New to jerkbaits... need suggestions

[USMC22]

I'm hoping for some regional input here as well (I live in New Hampshire).

 

Looking to put together a jerkbait "starter pack". Looking to buy a total of 12, max $15.00/ea

 

I've seen mention of Staysees and Pointers. Are X-Raps, Husky Jerks and Shadow Raps not on par? I'm looking for ease of use, no modification needed out of the box and best bang for my buck (which I know doesn't always coincide with the previous two). I feel like these baits get confusing with so many different models in each line.

 

Thanks for the help,

 

-Aaron

[A-Jay]

Here's a short list of quality proven baits that fit your criteria ~

Duo Realis Jerkbait 110SP  & 120SP

Rapala Husky Jerk Jerkbait

Smithwick Suspending Rattlin Rogue, Perfect 10 Rogue  & Elite 8 Rogue 

Strike King KVD 300 Jerkbait  & Deep Jerkbait 

And a bait that's caught a ton of fish but is usually above your stated price range is the Lucky Craft Pointer 100 & Pointer Deep Diver 100DD.

Honorable mention goes to the Lucky Craft Slender Pointer MR  both the 112 & the 127.

A-Jay

 

[Dan_the_fisher]

Imo id start off with a couple pointers, couple mcsticks, and a couple 110s that would get the basic selection of brands. I'd do one of each brand in a smoke/clear  styler pattern, and the other in a chrome style pattern. That will catch fish in every single lake 

[USMC22]

12 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

Here's a short list of quality proven baits that fit your criteria ~

Duo Realis Jerkbait 110SP  & 120SP

Rapala Husky Jerk Jerkbait

Smithwick Suspending Rattlin Rogue, Perfect 10 Rogue  & Elite 8 Rogue 

Strike King KVD 300 Jerkbait  & Deep Jerkbait 

And a bait that's caught a ton of fish but is usually above your stated price range is the Lucky Craft Pointer 100 & Pointer Deep Diver 100DD.

Honorable mention goes to the Lucky Craft Slender Pointer MR  both the 112 & the 127.

A-Jay

 

I'm looking hard at pointers... what in the heck is the difference in all of them?

[gardnerjigman]

Can't really beat a RC STX

[A-Jay]

Just now, USMC22 said:

I'm looking hard at pointers... what in the heck is the difference in all of them?

I know there's quite a few ~  besides the obvious difference in size, weight & diving depth, each has it's own sort of action unique to that style of bait.

The one's I listed are very good fish catching baits but are NOT the only LC baits that do.  I'll warn you now though, getting seriously into LC jerkbaits is an addicting & very expensive habit.  One that's hard to break.

The web site listed below should be opened at your own risk . . . remember I warned you

http://stores.ebay.com/I-Love-Hard-Bait/Jerk-Bait-/_i.html?_fsub=476781011&_sid=270166761&_trksid=p4634.c0.m322

A-Jay

 

[USMC22]

7 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

I know there's quite a few ~  besides the obvious difference in size, weight & diving depth, each has it's own sort of action unique to that style of bait.

The one's I listed are very good fish catching baits but are NOT the only LC baits that do.  I'll warn you now though, getting seriously into LC jerkbaits is an addicting & very expensive habit.  One that's hard to break.

The web site listed below should be opened at your own risk . . . remember I warned you

http://stores.ebay.com/I-Love-Hard-Bait/Jerk-Bait-/_i.html?_fsub=476781011&_sid=270166761&_trksid=p4634.c0.m322

A-Jay

 

Is the 100 Pointer an SP or is that an additional model?

[A-Jay]

1 minute ago, USMC22 said:

Is the 100 Pointer an SP or is that an additional model?

All the Lucky Craft Pointer Minnows (65, 78, 100, & 128) are all SP - suspending.

Not only do the Lucky Craft Pointers have an incredible suspending action, they also have a retrieve action that when ripped or twitched, the pointer has a "Walk the Dog" underwater action. 

It's pretty Killer

A-Jay

[USMC22]

1 minute ago, A-Jay said:

All the Lucky Craft Pointer Minnows (65, 78, 100, & 128) are all SP - suspending.

Not only do the Lucky Craft Pointers have an incredible suspending action, they also have a retrieve action that when ripped or twitched, the pointer has a "Walk the Dog" underwater action. 

It's pretty Killer

A-Jay

Sweet deal, last (hopefully) stupid question. Is the Flash Pointer 100 SP what everyone is mentioning? or is the flash separate?

[A-Jay]

4 minutes ago, USMC22 said:

Sweet deal, last (hopefully) stupid question. Is the Flash Pointer 100 SP what everyone is mentioning? or is the flash separate?

The Pointer Minnow & the Flash Pointer are Two separate baits. 

According to LC - "The newest addition to Lucky Craft’s extensive lineup of jerkbaits, the Lucky Craft Flash Pointer SP blends the action of both the Pointer and the Flash Minnow into an attractive and dynamic package. The secret behind the Lucky Craft Flash Pointer SP lies in its tungsten weight transfer system. During casts, the tungsten ball shifts to the rear of the body and alters the momentum, carrying the Lucky Craft Flash Pointer SP an incredible distance. Once in the water, the ball rolls back-and-forth with twitching, and generates an enticing nose down presentation with an unmatched side-to-side action.
Engineered with an extremely aerodynamic triangular shape, the precisely crafted body of the Lucky Craft Flash Pointer SP is armed with three sticky sharp treble hooks to grab any fish that swipes at it, no matter how slight the strike. A shoe-in for your next "go-to" bait, the Lucky Craft Flash Pointer SP offers an exquisite level of detail and craftsmanship that’s sure to yield big results."  

I have & fish both - each has had several days where it was "The Bait".

See I told ya it was a dangerous game.

A-Jay

[camman]

Can't go wrong with the LC Pointers 100s.  I also fish the Luck E Strike RC Styx as well.  Great action and colors but you will also need to upgrade hooks.  If you need to get a little deeper, also the Lucky Craft Staysees are another great bait

 

 

[USMC22]

4 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

The Pointer Minnow & the Flash Pointer are Two separate baits. 

According to LC - "The newest addition to Lucky Craft’s extensive lineup of jerkbaits, the Lucky Craft Flash Pointer SP blends the action of both the Pointer and the Flash Minnow into an attractive and dynamic package. The secret behind the Lucky Craft Flash Pointer SP lies in its tungsten weight transfer system. During casts, the tungsten ball shifts to the rear of the body and alters the momentum, carrying the Lucky Craft Flash Pointer SP an incredible distance. Once in the water, the ball rolls back-and-forth with twitching, and generates an enticing nose down presentation with an unmatched side-to-side action.
Engineered with an extremely aerodynamic triangular shape, the precisely crafted body of the Lucky Craft Flash Pointer SP is armed with three sticky sharp treble hooks to grab any fish that swipes at it, no matter how slight the strike. A shoe-in for your next "go-to" bait, the Lucky Craft Flash Pointer SP offers an exquisite level of detail and craftsmanship that’s sure to yield big results."  

I have & fish both - each has had several days where it was "The Bait".

See I told ya it was a dangerous game.

A-Jay

Thank you for all the help!

3 minutes ago, camman said:

Can't go wrong with the LC Pointers 100s.  I also fish the Luck E Strike RC Styx as well.  Great action and colors but you will also need to upgrade hooks.  If you need to get a little deeper, also the Lucky Craft Staysees are another great bait

 

 

Sweet, checking them out too.

[A-Jay]

Just now, USMC22 said:

Thank you for all the help!

You're welcome.

Good Luck

A-Jay

[roadwarrior]

8 hours ago, Dan_the_fisher said:

Imo id start off with a couple pointers, couple mcsticks, and a couple 110s that would get the basic selection of brands.

Don't buy 15 lures all at once. I guarantee you will be picking another up every now and then. Jerkbaits are what I like to collect and I have acquired quite a few over the years, but honestly, I only fish a couple. I might switch around what I carry, but I have never actually fished more than two or three different lures during an outing.

For "catching" fish the Lucky Craft Pointer is all you need; the McStick is maybe second. As a collector I am more focused on the Megabass Ito Vision 110 and variations (FX).

 

[ww2farmer]

OP...............any pike, or other toothy critters in the waters you fish? If so, those $15-$30 jerkbaits are going to get real expensive, real fast. And a suspending jerkbait with a wire, or stiff fluoro leader that is bite off resistant is not going to run/sit, or act right in the water.........IMHO.

There are plenty of sub-$10 baits that will keep up and catch fish as good as the expensive ones.

 

[USMC22]

9 minutes ago, ww2farmer said:

OP...............any pike, or other toothy critters in the waters you fish? If so, those $15-$30 jerkbaits are going to get real expensive, real fast. And a suspending jerkbait with a wire, or stiff fluoro leader that is bite off resistant is not going to run/sit, or act right in the water.........IMHO.

There are plenty of sub-$10 baits that will keep up and catch fish as good as the expensive ones.

 

I've got some pickerel but that's about it. Some lakes they're more present than others. I've never had one cut through my line, but I change knots often and keep an eye on it.

[smalljaw67]

If I can make a suggestion, I think a mix of high end and lower priced models will help you find a bait that works for you. I'm a jerkbait fanatic, it ranks almost as high as spinnerbaits for me and so I've put a lot of time in using various types. Some guys like using a sideways jerk and others use a straight down rip, and of course you will get slightly different responses from each bait and some baits work better one way or another. So try a variety of baits and find out which one does the best for you at catching fish. Here is what I think you should start with, and these are all proven baits for me.

1. Lucky Craft Pointer 100 and the 78

2. Lucky Craft Slender Pointer 97 and 112

3. Smithwich suspending Rogue and Elite 8 Rogue

4. Rapala Shadow Rap Shallow and deep

5. Rapala X-Rap 8 and 10

6. Ima Flit 100

Honorable mentions go to the Storm Twitch stick 10 and the Luck-E-Strike RC STX 4.5" and 3.75". Before anyone gets upset because I didn't include the Megabass Vision 110 or anything else, it is because I don't think that bait is a beginner bait, I think one should fish other baits first and learn the jerkbait before fishing the 110 so as to understand what makes the 110 so good. I've had guys in the boat with me throwing a 110 wondering what the hype was about because they didn't see anything worth $25, and that is why I consider it to be more of a jerkbait for those who have used them before.

 

[WI_Angler1989]

I found a bunch of Pointer 100sp and 78sp at scheels in the clearance bin. Hard to beat $7.99 each. I guess you've gotta just keep your eyes peeled and be persistent. Otherwise I've had a ton of success with Husky Jerks like others had said. 

[tje0705]

Im new to jerkbaits myself. I chose to go with the new Berkley cutter rip and the rogue perfect 10

[Kevin22]

I mostly use xraps... Biggest reason being i catch fish on them and i cant afford $15 baits. I will have to try a "good" jerkbait one of these days.

[WI_Angler1989]

51 minutes ago, Kevin22 said:

I mostly use xraps... Biggest reason being i catch fish on them and i cant afford $15 baits. I will have to try a "good" jerkbait one of these days.

Same. I bought 2 lucky craft pointer 78s for 7.99$ each. Hope for a sale, it's the only hope haha