The Croatian egg bait has long migrated from the category of innovations to boxes of working baits for pike in the thickets. However, many anglers, especially beginners, incorrectly use these non-snagging surface wobblers. The Croatian egg is irreplaceable in some conditions, but the egg must be used correctly. Let's look at how to catch the Croatian egg correctly and what baits to use.
Croatian fishing egg
The egg is a full-bodied voluminous bait with a single hook, which after splashdown always sticks up due to the peculiarities of the loading. It is this design that allows it to be used as a non-snag in the grass. Occasionally you can find Croats of an oblong shape or in the form of frogs, but it is the egg-shaped shape in the water that, when lowered, turns the hook upward almost instantly - and this is critical in fishing conditions in overgrown water areas.
The egg cannot play like a wolfer because it is too short. But the rudiments of wolfing are present - with an intermittent pull, the Croatian slightly planes, and also leaves a trail on the water, plops and makes gurgling sounds, especially in the popper version. Fishing for Croatian eggs is no less spectacular than fishing for walkers and poppers.
This bait is the creation of the famous fisherman Branko Kalinic, who once made it with his own hands from cork. It came to Russia with our athletes after a bass fishing tournament, from which the first baits were brought to our country. Previously, this was a rarity - you could only find original eggs from athletes or make them yourself.
The bait was used by athletes as a search bait - since it flies far, splashes strongly, but the detection rate is low. Now, when the shelves are full of Chinese models based on the first gliders, this is a completely independent decoy used by our fishermen in the grass as a non-hooking device for catching pike
What does a Croatian egg look like and what kind of fish are caught with it?
An unusual name was given to a variety of non-snacking gear with a hook located above the surface of the water. The bait is shaped like an egg. Its color is made bright, repeating the shades of fish scales: light on the underside and darker on the back. It is believed that this reminds the lured fish of the fry that it preys on. Experienced fishermen testify that the color of the Croatian fish does not affect the bite, since the predator reacts to movement.
Gear is used only in summer, when the water is well warmed up. In autumn, fishing for the Croatian egg is less effective, and in winter it is not carried out at all. The peculiarity of the application is that the lightweight floating bait glides along the surface of a shallow reservoir, where it is grabbed by predatory fish. In the cold season, the best replacement for Croatian eggs is homemade wobblers, spoons and other underwater baits that imitate the movement of small fish.
Croatian tackle is used for catching large perch, but pike also work well with it. It is most convenient to use bait in heavily overgrown reservoirs. There are 2 types of Croatian eggs:
- Gliders. Rounded products sliding on the surface. They are driven with a spinning rod slowly and evenly, imitating the movement of a frog.
- Poppers. Wobbler with a notch at the front end. When moving and swaying, it makes a clapping sound, reminiscent of the noise with which crucian carp feed. When casting with a spinning rod, it is recommended to make frequent stops, slightly moving the tip of the tackle.
Varieties
Non-clinging spoons and a Croatian egg are now the main set of spinning rods for catching pike in the summer, as well as in late spring and early autumn in grassy shallows. The egg can literally be dragged through solid masses of water lilies and rare reeds, gurgling it through gaps of clean water in the thickets. Due to the rounded shape and direction of the hook tip, hooks rarely occur. You can fish with this bait in completely remote places that are inaccessible for safe casting with other baits.
Poppers and gliders
- Glider bait - with a ring, like a walker. On the wiring, you can work by walking - that is, not just flop on the windows, but lead with intermittent constant jerks, like a snake.
- Popper Croatian egg - with a notch in the head. This bait gurgles and creates fountains of spray.
- Both types will come in handy in the box. Sometimes a pike takes better on a snake, other times - on splashes and splashes, like a popper.
Body shape and hooks
- An egg wobbler is usually 4-5 cm long and weighs 10-14 grams. The most common form is ovoid. This is how the Croatian was created in the beginning. The bulk of baits have a similar body shape. The load is usually such that the bait is about half immersed in water, and the hook still sticks out with its sting above the surface.
- Less common is the bottle form. Such an egg flies even further due to the weight behind it, and works better when driven with a snake. However, it is also more catchy, since it no longer turns upward with the hook so quickly.
- The eat-back shape is an excellent solution for lures that use a hook with a short shank. This form of this non-hooking wobbler is rare; it is found on sale only in the form of designer baits. There is less snagging on bushes, and the effectiveness of cutting is better.
- Standard Chinese eggs have hooks with a long shank. Anglers are already accustomed to this - since 99% of the baits in the store have exactly this design. Only occasionally do you come across models with a short fore-end, and sometimes with a double. Croats with a double hook, accordingly, are more effective in hooking, but at the same time they are less passable without a hook on the grass.
- You can attach a twister or a spinnerbait skirt to the Croatian egg hooks. Sometimes this combination works better for well-fed summer pike. The bait generally becomes larger and more noticeable.
Catching pike with a Croatian egg - fishing in the grass
Catching pike with a Croatian egg is one of the most effective ways of fishing for a predator in coastal vegetation. In terms of efficiency, this shallow search engine provides worthy competition to poppers and walkers.
The bait acquired its unofficial name after a bass fishing tournament held in Croatia. She came to Russia together with the tournament participants.
Catching pike with eggs was not popular initially. The bait was created for bass fishing. The raw material is balsa. The material is quite soft and does not withstand the force of the predator’s mouth and the sharpness of its teeth. When biting, the fish bites through the Croatian egg, and it gradually loses useful characteristics, takes on water, and the game worsens. It soon becomes a useless item.
Applications of the Croatian egg
Croatian egg pike likes to attack from thickets near the shore. Other types of baits are also successfully used here, but this particular one has proven itself to be the best.
Pike fishing is most effective in the summer, since during this period the toothy fish concentrate in such places. The right choice of fishing time sometimes plays a decisive role.
You might be interested to see the fishing calendar.
Pike are caught better with an egg than, for example, with a surface walker. This is explained by the fact that it has phenomenal cross-country ability. It overcomes dense vegetation well.
Pike fishing technique
Croatian egg fishing for pike can be done in several ways. The most effective one is selected on the reservoir.
Posting methods:
- Stop and Go. Effective in most cases. The use of wiring depends on the conditions; it is not used in dense vegetation.
- Jerk wiring is the main one. Walkers perform in a similar way, but the movements have a smaller amplitude.
- Uniform wiring of the Croatian egg. The speed depends on the amount of vegetation - the more there is, the slower the coil rotates.
This kind of fishing is interesting and exciting. Since the egg bait for pike moves along the surface of the water, hunters often watch the picture of the predator slowly swimming from behind, choosing the right moment. You cannot change the wiring; the fish may stop or swim away. You need to handle the egg in the same style and at the same speed. If there are only a few meters left to the shore, it is recommended to stop the rotation of the reel and twitch the spinning rod to create a game on the spot.
It is recommended to watch how to catch pike with a Croatian egg on video. This will help you get answers to your questions.
Production
Original Croatian eggs are made by hand. The production rate is low, so few of them reach our fishermen.
Instead, copies made by other manufacturers are used. Aiko products are popular. In terms of quality and catchability it is inferior to the original one, but it also gives results. Ike's eggs are made of plastic. There are problems with balancing, which does not allow the fisherman to carry out high-quality fishing.
In this regard, folk craftsmen have learned to make baits on their own. Many people get a Croatian spinner with an egg that does not catch on pike, which is better suited for fishing. They are mainly made from hardwood, which makes them more durable.
Experienced spinners gradually learn how to make their own spinning rods. This has its advantages:
- the problem of shortage disappears;
- minimal cash costs;
- the opportunity to make a beautiful Croatian egg that meets all requirements;
- The products are ideal for predators and last much longer than the originals.
During manufacturing, it is important to give the bait the correct balance. This affects the quality of the game and the fishing result. Loading plays a huge role. More weight leads to an increase in the number of snags. Small impairs animations, so the popper does not perform the necessary movements and does not attract the predator. Each master chooses the size of the Croatian pike egg individually.
Conclusion
Croatian egg is one of the best surface baits. The problem with its scarcity and high cost can be solved by making it yourself. This is what most experienced fishermen do, who subsequently successfully catch pike with a Croatian egg.
loading…
Croatian egg, Pike, spinning
spinning-club.ru
Application tactics
According to the habit of our angler, fishing with a Croatian egg means fishing in the grass and thickets. However, the Croatian was originally invented as a search bait, and the non-hooking form is an additional function. The tactics of the athletes usually looked like quickly throwing an egg through the water area in order to just at least notice the pike.
The number of bites on the Croatian egg bait is low - pike, especially not hungry ones, often simply push the bait with its snout out of aggression, or bite lightly without getting hooked. However, at the same time, the summer predator shows its location. Further, when a pike is found, but is not detected, but simply hits, it is advisable to change the bait to a more catchy one. If it’s clean, hang a popper or walker. When fishing for pike in the grass, use an unweighted jig of a smaller size so that it swallows.
Features of fishing and used wiring
To properly fish with a Croatian egg, you need to know the main types of maneuvers for this fishing tool, depending on the conditions on the reservoir and the activity of the predator being caught. There are three main wiring techniques for working with a Croatian.
The main type of wiring is jerking without hooking. The technique is similar to serving such surface imitators as a walker or a classic popper, completely repeating the technique of serving them with small constant jerks.
Uniform wiring, the speed of which depends on the degree of overgrowth of the surface of the reservoir affecting the movements of the bait. The thicker the thickets, the slower the speed of the unhooked line. This reduces the number of misses of the attacking predator.
Stop-and-go style fishing is effective in places with gaps of clear water, where they pause when fishing with Croatian. The pause time depends on the activity of the predator; the more passive it is, the longer the pause is and vice versa.
One of the features of fishing is that, having noticed the movement of the fish towards the bait, the spinner should not stop leading it in the same style in which the wiring began, continuing to perform the animation until the predator fully exits, capturing the bait in the mouth and subsequent notching. In the case when the length of the cord no longer allows you to complete the lead, and the fish is on the attack, it is recommended to stop the egg by twitching the simulator in place with the tip of the rod until it is picked up by the fish.
Wiring technique
The basis of placing a Croatian egg on a pike is rhythm, monotony, and not ragged chaos. Therefore, you need to not just tug at the windows, but twitch with a certain step, as far as the thickets allow. We strive to drive the egg like a walker, only with less amplitude.
If a pike chases the bait and does not take it, you cannot stop the retrieve or make chaotic jerks on emotions, change the speed, otherwise in 90% of cases the predator will lose interest and leave. We continue the same rhythm until the end. The popper egg also squishes. If there is no more space, and the bait is about to hit the shore, we turn the rod left or right along the shore and continue jerking. The bite may occur under your feet.
We also check the uniformity or stop and go - sometimes the toothy one reacts precisely to such wiring. In remote places, where there are single small windows of clean water among the water lilies, we carefully stretch the bait directly over the water lilies, dragging them into these gaps. When an egg plops into the window, we are in no hurry to pull it out. We are waiting for the water to calm down. Then you can tug and shake a little so that it doesn’t jump out onto the water lilies on the other side of the window again.
Wiring
options are possible in wiring a Croatian egg :
- Light jerks are the main type. The bait moves in a straight line, but with a smaller swing than, for example, a walker.
- Uniform at varying speeds, which depend on the density of vegetation. The larger it is, the slower the rotation of the coil. This is necessary to give the pike a chance to aim.
- Movement and stops (stop and go). This method is applicable when the pike is not actively “led” to the surface fish to somehow stir it up.
- Maneuvering. The pike, noticing the “Croatian” at a great distance, approaches it, creating a keel wave on the surface. In this case, slowing down the wiring threatens to turn the toothy predator back. Therefore, the bait continues to be moved at the same speed. If there is nowhere to lead it, then you need to stop moving towards the shore, but continue to gently tug the egg. Then the predator will not suspect a trick.
Original Type Jerk by Bumble Lure
The original Croatian fishing egg is still produced in small quantities by Branislav Kalinic's team under the Bumble Lure brand. The bait is made of cork, coated with resin and painted. Type Jerk eggs come in several forms. Prefix J - glider bait, P - popper, F - with an angular popper cutout. The prefix X on gliders indicates a shortened hook, and on poppers the prefix of the cup is perpendicular to the axis of the bait (without x - at an angle).
Two sizes - 7 and 9. Sevens weigh 7 grams with a length of 4.7 cm, and nines weigh 5.2 cm and 9 grams. As you can see, the original Croatian eggs are lighter than numerous Chinese ones, which usually weigh 11-13 grams.
The disadvantage of the original Croatian women is that they have a cork body, which after successful pike fishing needs to be treated with yacht varnish and punctures from teeth removed. Plastic Chinese ones are more reliable in this regard. However, each type jerk is made by hand and undergoes water load testing before going on sale. Therefore, their cost is about 800 rubles.
Fishing for pike with a spinning rod - 15 best videos
A vibrating tail and a spinning spoon on a small river from a boat. Practice spinning pike fishing in the fall. The video shows the wiring of two different types of baits and the fishing technique.
Fishing on a large reservoir. About choosing a fishing spot, adjusting the clutch before fishing and in detail about the unpopular type of spinning jig equipment - a vibrating tail on a lead corkscrew with a red tee.
Fishing with homemade mandules in the spring of 2021. Vivid footage from spinning pike fishing in early spring. Fishing with both a vibrotail and the recently popular bait – mandula.
Early spring on a micro river. March footage from a reservoir where the ice is rapidly disappearing. The bait is a bright fluorescent red twister on an offset hook with a jig head.
Summer fishing with Dragon spinners. In this video you will see footage from summer pike fishing with spinners from Dragon. Models: Carina, Viper, Aglia nr1 2.
On an artificial duckling in the summer. If you are not serious about such exotic types of artificial spinning baits as ducklings and frogs, then watch this video. There was almost a complete absence of bites on other baits, but as soon as I put in a duckling of the Savage Gear 3D Hollow Duckling model (10 cm / 40 g), a series of bites immediately began.
Autumn fishing with spinners. Again, the Dragon spinners from the same author of the video channel about fishing showed themselves well. Footage from pike fishing in the fall on the Desna River.
In autumn, use silicone baits. Twisters and vibrotails in pike fishing in the coastal zone at shallow depths. Despite the fact that the fishing was from a boat - the fish did not take at depth, the author of the video decided to try his luck in placing silicone baits at shallow depths, which gave a positive result. Pike 700 g and 1 kg.
Twitching pike with Minnow wobblers with detailed comments throughout the fishing. The author of the video floats a boat downstream and catches pike by twitching Minnow wobblers. All brands and models of wobblers are listed in the video. This is Usami Ebisu and Jackall Magsquad 115.
These wobblers look like this:
Fishing with poppers. An ambiguous bait that many try to catch, but nothing works. The author of the video showed by his own example that the popper bait is underestimated and it can provoke pike to bite frequently.
Retractable leash. Despite the fact that the retractable leash is considered an absolutely non-pike spread spinning rig, this video is a clear demonstration that while hunting perch, a pike can also bite
It is worth paying attention to the choice of fishing location and fishing technique. Fishing is carried out in winter in January!
Tips for choosing places for pike fishing and finding a future point on unknown bodies of water. Although the footage in the video was filmed in the lower reaches of the Volga, where there are much more fish than in the central regions of Russia, tips on finding the toothy predator are still very valuable.
Pike on ultralight. Armed with an ultra-light spinning rod, you can catch not only perch, but also pike. The author of the video talks about the correct choice of place for such fishing, the selection of gear and the ultra-light baits he uses, weighing several grams. How to make the correct retrieve with such an elegant tackle, and how to behave after biting not the weakest predatory fish - you will learn by watching the following video.
Home video about Chinese wobblers. Japanese original models of this type of lure often cost more than 600 rubles, and it’s a shame to leave that kind of money after catching a wobbler on a snag or stones. There is a way out - buy Chinese wobblers from Aliexpress at a significant discount. These are copies, not originals. Do they have the same properties as branded models, and can you fish with them as effectively as the manufacturer claims... The author of the next video will tell you about this.
In fishing stores
Nowadays Croatian eggs can be found in almost any fishing store at prices of 200-300 rubles. More often these are standard Chinese with a body of 5.5 cm, weighing about 13 grams and a hook with a long shank. These are various replicas from Herman, Luhaiser, Kosadak, Rosy Dawn and other Chinese, both in popper and glider versions.
Author's Croatian women's shoes for 600 rubles, handmade, just like the originals - Salm (A.Smirnoff). Available in all variants - gliders, poppers, short forend with a selected back.
Egg on Aliexpress
Chinese egg poppers cost 60-80 rubles on Ali. These are the same baits that are sold in our stores for 200-300, manufactured in the same Chinese factories. The shape of all sellers is the same - a standard egg with a popper notch and a hook with a long shank; only the quality of coloring differs. Occasionally you can find a bottle shape for wolfer fishing for large pike.
Cheap Croatian egg on aliexpress: https://ali.pub/4e15v2
Long egg slider: https://ali.pub/4e15x0
Where is it used?
If we talk about pike fishing, the Croatian egg can be very effective when used in water areas overgrown with algae. As far as we know, there are other types of baits that can be successfully used in such conditions, but the “Croatian egg”, in this case, has no competitor. Considering the fact that this bait can be used in the case of surface wiring, its use can only be justified during the warm period. Where no bait can be used, the “Croatian egg” will do the job. These can be bodies of water where aquatic vegetation practically covers the clear surface of the water. Currently, most lakes and ponds can be classified as such reservoirs.
Do-it-yourself wobbler egg
It makes sense to make a Croatian egg with your own hands if you need a bait of a different size, shape, or, for example, with a better quality hook. Well, or if you want to keep your hands busy. Given the widespread availability and cheapness of the Chinese and Ali, almost no one makes homemade Croatian women anymore.
The scheme is the same:
- The cork is boiled in boiling water for 10 minutes to swell.
- The workpiece is placed on a nail and secured into a screwdriver.
- By rotating and sanding, we achieve an egg-shaped shape.
- From one side to the center we make a cut.
- We install a hook of the desired configuration into the cut, with a soldered loop.
- We pinch the lead and check the load.
- Fill the cut and cover the top of the egg with epoxy resin.
- We sand it with fine sandpaper and paint it with waterproof paint.
Specific processes for making a Croatian egg with your own hands, indicating the parameters on YouTube.
