Cost of Fishing Soft Plastics vs. Hard Baits

[PainInTheBass]

Hey all,

I have read on numerous occasions, anglers on forums claiming that fishing soft plastics is less expensive than fishing hard baits. I was wondering how much truth there is to this?

Compare an angler who fishes soft plastics exclusively to an angler who fishes hard baits exclusively. Assume they are catching fish at the same rate, so both classes of lures are equally effective. Also assume, that both anglers are fishing run of the mill, average (read: non enthusiast) soft plastics/hard baits (for the average angler). If you fish primarily soft plastics, how much, in your estimation, would a pack of say a 8-10 soft plastics cost, and how many would you lose on any typical outing? For those dedicated hard bait anglers, how much would a typical hardbait cost, and how many would you lose on a typical outing?

I am just curious since I typically fish hardbaits primarily, but am working on improving my soft plastics game.

For myself, my typical hardbait costs $7 CAD and I lose perhaps 1-2 per outting. So, that is roughly $14 lost per outing. If I fish 20 times per year, that is $280 just to maintain my hardbait inventory.

Any thoughts?

Anyone else wanna put some figures down for comparison?

All replies are appreciated.

[vishus]

average outing using senkos, brush hogs or t/r worms, loose maybe three or four setups (tungsten/bead/hook) and go through 8-12 plastics depending on the fish...


so:

hook (Gamy 2/0 EWG $2.99 for 6) = .50ea
tungsten bullet (bulk 3/8 10 for $12) = $1.20ea
bead cheap in bulk = .05ea

a terminal setup would cost .50+1.20+.10= $1.65


plastic cost vary widely...
bag of 7" Netbait C-Mac worms 18 for $3.49 = .20ea
bag of 5" Senkos 10 for $7.49 = .75ea
bag of 5" Baby Brush Hogs 12 for $3.79 = .32ea


so if:
I am throwing weightless t/r senkos (just a hook and a senko) = $1.25ea
brushhogs = $1.97ea
C-Macs = $1.85ea

so a DAY OF PLASTIC about $6-$8 in setups and another $4-$10 in additional plastics. So I am all in for a day between $10-$20.

I would say that unless you loose a lot of hardbaits, we are about even.



$20 in baits is nothing compared to the GA$ to get to and from (let alone for the boat)... always amazes me that people are worried about casting a $2 plastic setup or $7 hardbait into the nasty stuff (and missing the big bite) when "fishing" cost soo much...

[tracker01]

Some eye opening numbers. That said, I do not want to let numbers dictate how I fish. Every time I think I might be going a little overboard I peek in the little womens closet and count the pairs of shoes and purses. Life is good.

[TheGEEK]

Some solid number put down by Vishus, right along the lines I was thinking. I am also afflicted by the fact that I use GY senkos and they are pricey ! In a regular day I can go through most of a bag. I know some tourney guys who can burn through 3-4 bags a day!

[vishus]

never really thought about my plastics costs, always discounted when I broke one off as "cheaper" than a hardbait. I can look at some of my original Bagley Balsa Killer Bs and think "WOW" what a good investment that was, considering the cost to fish caught ratio. I really don't throw hardbaits anymore. I love my plastics, never really been a reaction guy, so even if I got hardbaits for .25 it wouldn't really change how I fish. I prefer the double tap of a bass inhaling my t/r compared to a hardbait "loading" up.

I was originally aghast that I paid what I did for a CompileX and a NRX, but the number of fish over time seems like a pretty decent return. The NRX is currently around $3 per fish, but everyone I catch brings that down. So by the end of the year I hope it is around $1 a fish.


IF I burn 4 gallons getting to and from the lake, and 10 gallons on the water, I am in over $50 (and rising) in fuel. $20 on hardbaits / plastics doesn't look to bad.

[rp346]

Wow, Wow,Wow this post is like my accountant with my business....I fish because I love it ,a point of relaxation....I am sorry but you guys are .....well over the top.....How do you put a price tag on what you love to do...With that being said, I find this post confusing on TT....JMHO.

[smalljaw]

At one time I would have said hardbaits are more costly to fish but one particular outing I was fishing a 4.5" baby slug-o (yes, I still love the original slug-o) for smallies and the bite was on but they seemed to only want that bait, my partner couldn't buy a strike and was using his 4th different bait in an hour while I was releasing my 9th fish, and to summerize the trip, I went through 32 slug-o's in an 8 hour period and I've had a similar experience with senko's and that was far from a cheap day so I'd have to say it is pretty close to even on a good bite because the fish can really tear up plastics in a hurry.

[PainInTheBass]

Wow, Wow,Wow this post is like my accountant with my business....I fish because I love it ,a point of relaxation....I am sorry but you guys are .....well over the top.....How do you put a price tag on what you love to do...With that being said, I find this post confusing on TT....JMHO.

This post was not made in an effort to solidify the fact that fioshing can be expensive. For those on this site, we know that fishing is expensive, but do it anyway. What brought this up is the often posted notion that fishing soft plastics is less expensive than fishing hardbaits. My gut feeling was that they are about the same depending on how many baits you lose/go through in a day. I can see it going either way. This was more a mythbusters kind of thing for me.

About putting a price tag on the materials to do what I love to do. That is simple math. I never tried to quantify the enjoyment I got out of fishing, since you are right, you cannot really put a price on it. I think thou readest more into this than intended.

[Toadslayer72]

Hey all,

I have read on numerous occasions, anglers on forums claiming that fishing soft plastics is less expensive than fishing hard baits. I was wondering how much truth there is to this?

Compare an angler who fishes soft plastics exclusively to an angler who fishes hard baits exclusively. Assume they are catching fish at the same rate, so both classes of lures are equally effective. Also assume, that both anglers are fishing run of the mill, average (read: non enthusiast) soft plastics/hard baits (for the average angler). If you fish primarily soft plastics, how much, in your estimation, would a pack of say a 8-10 soft plastics cost, and how many would you lose on any typical outing? For those dedicated hard bait anglers, how much would a typical hardbait cost, and how many would you lose on a typical outing?

I am just curious since I typically fish hardbaits primarily, but am working on improving my soft plastics game.

For myself, my typical hardbait costs $7 CAD and I lose perhaps 1-2 per outting. So, that is roughly $14 lost per outing. If I fish 20 times per year, that is $280 just to maintain my hardbait inventory.

Any thoughts?

Anyone else wanna put some figures down for comparison?

All replies are appreciated.

Wow at losing that many hard baits per outing. Do you use any kind of lure retrieving system? I've had the telescopic lure retriever from BPS (6-1/2'-18') for longer than I can remember and it works great. I can probably count on one hand how many times that it hasn't worked. Trying to use it down deep when the wind is up gets tough.
OT, for me it's not even close, hard baits are cheaper in the long run since I lose so few. Senkos are the worst for durability but their "weakness" is also their strength IMO. When you are banging the fish on just about any plastic, you are going to through them....fast. Now if you are banging them on a crankbait, for example, you can catch a boat load on that one bait and still have it at the end of the day. You can do that over many outings.
Also with plastics you have to factor in the cost of premium hooks, weighted heads, swivels (depending on the set up) and any other bells and whistles.

[johns]

I fish Ms Slammers probably 75% of the time. The dates on them, a lot of them are 05, 06, and 07. Even at $45.00 each I think I save a lot of money . As posted above, it isn't about saving money. For me it is the fun of fishing them and the quality of fish I catch.

[craigrbns]

I do a lot of my fishing on the flats, and like most of you figure it is prob the same $'s involved weather Im fishing $8 mirro lures, $20 megabass luress, or throwing Gulp. If I can avoid the occassional spanish mackerel and small shark bites that result in instantaneous loss of hard baits, it's actually more expensive for me to use soft plastics, especially Gulp. I do my best to avoid the higher $ megabass lures if I know spanish are around (or will finally put on a leader). Over the course of a year, I figure the $'s lost with hardbaits prob equals the $'s lost in Gulp and jigheads. It's frustrating to lose a $10-$20 hardbait, but I just keep it in perspective and quickly realize that I have a good excuse to buy a new one (or two!) when I get home!

[PainInTheBass]

Wow at losing that many hard baits per outing. Do you use any kind of lure retrieving system? I've had the telescopic lure retriever from BPS (6-1/2'-18') for longer than I can remember and it works great. I can probably count on one hand how many times that it hasn't worked. Trying to use it down deep when the wind is up gets tough.
OT, for me it's not even close, hard baits are cheaper in the long run since I lose so few. Senkos are the worst for durability but their "weakness" is also their strength IMO. When you are banging the fish on just about any plastic, you are going to through them....fast. Now if you are banging them on a crankbait, for example, you can catch a boat load on that one bait and still have it at the end of the day. You can do that over many outings.
Also with plastics you have to factor in the cost of premium hooks, weighted heads, swivels (depending on the set up) and any other bells and whistles.

Yeah, I was a little generous with the number of lures I lose per outing. The average would be closer to 1 if anything. There are many outings were no lures are lost at all.

Many of the responses appear to confirm what mygut feeling is on this subject.

Thanks all!

[slipperybob]

I tend to fish more risky with soft plastics rather than with my hard baits. If I'm going to lose a sinker, hook, and plastic, it's cheaper than losing one hard bait.

[Mossy Oak]

I tend to fish more risky with soft plastics rather than with my hard baits. If I'm going to lose a sinker, hook, and plastic, it's cheaper than losing one hard bait.

That's exactly how I feel, most of the time I'm throwing soft plastics into places where they'll most likely get snagged just so I can get to where the fish are. On the other hand when I'm using crankbaits I'll try to avoid these areas as much as possible.

[bladerunner]

Using Senkos instead of Dinger is not very smart. The action of the Dinger is better IMO. I usually get 4 fish on one Dinger. I'd say I use half a 4.99 pack in a day of fishing. I might lose one crank. I'd have to say its a tie except I love hardbaits and expensive ones at that - so I spend WAAAAAY more on cranks. But I fish plasics 50% of the time and cranks 50% of the time.