Hall Of Fame Plugs

[SJS]

New to the forum but I'm an old fisherman that first started bass fishing in the 50's with linen braided line, baitcasting rod made of split bamboo and a baitcasting reel without any brakes or other backlash control.  I tried the search function and couldn't find anything on this but I suspect it is due to my lack of computer skill.

 

I got away from largemouth fishing years ago when I moved to a location with much better smallmouth and trout fishing, and now I live in SC and do a lot of saltwater fishing.  I want to go fishing for largemouth again and I am trying to build my tackle box.  The number and variety of lures for sale are staggering.  I have assumed that things have not changed so much that I could not make any decisions and I bought plastic worms, sinkers and hooks, spinnerbaits, buzzbaits and jigs.  However, when it comes to plugs I need some help.

 

I googled this stuff and read lots of articles, watched utubes and have read some of the beginner articles here but I don't feel I am getting focused enough on my search.

It seems nobody even calls them plugs anymore, but I am talking about crankbaits (spoon bill, lipless, suspended, sinking, etc.) , jerkbaits, surface lures and poppers, and the like that used to be made out of wood, now are plastic, and generally look like baitfish.

 

I am not asking which kind to use in general, but I am asking whether there is a general consensus as to certain specific brand names that are accepted as effective.  In the old days that would have been lures like Hoola Popper, Jitterbug, Daredevil Spoon and Mepps Spinners. 

 

I know that there are established brands like Rapala, Strike King, Rebel, etc., but I don't know which specific plugs, if any, are generally considered must have plugs.

Perhaps none, and there are several good choices of each kind but just knowing that would help.

 

Any current plugs that would make your hall of fame?

[jr231]

I still catch fish with hula poppers, jitterbugs, Daredevil spoons and especially mepps ! What a true multi species bait ! From rock bass to northern pike, largemouth to catfish.... It catches them all! 

 

Anyway, welcome to the forums.. sweet first post ! 

 

As far as "plugs" go.... It's easy to be overwhelmed.... In terms of value (in my opinion) I think  rapala , bomber , bandit and strike king take the cake..  most of their cranks cost anywhere between 5-9 bucks... And I could make do with just these companies when it comes to plugs.   

 

Depending on your wallet... There are more expensive options that are praised highly by most bass fisherman... Such as lucky craft, jackall, and megabass..  most of these run between 15-25 dollars with a few exceptions from each company.. I own a few of these lures, and they are all very nice and catch bass... But something about breaking off a 17 dollar crankbait really chaps the rear..  

 

Good luck on your largemouth endeavors 

[IndianaFinesse]

Here's my must have cranks, a kvd 1.0 and 1.5, bandit 100, rapala shallow shad rap and regular shad rap, DT 10, 5xd, and a dd little john.  Smithswick rogues, lc pointers, and megabass vision 110's for jerks.  The original spook, arashi top walker, and pop-r for hard plastic tops.  Bill lewis rattle trap and redeye shad for lipless cranks.  

There is no consensus on which ones are best, but these are what I have settled on as my favorites.

[Outdoor Zack]

KVD 1.5

 

Bill Lewis rat-l-trap 

 

Rapala original floater

 

rebel pop r

[d-camarena]

Whopper plopper 110

 

[SJS]

Thank you guys, this is great.

 

I was wondering about those super expensive plugs, sounds like they are worth the money if you can afford them but I get annoyed losing a 5$ plug, losing one of those would ruin my day.  Maybe I will try just one.

 

It is neat to read that some of the old timers are still effective.  I used to swear that bass were getting educated and now I read that there may be some scientific truth of that.

 

It will be fun shopping for some of these you guys have mentioned.  I will have something specific to look for as my eyes glaze over looking at hundreds and hundreds of plugs on the rack.

 

Thank you.

[scaleface]

Hall of Famers still produced that I use . Norman Deep Little N and Bomber model A .

[roadwarrior]

Topwater:  Zara Spook, LC Sammy and Megabass PopMax

 

Jerkbait:  Megabass Ito Vision 110 and LC Pointer

 

Shallow crankbait:  Norman Fat Boy, KVD 2.5 and Bandit 200

 

Medium depth:  Strike King Red Eye Shad

 

Deep:  Bomber DD22

 

[Choporoz]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/BIG-UGLY-Plug-Knocker-Fishing-Lure-Retriever-Quick-Easy-To-Use-NEW-IMPROVED-/331155075605

 

If I lost all my hardbaits today, I'd go out tomorrow and get one each:

 

3/8 Colorado/Willow Spinnerbait

1/2 oz lipless crankbait - probably Strike King Red Eye or Lucky Craft

3-6' Squarebill

1 SUSPENDING Jerkbait - probably around 3-7 foot (I would only get Lucky Craft, Megabass or Rapala)

Shallow crankbait

Med crankbait ~ 8-11'

Couple of jigs

Hollow body frog

 

Brands aren't all too important to me for most stuff, but the lipless and jerkbaits are those I'm somewhat particular about...its a confidence thing, moreso than a reality capability thing, I'm sure

 

[skno]

Hall of Fame

 

norman fatboy

 

Baby 1 minus

 

smithwick or rapala  suspending

 

zara spook

 

pop r 

 

Rattle Trap

 

jitterbug

 

Mepps

 

Hot n Tot

 

There are many variations of these plugs made by many manufactures, but I believe these are some of the hall of famers you are looking for.

[Deleted account]

They all catch fish, and most catch fishermen. The trick is to find a couple that work for you. You can become nurse Rachett's favorite patient if you read through all the nonsense on the InterWeb®. If you are fishing in the Carolinas, I'd go with a couple of H2Os if you like Kias, and a few Jackall Askas if Lexus is more your speed (KVD 1.5s are like pickups). For deeper work, Fat Free Shads have been good to me in Moultrie and Gaston. 

[primetime]

Bomber Long A, Bagley's Bang O Lure, Rapala Orignal Minnow & Flat Rap Minnow, Rattlin Rogue, Cordell Red Fin, Storm Sub Wart, Shad Rap & Shallow Shad Rap, Mann's Minus Wake bait, Rapala DT-Fat, Norman Crankbaits, Wiggle Wart, Bandit 100-300, Kvd 1.5, DT Series Rapala, Flat Spro Crankbait with circuit board lip, Fat Free Shad, Bomber Fat A-Model A...Luhr Jensen Speed traps & Worden Timber Tigers.te

 

AC Shiner Balsa Floating Minnow-Light line, killer shallow running crank,wake, jerkbait....Hard to find but once you fish one, you quickly realize why Hand carved cedar and balsa wood cranks are expensive. Glad I found one of these last year in a tackle shop, I never would have known.

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