Spring: Siebert Outdoors and NorthStar Swim Jigs (bluegill pattern)/ Rage Tail Menace & Shellcracker trailers
Summer: Rage Tail Stucture Bug (Jika Rig) and MegaStrike MegaTube Craw (ShakE2 jig head)
Fall: Chatterbait style blade (white skirt)/ Rage Tail Structure Bug trailer (white)
I have always thrown spinnerbaits but this past summer I started using painted blades on my spinnerbaits with great success
My home made jika punch rigs.
Bass Assassin's Bang Lures Tapout Worm
Black/Blue Tail
Jungbug/Blue Tail
Trickster
Cavitron 1/2 oz Buzz Bait, Gold Blade with a Black Skirt
Rage Tail Menace.
Squarebill crankbait. I caught my personal best on one last month.
6th Sense Crush Flat 75X square bill and deep Drop shotting a Rage Craw.
And let us not neglect The Scrounga ~
A-Jay
Spring: Rapala BX Minnow
Summer: Lunker hunt Frog and MB Pop X
Fall: Cavitron (why did I not try these before?) and MB Flap Slap
Fall: Jig with Rage Tail Craw/ Lobster
Edit...i mean SK 6xd...
Keep it down, Cold. Lol.
On 12/24/2014 at 3:43 AM, ColdSVT said:For me it was the jackall crosstail shad...great drop shot bait
Me, too!
Duo Realis Spin Bait 80
Gene Larew 4.3" Biffle Bug on a football swing jig from Do-It's mold
Clear water smallies showed considerable interest in these, especially the Spin Bait.
Keep blabbering about those DS baits and a banning will be coming, lol.
Xtails are probably the most productive bait for me on a DS.
Fat ika was my favorite new bait
Not really a specific bait, but a multitude of baits worked on the new to me wobble head football jigs.
Roboworm 6" texas-rigged instead of dropshot.
On 12/23/2014 at 11:34 PM, J Francho said:My home made jika punch rigs.
The Jika Rig has virtually replaced the standard Texas Rig for me.
Siebert Brush Head jig in Chartreuse Shad - used as a swim jig
Crankbaits
Jerkbaits
The Cavitron Buzzbait
Missile Baits Fuse 4.4 on my Mojo Rig
Those are two standout "New to me" stuff from this past year.
On 12/24/2014 at 4:43 AM, masterbass said:Fat ika was my favorite new bait
Happy I started using the fat ika too. Better late than never!
My newest addition is the 'Strike King Structure Bug' (part-time trailer on my punch rig)
Roger
This fall it was buzzbaits, and this winter it has been a chatterbait style lure.
I still am putting tiny red marks in the jaws of all the same fish. No barbs. Rebel & Rapala keep doing the job. Why change after 40 years ?
Weeds. That's why.
6th Sense Crush 75x is about to replace the Spro Little John as my favorite squarebill after this year. The 75x in gizzard shad hammered them this year!
Hi JFrancho.
I do the Lake Ontario, Clayton , NY river stretch. My weeds have dropped off so badly in 3 years that No more spawning of any larger game fish. Even the perch are less. Cormorants & Great Blue Herons, gulls almost gone. We are dying. Want to blame the dam Green People For stopping all the sewage being eliminated & piped to treatment plants. Seasonal fishing groups are dropping off. Tackle shops down. It all follows for PRETTY BLUE WATER. Smart charters are running to the lake. That V H S fish disease is doing a good job also. Gobies & bait are almost gone. Hope your fishing places are up & getting better.
Jig Rig, Ima Skimmer, Timber Tiger (Finally tied one on after 10 years of sitting, I wish I would have tried them years ago but the colors are not the nicest, but they are a reliable crank for fishing shallow).
Recently the River2Sea Wide Glide 120 Suspending and I just ordered 2 more S Waver's hoping they work better than the first 2 that I purchased. I also started using the Lunker City Original Sluggo's and glad I started to throw them again, I think the fish are worn out from Flukes and Senkos....
Power Team Food Chain Tubes were a pleasant surprise as well. I use the smaller size and fish it like a jerkbait most of the time and it is a good numbers bait for sure, I look forward to using it some more this year.
Weird, I'm still smoking them. Might be time to try something other than your Rapala and Rebel. The game has changed, but the fish are there, and they're bigger than they were 20 years ago.
Duo Realis Crankbait in solid black.
I became a big fan of the swinging jighead and DUO Realis baits this year. Had good success with both.
BPS Sassy sally swimbait and rage tail space monkey paired to a KVD swim jig has been good ot me ths year.
I never had a soft swimbait with an action I liked until the Sassy Sally and that's thanks to it being a Skinny Dipper knock off. The rage tail products are made from too soft a plastic given their high action design IMO, but the Space Monkey is a tank that lasts for fish after fish after fish. The KVD swim jig likes to "ride up" a weed stalk rather than trying to plow through it, making it highly weedless and the inverted wire bait keeper that stabs into the bait rather than poking out through it, is genius.
I fished an 1/8 ounce finesse jig for the first time this year for river smallies. I'm still learning how to fish it and can't wait to keep throwing it.
Swinging football head was probably my only real new addition to my lineup, but it was a big addition.
Ima Roumba and Popmax
PopMax is killer!
On 12/31/2014 at 2:15 AM, roadwarrior said:PopMax is killer!
Yup. Hard to beat a popper that wlks the dog that easy
Duo Realis Spinbait 80 and G Fix 80. Let the guy in the front of the boat toss drop shots, co anglers need to try these...
Biffle Type Head with a Big Bite Baits Real Deal Craw.
Black dog baits g2 shell cracker changed my life last summer lol .... And the Booyah boo jig ... Aside from that I suppose various other big swimbaits
On 12/31/2014 at 4:51 AM, webertime said:Duo Realis Spinbait 80
Recently acquired a couple of these and looking forward to giving them a try!
I love BBB stuff, so I'm gonna try some real deal draws for flipping/bed fishing this year.On 12/31/2014 at 4:51 AM, webertime said:Duo Realis Spinbait 80 and G Fix 80. Let the guy in the front of the boat toss drop shots, co anglers need to try these...
Biffle Type Head with a Big Bite Baits Real Deal Craw.