(Originally published July/August 2013)
By Chuck Richardson
Dredge teasers have become one of the most effective fish attractants you can pull behind your boat, regardless of the species you’re after or your size boat. Often thought of as a tool only of the pros, these teasers can be utilized in any spread, regardless of the degree of experience. As effective as they are, they are also one of the most misunderstood and confusing teasers out there. Hopefully here we can make some sense out of these deadly artificial bait balls, and make it a little easier when choosing one for your boat. The following is meant to give the non-professional a clearer understanding of dredge teasers, the differences in configurations, the many types of dredge baits, how to choose the right dredge for your boat, and how to effectively pull them … so all you professional captains and mates just bear with me.
I FISH FOR TUNA, CAN I USE A DREDGE?
The first thing that must be clarified is the misconception that a dredge is only used when fishing for marlin. That is a big fallacy. True you won’t find a pro tournament team targeting marlin without one or two, but this does not mean they are exclusive to a species. A dredge is designed to simulate a school of bait, and a school of bait is a school of bait, and a school of bait will attract the attention of anything that swims in the ocean looking for a free meal. Whether you’re targeting tuna, dolphin, marlin or sea monsters, they all will be attracted to a school of bait (aka your dredge teaser). Tuna will crash a dredge before you can blink an eye, and dolphin will attack every bait on a
