Go Retro & Catch More Fish While Saving Money.....win/win

[primetime]

Decided to hit some ponds in the Tampa-Polk county area this afternoon once the Sun came out & I was fishing the usual baits....Senkos,Trick worms, Flukes, Rattle Trap,Square Bill, Jerkbaits, Spinnerbaits etc. without much luck. I decided to approach my last stop with a new outlook and as I was arriving a buddy of mine was leaving since fish had "Lockjaw". He had a Watermelon Fluke with a chart tail rigged on one rod, and a Bagleys Bang O Minnow on the other......

 

I decided to start throwing curve balls and it turned out to be a great 2 hours with 2 fish easily meauring 23" & were Solid. I decided to Swim a Hair Jig (Brown/Chart) 1/8 oz. with 4" GP FInesse Worm as a trailer. I started getting strikes as soon as I would let it drop a foot or two after swimming it subsurface since this pond/Lake has a terrible Bottom with Mud etc. I only had 2 jigs with me and after losing both in trees, I reached down deep & there was my answer.....THE MISTER TWISTER 2.5 & 4" SASSY SHADS IN ORANGE/BROWN & SOME WITH SPOTS WHICH WERE A GIFT THAT CAME IN A KITi Rigged them on a small darter head & fished them as if I was fishing a Rattle Trap or Hollow Belly. I was amazed at the shimmy they have on the drop, and how natural they appear while tracking true. The Bass Agreed, only they were just bumping the larger shad to move it since some were probably on beds, so I figured I would add some Chartreuse since They hate Bluegills this time of year, and I landed a good half dozen fish in the same areas where they would not touch my "Expensive Lures & other Brands...

 

I then decided to take my rod with me while walking my dog this evening and decided to bring a $1.25 Creme Jointed Swimbait in 4" length, pearl/blue shad shape, jointed with extra body & nice Jig head with 2 line ties. I have had packs sitting around of creme swimbaits but I have to say that I was getting strikes on almost every 3rd cast in a pond that can be hit or miss. I did poorly two nights ago swimming a small Spro BBZ to test out the action, and the Creme Litle Fishie actually looks more realistic & alive.

 

I can't wait to bust out the new sassy shads, Creme Lil Fishie swimbaits which can be fished like a swimbait, or deep/ledges like a football jig. I also have the panfish version and some smaller models. I may try the old Midget Crawlers as well. I spend too much money buying Strike King swimbaits, Yum, and  hollow bellies which tear easily, fall of shank of jig, & the sassy shad has a thin profile that is perfect this time of year for imitating panfish, and Shad of course.  

 

Am I the only one who forgot about Mister Twister? I used to kill bass on their G-Grubs which have a rattle chamber and are a grub/leech hybrid that were dynamite as a trailer or on a darter head. Their Grubs are great & looking at there product line up is actually quite impressive. They have a nice senko on clearance called the "comida" which is a bit stiff for my liking, but they have some awesome colors for all their baits you can't usually find.

 

Creme is a name I never hear, and the same is true for Gitzit Tubes, Zoom Tubes, Twister Tail worms in 4" & 6", and if all those baits worked as a kid, think how much better you will be with them now? I am going to pull out the Inline Spinners, Motor Oil Ribbon Tails by Charlie's, Strawberry Manns Jelly Worm, Heddon Crazy Crawler, and order some of the rattle grubs as they remind me of the Rage Tail Anaconda Worms but only in 2",3",4"....

 

If anyone has any lures or baits they used to fish with but stopped as they started throwing "current" gear  would be interested to hear what they are as I feel the key to tournaments this year is fishing "Outside the Box". Sassy Shads are never talked about right? They have always produced Fish & they are easy to fish at any depth and cost nothing if you can find them. They just look and feel better than throwing the same DT 10, Fat Free Shad, Strike King etc.....Lake Fork Magic Minnows are essentially the Banjo Minnow only they are expensive when you can find the Storm Kickin Sticks on clearance for under $3 right now.