Techniques

Be the Bait

Wild shrimps mostly move by swimming forward slowly in the water or walking forward on the bottom, but can flick rapidly in any direction when startled. Imagine- a shrimp gliding towards the bottom, seeking out the cover of structure for protection. The bait is startled- it recognizes a predatory fish and enters into escape response. A series of sporatic bursts to evade the hungry mouth. The perfect artificial bait will do just that- simulate the real thing. Using Prawnstar Shrimp’s “Be the Bait” system, and the flickjigging technique, you can cast and retrieve prawnstar with the intent to simulate a prawn or shrimp moving in its environment. So “Be the Bait”- let it sink, drift and glide. Add the occasional tail flicking action or simply lift and lower prawnstar in the water column to alert any hungry predators of its location and hang on. When you tie on your first prawnstar you will immediately feel the difference. Unlike other lures, prawnstar glides & drifts with gentle resistance. When you twitch the rod tip, the planers at the front create the resistance in the water and allow you to drive or glide prawnstar down deep with natural presentations in areas that were once only the domain of bait fishermen.

Flickjig it

To Flickjig, try dropping the rod tip slightly before flicking the rod tip back rapidly or gently lift and lower prawnstar in the water column. Note- you don't have to pull its head off- (You, won't be eating it)- It's all in the wrists- small flickjigs induce pressure waves in the water that fish recognise as similar to shrimps in predatory escape response. The flick happens really rapidly so don't be surprised if you only see prawnstar twitch. Rest assured- the reverberations of a wounded prawn achieved by flickjigging prawnstar means main course to most fish species. Remember- The flickjig is just one of prawnstar's features. The glide or swimming action truely separates prawnstar from the pack. After a flickjig sequence allow prawnstar to drift and glide towards the bottom. It frequently gets hit on the sink !!!

Targetting fish

Wild prawns are a major food source for many fish species and are often found using underwater structures for cover. Fish often use these structures such as logs, rocks, bars, reef, pontoons, jetties and weed banks as ambush points for hunting bait. Keep an eye out for bait on the surface or on your sounder. If you can find feeding fish, half the job is already done. Using Primal’s “Be the Bait” techniques, and the flickjigging action, you can cast and retrieve prawnstar with the intent to simulate a shrimp moving in its environment. Check out your local area for likely fish habitats and use the prawnstar to target fish. You'll enjoy the versatility prawnstar offers you in targetting different aquatic environments and conditions. It's simple to fish with and mess free. One simple knot and you can get into them. Talk to your local tackle store professionals to find out more about the local spots & the methods for targetting fish with prawnstar.

Cast and retrieve

Cast and retrieve fishing is a great way to target fish with prawnstar. It is as simple as cast, sink, flickjig, glide and really slow retrieve. Try casting prawnstar slightly upcurrent of the target zone. Give the prawnstar a quick flick near the surface & allow it to sink down into the target area. Monitor and control the sink rate, staying in touch with the weight of the prawnstar- you can even feed out line and remember stay alert, it often gets hit on the drop. Work the retrieve with the flickjig, glide and slow draw technique. Remember “Slow is the go”. Vary the retrieve in speed and action. Presentations which include a slow retrieve, sink and glide and rapid flicks in combination, simulate wounded prawn or shrimp action. Glide prawnstar to the bottom of holes and work it like a livey moving with the current. You will appreciate the extra time you can spend in the strike zone. Keep the front hook retained when targetting snags. In snag free, sandy areas the front hook can be fished swinging freely. You’ll be amazed how often prawnstar get’s nailed. If you get nailed and don't hook up, stop it dead, let it sink and give it a quick flick- often they'll come back for another bite. So cast, sink, flick, let it sink, drift and glide, slow retrieve- flick again.....and be ready to hang on- “fish love it”

Rigging

1. Pass the line or leader down through the main head hole. Allow the line to pass through the eye of the front hook and tie off with a simple half blood knot to the tail hook. Cut off the tag end.
2. Variable weights clip into the under cavities. Fish with two weights for strong currents, deep water & windy days. With one weight, the lure works shallower & more eratically. Skip on the surface with no weights.
3. For deepwater flickjigging, rig prawnstar using a standard dropper rig. Cast, feed out line until you feel the sinker hit bottom & work on the bottom structure. Recommend one weight in back cavity.

Prawnstar Weighting

Fog’s Tips Weighting for presentation
1 weight or 2, it’s up to you
Front weight on steep edges,
In the back on the flats,
2 for depth wind or tide,
Let conditions decide
Catching fish is easy..
Just Sink, Flick and glide.
Be the Bait

Prawnstar’s variable weight design allows you to target fish in different habitats and keeps the prawnstar in the strike zone for longer. This unique weighting system offers you 4 easy options in sink rate to suit depth and current. Sinkers clip into the underbody cavities. A small clip at the back of the sinkers simplifies levering them from the prawnstar body. With a single sinker, in the rear cavity, the sink and glide is slower and more horizontal, perfectly suited to natural shallow water presentations. With a single sinker, in the front cavity, the glide on descent is faster and steeper, which suits slightly deeper water. Use both weights for deep water and strong currents. Use a set of clippers to cut down sinkers to give you even greater weighting variations.With both weights removed, prawnstar can be worked on the surface, just like a skipping shrimp. It’s great when the fish action is on the surface or the bite has shut down. Cast out and give it a quick crank to bring the lure to the surface. Using a highstick action and regular flicking action, retrieve the prawnstar just like a skipping shrimp. (This one takes some practice).

Drift fishing

When boat fishing, drifting allows you to cover ground and locate feeding fish with natural presentations free from noisy outboards. Position the boat up current of the target area- snaggy region, rockbars, reefs, sandbanks, weed banks, gutters or structured area to name a few. Fish often hold facing upcurrent- aerating their gills and preying on bait moving down with the current. Cast the prawnstar and allow it to sink towards the bottom. Drift along with occasional flickjig and sink and glide presentations. Use an electric motor to choose your desired target path. With experimentation, you will work out the required weighting for variations in water depth and the speed of the current. Try counting the timing of the first sink to the bottom so that you become familiar with the working depth. Sounders are a great help for locating fish holding areas.

Flickjig trolling

Once again- “Slow is the go”-consider it drifting under power, starting and stopping the motor to control the direction and speed of your flickjig troll. Cast and sink the prawnstar at the start of a troll, then motor off over the target area allowing for wind and current, then stop motor and flickjig through the target area back to the boat. This process can be repeated or when prawnstar nears the boat, simply sink again and motor off. The motor can be used to hold station over promising structure in a current or wind or used to cover more ground in any direction. This process works exceptionally well in strong currents, windy days and deeper water, where it is often difficult to maintain presentation depth with conventional lures.

The hang

Prawnstar even works when you are doing nothing. It looks so real and its passive gliding action on sink make a perfect representation of a prawn swimming slowly forward. The gliding action works best with one sinker in the back cavity. You can even fish prawnstar “no hands”, you don’t even have to work it, just like bait. Great for those lazy days, over a beer or lunch. Glide the prawnstar to the bottom. Lift it about a meter and put your rod in the holder- the prawn glides in the current like a real prawn, bobbing with boat movement. Try casting out and sinking it to the bottom- prawnstar is designed to walk on the bottom in the upright position, just like a wild prawn.

Bottom bouncing

Prawnstar can be fished on your favourite rigs and gear at any depth. Check out the offshore rigging options for targetting fish with Prawnstar in deeper waters. When using heavy leads, drop the rig to the bottom. When you feel the sinker touch bottom, feed out a little extra line. This allows Prawnstar to drift and sink giving slack between the heavy lead and prawnstar, so when you flick, you are not pulling on the heavy lead. Lift and lower in cycles to keep Prawnstar drifting, and flicking. Try working Prawnstar with an extra baited hook on deepwater structure. It is great for when The pickers are at work.

Piers and jetties

Fish feed on bait surrounding pier pylons. Consider the current running and tailor the weighting to suit. Cast & sink prawnstar towards the bottom. Strip out line until prawnstar reaches the desired depth. Work the prawnstar up through the water column and flickjig occasionally on slow retrieve. Allow for sink and glides after each flickjig action. Move along the pylons to cover as much area as possible whilst keeping the prawnstar in the target zone. Fish also hold mid water and near the surface, so vary the presentation accordingly. Be ready to hang on- When you hook up on prawnstar, the fish is going to be seriously keen on burying back into the pylons to bust you off.

Rivers and estuaries

Target snags, logs, rock structures, ledges, eddies, gutters, banks. If in a boat, on docks or walking the bank, move from structure to structure directly targetting each. Try sinking the prawnstar into the snags and flickjig it back through the water depth. Identify deep water bends and sink the prawnstar towards the bottom, flickjigging with the tide or current. Cast & retrieve or flickjig troll mangrove edges, gutters and banks at slow speed with intermittent flickjigging. Drift fish deeper water holes, gutters, banks and rockbars. Sink the prawnstar until it hits the bottom and flickjig it as it moves with the current.

Lakes

Prawnstar offers you a feast of techniques for targetting lake and dam fisheries. In the early morning and late afternoon, surface fish prawnstar to nail the surface feeding species. Target weed or lilly banks with cast and retrieve flickjigging. Sink & glide prawnstar down the side of weed & lilly structures- Work it slowly to tempt fish lying in ambush. Try flickjigging deep holes, tree snags and bottom structures where fish are likely to hold. Use the sounder to locate deep water snags or fish holding in mid water thermals. Glide prawnstar down to target depth & work prawnstar up through the water depth allowing for flickjig and sink time on retrieve. Try counting the sink, so that you are aware of when you are in the strike zone. When the water is cooler due to the wind, target sheltered waters where the water temperature is higher. Try targetting wind lines where insects are carried and bait species and fish predators feed.

Inshore

Beach fishing- Evaluate the beach conditions and determine likely fish habitats. Gutters, drop offs, sandbars, snags, pylons, and rocks are worth targeting. Cast upcurrent and work the lure through the water depth on slow retrieve with the flickjigging action. After casting an area, walk further up the beach and work the new region to cover more grounds. Rock headlands & rock walls- Fish take cover and hunt bait around rocky terrain. Assess the wave conditions for 1/2hr before selecting your fishing locations. Find a safe place on the rocks being wary of big dangerous swells. Cast and sink the prawnstar, flickjigging with the current. When it hits the bottom or depth you are working, flickjig and retrieve. Cast a pattern to hunt fish in a given zone, then move around to find more feeding fish.

Offshore

Your heading out into the deep blue, and its timeto sink the prawnstar amongst the bottom dwelling critters. Rig the prawnstar in one of the bottom bouncing rig formats. See "bottom bouncing". Try anchoring up-current of the reef, rock or structure and sink the prawnstar rig down to the fish holding area. On shallow reef and rock structures rig in the standard method- tying directly to the prawnstar and try drift fishing, working the prawnstar like a live coral prawn moving down with the current. When targetting surface feeders, rig in the standard format with 1 or no weights and try stirring up the pelagic species with sporatic action. Try a faster retrieve and frequent flicks. It can really bring the fish onto the chew. Try wire traces tied off with haywire twists and release the rear hook from the retainer.

Prawnstar- Rod flick action

Prawnstar- Underwater action

Prawnstar- working over snags

Prawnstar - Dam Techniques

Prawnstar - Beach Techniques

Prawnstar - Jetty / Pier Techniques

Prawnstar - Working underwater structure Techniques 1

Prawnstar - Working underwater structure Techniques 2

Prawnstar - Working ledges