My most anticipated bait this spring.

[Darth-Baiter]

I received a great FISHMAS holiday gift this winter.  (Plus other awesome stuff!).  But this one stood out immediately. I looked at it with a child-like wonder.  

 

I think pitching it into the weeds on the California Delta will be so much potential for a good bass.  I put it away on top of my surplus baits , and my first trip out to the delta?  It will ride shotgun. 
 

the SLEEPER gill. What a gift!  Cant wait to post up a a fish pic. I’ll even throw it with a Megabass rod so the stars can align.  Go away Winter.  Be gone!

 

 

[Cbump]

They work!

[NorthernBasser]

I didn't fish it a ton last year. And I didn't catch any real big'uns. But like Cbump said, they eat it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Cbump]

Awesome pictures

[Jrob78]

I had good luck with them too. I fished the Gill like a swimbait and they get bit, whereas I fished the Dark Sleeper more like a jig most of the time. They are both great baits.

[NorthernBasser]

40 minutes ago, Jrob78 said:

I had good luck with them too. I fished the Gill like a swimbait and they get bit, whereas I fished the Dark Sleeper more like a jig most of the time. They are both great baits.

Yup that's how I fish them as well. And I think the Gill was designed to fish like a swimbait. 

[Bluebasser86]

Anywhere you can hop them through grass has been my best areas. 

[Finessegenics]

The dark sleeper has been great for me so I wonder if I really even need these! I fish it mostly like a swimbait.  

 

[Darth-Baiter]

I think I’ll pitch i into grass and see what happens. 

[Phelptwan]

I like to skip them up under docks.  I especially like docks that are floating catwalks where I can skip all the way under the dock to the area between the catwalk and the shore where some weeds and grass usually grow.

[Smokinal]

Great....order incoming ?

[Ski]

On 2/26/2023 at 9:21 PM, NorthernBasser said:

I didn't fish it a ton last year. And I didn't catch any real big'uns. But like Cbump said, they eat it.

How do they hold up? The reviews I read were not impressive.

1. They catch fish no doubt about that but they’re only good for 1 to 4 catches. Then they are beyond repair and no good.

2.Fished with the cichlid model for around 2 hrs caught one fish, and discovered that the paint job on these is horrible. It is already peeling off. Besides that, not real impressed with the overly wobbly swimming action. And the fin which is supposed to guard the hook is so flimsy that the hook pops out on every cast. $10 is too much for this bait.

3. Lost the eyes after 2 hours of use. 

4. Kinda disappointed bought a bunch early shared them with close friends n family. They all say the same thing the hook comes out causing it to swim sideways. The dorsal fin is closed in front which I believe to be a flaw. I’ve used it only briefly and immediately went back to dark sleeper. They look amazing though.

5. I was excited to see how the new sleeper gills preformed but was super disappointed with these, plastic is low quality and gets torn up fast and the action is a lot worse than the original dark sleeper, I've also noticed it catches a lot less and smaller fish than the dark sleeper, and the dorsal fin constantly gets stuck underneath the hook causing it to swim sideways.

 

[NorthernBasser]

5 hours ago, Ski said:

How do they hold up? The reviews I read were not impressive.

1. They catch fish no doubt about that but they’re only good for 1 to 4 catches. Then they are beyond repair and no good.

2.Fished with the cichlid model for around 2 hrs caught one fish, and discovered that the paint job on these is horrible. It is already peeling off. Besides that, not real impressed with the overly wobbly swimming action. And the fin which is supposed to guard the hook is so flimsy that the hook pops out on every cast. $10 is too much for this bait.

3. Lost the eyes after 2 hours of use. 

4. Kinda disappointed bought a bunch early shared them with close friends n family. They all say the same thing the hook comes out causing it to swim sideways. The dorsal fin is closed in front which I believe to be a flaw. I’ve used it only briefly and immediately went back to dark sleeper. They look amazing though.

5. I was excited to see how the new sleeper gills preformed but was super disappointed with these, plastic is low quality and gets torn up fast and the action is a lot worse than the original dark sleeper, I've also noticed it catches a lot less and smaller fish than the dark sleeper, and the dorsal fin constantly gets stuck underneath the hook causing it to swim sideways.

 

 

Yeah, the paint on them aren't too durable. But I think a lot of it has to do with where you're fishing it too. The one in that pic looks like they may have been dragging is along hard bottom. None of mine was worn on the bottom, just the sides a bit from the fish themselves. I have lost an eye on one of them.

 

I've definitely caught more than 5 bass (and a pike) one one and it was still kicking. besides some of the paint wearing off, it's swam fine. The fin makes the bait a tad weedless. But it's like the Dark Sleeper...it's really not THAT weedless. It does get frustrating when the hook pops out of the fin tho. And if you're having issues hooking up you can always cut the front part of the dorsal fin. 

[PressuredFishing]

If I might ask do you guys swim them actively like a keitech or creep them on bottom Like a jig?

 

 

[NorthernBasser]

17 minutes ago, PressuredFishing said:

If I might ask do you guys swim them actively like a keitech or creep them on bottom Like a jig?

 

 

I swim them like a swimbait, and I think that's what they were designed to do. Obviously you can fish them any way you want. The Dark Sleeper I fish more like a jig. 

[NorthernBasser]

2 hours ago, NorthernBasser said:

 

Yeah, the paint on them aren't too durable. But I think a lot of it has to do with where you're fishing it too. The one in that pic looks like they may have been dragging is along hard bottom. None of mine was worn on the bottom, just the sides a bit from the fish themselves. I have lost an eye on one of them.

 

I've definitely caught more than 5 bass (and a pike) one one and it was still kicking. besides some of the paint wearing off, it's swam fine. The fin makes the bait a tad weedless. But it's like the Dark Sleeper...it's really not THAT weedless. It does get frustrating when the hook pops out of the fin tho. And if you're having issues hooking up you can always cut the front part of the dorsal fin. 

Ok I was able to dig the actual bait I used in those pictures. Not sure exactly how many I caught on it but it's still fishable in it's current state. Remember I did catch a slime rocket on it as well. It is getting a little rough tho.

 

 

 

[Cbump]

Needed one more thing to put me over the free shipping threshold with TW last night. Threw a pumpkinseed Sleeper gill on there. 

[gim]

18 hours ago, NorthernBasser said:

Remember I did catch a slime rocket on it as well. It is getting a little rough tho.

I knew this had to be the case.  Lure shredders.

On 2/28/2023 at 8:32 AM, Phelptwan said:

I like to skip them up under docks.

This is something I look forward too as well, but the dock skipping bite here doesn't usually take off into full swing until at least June, fully after the bass have spawned, water temps rise, and they start to seek out shade from the warm summer sun.

 

The first bite I look forward to in the spring is the jerk bait bite.  And since I acquired a couple of new ones this winter, I can't wait to try them.