middle of the attractor to create a larger profile.
“The concrete should be a rather stiff mixture so it will hold some pipes straight up and some at an angle. If it’s too thin, the pipes will keep falling down until the concrete stiffens,” said Duckworth.
Spray the pan or bucket with Pam cooking spray, or line it with a plastic bag so the attractor will pop out easily after the concrete hardens.
Duckworth usually puts pipes into the bucket and then adds the concrete mix. When the right amount of concrete is added, he adjusts one or two pipes to stand straight up with the rest off at angles up to 45- degrees.
Fill a 5-gallon bucket to about half-full and shorter containers to nearly full. Work each pipe around and jiggle it until the concrete forms a good bond to the pipe.
After a few days in cool weather, the concrete will cure enough to put the attractor in the lake.
“Ideal spots for springtime crappie, is on pea gravel banks where they like to spawn. A few attractors seem to work better than just one,” said Duckworth.
Most Ozark lakes will be in full drawdown soon, allowing homeowners to place attractors on shallow banks without using a boat. Unfortunately, our lake only drops about 5 feet, and because of water clarity, that may not be deep enough for crappie to spawn in many locations.
Observe caution when submerging attractors from a boat. Always wear a Personal Floatation Device (PFD) and it’s best to have a partner in the boat in case of emergency.
If you need more information on where to locate attractors, the Missouri Department of Conservation has a document called “Fishing in a Barrel”, a Guide to the Design and Placement of Fish Attractors.
Find it on the MDC web site at www.mdc.mo.gov and search on ‘fishing in a barrelâ’ then download and print the PDF document.
Here is a hint, a neighbor of ours, who always had crappie around his dock, put an attractor about 100 feet in front of his dock. Then he put three or four others within casting distance of the dock.
It’s my belief crappie staged around the deep attractor in front of his dock, then moved to the shallow (6 to 8-feet deep) attractors to spawn.
But, if you want expert, first-hand advice on how to construct and install PVC attractors, send for Duckworth’s video “Building Crappie Beds”. See it and his 16 other videos at www.fishingtennessee.com/, and ‘click onâ’ the Red Button under “Jim’s Tapes.”
When fishing is superb, anglers sometimes say, “It was like fishing in a barrel.”
Granted, those experiences aren’t frequent but they happen occasionally. According to Missouri’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR), attractors greatly concentrate fish making them easier to catch.
At Barkley Lake in Kentucky, fisheries biologists learned that crappie, bass, and channel catfish congregate near cover. A survey at Missouri’s Long Branch Lake determined twice as many bass and crappie were caught around cover.
In Virginia, a similar study showed largemouth bass spent 80 percent of their time around manmade fish structures.
No surprise in the above, seasoned Ozark anglers are already aware of the penchant our gamefish have for cover.
DNR recommends bushy trees like osage orange, pin oak, post oak, cedar, and Christmas trees, anchoring them with concrete blocks or rocks.
“I can’t imagine anyone using brush like Christmas trees,” said Jim Duckworth, renowned Tennessee guide.
He believes there is an excellent alternative to brush.
“Brush holds fish but it is hard to fish because of frequent snags, broken line, lost jigs, and the time it takes to retie,” said Duckworth. His alternative is plastic or PVC pipe.
He makes fish attractors from black or white PVC pipe, and places them strategically in a number of lakes near his Tennessee home.
“PVC lasts forever and an attractor placed in proper seasonal locations will always hold a few fish, and they don’t show up on a depthfinder,” said Duckworth.
He has been making fish attractors with PVC for several years and experience has taught him that simplicity is best.
“Attractors don’t have to be complicated; they just need to provide a little cover and a place for algae to grow. That’s what kicks off the food chain,” said Duckworth.
Longevity, simplicity, productivity, and secrecy sound like excellent reasons for lake area anglers to build a few PVC attractors.
The process is simple; all you need is a container to use as a mold to hold some PVC and concrete until it hardens. Plastic buckets or automotive oil drip pans are excellent choices.
“The PVC pipe doesn’t have to be new, used pipe works just a well,” said Duckworth.
He prefers smaller white pipe, in the 1 to 1 1/2-inch range for most of the risers. Black plastic, the kind that comes in rolls, works quite well also.
“Bass show a slight preference to black plastic while crappies prefer white,” said Duckworth.
Sometimes, Duckworth uses a 3- or 4-inch diameter pipe standing upright in the middle of the attractor to create a larger profile.
“The concrete should be a rather stiff mixture so it will hold some pipes straight up and some at an angle. If it’s too thin, the pipes will keep falling down until the concrete stiffens,” said Duckworth.
Spray the pan or bucket with Pam cooking spray, or line it with a plastic bag so the attractor will pop out easily after the concrete hardens.
Duckworth usually puts pipes into the bucket and then adds the concrete mix. When the right amount of concrete is added, he adjusts one or two pipes to stand straight up with the rest off at angles up to 45- degrees.
Fill a 5-gallon bucket to about half-full and shorter containers to nearly full. Work each pipe around and jiggle it until the concrete forms a good bond to the pipe.
After a few days in cool weather, the concrete will cure enough to put the attractor in the lake.
“Ideal spots for springtime crappie, is on pea gravel banks where they like to spawn. A few attractors seem to work better than just one,” said Duckworth.
Most Ozark lakes will be in full drawdown soon, allowing homeowners to place attractors on shallow banks without using a boat. Unfortunately, our lake only drops about 5 feet, and because of water clarity, that may not be deep enough for crappie to spawn in many locations.
Observe caution when submerging attractors from a boat. Always wear a Personal Floatation Device (PFD) and it’s best to have a partner in the boat in case of emergency.
If you need more information on where to locate attractors, the Missouri Department of Conservation has a document called “Fishing in a Barrel”, a Guide to the Design and Placement of Fish Attractors.
Find it on the MDC web site at www.mdc.mo.gov and search on ‘fishing in a barrelâ’ then download and print the PDF document.
Here is a hint, a neighbor of ours, who always had crappie around his dock, put an attractor about 100 feet in front of his dock. Then he put three or four others within casting distance of the dock.
It’s my belief crappie staged around the deep attractor in front of his dock, then moved to the shallow (6 to 8-feet deep) attractors to spawn.
But, if you want expert, first-hand advice on how to construct and install PVC attractors, send for Duckworth’s video “Building Crappie Beds”. See it and his 16 other videos at www.fishingtennessee.com/, and ‘click onâ’ the Red Button under “Jim’s Tapes.”