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I like a Black and Red jig and I really like Red Shad as well, I kind of like a skirt with 90% black and then a few strands of red, or only small amount of flake...Green Pumpkin or brown/Red has worked well on days as well. I know that when I was researching Punch skirt colors a few years ago to make some, I noticed that most black and red colors from brands selling them were mostly sold out on Ebay, TW etc... Skirts Plus has a red color called "Chestnut Red" that is a really good accent color for black or brown.

I have a pack that I have yet to use, but I figure it is like most Rage baits and creature baits...You can fish them on any rig at any depth, it reminded me of the EELIMINATOR which is a bait I really liked from SK if you take off the arms. I figure it will be a good pitching bait, or on a weighted hook, split shot rig.

I love that color, Sexy Shad is usually the first color I grab when buying a new lure. Looks like you found a winner, Kind of looks like a Lipless Crankbait with a bill, I have a feeling that will work well.

I am guilty of using my bathtub as a testing tank as well. I actually use Nail Weights in Senkos and other soft baits when I want the bait to fall in a certain direction. For example, say I want to get my worm to drift slowly under an undercut bank or deep under a dock, I will stick a Nail in the back so it falls into areas where people rarely get their baits. If you put a Nail in a fluke you or swimbait you can also get them to glide and change the action as they sit on bottom or when Twitched. I love Nail weights for Senko's especially. I also use them for Flick Shake worms which work well at times and not sure why but some days a Flick Shake worm just flat out works and I always put a nail in one end since they seem to work better when resting that way. I have never actually used the Neko Weights, I use the Lunker City nail weights or Nails, only issue is nails rust but not a big deal.

I like to fish them in Winter or after cold fronts as a Shaky head and cast toward a good area and barely move it as the swinging hook gives the bait more motion. I really like to use simple baits like a Trick worm but brush hogs work great. There are lots of companies making good Biffle bug style Texas rig jigs that are good for grass, Ledges etc. You really can't fish them wrong, the key is getting the right weight, not to heavy, not too light but I like them as shaky heads/Fished Slowly when I know fish are in the area but I can't get bit. hope that helps.

Tubes skip really well, so do any jigs with a flat head like a flat rock, a good example would be the Booyah Bankroll jig, but there are so many. I like a shorter rod when skipping into brush on the shore, I would watch the videos that people have posted. Skipping a Fluke for example just in "Open water" can turn the fish on when you are not catching them, so it is good that you are trying to learn, I also find when fishing shorelines if you can get the bait way in the back, especially when you have undercut banks, you will notice you can fish behind eveyone and still catch fish. Most people are afraid to lose lures, I like to skip the lightest weight possible, even weightless. Tubes and Flukes skip well, the key is having hooks and baits that stay on the shank well. Super glue is your friend. I like to skip Pegged Texas rigged baits or Weightless since Jigs tend to snag at times but for docks Jigs are a great way to skip, same with brush. Weeds and other structure I always go with a compact bait with 3/16 as a start, Sometimes I use a spinning rod which I can skip way better than a Casting rod for distance and precision. A bitsy bug jig on spinning rod can be deadly. Same with a 3-4" Flipping Tube with a Tube Style worm hook. If you make a cast and the skip is really loud "it happens" but it lands in a good spot, I like to let the bait settle for maybe 30 seconds at times, bass will get spooked but often circle around to investigate & they will often just stare, then if you hop it gently, they will attack. One bait that skips awesome are the Solid Tubes like the IKA from GYB. Kind of a Senko/Tube Hybrid. The Strike King Swim texas rig jigs or swim jigs in 1/4 are great since you do not have to adjust the weight and you can change the profile. Hope that helps. I have watched videos of Dean Rojas fishing a frog and literally skipping it every cast and it would seem like it is overkill but sometimes it really helps, It just takes practice but a Spinning rod can handle most situations and I find is easier, or a 6' Casting rod as I am short.

Welcome to the site. As a fellow Florida Angler, I would suggest becoming confident fishing soft plastics both weightless as well as pitched into structure since most lakes/Canals fill up with weeds in Spring, many are full of weeds all year round so the general rules of fishing are often different in Florida. I grew up fishing in NY until I moved to Florida 10 years ago, and you can still use the same baits but learning to Flip/Pitch, as well as learning how to fish Lipless cranks in sparce grass, Skipping Jigs, Bladed jigs, Spinnerbaits all have their place but you will find that you can almost always fish a Plastic Worm or Creature bait all year long. Some of the soft baits I would have with me at all times are the following: Stick Worms in 5-6"-Black and blue for stained water is most popular along with Junebug, but colors like Red Shad, Green Pumpkin, Watermelon red are always popular as well as laminates with contrasting colors. -Flukes- Rare that fish will not strike a Zoom Fluke rigged weightless and fished over or through weeds, Whites, Greens work well, but there are many that are good, I favor the Strike King Caffiene shad cause they cast far, and sink with a shimmy like a Senko Few other must haves at all times. You don't need much. -Zoom Speed Worms, Ultravibe as a weedless buzzbait, or for pitching. -Brush hogs, Beavers, and a pack of lizards for this time of year. -Soft swimbaits-Yum Pulse, Skinny Dippers, Swim Senko, lots of great articles if you google florida bass and soft baits -My favorite Lipless cranks are the ones that hunt with the head down like the Spro Aruku Shad, Fall slowly like the Red Eye shad, and Cordell Super spot for shallow, also the Suspending Spot works well for weeds. One Knockers can be good for working a spot, right now in Tampa FLorida area Lipless Cranks have been helping me locate fish and catch numbers as they are aggressive already. Buzz Bait, Floating Minnows like Bomber Long A, Rapala Floater, Rebel Pop"r, Devils Horse or torpedo Prop baits work great during the spawn. Spinnerbaits are good on windy days but I prefer to swim a Jig or Bladed Jig like the Chatterbait, but in Spring you NEED a spinnerbait in an Orange/Red color as they will often produce more fish than any other color. White in Spring summer, Chart all year long for stained water. Lastly, You can fish toads like the Stanley Ribbit, Zoom Horny toad most of the year, then a few hollow belly frogs like the Booyah pad crusher. If you want to catch bigger fish consistently, Check out Videos from Scott Martin and Gene on this site on how to pitch, locate the right types of weeds, and even from shore it is hard to beat a Texas rig. Also have a light spinning rod ready at all times for Finesse tactics like small 4" Worms, Jig head and Worm-Slider/ned Rig, After Cold Fronts and on pressured lakes and ponds, smaller baits often produce baits, then something that mimics the giant Wild Shiners we have in most Lakes/Ponds. I guess my point is you can do everything you need all year long with some soft baits like a Power Worm, Senko, FLuke and craw style baits, and colors are pretty basic. I love buying tackle and have enough to last 10 lifetimes but I find myself fishing Texas Rigs and Jigs of all types 75% of the time then Minnow baits like the Long A over weeds the rest of the year. Frog fishing is the most fun and will often get bigger fish before you look for them under the weeds, the bigger fish are almost always Deep in the cover when you are catching them on the edge where 99% of Fisherman target, very few guys really fish deep into the cover since it is hard to learn but if you start with plastics, all the rest become easy to fish imo. Hope that helps, I type fast but wanted to give you a breakdown, most guides on their sites tell Fisherman that in Florida you should leave 90% of your tackle home since the weeds are too thick to fish like you do in the north in most lakes. Deep is relative, average depth in most Lakes is say 4-6', so 8' would be deep unless fishing Pits, and Various Strip Mines or areas where they d**n a river/Canal that is often deeper than usual. You can find info on your area using google and searching for lakes or ponds you see on Google Earth, Never discount Public parks even if you read that they are terrible, Many people writing those reviews want you to think it is a waste of time. Urban Parks managed by the DEC receive little pressure from Serious Bass Fisherman and have Big Fish in good numbers since they are managed and stocked yearly.

The New Yum Pulse is a really nice and soft swimbait with a nice profile, good color choices, and only $3 for a bag of 5. The better soft swimbaits are usually less durable and softer (Not all the time) but baits from the Keitechs, Swim Senko, Strike King, Super Swimming Flukes, shad bodies are all good baits for different times. I use the Gambler Big Ez, Ez swimbaits as they cast a mile, durable, and have a unique action when compared to one of my other favorites the Skinny dipper by RI. I think they all work and have a place and time. The Rage Cut'r Worm has been producing well for me lately when I fish it like a soft swimbait on light weight. Kind of a flicker type tail instead of a boot tail like the Swim Senko (They are worth the price IMO), I am happy if they get one fish per bait as you can use them as trailers, same with Keitechs, or just fish them torn up, the fish do not mind. If durability matters most, like say you buzz them on top, I would say the Gambler versions are the best since they are the heaviest, Put out alot of thump, and you get good hook sets with how they are designed and hooks hold well in them. Hope that helps. I find they all work well, Color & profile can matter as well as the weight and how you fish each one. Lots of good arrticles on how to fish them on this site, I have learned some cool tricks like fishing Hollow belly Swimbaits Flat or Nose Hooking swimbaits as often as possible for better hook up ratio's.

I would try to kill the person who was holding me hostage and forcing me to fish one bait and only one bait. What kinds of person would make a Guy fish with only one lure? Only a Communist would make a rule like that. I would Probably bring a Tube and worm weight and worm hook if that counts as one. Also sneak a jig head in my pocket as I can fish a tube as a fluke, Topwater, bottom, most importantly I could pitch into cover. I would normally say a jig but I think A tube can be modified so many ways and can be used for any technique. Plus in Florida, Tubes are not popular with many guys making them work better. Favorite color Tube. black Red Flake works best 99% of the time, not sure why, but they love Black and red flake in Florida and they did up north as well.

I like the list. I have mentioned this before, as I love fishing the Rage Menace, It works no matter how you fish it and with the tail connected it glides, sideways, topwater, pitched...... I have wanted Strike King to Make a Menace Worm with that tail. Maybe in a 5" size, or even make a creature with that tail, I know you have some pull/access with Strike King, could you maybe suggest they make a Menace Worm and or Menace Creature? I know it is wishful thinking as I am sure it is not a novel Idea to them and it probably doesn't make sense for them with the Cut'R worm in the line, but I would think it would work better then the Popular Speed worm series, or Gambler Burner worms which sell like crazy down here. That Thick Tail would be awesome even on a 4". Just curious of your thoughts. I keep waiting for one to come out as they always have a few new baits each year. I need to try the swimming hornet, I keep reading about how well it works, good excuse to buy some tackle. Good list. Thanks. I need to clean up some of my silver Buddies, I forget about blade baits.

We have not had much of a seasonal change in Florida this year, only 4-5 Cold days and it is almost February. I usually use a split shot rig or Mojo Rig early on when it gets cold after the Fall ends. I also like to fish either Grub or small Sluggo on a really light 1/16 Darter head and light line. I also use a shad rap to cover water as well as a Red Eye shad to see If I can get some fish to react, but I do well fishing them slow and jigging them like a spoon. The Red Eye Shad falls as good as any bait I have used, The hooks rarely foul which makes it really nice, same with the Spro Aruku Shads which are head weighted so if weeds are an issue the bait sits upright on the bottom if fishing it like a worm. Here is a trick I recently figured out by accident & I just made one of my all time favorite confidence lures better by changing the old trebles to what I thought were the same weight, but the triple grips were heavier and the Sebile Suspending Flat Shadd 77 which is great all year round, happens to work on bedding fish when it slowly glides head first on the pause really slow and it moves forward in a natural gliding action. I rarely target bedding Fish but a friend of mine saw a big fish on a bed and wanted to see who could catch her first. After about 10 minutes I grabbed the Sebile & pitched it about 8' in front of the bed and killed it so it would land in the bed. As soon as it hit the side of the bed the fish blasted it. The Sebile suspends like a jerkbait, is really flat sided, and I have been using it now all the time so it sinks and I love how well it works just using a lift and fall since it looks like baitfish heading to the bottom wounded I guess, or a bluegill raiding the nest since it falls with the head forward, not too loud, and matches the profile of a panfish perfectly. any Flatt Shad Fans, I would encourage you to add a bigger treble in the front or add heavier hooks then the Owners that come on it and try it like it was a sinking model. Once you put it in the water you realize how awesome it looks and you will have confidence.

Great Topic. I have heard people say they use Football Jigs or rigs like the Biffle Bug rig for flipping into grass & I have been wanting to try it. I recently tried using a 3/4 ounce football Jig head which is really big since it was lead, but I think the grass was too heavy, too much slime, but I did catch a fish dragging it on a soft bottom since I had a long worm with a long shank Worm hook on it so the fish would not care if the head was catching slime. I am guilty of always trying to be as quiet as possible, and I often wonder how important being quiet is compared to accuracy. When I first learned how to pitch I would make some really loud entrances but I would still catch fish at times, but you are right about Rattles. I usually try not to use rattles as I have always felt it hurts more then it helps most times, but like anything else, when a rattle works, it is like a certain color, it really works. One thing I started to do when I make a loud pitch with a heavy weight, or even when I bomb a huge Topwater lure near a good spot, is let the bait sit for a minute in case you spooked a fish as they usually will turn around & wait to see what happens. I have some bladed Jigs that I purchased from Bluebasser and he made a bunch on football heads which I didn't really like as much compared to the other models he made, but I realized last year that in stained water that Head helps fish locate it especially slow rolling, hopping in weeds or soft bottom at times when the standard weedless heads do not work. I still have a hard time feeling strikes with the football jig when it buries in the bottom, but everyone says kicking up the silt is what gets their attention like how a craw would scoot out of a hole. I usually use a big split shot or heavy stanley wedge weight really close to my bait when casting instead of the football jig & I am confinced it is the heavy weight that gets them to notice it. I need to fish with someone who is good with a Football Jig out in open water and in tough areas since it seems some of the guys who always do much better than me use football heads offshore often. anyone who is good with football jigs please keep this thread going. Anyone know how Tommy Biffle fishes the swing Jig he makes? It sounds like he pitches it to grass with the Biffle bug, or is he just using it on Ledges?

I think they still make the Boy Howdy without the props but that is a really good lure designed for schooling fish, it is similar to the bill Lewis Slap stick Concept or the Jackall Jockie? (Never used it) but the boy Howdy sits Vertical in the water and is not really a walker but it bobs up and down and it can work really well. I remember the key to getting strikes was to keep your line on an angle & if it made a crisp popping sound it would work well. I still use the Regular Boy howdy sometimes but I prefer the Rapala X Rap Walk or wood devils horse, but the Boy Howdy is a good lure that will work 100%. That was the best color along with the chrome blue. The Slap Stik has a lip and looks like a regular Minnow bait but it has a similar action and it gives off a different action that fish rarely see. I would add a dressed Treble hook on the rear since it sits 90% & having the extra action often helps get more strikes. I am pretty sure you can add a prop and/or remove the weight. I still see that lure on Ebay sometimes and I think it sells for $7 as they are not that old, Cotton Cordell does not get much press in Freshwater except for the Spot lipless crank, Most people think the Red Fin is only good for Saltwater, same with the Pencil Popper but when Bass have a school of big wild Shiners trapped, a Gold Red Fin looks identical to a wounded Shiner & the key is getting a "good one" or you have to swap out hooks, rings, do some modifications to get it right since you have to fish it slow & if fish are really aggressive and on wake baits sometimes they want the V wake, or you can walk it side to side just by reeling slow and keeping the head down, it Rolls on it's side & the flash can trigger them. The Ripplin Red Fin is fished mostly in the Walleye world, but that is one of my favorite topwater/Wakes in the smaller size and if you leave it still, it looks like it is moving because of how it is shaped. They make a suspender that only dives 1-2' that can be really good as well. I love my Minnow baits. Only issue is they are hard to cast because they are so light and bouyant but they come with saltwater rings that need to be changed, so that makes it lighter but on lighter line, spinning rod you can get it pretty far and you can fish it in and over grass like a topwater. I know they have videos of guys on lakes with Herring or Gizzard Shad and guys clean up with the Red Fin, Not sure why they only market to saltwater Striped Bass fishing but I guess Pradco sells enough without advertising.

I made my own fish Binder with heavy grade freezer bags and my girlfriend was able to put Grommets in the corner of each bag so I can attach it to my belt with a clip. I stuff one bag full of spinnerbaits & Jigs & I only change them out a few times per year but if you buy the good quality bags, they will not melt any plastics, Skirts etc. It saves time as I put all the terminal tackle in one bag, skirted lures in another, Confidence lures in the others and then a few bags of whatever I Plan on using. Even the Z-Man Stuff has not melted although it seems to always come pre-melted when I order them. I have soft baits that have been stored now for close to 10 years and all are in zip lock sealed bags that I oiled and when I need to replenish, they are always in perfect shape as long as you store them so they are not pressed against each other. With Hooks and lures, make sure they only go in the bags when dry otherwise you will get rust and a bunch of messed up skirts. I usually just whip them around before taking them off the line before throwing them back in & different skirts do not seem to mix together although living rubber can cause some issues if they get too hot. I have to say, that looks awesome. I have that box as well but I ended up removin the trays and just tossing them all together because I never have the patience to put them back while fishing. I always flip my boxes within the first hour of fishing anyway but I think mine was a cheaper brand because the jigs did not stay in the slots well. I think Maybe the one I have was for Umbrella rigs, but I like the colors and collection. I see you like the bruiser color. I have almost the exact same colors for the most part. The only one I see missing is the Watermelon Blue and GP/Blue. I actually love green pumpkin, blue, and a few strands of chart but the brown/green/orange is hard to beat in the Spring and Fall, Winter & I see you have plenty and they look awesome. what type of heads are those? do you pour them? The coloring and shape looks really good. I

Whopper Plopper is one of the most popular topwater lures that everyone knows about, I was thinking about buying a few since it is the same concept but has a double hook on the back instead of 2 hooks like the Plopper. I used to use it years ago and I remember missing alot of strikes but I am not sure if it was user error, and now I use the R2Sea model because it is just an easy & fun way to fish & every once in a while you catch a good one on it. I used to use the Roland Martin High Roller which was similar but not sure if that line is still in the BPS Catalog. Kind of like the idea of the Rear hook & price, especially since the Whopper Plopper is for fun only, it really does not catch fish like many people are saying. If you fish in Florida, I would not waste your time throwing the Whopper Plopper 130. It is nice being able to bomb 1.5 ounces to find active fish, but I think maybe this may be good for Summer when the weeds top out. Here is a picture as I know it is not marketed well, or at least I never see it but that goes for almost every Rebel lure except the Pop-R these days and I am ok with that. http://www.lurenet.com/rebel-buzz-n-frog-fishing-lure

Here are my favorites and all are priced reasonable and produce just as well as other brands I own which cost 3x the amount. Obviously the Pointer by LC is a great lure, Price is not that bad but I have been impressed with the Academy Megabass Clones which are 3.99 and have the exact same super slow float, good colors, VMC hooks, $25 mail order and they do free shipping which is crazy. I would buy: Bomber Long A -$6 Timmy Horton colors are good and they have better hooks-Pound for pound my favorite. Smithwick Rogue which is a classic for good reason. Husky Jerk -Great Early season jerkbait-Plastic version of Original Floater. The Shadow raps are the plastic version of the Flat raps and make a slow float and slow sink, really nice colors, Dicks has them buy one get one half off. I find the Spro is basically a clone of the Smithwick Rogues, not the perfect Rogue which dives 10', but Spro has better color patterns & are only $7 on sale so a great option just like the SK,Xcalibur, Berkley, really any brand, it is all in the wrist, Depth, and cadence. Sound also matters.

Siebert has the best pricing and selection imo (Plus colors you won't find on any big fishing site) and you have the choice of about 10 colors in 2 different styles of bullet weights. You can also have a Punch skirt added in any color you want on some, wire tied, but If you contact Siebert Outdoors, you can get a good mix of sizes usually hard to find like 5/16, 5/8 3/16 etc. For the sizes you are looking for the weights are going to be inexpensive compared to say the packaged brands at Dicks, BPS etc. I use lead for weights 1/4 and smaller especially for pitching, I never get the benefits of added "Sensitivity" since I add Inserts in all Tungsten because every brand and smooth weight has cut my line at one time or another, more the heavy one's but I actually prefer Silver or plain color for all weights over 3/4 or I buy Silver if cheaper since: If you take a BBQ Torch to a Tungsten weight it will turn black once it gets Red from heat and dropped in Ice Water. You don't want to heat Tungsten that has inserts unless you plan on putting in new ones, but if you heat them until they just start to turn orange, they end up in a cool rainbow/Dull Grey color instead of Dark Black. I love Tunsten for pitching and PUnching especially due to the smaller size, plus the shape of punching weights in bigger sizes is less likely to pop open the fishes mouth. A 1/2 Tunsten is much shorter than standard Lead or Brass. Hope that helps. I would read reviews if buying online from a retailer since some brands get poor reviews for chipping etc...Bullet weight brand was really bad, BPS really bad, and one other, maybe i had Bad batches but Sieberts are all top quality and so are Vike, and other Trusted names. You can never have enough bullet weights. I am convinced 5/16 can make a difference over 1/4 since I notice many pro's and experienced guys are always using odd weights like 7/8, 5/16,5/8 instead of what everyone else uses. Maybe it is a confidence thing but I love 3/16 the most.

I am pretty sure you can still buy the bass colored DT Crankbait. I have had a few for several years, but I am sure you can find them on Ebay or Amazon if they are only distributed to the Canadian Market. I Know Rapala added new colors recently to go with the IKE patterns, then the original colors that they have had. I think this Bass Color was common years ago as I have a few DT-16's I used to use in NY still hanging around that never get used anymore. I like Bass Colored cranks and soft baits, Skirts etc...If you are fishing a new lake or pond, you can always be confident you are matching the hatch when you throw Baby Bass, Especially during the Spawning season and Spring when Fry are all over. After I am done with Orange/Red cranks early in the year, I usually go to greens and Bluegill patterns toward end of Spawn which is March in Florida. Good find. I would agree, I have never purchased a Rapala that didn't catch Fish, I always buy Rapala hard baits if on sale since they could be pound for pound the best Hardbait line if you factor in Price and selection, difference from other companies. I guess Pradco would rival them, but Rapala VMC is also Terminator, Lindy, Suffix, and a few other brands like Storm etc.

For me personally, I consider Finesse anything I throw on 8lb test or less, Medium light spinning rod, and for lures, I usually figure anything small like a 2-4" soft bait, smaller profile crankbait, or anything I put a Split shot in front of even if it is a bigger soft bait. I use alot of smaller profile Jigs like the Strike King bitsy jigs during tough bites or for skipping docks etc. but I don't necessarily consider that finesse since they catch big fish & sometimes match the forage. I think Finesse means something different to everyone. I consider Drop Shotting finesse, but I have Creature baits with a heavy 1 ounce weight for Dropshotting at times, still consider it finese even if the bait is a Rage craw, Rage Bug etc. You can finesse any lure, I often will "Finesse" a Frog in the Summer but what I mean is I work it very gently to see if that generates strikes after not getting strikes since I know one of the mistakes I make most is fishing too fast, sometimes just thinking in terms of Finesse makes me slow down. Anything 1/16 or less is finesse for me. I pitch with 1/8-3/16 oz weights on heavy line as much ass possible. Not sure there is a right answer but if I have my Light action spinning rod and 6lb test, then my Rapala F-11 is now finesse.

I like way too many and never fish them enough. I usually prefer smaller ones in the 1.0 size, but one crankbait that I really have liked right out of the box are the XCalibur XCS100's. I have had my best days with the Xcalibur's when I want a wide wobble and I like the Shallow shad rap in the cold instead of a squarebill or a Rapala DT Flat just don't fish them too hard, the bills break on certain ones, but the DT-3 is a good lure. Subwarts, Speed traps, KVD, Norman..All companies make good cranks these days, key is the hooks, Some cheaper cranks work well like store brands but the hooks are often junk. BPS for example.

They make good Christmas Ornaments? I never liked that lure the day I saw Bill Dance using it on TV with his Dancin Eel. I feel like the way it is designed is a good way to miss fish? I would rather just use the Whopper Plopper but I am sure if a Big Bass grabs it and really wants it it will catch fish. The above post has it right, changing it to have more hooks would probably make it much better, I know the Rebel Frog is tough to hook fish on and both are Pradco Lures, but that double hook is just not enough to land enough strikes from my limited experiences. The concept is good, a floating buzz bait you can pause is legit, landing fish and not getting snagged is the issue I think. I get bad feelings about lures and I notice the same 6 have been at Dicks for the past 2 years. If it were half Price, Give it a shot. Bill Dance was catching fish on every cast so it must be so.

I make most of my own using silicone from Skirts Plus but I am starting to think the Gambler "starflash" Skirts which have the color of silicone and the feel and action of living rubber. I also like to use some of the thinner silicone for finesse jigs for some smaller options or punch skirts I add to swimbaits and skirts to jigs Does the material make a difference? I have been hearing about the Starflash Gambler skirts the last few years since Gambler is huge in the South, never really felt it mattered for Punching, but when cold, I kind of like how it moves, is unique and when fishing slow I think it can matter....I think color probably matters most, but Living rubber when letting your bait soak gives me confidence and the Starflash material has nice color compared to the old school rubber which had dull colors yet still is favored by some guys. When you make your own they get expensive with shipping, Siebert has prices with the terminal tackle you need for a similar price & you can make hubs out of anything. Just look at a Boss Hub and get creative. quick Hint...The rubber "Grommets on many punch skirts are also found in Tatoo Guns, get 100 on Ebay for a few bucks. Metal hubs are only $37 for 100 on Barlows I believe or .50 on Skirts plus...If you want the tungsten bead hubs, or brass etc..Hagens has those, or ALi express has tons of beads in tungsten you can tie to. Hope that helps. Punch skirts over the counter are way to expensive. They cost less than a buck and some sites sell 5 for $2 if you look, the rubber hub is fine actually.

I have seen them on one of the tackle making sites, Netcraft or lurecraft. They have the football swing jigs and also the heads that you can add your own rings or hooks. I would check some of the main tackle making shops, Pretty sure they have them in packs of 10. Hope that helps. I think that is what you may be looking for. They are just like the Mustad Fast Tac as mentioned above.

I would try a Grub 3-4" on a darter head with a weight to match the depth. I also like to use a 4" Sluggo on a darter head when it is cold, or a Road runner 1/16-1/4 with the Maribou typically used for Crappie. maybe add a rattle or maybe use a Tube or simply a bead in between a soft bait. Rattle traps can work all year long as well. Finesse tactics can work but fish are often suspended or right near cover really tight and may need multiple angles. You can catch them on a Jig all year long, same with a worm but it can be tough to get them to strike. It takes patience but sometimes you get lucky and can find a group of fish grouped together, if you catch one, odds are you are in a good spot and can maybe fish it with a shad rap or another moving bait. I like to fish the Rage Menace on a split shot rig all year round as well. Colors I would try contrasting dark colors or firetails with chart. I usually stick with black/Blue in stained water, black red, or black/chart, red shad, or go solid black. Winter can be tough and some days nothing works, just how it goes.

I have some really nice looking ones in one of my boxes at home I never take fishing. I am sure they work as I have done well with almost every Academy Lure/Reel I have purchased. I just don't fish many hard swimbaits at the moment, but they do look every bit as good as lures priced higher. I think the Hooks are VMC, not too strong if I remember, but I think they only weigh 3/8? They are smaller, I actually caught some big Stripers on the other Swimbait they make that looks like the BBZ shad. I put heavier guage hooks if using line that is over 12-15lb test mono. I would think 1x strong hooks are ok if fishing it on less than 15lb test. Just my take. Hope that helps. I am sure those little bluegill lures will work if you put in the time, especially during the spawn, and right after when the Bluegills start spawning. The action looked good when I tested them out. Academy has great prices, great service, glad they came to Florida. For $3, hard to beat many of their lures. Same with their reels.