Top Ramen Posted March 29, 2015 Report Share Posted March 29, 2015 (edited) First, figure out if there is really a problem. The flat shape of the gill baits makes them inherently unstable, so if you start reeling while it’s on it’s side, it’s going to stay that way. Also, if you are reeling it up, as in decreasing the depth, it will also tend to lean to one side. Lastly, use light line. If the line is too heavy, it may not let the bait orient itself correctly or swim correctly. I have been using #16 Sniper with good results but I may drop to #14 or #12. Test the bait by casting it out about ten feet and letting it sink about two feet down. With your rod tip near the surface of the water, reel it in slowly. If it is leaning over on a slow, level retrieve, after you let is sink enough to orient itself, then there is a problem. If it swims correctly in this situation, it’s fine. If it needs to be tuned, the procedure is pretty simple. Hold the bait belly-up in your non-dominant hand. Grasp it so that you have a firm grip on the harness. With your other hand, gently push the lead keel weight to the side. Do it gently -- if you push quickly or move it back and forth a few times, it will break. So, do it a bit at a time, test casting it between adjustments. Once you have it swimming correctly, check the orientation of the hook to make sure it’s still aligned in the center of the slot on top of the head. If it’s not, rotate it so it’s correctly aligned. I had a ROF12 that was swimming at a really wonky 60 degree angle out of the package and managed to get it almost perfect using this technique. I can’t speak for Ken, but I know he takes quality control very seriously, so if you absolutely can’t get it to swim correctly, send him an email and let him know. Tight lines. Edited March 29, 2015 by Top Ramen 1234567, Midsouth Swimbaits, chefchris and 7 others 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chefchris Posted March 29, 2015 Report Share Posted March 29, 2015 nice post, sure a lot of people will find it helpfully i found you just have to fish it slow and steady been throwing mine on 50lb braid without an issue. buddy boiled his tail for about a minute on his and it really helped with the tail thumping action, his was fine just wasnt happy with the lack of feedback on the bait Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Top Ramen Posted March 29, 2015 Author Report Share Posted March 29, 2015 (edited) I should have mentioned boiling them. Helps with most of the weedless baits and I know some guys do it before they even fish them, just to be sure. My ROF 12 was wonky at any speed before I tuned it. Now it's pretty close vertical on every cast. Edited March 29, 2015 by Top Ramen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nadinesmom Posted March 29, 2015 Report Share Posted March 29, 2015 thanks for the info, i emailed ken last week cuz ive got about 4 that dont swim correctly... we'll see what he says... no word as of yet! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGoodCat Posted March 29, 2015 Report Share Posted March 29, 2015 I put a 1/16th oz nail weight in my huddgill and now I can burn it without it planing on it's side. Before the nail weight it would flip to its side if I would reel faster than a crawl. nightbite 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lakeshark Posted March 29, 2015 Report Share Posted March 29, 2015 I contacted huddleston about my Huds having an issue via telephone. They know about the issue. They offered to send me rof 12s to replace my wonky rof 5s. They assumed it was an issue with the rof 5 before I even told them the fall rate of the bait that I had. So they abviously know about this problem and are prepared to fix it. The one rof 12 hud gill that I had on my order swam well, although I managed to break it off almost imediatly on a fish. Good article. I did attempt to tune the baits in the same way you did. If anyone else is having issues I suggest calling huddleston. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Archtx9 Posted March 29, 2015 Report Share Posted March 29, 2015 My ROF5 tracked great out oft he package, need to downsize my line though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
badbub19 Posted March 29, 2015 Report Share Posted March 29, 2015 I've got 2 ROF5's. One runs perfect, the other is on its side immediately. Gonna play with it a bit... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thedonnguyen Posted March 30, 2015 Report Share Posted March 30, 2015 same thing can be done with any hudds that don't run true out of the package... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Top Ramen Posted March 31, 2015 Author Report Share Posted March 31, 2015 I have had a couple people message me asking for more detail on how to hold the bait and adjust the keel. If you squeeze the belly just behind the mouth, you will feel a lead keel running along the bottom of the bait and stopping just before the hole in the belly. The front of that lead keel is connected to the harness, which is in the head of the bait, right behind the hook eye. Hold the bait so that you have the harness held firmly, but the keel is just out of your grip, so you can push it (carefully) to the side.This picture may help. The red arrow shows about where to carefully push. Only move it a bit at a time. You can hold it in this position with the line attached, so I usually make the adjustments where I can cast it to test each change. SpaceGhost 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swimbaits_only Posted March 31, 2015 Report Share Posted March 31, 2015 Sweet this helps out a ton!! Very much appreciated! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rharris918 Posted March 31, 2015 Report Share Posted March 31, 2015 This helped so much! Question about boiling the bait. Ive boiled my tails before, But are you suggesting boiling the entire bait? For how long? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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