Latest Bait Monkey gut punch.
These Conquistador Tackle finesse craw trailers are great. They have a muted/matte look to them, and lots of salt/scent. The smaller one (2.5") is rigged on a Greenfish Tackle Bad Little Dude Jig. The 3.5" is rigged on a Strike King Bitsy Flip. These combos will catch every smallie in the lake.
The SPRO Swimbait Shad is a cool little bait. There's floating, slow sink and fast sink. I'm replacing a floater that a pike snatched a few weeks ago. They're a little over 4", so very unassuming. They wake very nicely, whether retrieving slow or burning it. Awesome on those mornings/evenings when the water is glass calm.
Finally, I got the Dobyns Champ Extreme 745, which I've been eye-balling for some time now. I have the Fury (swimbait rod), a Sierra, a Kaden (and another on the way) and a Champ XP. All great rods for their price points. As soon as I held this in my hands, I knew..."yup, this is a step up". As it should be. Can't wait to tie a jig on this thing and see what it's got. But, now I need to buy a reel for it. It's a funny thing, isn't it??! 🙄