KVD 1.5 Square Bill Vs. Others

[Troy85]

Just curious as to others thoughts.  I love to throw a square bill, where I fish is mostly shallow, so I'm almost always throwing a square bill that dives 5' or less.  I've pretty much always throw the H2Oxpress square bills that Academy sells.  They are usually $3.50 or less, where as the KVD 1.5 is $6-7.  My question is, has anyone used a KVD 1.5 vs another off brand, and if so have you seen a noticeable difference in catch rate?  Is the 1.5 worth the extra $3-4?

[Rpratt]

There is no doubt that the KVD square bill is my confidence bait. The only thing I don't like is how easily the hooks get bent or break. So those get changed out quite a bit after a little bit. The only other one that I have used that has caught fish consistently for me is the Berkely squarebills. And their hooks to me seem to be much better.

[Black Hawk Basser]

My all-time favorite square bill is the Bomber Square A.  They have always been an economical choice, but they seem to be harder to find lately.  The 2" version is just right for largemouths, and the 1-5/8" version is great for everything in rivers around here.

[blckshirt98]

No Academy stores out here, I like the KVD because they're easy to find and replace when I lose one, and someone usually has them on sale somewhere.  If the Academy squarebills are catching you fish, I wouldn't feel the need to spend the extra money.

[SloppyJ]

I like the SPRO squarebills over the KVD but they both work. I have an issue where the front treble hook likes to get stuck on the bill on the KVD models. I don't have this problem with the SPRO brand. 

 

If I could find the bomber square bills locally, I would buy those instead. I'm a big bomber fan because that's what me and my grandpa used to throw. 

[TOXIC]

I too throw the SPRO Little John Square Bills.  I think I have 10 of every color!!  Gamakatsu sticky trebles but you do pay for them.    

[Comfortably Numb]

I really like the Acadamy ones. Very similar to KVD and half the price.

[LonnieP]

I also use SPRO square bills. Pricey but well worth it. 

[A-Jay]

SK KVD 1.5 & 2.5 are big time producers for me in the squarebill world.

But the 6th Sense "crush" line of squarebills (50X, Flat 75X & newer 100X) are also VERY GOOD. 

https://6thsensefishing.com/collections/crush-50x

A-Jay

[burrows]

4 hours ago, A-Jay said:

 

https://6thsensefishing.com/collections/crush-50x

A-Jay

Over rated , what does this 10$ square bill offer me that the 7 $ lucky craft doesn’t offer? Absolutely nothing. Minus the 75X now that bait is worth the extra few bucks.

[Sam]

11 hours ago, Troy1985s said:

Just curious as to others thoughts.  I love to throw a square bill, where I fish is mostly shallow, so I'm almost always throwing a square bill that dives 5' or less.  I've pretty much always throw the H2Oxpress square bills that Academy sells.  They are usually $3.50 or less, where as the KVD 1.5 is $6-7.  My question is, has anyone used a KVD 1.5 vs another off brand, and if so have you seen a noticeable difference in catch rate?  Is the 1.5 worth the extra $3-4?

1.  Yes, the 1.5 is an excellent square bill bait.

2.  Yes, the Academy H2O square bill bait is excellent.

3.  The KVD 1.5 is worth the money.

4.  The Academy H2O square bills are worth the money.

 

Go for both and keep a record as to how they perform.

[Russ E]

I seem to get hung up a lot less in wood with the KVD 1.5, compared to other squarebills.

If you buy them at regular price they are expensive.

Cabelas usually puts them on sale a couple times a year, for around $3.00.

[burrows]

11 hours ago, Troy1985s said:

Just curious as to others thoughts.  I love to throw a square bill, where I fish is mostly shallow, so I'm almost always throwing a square bill that dives 5' or less.  I've pretty much always throw the H2Oxpress square bills that Academy sells.  They are usually $3.50 or less, where as the KVD 1.5 is $6-7.  My question is, has anyone used a KVD 1.5 vs another off brand, and if so have you seen a noticeable difference in catch rate?  Is the 1.5 worth the extra $3-4?

The Rick clunn square bills by lucky strike are great baits also worth throwing they catch fish no doubt.

[scaleface]

I used KVD squarebills a few times and havent caught much .Switch to another bait and hammer them . So I havent used one for a couple of years . The baits that have out-fished them for me are the Luck E Strike Rick Clunn , Rapala Crankin Rap and vintage Rogers Big Jim . 

[Bluebasser86]

The H2O baits are one of the main squarebills I fish when I fish one. 

[FishDewd]

I haven't tried a bunch of different squarebills, but I've gotten pretty good at working them and know what they're doing under water, so I definitely have confidence in them to some degree. When the squarebill bite is on they're a lot of fun. I mostly have KVD 1.5s, but I also have 1-2 larger 2.5s as well. I try to keep them light or natural colored cause I feel that matches most water conditions pretty well. Also I have one that is somewhat perch colored. The most productive one for me so far has been one that is mostly white with a touch of yellow on the side, silent. I also have a Berkley perch imitator that rattles that's done well, I feel this one works better around cover that the KVD just that's just my opinion. The KVDs tend to sometimes get the front hook stuck on the line for some reason, the Berkley it seems to happen less. Also in my arsenal is a Rapala BX Brat that dives deeper than the KVDs at 6'. It's a green perch color and has a totally different action that the other ones. I throw it sometimes but I have less confidence in it than the others so far.

[TOXIC]

Another thing to remember about the SPRO Little John's is that the rattles are coated which make a different kind of rattle, it's more of a thump.  

[WRB]

Bagley Balsa B in baby bass has been good for me for over 40 years.

Nothing new about square bills.

Tom

[iabass8]

17 hours ago, Burros said:

Over rated , what does this 10$ square bill offer me that the 7 $ lucky craft doesn’t offer? Absolutely nothing. Minus the 75X now that bait is worth the extra few bucks.

Better hooks, paint, and quality control over the 7$ LC. The 6th sense 50s are 8.99. 

[burrows]

2 hours ago, iabass8 said:

Better hooks, paint, and quality control over the 7$ LC. The 6th sense 50s are 8.99. 

I don’t think so brother I own both brands and I don’t see 6 sense offering anything better at all that includes quality, paint jobs and hooks.

 Hey you like the 6 sense square bills, you think they are better that’s cool. I’m cool with that.

[iabass8]

5 minutes ago, Burros said:

I don’t think so brother I own both brands and I don’t see 6 sense offering anything better at all.

Cool. The only thing you're paying 7$ for when buying the budget LC is the name. The reason that particular bait is as cheap as it is now is because they cut quality control, hardware, and finish to cheapen the price as a "customer appreciation". The 6th sense have better stock hooks and a better finishing coat. The 7$ LC in't any better or worse than an H20, KVD 1.5, or any other lower priced squarebill. The DRS, RT, RTO, and BDS still have the old quality control/hardware. 

[iabass8]

20 minutes ago, Burros said:

I don’t think so brother I own both brands and I don’t see 6 sense offering anything better at all that includes quality, paint jobs and hooks.

 Hey you like the 6 sense square bills, you think they are better that’s cool. I’m cool with that.

And no, I don't like 6th sense squarebills and prefer LC. However, I would fish a 6th sense before any of the 7$ "LC"

[burrows]

1 hour ago, iabass8 said:

And no, I don't like 6th sense squarebills and prefer LC. However, I would fish a 6th sense before any of the 7$ "LC"

Well good for you. 

[Comfortably Numb]

A really good cold water square bill is made by Baker. It's the only suspending SB that I know of. You can really work it slow. Good color choices but the paint chips very easily. Fish don't seem to care tho. Also comes in two depth ranges.

 

http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Baker_Lures_Suspending_Squarebill_Crankbait/descpage-BKRSUCR.html

[Deleted account]

On June 21, 2018 at 9:46 AM, Troy1985s said:

Just curious as to others thoughts.  I love to throw a square bill, where I fish is mostly shallow, so I'm almost always throwing a square bill that dives 5' or less.  I've pretty much always throw the H2Oxpress square bills that Academy sells.  They are usually $3.50 or less, where as the KVD 1.5 is $6-7.  My question is, has anyone used a KVD 1.5 vs another off brand, and if so have you seen a noticeable difference in catch rate?  Is the 1.5 worth the extra $3-4?

SK 1.5 and h2o are two very good cranks, but they vary in profile and action. Based on where and when I'm fishing, I'll go with one over the other, hence I don't rank them one better than the other. I will say that for the money, the Academy baits ar among the best bang for the buck, and some of the most consistent out of the package lures period in terms of action/QA, they are hand painted, so they do vary in color/pattern somewhat, I find this a plus, some may not.  There are maybe a dozen or so cranks that I have a lot of confidence in, but in truth, if you get around active fish, they ar going to bite a crank most of the time. Now for the guy that asked about frog vs crank on another thread, that's just silliness...