Comfortably Numb Posted October 7, 2015 Posted October 7, 2015 Whats the deal on these. I heard they work great in the the Great Lakes and the Pros are winning with them. Any one tried them further south? Quote
tbone1993 Posted October 7, 2015 Posted October 7, 2015 Dont work. Dont even buy a pack. Just give me all of them and ill throw them away for you. 1 Quote
bkohlman Posted October 7, 2015 Posted October 7, 2015 They look like they would be fun on a midwest finesse (Ned Rig). 1 Quote
Super User S Hovanec Posted October 7, 2015 Super User Posted October 7, 2015 I've fished them on Erie and have never even got a bite on one! They're not even in my bag anymore! Quote
Super User smalljaw67 Posted October 8, 2015 Super User Posted October 8, 2015 They are very subtle and work anywhere you have clear water, that is the key. The problem most anglers have with them is they use heavy hooks and heavy line and it takes away the subtle action that it has. If you have reasonably clear water, like 2' of visibility on up, and you aren't afraid of using 6# or 8# mono or fluorocarbon along with a light wire 1/0 with a 1/16oz or 1/8oz weight or a small jig head with a size 1 or 1/0 hook then you might want to try them. I know a lot of guys also think of this as a drop shot bait and it is really good that way but we fish them on Mojo rigs, light Texas rigs and on small jig heads like a mushroom jig and these are a really good NED rig bait. I use the Darter Jr. as a trailer on small micro jigs that I tie, the one thing I can tell you is that when fish hit them, they rarely spit the bait, you seem to always have time to set the hook and I believe the ribbed body is the reason. So if you have some water that is kind of clear, you may want to try one and if you have stained water, the black with blue flake is the only color that I know of for stained water and on a NED rig they work. The reason you don't seem them used in dirty water or in the deep south is they were made primarily as a smallmouth bait, if you look at the colors there are a lot of melons , smoke and copper and the color comes from the glitter that is used, hardcore smallmouth guys will use tubes that have colors like smoke copper, or smoke purple chartreuse and the Erie Darters are all made with those types of colors but I found that largemouth eat them as well but clear water is where they really shine. 2 Quote
blckshirt98 Posted October 8, 2015 Posted October 8, 2015 I'm in Cali and just got a pack of these just a couple of months ago to try using on a dropshot. Will probalby try them in the springtime, but they are larger/bulkier than I normally like to use on a dropshot! Quote
Drew03cmc Posted October 9, 2015 Posted October 9, 2015 Fantastic looking baits! I might need to grab a longer spinning rod and use these for Ozark Smallies. Quote
Super User ww2farmer Posted October 11, 2015 Super User Posted October 11, 2015 If you like the darter, try the Havoc devil spear, they are cheaper, more durable, and catch more fish for me than the darter. Quote
Drew03cmc Posted October 11, 2015 Posted October 11, 2015 If you like the darter, try the Havoc devil spear, they are cheaper, more durable, and catch more fish for me than the darter. I have been looking for a use for these Devil Spears I have. How are you fishing them? Quote
RyneB Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 I have success with the darter as a trailer on my smaller finesse jigs. Also had a good day on it when the bite was tough. Me and my non boater couldn't get much going. For the heck of it I T rigged it with a 1/32 oz weight and it was magical. Haven't had much luck doing that since, but it worked that time. 1 Quote
Super User Jrob78 Posted October 13, 2015 Super User Posted October 13, 2015 If you like the darter, try the Havoc devil spear, they are cheaper, more durable, and catch more fish for me than the darter. Are they as big as the Devil Spear? Quote
Super User ww2farmer Posted October 13, 2015 Super User Posted October 13, 2015 Are they as big as the Devil Spear? The Jr. size devil spear is very close in size to the darter. The larger devil spear is bigger, but some times, that's not a bad thing. 1 Quote
wnybassman Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 I have only bought a couple bags of these, but they do hand pour quite nicely. The 4" Darter has all but replaced dragging a tube for me the last few years. I am dragging a darter 75% of the time and a tube 25% anymore. I don't know if I stumbled onto something, or if a lot of people do the same thing, but I like to rig them on a heavy open hook football jighead for dragging. 1/2 ounce is the lightest I use, and do use 3/4 ounce if the winds are up, or I want to get to the bottom quick in deeper water (25' plus). I have played around with many different color schemes, but always come back to a green pumpkin or a dark watermelon in confidence situations. The smaller 3.5" version I occasionally dropshot and have had decent success. Quote
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