Rigger’s Bench: Tweak a Crankbait for Better Redfish Bites

Illustration by Kevin Hand

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For fishermen, sometimes good isn’t good enough. From the tinkerings of dissatisfied anglers come lure modifications that home in on very specific bites in very specific conditions. These alterations can turn a cold bite into a hot frenzy. So, tweak away.

A Minus Addition

Rig it
Here’s a killer redfish tweak. Remove both treble hooks from a Mann’s 1-Minus. Add a small teardrop weight to the belly, and a feathered single hook to the rear hanger. Modify the belly weight according to the depth you want to reach.

Fish It
Unless you add a ton of weight, this is a shallow-running bait. Make long casts parallel to rock jetties to keep your bait in the strike zone for the longest amount of time. Use a stop-and-go retrieve.