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Anyone loading “Docs” ?

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patabate

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One consistency I’ve found with Docs is that they are inconsistent in their action or gliding. Most times the nose will not dig in but on some percentage of the retrieve it will bury itself. I’ve screwed around with different hooks but I’m still not happy. I thought about loading the plug or putting some small amount of weight in the tail. Has anyone had experience altering these plugs other than hooks?

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Pat - not sure.  I’m by no means an expert with this plug but have gotten some advice from those captains  who originally broke the ground with the Doc in saltwater.  They tell me the older original Docs they ordered “hookless” from the Musky Mania? Website were much better fishers and more consistent.   They also told me to never lift fish with them because it could cause them to leak at the hook hangers.  Once water is inside they don’t fish the same. 

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Possibly they are susceptible to tiny differences in weight or line drag. 
Believe there were a few Newport’ers who tied direct to lessen the fwd weight. 
think they also act different at different spots of the retrieve. Far away is more susceptible to bow digging. 
As far as mods go, I tried a flag only on the ass end and the action was good but missed more fish than I was willing to accept 

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The new ones I've found are not as good as the older ones.   Older ones meaning when they were 8 bucks for a blank.  Had no eyes.  Plastic was harder.   I always tie direct with them now and have seen a bigger hook up rate than the guy standing next to me.  I do know a few guys who load them and troll them from a boat.  I have loaded them with mercury and noticed a lot better casting distance but it turns it into more of a nose glider than a spook. The fish don't seem to mind it.  Especially the ones in the river right now.  Hope your doing good Pat!

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Sometimes you just have to buy 2 or 3 or 4 lures to get one that works the way it should. I have a couple of lures that I’ve dialed in over the years and I have to buy them 3 or 4 at a time and usually one turns out just right. Same thing with Doc’s. The first one I picked up was defective. The second one swam much better. 

(*member previously known as 'SoCalStripers')

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I've found the same inconsistency but have several tuned for different scenarios using various treble weights, canal rigs and one hook solution weights off the back. The worm weights are great for tuning to the conditions on the fly. Drop length of the canal rig helped the action imo and hookup and landing ratio went through the roof. 

 

I thought about loading them until I came across the canal b&t big dirks.  They essentially come loaded with an extra .5 oz or so.  Loved the first batch. They ride lower with a slightly higher nose and louder deep single knock.  Unfortunately the second order last month was a mess.  Some were weighted differently and bobbed vertically. 2 of them split after a half dozen fish. 

 

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Pat - I have messed around with loading the Doc and never got it to perform any better than stock. My main motivation to load was for better casting performance and I didn't achieve much there either. I just accept that the Doc is what it is and consider myself lucky to spend very little time chasing stripers in the light of day.

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The Dirk is a rocket. Same with the Doc when it's calm and you hit it hard with the right timing - mtk low trajectory snap cast style. One of my favorite rock outcrops is 320' according navionics and I can easily hit it with the Dirk unless there's a cross wind over 10mph.  When the release angle is right it punches into a headwind well enough.  I can barely reach that outcrop with a Doc and only when it's calm.  Any cross or headwind throws it off into wobbleland. 

 

Some of the dirks that took on water weighed anywhere from 3.3 to 4 unrigged after siting in the crate for week or so.  Heavier water load casts a lot better but dampened the walk: less width to the glide and dart, more loose and slashy. 

 

These split so figured I'd see what's going on. Hoped to through wire and foam seal. Looks unlikely. 

 

20220702_172636.jpg.ac1f65dc57d9060b8aa09e8d7a599d1f.jpg

 

          Average       Front        Rear  

 

Doc.     2.65            .30             .15   .15

Dirk.     2.95            .30             .50   .30

 

Doc's chambers fit pretty tight so shot or BBs will probably stay put.

 

Screenshot_20220702-182341_Photos.jpg.961d272776794ae49b69bfc2c26e60d7.jpg

 

The doc's balls are lead. The canal dirk is thicker and 1/2" longer and has a low pitch knock despite the rusting weights. Just got a few jigging world knock offs and they're the same exact diameter taper and length as the doc but weigh in at 3oz.  No hydroacoustic expertise here but whatevers going on inside produces a high pitch snappy rattly knock that gives me a headache.  Haven't fished those yet. 

Edited by Bait Tailer
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