The Annual Boom or Bust Lure thread - 2017 edition

[tcbass]

This will hopefully be a mid-summer tradition, a thread that covers lures that you've had success and failures with. This thread may introduce people to new lures that they've never tried before that they may try that will bring them success. People can also talk about lures that didn't work for them and perhaps others can give tips and hints on how to make that lure work better for them. I'll start with what has and has not worked for me.

 

Boom Lures:

 

 

Whopper Plopper:  My new favorite lure. This lure is incredible. It casts super far, has amazingly sharp hooks (which is why I think so many people have the rear hooks foul hooking fish), attracts fish from far and wide, covers water fast, works well in calm and rough waters, catches fish consistently in all weather conditions.

 

I love topwater, I'd rather catch 1 fish topwater if I had to miss 3 fish regular. My old favorite lure was the KVD Sexy Dawg, however, the Whopper Plopper has taken that top slot because it just so effective and is easy to use. All you need to do is cast it out and reel it in. You can go from extremely slow to extremely fast and catch fish on the splashdown, you can also stop and go which you can't do with a buzzbait. It is just so versatile. The KVD Sexy Dawg was great but was limited to calm water to mostly calm water and didn't cover water nearly as fast because you need to walk the dog with it. The WP can cover so much water in such a short time period it is a great search lure but will also bring fish in from far away. It is basically a far more versatile buzzbait. One of the problem's I've always had with buzzbaits is that because of their lightweight you can't cast them as far as a heavier lure, well, the Whopper Plopper solves this problem being able to be cast a country mile and also has variable speed, the ability to catch on splashdown, more hooks for short striking fish so you don't need a stinger hook, and the ability to be effective in larger waves and rough water.

 

I think the 130 is too big for anything I do and the 110 works fine until I get into areas that have weeds that are just under the surface and the Whopper Plopper 110 goes too deep on splashdown and catches weeds, in that scenario I use the WP 90 because it doesn't sink so deep into the water on splashdown. Although the 90 doesn't seem to make nearly as much of a Whopper Plopper sound it has caught fish just as well.

 

 

Teckel Sprinker Frog:  The only downside to the Whopper Plopper is that it is not weedless. And with it being mid-summer lake weeds have had time to grow up from the bottom and reach the surface. This has made the Whopper Plopper the wrong lure for the job. But what if you want a Whopper Plopper/buzzbait style action but don't want to catch weeds on every cast? There used to be no solution. Now you have it, the Teckel Sprinker Frog. I actually haven't gotten my hands on the a real Teckel Sprinker Frog, but my homemade ones have been killing it. I've used a Spro and Livetarget frog and also a Snagproof Phat Frog. I caught a lot of fish initially but am now having problem getting the lure to plane quickly and it is being dragged in subsurface for about the first 10 feet. I'm hoping using a ball bearing swivel over a regular swivel will resolve this problem. 

However, the homemade Teckel Sprinker Frog has proven to be a winner, similar to the Whopper Plopper but the added bonus of being weedless. I have not lost a lot of fish on it in open water and I think the reason for that is is because it is being retrieved pretty quickly when the fish hit it they are immediately hooked. It can also be reeled in a lot faster than a regular frog that has to be walked the dog retrieved and because of this it can cover a lot more ground quickly. It also works well in rough water and open water, something that isn't a strong point for regular frogs. Another benefit is that it merely needs to be reeled in to catch fish wherein a regular frog normally has to be walked the dog which can be extremely hard to learn for some folks and I myself still cannot get a frog to walk the dog. Can't wait to get my order of real Teckel Sprinker Frogs see if they work better than the homemade version.  

 

 

Bust Lures:  

 

Ned Rig:  I wanted the Ned Rig to work so bad, but it just hasn't worked for me. Despite using a weedless version it catches a ton of weeds and doesn't catch any fish that a CPS nosehooked Zoom Super Fluke or Wacky Rigged Senko can't catch under docks or out in the open in weeded areas. I've tried giving it time and popping it off the bottom or dragging it but it just catches a lot of weeds. I have caught some fish with it but it definitely isn't a presentation that I will be using in the weeds under docks. 

 

 

Whopper Plopper hooks are sharp!

 

 

Prime Whopper Plopper 110 area with weeds well underneath the surface:

 

 

 

Prime Whopper Plopper 90 area with weeds just underneath the surface:

 

 

 

Prime Tekel Sprinker Frog area with weeds either just under the surface or on the surface:

 

 

 

Homemade Teckel Sprinker Frog fish:

 

 

 

 

So, for 2017, what lures for you have been Boom or Bust?

[bigturtle]

gatta say, nothing boomed or busted for me. Every new lure i tried caught fish, all my old lures caught fish, I'm happy

[Bluebasser86]

Boom for me would be the underspin. I've tried and tried to make this presentation work, then @gardnerjigman did one little thing at our tournament at Table Rock, and the light bulb came on. It's caught me a lot of fish since then, and was a big part of the reason we won the tournament that weekend.

 

Bust has been a tough one for me, and one that I'm still not willing to accept, but so far it's been a buzzbait. Year in and year out, one of my favorite baits and usually my most productive topwater. There's been a couple flashes, including my Kansas PB spotted bass, but it's really been a disappointing year for one of my standbys.

 

Of course any kind of crankbait has been an absolute bomb for me. It's been that way the last few years though. Getting to the point I've seriously considered selling all but a handful of my cranks since all they're doing is taking up space in my boat anyways. Had some decent days on a couple finesse cranks like the Duo Realis shad and #5 Shad Rap during the winter, but that's the end of the list. Even lakes that are normally good crankbait lakes, they've been complete duds. 

[tcbass]

8 minutes ago, bigturtle said:

gatta say, nothing boomed or busted for me. Every new lure i tried caught fish, all my old lures caught fish, I'm happy

 

What new and old lures have you tried?

[Tim Kelly]

From my summer trip, one of my more satisfying additions to the front line was a buzzbait, but a buzzbait with a horny toad on the back. It made casting a buzzbait easier and skipping it possible too. I love a buzzbait strike and the toad instead of the skirt was a great upgrade for me.

[standman]

WP 90 is the $hit.   I'm generally a cheap bastage, who doesn't like spending more than $5 for a lure, but couple days ago decided to splurge on the WP at Dicks -2 for $20.

My first ever cast resulted in a dink.  Few casts later I hooked into a very respectable (for Chitown pond) 5.44 LMB, which happened to be my PB.   

The WP simply gets the job done!  

 

[Mike L]

I don't like experimenting with every little thing that comes out. I tend to stay within my comfort level.

However, if a bait keeps getting rave reviews on here I'll pick one up and try it at a local pond or canal.

 

So far this year there are 2 that I tried and would consider a bust for me...a small underspin (Clayton, don't feel alone ) and the ned rig. 

I'll keep trying to make the underspin work but forget the Ned.

 

 

 

Mike

[Dens228]

5 hours ago, standman said:

WP 90 is the $hit.   I'm generally a cheap bastage, who doesn't like spending more than $5 for a lure, but couple days ago decided to splurge on the WP at Dicks -2 for $20.

My first ever cast resulted in a dink.  Few casts later I hooked into a very respectable (for Chitown pond) 5.44 LMB, which happened to be my PB.   

The WP simply gets the job done!  

 

Another Chicago boy here.   For me the Wacky Rig seems to work almost every time and has kept me from being skunked, and hollow body frogs have been my go to with a lot of success all summer since I fish a lot of water with tons of weeds.  

 

I've caught something on just about everything in my tacklebox but have not caught a single thing on any spinner baits this year.

Pictured bass was on a Wacky rig, from shore while I waited for a birthday party to start....

[scaleface]

Boom lures this  year .

 

Berkely Dredgers 10.5 and 14.5 

Original  Wiggle Wart - Day and Night

Luck E Strike  6 inch Twirl tail  worms

Manns 6&8 inch Jelly worms 

Homemade buzzbait - Day and night

Strike King Midnight special - Night hours

 

Bust lures

 

Soft swimbaits

Spinnerbaits during the day

Chatterbaits . I have yet to catch a fish on a chatterbait .

8 hours ago, Bluebasser86 said:

I've tried and tried to make this presentation work, then @gardnerjigman did one little thing at our tournament at Table Rock, and the light bulb came on

 

What was the one thing?

[OkobojiEagle]

8 hours ago, Bluebasser86 said:

then @gardnerjigman did one little thing at our tournament at Table Rock, and the light bulb came on.

 

 

Apparently you don't want to share the light...

 

oe

[Scarborough817]

boom for me would be the spro popping frog as well as the ned rig and the red eye shad

bust is the whopper plopper i have thrown it multiple times in multiple areas and just haven't had a single strike. i would much rather throw a buzzbait than the plopper 

[tcbass]

39 minutes ago, Scarborough817 said:

boom for me would be the spro popping frog as well as the ned rig and the red eye shad

bust is the whopper plopper i have thrown it multiple times in multiple areas and just haven't had a single strike. i would much rather throw a buzzbait than the plopper 

 

 

Next time you get a hit on a buzzbait switch to a Whopper Plopper and see if you get bit. 

 

 

When my bro has gotten bitten on a Senko I'll throw a Super Fluke just to see if they'll hit it. Always have. I'll also try different colors, if he's using a Bone WP I'll use a Loon, one is basically a white and the other is black. Both catch fish. Usually, if fish are hungry I think they'll eat almost anything. It's when they're finicky that it gets harder to catch them.

 

If you're getting hit on a buzzbait a Whopper Plopper should work and cast much farther and cover more area faster.  

[CTBassin860]

Booms for me are the Rage Tail Rage Bug, Spro Rat 30 and the ever so trusty wacky rigged Yum Dinger.

 

Busts are hands down the hollow bodied frog and soft paddle tail swimbaits.Not a single fish on either one this year so far.

[Bluebasser86]

2 hours ago, scaleface said:

59 minutes ago, OkobojiEagle said:

 

 

Apparently you don't want to share the light...

 

oe

What was the one thing?

It was a 3.8 Keitech Fat. Something about it balanced them out perfectly so they didn't roll but was small enough that it could stay down deep, but soft enough that it had plenty of action on a slow retrieve. It was just the perfect bait for the heads we were using and it made all the difference in the world.

[NorcalBassin]

Boom: Whopper Plopper

Bust: Buzzbait. Pretty sure I just don't know what the heck I'm doing so I don't hold it personally responsible.

[fishwizzard]

Boom: Chatterbaits.  I have tried them on and off for the last two years, but after getting a heavy power rod I am finally getting them to work.  My lighter rods would vibrate my arm off and I never really had any confidence that I could make a good hookset.  Now I can run one all day while still feeling it run and tick off the bottom.  I have been catching with them all over, from working cover and weedlines, to just fan casting them across open water. 

 

Bust: Full sized straight tail Texas rigged worms.  The old classic has never worked for me and because of that I have a really hard time making myself fish them.  I use other t-rigged plastics, smaller worms, and curly tails to good effect but my little box of 6-8" worms has never caught me a fish.  

[seyone]

Boom:

swim jigs with Keitech swing impact as trailers. These have been a go to for me the past couple of years fishing them primarily in clearer water.

Ned rig, this thing has been a smallie killer for me.  High pressured clear lakes, and these things still produce.

Whopper Plopper. This year was the first time I have tried them, and they are a lot of fun.

River 2 sea Rover. Might just be my favorite walking bait.

 

Bust:

Chatter baits/bladed jigs. Usually good baits for me, I haven't had much success this year.

Z-man soft plastics. They catch fish and last a long time, unless they get hot. I have caught probably 50 fish on a single TRD, and have the rest of the pack melt because they got too hot. 

[tcbass]

4 hours ago, NorcalBassin said:

Boom: Whopper Plopper

Bust: Buzzbait. Pretty sure I just don't know what the heck I'm doing so I don't hold it personally responsible.

 

 

That's strange because they are fished almost the exact same way in the exact same places. 

 

But if the WP is killing it for you, no point in changing. 

 

If you want to see if you can get the buzzbait to work next time you catch a few on the Whopper Plopper switch over to a buzzbait and see if you can catch any on that. 

[Rook]

Everything I fish with is about as old as I am. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My fishing reels are older than most of my lures. I don't use anything but the old Mitchell's.

 

 

 

 

[Falkus]

BOOM:

Super Fluke: Its my trusty lure where they just hammer it like breakfast where I go

 

Texas Rig: Ever since I got the NRX 803C JWR with Shimano Core 50 MG7. My Strikes has gone up 50% as I can feel the bottom with the craws. 

 

Bust:

 

Frogs: Where I fish, There is thick lily pads..might be a problem lol  

Ned Rig:  Tried that and I always go back to wacky which they hit it more if I put the weights on the Senko.  

[riverbasser]

Boom lures or rigs? If both not much has changed. Shakyhead, wacky rig, jigs and ultravibe worms. The only new to me has been SK caffeine shads. They catch fish and look great in the water

 

Duds have spinnerbaits. Ha entire caught a fish all year and have almost quit using them

[Gundog]

Boom would be the swim jig. I know that any jig can be a swim jig and that its more of a technique than a lure but I've caught a good number of fish on it this year. And they don't just hit it, most of the fish I've caught were solidly hooked. 

 

Bust...well if you have read some of my other posts you know how I feel about the Whopper Plopper. I've fished it at various times and it just hasn't produced. I mean, no fish at all on a lake that is pretty good for top water baits.

[ww2farmer]

Boom: Nothing

 

Bust: My entire 2017 tournament season so far. I am just "off" this year. 8 tournaments in and so far I have cashed only once (2nd), flirted with being in the money twice (a 4th and 5th), had one tournament where my execution kept me out of the money, and have laid 4 total eggs. Two of which I was on the trailer and gone home early due to being spun out badly, and two more in which I just couldn't get anything going at all. Either this will continue, or redemption is a few casts away. I know one thing............the getting spun out and giving up is a troubling trend that I have to nip in the bud real quick. I have to get back to grinding when it's tuff, and figuring out how to keep my head in the game when it's not going well. I have adopted a new "positive attitude", and I am getting drive in me again. Mark the date bass resource...7/30/17.....the great ww2farmer tournament funk stretching back to Sept. of 2016 is over!!. Heck, I might bomb the next one, or two, or 10, but this little "getting spun out" phase is over.

[Dorado]

Boom - Z-Man White Shad Chatterbaits, Rapala Rippin Rap in Chrome w/ Blue Back, Zoom Super Fluke Jr. in White Ice, Roboworm FAT 4.5" SXE Shad Staight Tail Worm and Zoom Junebug Finesse Worm

 

Busts - Jackall Pompadour  Jr., Whopper Plopper 90s, and Megabass Pop- X.  (So, apparently I  spend too much $$$ on top water lures that I get zero action on). I even had to mail the Pop X back due to a defected product right out of the box. As long as I have my true and faithful black Jitterbug. 

[Turkey sandwich]

Boom - a variety of Siebert Arky and Football head jigs (I'm absolutely loving the hooks on the Dredge series.  The hook up percentage is incredible and they are a nightmare to shake.  I have landed several 15-18" fish with their mouths hooked completely shut.  The Arky Dredge with the recessed line tie helped to win me a tournament in June.), Whopper Plopper 90, grubs, wacky Senkos, TRD/Ned rig fished on the swing, 4-5"soft plastic sculpins fished on swinging football heads.  I feel like my pitching from a kayak has improved a lot this year and that my technique dragging a football head has also gotten better.  The Ned is new, and I'm finding that I'm picking up extra fish drifting either it or the wacky Senko that I'd otherwise miss.  The Whopper Plopper has all but replaced buzz baits and has straight up outperformed walking baits in scenarios where previously I'd be throwing a Spook.

 

Bust - frogs, crankbaits, spinnerbaits, walking baits, Yum Christie Craw. Outside of a few fish on DT 14 and XD6s, I've had almost zero crank bait success this year, which is really frustrating as they're normally my go-to for covering water. I also feel like I've caught some less-than-favorable conditions when I've had the opportunity to get out, be it high flows, chocolate milk, fronts etc. Still, even in lots of conditions that should have been very frog, walking bait, and spinnerbait friendly, they just never seemed to produce.  Admittedly, I can definitely improve my frog technique.  Not technique specific, but I can also get better at finding patterns faster, doing a better job eliminating water before getting on the water, having more patience fishing deep weed edges, and working on boat control with the kayak.  The Christie Craw is the only bait that I bought where I'm really disappointed in it's performance/action versus my ability to use it.