Ep. 116: Daniel Dahlin of [FISH]rx on Bladed Jigs, Spotty Bowl Recap & What’s Coming to PCS

Hosts: Daniel Dahlin ([FISH]rx), El Charly, Luke Dean (Bait Slingers / Artemis Charters)

Episode 116, recorded live on January 27, 2026, breaks down how Daniel approached the Spotty Bowl, including bladed jig presentation, when to rotate into reaction baits, and why crankbait bottom contact is the variable most anglers overlook. Matt was originally booked but couldn’t make it, so Daniel and Charly went deep on technique with Luke calling in briefly on his drive home.

In This Episode

• How Daniel fishes a bladed jig slow: activate it, pause it, and let the trailer work on the fall (see the bladed jig guide)
• Why bites often come on the pause, not the retrieve, and why your trailer choice determines everything on the drop
• Spotty Bowl strategy: five fish limit by 9:30 AM, dead period from 9 to noon, then three upgrades back to back from noon to 1 PM
• The MDR C-Rig and RX Paddle Tail combo that accounted for five tournament fish
• How crankbait, drop shot, and RX Slug all played different roles throughout the day — and why not being in love with any single bait led to more fish
• How to tune a crankbait that runs sideways: adjusting the line tie to counter-pull and get the bait swimming straight
• Preview of Chovie 2.0 and how it fits into the SoCal color rotation
• Three new bladed jig colorways coming: Spotty, Spotty Magic Mint, and Spotty Special, plus Mark from Performance Tackle’s color collabs

Why the Pause Is the Presentation

The bladed jig section is the most technically useful part of the episode. Daniel’s slow approach isn’t about reducing retrieve speed — it’s about giving the bait a deliberate pop-and-pause rhythm, where the blade activates on the upswing and then the trailer does the work on the drop. “You can slow it down and fish it like a swim jig,” he explained, “but that blade now just hits rocks and becomes a clicker.” The interesting fishing happens when you’re moving it with intention and then stopping it cold.

Trailer choice becomes critical in that pause window. A craw kicks differently than a paddle tail on the way down, and neither is wrong — but you have to know what you’re fishing and why. The goal is that the drop gives the fish something to commit to. For the full breakdown on trailer selection and head weight, the bladed jig guide goes deeper on how all of that fits together.

The Spotty Bowl Strategy That Actually Worked

Daniel fished Sunday 6 AM to 1 PM and had five fish by 9:30. Ball head and 4-inch RX Slug on slow presentation, then a 14 and a 10 within the first hour. Then nothing from 9 to noon — not a bite. Then noon to 1 PM, three fish back to back that upgraded his bag. The MDR C-Rig and paddle tail was the biggest contributor with five fish on that rig. Crankbait added one large one.

His read on the dead period: he wasn’t in love with any single bait, so he tried everything. Drop shot, slug, crankbait, swim jig head, the C-Rig — they all had a role depending on conditions. Getting his limit locked early removed the pressure and turned the second half of the session into experimentation. That’s the framework. Get your fish first, then find out what the day actually wants to give you.

Why Bottom Contact Is the Only Crankbait Variable That Matters

The crankbait conversation was the sleeper section of this episode. Daniel’s rule is straightforward: if you’re not hitting the bottom, you’re not fishing the crankbait effectively. Every fish he’s caught on a crankbait has come with the bait in consistent contact with the bottom — he drives it down, works it back, and keeps it there. Not bouncing off it. On it.

He also broke down how to fix a crankbait that runs sideways — a small adjustment to the line tie eye will counter-pull the bait back to center. Bend the tie away from the direction it’s tracking, test the swim, and repeat in small increments. On clips: he runs them on bladed jigs because the free pivot affects the bait’s swing, but not on crankbaits, where tying direct preserves the side-to-side wobble. A loop knot is the alternative — same free movement without the clip hardware. For more on the crankbait approach for SoCal inshore, that guide covers the full presentation.

Why This Episode Matters

This episode is a clear example of tournament thinking in real conditions: early fish, dead periods, mid-session adjustments, and the difference between having confidence in a bait versus making the right adjustment at the right time.

It’s also one of the better crankbait episodes in the catalog for anyone fishing from the wall. The line tie tuning detail alone is worth the watch — it’s one of those small fixes that most people never look up because they assume a sideways-running bait is a bait problem, not a setup problem. The spotted bay bass guide and SoCal structure fishing guide both connect directly to the ideas Daniel is working through here.

Watch the full episode on the Time On The Water YouTube channel. New episodes every Tuesday at 6 PM.