Finally! A berry nice report. 1-24-05

[Theekillerbee]

I rigged them wacky style on a #4 Gamakatsu. They are interesting to fish with. The fish need to take them on the drop, then give them a few seconds to chew on it, then swing hard! I found that if I just let it set, the fish would nibble, but not take it into their mouths far enough for a hookset. If I didn't see a fish come in on the finder (a bonus for watching the maniac) as the lure dropped through the water, I would jig it with long jigs. I'm talking lifting your pole up 6 feet and then let the maniac flutter back down. Even with the finder, I still missed several fish. They really have to be in an aggressive mood for the maniacs to be successful. If they are only in a light biting mood, no dice on the maniacs. This was my 3rd attempt at catching them with the maniacs, and the previous 2 trips I didn't get any hookups at all! On my rig, about a foot above the maniac, I put a small splitshot on (thanks HA69), to help it drop a little faster. You could experiment with different drop speeds to see if it made the fish bite better. Let us know if you have any luck with them. Here is a pic of my maniac rig.
[inline maniac.jpg]
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