What's your current favorite lure?

[Hook2Jaw]

What is your current favorite lure, soft plastic or hard bait?   If you can't narrow it down to one, give me a few!  I'm just curious and thought it would make an interesting thread for folks to partake in today.

 

As for me, my current favorite soft bait is the YUM Pulse 4.5 Paddletail.  I'm amazed at how the rib set up on the sides truly does keep the bait at depth more efficiently than other paddletails I've used in the past.

 

As for hard baits, I'm late to the club but the Z-Man Original Chatterbait has been a blast.  When I first tried it the summer before last I was just burning it close to the top, but after tying it on several weeks ago and applying some of the methods I've read about it started to catch fish for me and the feedback of the blade just stopping or getting the rod snatched out of my grip has been a blast.

[TOXIC]

Big suprise.......a Senko.  Doesn't work everyday but the most consistent producer in most all conditions.  Hard bait would have to be a SPRO Little John original.  Those 2 and a Yamamoto DShad are ALWAYS rigged whenever I hit the water.  

[fishballer06]

Keitech Swing Impact Fat

[Glaucus]

My favorite lure isn't something I would just always fish with, but it's the Whopper Plopper. I just love to bomb it out there and fish it back to me knowing that there's a good chance it's going to get annihilated.

 

I also like squarebills, lipless cranks, chatterbaits, Senkos, Ned Rig, jigs. That pretty much does it for me. Chatterbaits do me way better than spinnerbaits, and I like jigs way more than Texas rigs (I started on the Texas rig years ago but honestly just don't like to fish it anymore), Senkos are always good, Ned is my favorite finesse tactic, squarebills and lipless are always good. 

[scaleface]

  I still fish a Jelly worm most of the time but any worm will do . As far as hard baits , my number one bait this past year was a hand poured  buzzbait . The slop I was fishing in made it difficult for a lot of lures and  the buzzbait worked well around it . The old Excalbur spinnerbait with counter rotating blades was a very close second .

[Hook2Jaw]

11 minutes ago, TOXIC said:

Big suprise.......a Senko.

Ain't no shame in my stick worm game either, bro.

6 minutes ago, Glaucus said:

My favorite lure isn't something I would just always fish with, but it's the Whopper Plopper.

Never thrown the ploploplop, and don't own any.  What rod would you recommend for them?  A 6'6" MF is my current rip/topwater rod but I think it's a bit light.

 

6 minutes ago, scaleface said:

  I still fish a Jelly worm most of the time but any worm will do.

What's your favorite way to throw them?  iirc, that's the Mann's Jelly Worm?

[scaleface]

7 minutes ago, Hook2Jaw said:

What's your favorite way to throw them?  iirc, that's the Mann's Jelly Worm?

Texas rigged deep and shallow .

[Glaucus]

11 minutes ago, Hook2Jaw said:

Ain't no shame in my stick worm game either, bro.

Never thrown the ploploplop, and don't own any.  What rod would you recommend for them?  A 6'6" MF is my current rip/topwater rod but I think it's a bit light.

 

What's your favorite way to throw them?  iirc, that's the Mann's Jelly Worm?

MH for 110 and 75. M for 90. Don't fish the 130. 110 is way too heavy for a M, but 75 can be fished on some M rods. It's 9/16oz or about 3/5oz. It will load many M rods passed the comfort zone. The 110 is well over 1oz. The 90 is only 3/8oz.

[the reel ess]

Black & blue jig and craw. i made a serious effort to get better at it this year with a lot of practice and ended up catching a PB. I used it every time I went in 2018.

Runner-up is the War Eagle Gold Shiner tandem willow spinnerbait, which caught my current PB.

Of course, there is a chance I catch a PB on something else...

 

[NYWayfarer]

My current favorite lure is my Rebel Bluegill squarebill. I changed the stock barbless hooks to some Eagle Claw Laser Sharp red trebles. I throw it on a size 300 spinning reel and 8lb Fluorokote line.

 

I thought I lost it last month but was able to catch it on another lure and reel it back in.

 

[Hook2Jaw]

Thanks for the rod recommendation, @Glaucus!  My current 7' MH has Fluoro on it, which keeps dragging my spooks under.  I may have to grab another Aird-X and string it with mono.

 

@the reel ess, I also became comfortable with casting jigs this year and it landed me my own personal best!  I tend to drag a 7.5" worm Texas/Carolina when I need a fish, and a jig and craw when I want a big fish!  you should try pitching your jigs, that's been fun for me.

 

@NYWayfarer, I have fond memories of Rebel craw crankbaits and Rebel floating jerkbaits from way back when I'd go visit my grandfather.  I miss fishing with him so much.  That's a sweet little crank.

[Log Catcher]

Bandit and Norman crank baits. War eagle screaming eagle spinner baits. Zoom baby brush hogs and trick worms.

[Hook2Jaw]

29 minutes ago, Log Catcher said:

War eagle screaming eagle spinner baits.

I throw Booyah spinnerbaits, but I've heard lots of good things about War Eagle.  What makes them so good?

[the reel ess]

1 hour ago, Hook2Jaw said:

 

@the reel ess, I also became comfortable with casting jigs this year and it landed me my own personal best!  I tend to drag a 7.5" worm Texas/Carolina when I need a fish, and a jig and craw when I want a big fish!  you should try pitching your jigs, that's been fun for me.

I do pitch them. The PB I caught under some overhanging brush. It immediately buried itself in the brush and I had to force her out. That fish had a huge gut but i didn't have my phone that day for a pic. Funny thing is, the next PB I caught on the spinnerbait was about 50 yards away from that spot, looked exactly like that same fish and weighed .2 lbs more. It's in my profile pic. In my mind, it's probably the same fish, but since I let it live, that's 2 fish for me!

11 minutes ago, Hook2Jaw said:

I throw Booyah spinnerbaits, but I've heard lots of good things about War Eagle.  What makes them so good?

For me, the fact they make gold ones with a gold shiner skirt. Gold shiners are a primary forage in the place I catch the best fish. The PB wrecked my War Eagle gold shiner SB. I still have it, but the head is loose and it does not appear that the wire is directly connected to the hook. I ordered some replacement shirts to use on other spinnerbaits that I've lost the skirts off of.

https://www.wareaglelures.com/war-eagle-gold-frame-double-willow-spinnerbait-gold-shiner-1-2-oz

[CroakHunter]

My favorite as of right this second is a magnum rage bug on a 5/0 flipping hook, with a 3/8 ounce weight pegged on 22lb sunline fluoro with my dobyns 735 and tatula ct.

[Catt]

Double Z Custom Lures ?

 

MAGNUM T-WORM - BAD BOY #69

[2tall79]

Yup, wacky rigged 5" Senko.

[Hook2Jaw]

@the reel ess, I hear ya!  Just throwing the recommendation.  That's awesome that you probably caught the same PB twice, she sounds like an aggressive girl.  As far as the spinnerbaits go I like to keep in simple.  1/2oz, white or chartreuse.

 

@Catt, now you've got me googling.

 

@2tall79, unweighted or weighted?  I've never tried them weighted, and after hanging them up unweighted I always return to texposing them.

 

Awesome replies, guys, thanks for helping me finish the day!

[Todd2]

I'm in an all out war with the local Crappie at this point ...my weapon right now is the Shinee Hinee jig. I'm winning, lol. Caught a few of those lowly Bass on it too. ?

[Hook2Jaw]

2 minutes ago, Todd2 said:

those lowly Bass ?

You have dishonored yourself, your family, and your cow.  ?

[2tall79]

Anything less than say 10 FOW it's weightless.  Over 10' I'll use a texas rig with the lightest weight I can get away with.

[Mobasser]

Plastic worm

[Catt]

42 minutes ago, Hook2Jaw said:

now you've got me googling.

 

1/8 oz Shaky Head ?

[Hook2Jaw]

8 minutes ago, Mobasser said:

Plastic worm

6 minutes ago, Catt said:

 

1/8 oz Shaky Head ?

I can't catch a cold on a finesse worm, much less a magnum finesse worm.  That's not entirely true, as I can and have caught fish shakyheading, it's just not my favorite thing to do.

[Catt]

@Hook2Jaw These float!  ?