Is there a more modest priced and better producing product than zoom plastics ??? I'm a huge fan of GY, strike king , yum and several others... But every time I reach for a zoom plastic Im catching bass ! And often at a fraction of the price of the "top shelf" soft plastics. I love the made in USA stamp on the bag and the durability these baits have as well!!
If you look for deals you can get these baits super cheap and I never see any of them over 5 bucks a bag... Trick worms come in bags of 20.. like who does that ??? No company that I'm aware of.. but I appreciate it for sure !!
Between the fluke , trick worm, finesse worm, horny toad , fat Albert grub, salty chunk and brush hog I think I could switch to all zoom products for all my soft plastic needs... Same can be said about many other companies but at what price ?? Other than yum (which I like but not as much) I don't see any company that produces as well as zoom (for the price)
Also correct me if Im wrong but they are pretty much the only major company without a senko knock off .. well they have one with a fluke tail but alot of the others are obvious complete copies without any attempt to be innovative.
Any companies that you think compare to zoom ? (Besides yum in terms of cost and effectiveness )
I would say cost wise, Z-Man is comparable.
On 4/28/2017 at 12:44 AM, visagelaid said:I would say cost wise, Z-Man is comparable.
I agree with you. They are priced nice! And last a long time. I've had a couple issues with that company but some of them are really good baits. Overall I don't think they are better than zoom. But I'm sure many will probably side with you on this !
Honestly they have better value in terms of durability...
I dont think they are either...But there are some techniques where using z-man baits is just the best.
Z-man is a good one... Probably going to be the best response of the thread
I agree with you. If I could only use 1 soft plastic company for all my fishing, it would definitely be Zoom.
I like variety and honestly GY is my favorite (senko, fat ika, double tail hula grub, shad shape worm and kut tail) . Zoom being a close second. And In terms of cost and effectiveness I don't think there is a better buy !!!
Zman is a good point ! They are pretty cheap compared to some and last so long it's crazy. I've had them melt on me tho where my other baits didn't and I don't like fighting with the keeper and the elastic qualities it has. So I have to tear the keeper of my jigheads and use super glue.. which I don't have to with any other company ... And if it was a contest on who could catch most fish the ned rig would probably win.. unless we are only counting fish over 16" lol. Not saying it doesn't appeal to big fish but all I catch on the thing are 8-12 inchers .
I think Zoom sits right at the perfect balance of effective design, composition, and affordability. I tend to think of Zoom as the standard. Wanna charge me more than Zoom? Give me more bodies per price, or better designs, or better longevity, or better action, or something.
I love Zoom products.At least 2/3 of all my soft plastics are zoom.
On 4/28/2017 at 12:53 AM, Jrob78 said:I agree with you. If I could only use 1 soft plastic company for all my fishing, it would definitely be Zoom.
I'd probably agree too. I have a lot of favorites from other companies but if I could only fish zoom I wouldn't complain either.
Big Bite Baits and Havoc are both extremely cost effective.
Depends on the style, but sometimes NetBait and Big Bite Baits have good value. Also the Berkley Havoc lures are pretty competitively priced. Netbait's trick worm comes a 20 pack for 4.29. BBB has bulk packs of certain lures 6 bucks for 25 senkos. 3.50 for 25 grubs.
Put me down as another Zoom man. The T-rigged Trick worm June Bug is my all time favorite.
Prob 80% of my soft plastics are Zoom, and I got a lotta soft plastics. There are just so many effective & versatile baits that they produce.
Super fluke, swimming fluke
Trick worms, finesse worms
Horny Toads
Magnum & Ultra vibe speed worms
Magnum & Ultra vibe speed craws
Mag II and Ole Monster worms
Fluke Sticks
Big Dead Ringer worms
These are all staples in my fishing. I've just about always have an ultra vibe speed worm and a fluke tied on from early Spring thru late Fall.
Havoc by Berkley? Super cheap, sadly no scent, some durability...
I too like zoom . and for some reason berkley power bait. either in blue feck or june bug color works well around my area
Gambler
Z-man has by far the highest CPU of any brand, but they don't always have the best shapes. Beekley Havoc and zoom comprise most of my other plastics, plus gcyb senkos.
Would I still throw Yamamoto if I weren't sponsored by them.......? Resounding YES. That's all I threw before I got sponsored by them. If I had to rate and throw something else, #2 would be Case Plastics and #3 would be Missile Baits by John Crews. There are no plastics other than Yamamoto in my boat as we speak. None. If they don't make it, I don't throw it. If I were on a budget, I would still buy them. I have the confidence and I have seen the difference.
Only plastic's found in my tackle bags other then zoom is my ribbets, yum digger's, and my chatterbait trailers mad by Mr. Twister.
All time fav soft plastic curl tail six inch worm in watermelon red flake
4/0 hook and 1/8 once bullet weight.
When it comes to the bait company with the greatest number of popular lures on the market,
Zoom definitely takes the bow
Another excellent lure company although it's under-song is 'Gambler'.
Gambler baits are made of tough plastic with built-in scent.
With the exception of their stickworm, most Gambler baits are made of floating plastic.
Their stickworm which is called the 'Ace' is a dead ringer for the Senko, which has
the same length, diameter, weight, texture and yes, Action (my go-to stickworm).
Roger
i definitely like zoom i just wish there were more retailers up here that sold them
Zoom needs things like the keiteck fat impact. the magnum finesse worms are senko like
Love the fluke and Z craw.
I like Zoom baits as well. However since I like worms as a mainstay I have had issues with the 12" ones being brittle and breaking where the hook comes through almost on every fish.
That being said it's the only issue I have had with their baits.
I would not want to.be limited to any one company regardless of how good they may be currently. I like my Netbait Paca Craws, Havoc Pit Boss baits, and Culprit is my favorite 12" worm.
I do love me some Zoom plastics
I think havoc and BBB are definitely good values worth mentioning !
I don't think they hold a candle to what zoom has to offer but a good value nonetheless.
I could do just fine with nothing but Zoom and Yum baits, if I could have a 3rd it'd be Havoc.
Zoom along with bps and yum seem to fill my tackle box most of the time. It works for me
Day in, day out- for 20+years, I've used Zoom about 10 to 1 over all other brands of plastic... the last 5-8 years, I've branched out a bit but zoom has always been king in my boat. And considering a fish soft plastic 75% of the time, I still own a few hundred lbs of zoom. lol
Netbait and zoom are usually the only plastics I buy due to their good styles, color choices and price! However, if somethings on sale I'll buy it as well.
I think each manufacturer has it own sale Point. I do like strike king for rage series, I like Zman since it last a long time. SENKO since it just plain catching fish other like roboworm for color and of course Zoom for fluke.
One of my fav of Zoom where I cannot find from anywhere else is Green Weenie color on Z-drop worm. It always the one that I use when nothing else catch fish, but it is very soft and only last 1-2 fish. And also zoom fluke series which I have/use almost every one of them.
I agree with you but I've been using a variety for years. Would be hard for me to totally switch. You are right about the price. You can load up for cheap. Most of the stuff I use never goes on sale (RoboWorm, Kailin, GY and others). But the Zoom stuff I use works!
Zoom is my go-to choice with the exception of GY Senkos & Hula grubs which Zoom doesn't make anyway.
Zoom is one of my overall favorite plastic company's. I love these baits, they catch a ton of fish! And they are very inexpensive for the quality of them!
On 4/28/2017 at 2:39 AM, RoLo said:
When it comes to the bait company with the greatest number
of popular lures on the market, I'm sure that 'Zoom' takes the bow.
Another excellent lure company although under-song is 'Gambler'.
Gambler baits are made of tough plastic with built-in scent.
With the notable exception of their stickworm, most Gambler baits
are made of floating plastic. Their stickworm which is called the 'Ace' is a dead ringer
for the Senko: same length, diameter, weight, texture and action (my go-to stickworm).
Roger
Agree with Rolo on this one--Do not know if it is a Florida "thing" or what but my plastic other than a few Gene Larew Biffle bugs that I also really like is made up of Gambler products--The Ace stickworm is--In my opinion-- just the as good as the GY senko and have found their Burner Craw and Crawdaddy to be the only craw lure I fish anymore besides the Cricket which is a great bait when conditions are tough. Their price is reasonable and I love the garlic scent on them. I really think the fish will hold it longer because of it. Just an excellent plastic lure company. Also another Florida company that makes pretty good products at a great price is Bitters Baits. They are pretty hard to find outside of Florida and the Southeast I think but they have a great website and they ship their stuff everywhere
When I was a teenager, one of my favorite plastics was the Rebel Ringworm. When I came back around to fishing as an adult, the Zoom 4" Dead Ringer was as close to a replacement as I could find. However, when I ordered some 6" models, I was initially disappointed that they weren't just longer versions of the 4" (long body, short curly tail). Instead, the extra 2" were almost all tail & while they looked good in the water, it wasn't the look I was going for.
Then last summer this girl inhaled a 6" dead Ringer in Green Pumpkin & changed my mind about it...
(Again with the upside down picture...aarrggghhh!!)
Zoom hands down has the most variety of baits, tied with amazing colors and durability. I can't think of any of their products I dislike. They have a great army of home-state followers, and I'm gonna be a general. I think the only competition I have for #1 Zoom fan is the bass lol.
Producto has the THE best 4" ringworm I've ever used. Once quite popular, Producto is a nobody these days but their worms, pretty much all of them, are still a great buy. Last I bought from them, their quality wasn't what it used to be but they told me they were gonna pick it up.
Top quality products... Lunker City deserves a mention in that category. Whatever they cost, they are worth it to me.
Zoom is always a solid.
On 4/29/2017 at 2:40 AM, OCdockskipper said:When I was a teenager, one of my favorite plastics was the Rebel Ringworm. When I came back around to fishing as an adult, the Zoom 4" Dead Ringer was as close to a replacement as I could find. However, when I ordered some 6" models, I was initially disappointed that they weren't just longer versions of the 4" (long body, short curly tail). Instead, the extra 2" were almost all tail & while they looked good in the water, it wasn't the look I was going for.
Then last summer this girl inhaled a 6" dead Ringer in Green Pumpkin & changed my mind about it...
(Again with the upside down picture...aarrggghhh!!)
The 6" Dead Ringer is the only one I've ever used.
@Yeajray231 It's true Zoom does not have a true Senko knock off but the magnum finesse worm Is more than capable to fish most ways you fish a senko style bait.
An answer to the topic at hand: the majority of the time I have a Zoom bait tied on. I could list a number of reasons but the most Important one Is I have a high amount of confidence In them which translates to catching fish.
To the folks that have had success on the six inch dead ringer try the Big(8 in.) dead ringer, you won't be disappointed!
While this Isn't some big secret I highly suggest throwing a 4" dead ring on a shakey head, It's saved many a day for me.
On 4/29/2017 at 11:22 AM, whitwolf said:@Yeajray231 It's true Zoom does not have a true Senko knock off but the magnum finesse worm Is more than capable to fish most ways you fish a senko style bait.
An answer to the topic at hand: the majority of the time I have a Zoom bait tied on. I could list a number of reasons but the most Important one Is I have a high amount of confidence In them which translates to catching fish.
To the folks that have had success on the six inch dead ringer try the Big(8 in.) dead ringer, you won't be disappointed!
While this Isn't some big secret I highly suggest throwing a 4" dead ring on a shakey head, It's saved many a day for me.
Maybe it's the 8" dead ringer I use all the time, now that I think about it. I just know what it looks like when I grab them at the store. About half the lure is that big curly tail. Lol. They work great t rigged. And sometimes they work better slow rolling like a spinner bait or swimbait.
I started out using ultra vibe speed worms weightless (kinda like a finesse buzzbait) prob a decade ago. But I've had good success with them on a shaky head the last few years. Same with the magnum speed craws - can use them weightless for topwater & then kill them in gaps of grass & lily pads. But they work great on a shaky head too. Same with the magnum trick worms - great rigged weightless or a shaky head.
Zoom baits are definitely versatile.
Zoom worms are just too soft for me. Netbait worms stay on the hook much longer.
Totally agree on Bitters Bait Co...their baits are well made, priced right and if you like a lot of colors to choose from, you will love Bitters Baits. Their version of the beaver is an exact replica of the original Gambler Why Not, one of my all time favorite beaver style baits. Their website is easy to use and they ship quickly.
If i cant choose Yum then its going to he Havoc.Everything is 2.99 a bag and they all catch fish.
On 4/30/2017 at 11:59 PM, MassBassin508 said:If i cant choose Yum then its going to he Havoc.Everything is 2.99 a bag and they all catch fish.
Plus they dont fall apart after 1 fish
On 4/28/2017 at 10:25 PM, kadas said:Agree with Rolo on this one--Do not know if it is a Florida "thing" or what but my plastic other than a few Gene Larew Biffle bugs that I also really like is made up of Gambler products--The Ace stickworm is--In my opinion-- just the as good as the GY senko and have found their Burner Craw and Crawdaddy to be the only craw lure I fish anymore besides the Cricket which is a great bait when conditions are tough. Their price is reasonable and I love the garlic scent on them. I really think the fish will hold it longer because of it. Just an excellent plastic lure company. Also another Florida company that makes pretty good products at a great price is Bitters Baits. They are pretty hard to find outside of Florida and the Southeast I think but they have a great website and they ship their stuff everywhere
X2 on bitters baits. I've used them for a few years now. Great prices and great products.
Interesting that Zoom contrasts with some of the others as having "only" salt-impregnated plastics and not fancy scents like Yum, Netbait, Big Bite Baits, and others. (Netbait and BBB smell great - maybe they should do an aftershave?).
Anyway, Zoom catches lots of fish without scent built-in. Does this mean guys tend to put scents on Zoom baits, or just fish them as-is? These GA-made baits work fine for me without scent.
On 5/5/2017 at 10:56 AM, snake95 said:Interesting that Zoom contrasts with some of the others as having "only" salt-impregnated plastics and not fancy scents like Yum, Netbait, Big Bite Baits, and others. (Netbait and BBB smell great - maybe they should do an aftershave?).
Anyway, Zoom catches lots of fish without scent built-in. Does this mean guys tend to put scents on Zoom baits, or just fish them as-is? These GA-made baits work fine for me without scent.
I normally highlight my baits with chartreuse or red garlic scented Spike It.
I'm a admitted plastics freak!
The biggest draw to Zoom for me is ya can find them everywhere. Y'all wouldn't think of Toledo Bend as secluded but other than Toledo Tackle there ain't no Wally Worlds but every tiny grocery store sell Zoom.
Zoom is # 1 and I like there cap
On 5/5/2017 at 7:26 PM, Catt said:I'm a admitted plastics freak!
The biggest draw to Zoom for me is ya can find them everywhere. Y'all wouldn't think of Toledo Bend as secluded but other than Toledo Tackle there ain't no Wally Worlds but every tiny grocery store sell Zoom.
Ain´t this the truth!
Here in Europe, Portugal and Spain in particular, sometimes whe have a hard time finding some of the brands you guys talk about and use the most, some of them big ones like Strike King, Yum, Yamamoto etc etc... many times whe have to order them from other countries. There are a handfull of bigger tackle stores that will have them in a limited selection, a few models, a few colors but thats just it!
Now with Zoom... man you can find their baits everywhere! And i mean really everywhere, from the big tacklestores to the little ones, everybody has allmost every model that Zoom produces in a vast range of colors.
I love Zoom baits! They are durable, good priced, have valid options in every category (ok, except a true stick bait) and, above all, they flat out catch fish!
On 4/28/2017 at 8:14 PM, JustJames said:I think each manufacturer has it own sale Point. I do like strike king for rage series, I like Zman since it last a long time. SENKO since it just plain catching fish other like roboworm for color and of course Zoom for fluke.
One of my fav of Zoom where I cannot find from anywhere else is Green Weenie color on Z-drop worm. It always the one that I use when nothing else catch fish, but it is very soft and only last 1-2 fish. And also zoom fluke series which I have/use almost every one of them.
Try the Zoom Swamp Crawler in Green Weenie. Swamp crawlers have been my catch all worm the past two years and they work great.
On 5/5/2017 at 7:26 PM, Catt said:I'm a admitted plastics freak!
The biggest draw to Zoom for me is ya can find them everywhere. Y'all wouldn't think of Toledo Bend as secluded but other than Toledo Tackle there ain't no Wally Worlds but every tiny grocery store sell Zoom.
They work and can be found everywhere which is why if someone is looking for a recommendation I mention Zoom. How many places that sell tackle do not carry trick worms in popular colors like GP or junebug.
Allen
I have a lot of Zoom products - mostly their finesse worm and trick worms.
I personally love the options for colors! I don't know any other company that offers so many options!
https://zoombait.com/colors/