Wake bait suggestions

[MediumMouthBass]

Strike King 2.5 wake bait is alright, but i prefer Strike King Hybrid Hunter on really thick mono instead.

The Fishlab Bioshad wake baits are my favorite, theres a small one and a giant one that requires my swimbait rod. Small one works great on regular casting gear.

[lunkerboss923]

Megabass i-Loud or the i-Jack

 

Deps Buzz Jet

 

Combat Rat from Evergreen.

 

G.I. from Raid Japan.

 

Klash Joker.

 

Tactical Wake 210 by River 2 Sea.

 

Deps Tiny Bulldoze.

 

Bucca Bull Shad Wake.

 

SPRO Rat Wake. 

 

 

[rangerjockey]

The redfin has always been popular around here but most of them require a bunch of work to get them to run right and some never will. The Berkeley surge shad is the same style and works right out of the package.

I like the old spro rat also.

Strike king is bringing back the wake shad which should be worth a try

[F14A-B]

When I think of wake baits I think of something like this.. it’s 1 oz and works very well. This one needs upgraded hooks and split rings though and at 9$ at BPS won’t hurt to lose it. Manns -1 the large size with all trebles removed with a large single hook on the rear proved to be a killer bait in the GOM on redfish. Learned that from a Captain / guide. 

[wdp]

17 hours ago, Smirak said:

Completely off topic, but your signature…

 

Hail State? 

Yes indeed! Went to grad school at MSU and then ended up working on campus for 12 yrs afterwards. Spent around 17-18 yrs total in Starkville and still go back frequently for ball games and to visit one of my kids. My other kid just graduated from MSU about yr & half ago and is now in grad school at University of Memphis. 

6 hours ago, F14A-B said:

When I think of wake baits I think of something like this.. it’s 1 oz and works very well. This one needs upgraded hooks and split rings though and at 9$ at BPS won’t hurt to lose it. Manns -1 the large size with all trebles removed with a large single hook on the rear proved to be a killer bait in the GOM on redfish. Learned that from a Captain / guide. 

I just bought a couple of these about month and half ago. I have this exact color & a shad pattern. Didn’t get to fish them much before it turned cold in my area and the topwater bite “cooled” off. Looking forward to fishing them this next spring & summer. 
 

These look fantastic and have pretty decent action. They don’t cast the best but do ok. I didn’t mention anything this size in my earlier reply because sounded like the original poster on this topic was looking for smaller wakebaits in the 2”-3” size. 

[BassinBrett]

I have used OSP Buzzin Crank and Daibuzzin and they are good.  I just tried the strike king wake shad yesterday.  It worked well.

[Standard]

22 hours ago, wdp said:

Wakebaits are my jam! As mentioned, Mann’s Baby 1- was a fav of mine for many years, but seems their quality control has been suspect last few yrs. I’ve had a couple that won’t swim true no matter how much I try to tune them or they blow out when you burn them. 
 

Runner up and prob a dark horse for me is the Bass Pro Shops “ The Egg”. More affordable and a quality wakebait. 
 

Lastly, I’ve also had good luck with the SK KVD 2.5 wakebait. More expensive but has pretty loud rattles & catches em well in shallow grass. 
 

With all 3 of these baits I switch out stock trebles which aren’t the best. I’m a fan of Gamakatsu short shank trebles. They seem to not get tangled as much as the stock hooks. 

 

Love the Wakebull, although I only have 2.  I didn't realize they were discontinued until I tried to buy more...

 

Speaking of KVD, I really like their Hybrid Hunter.  It's versatile, fishes a little deeper than a wake bait but I've had really good luck with them.  Checking the website I see they have a Shallow Hybrid Hunter now, I'll probably have to pick up a few of those.

[Kev-mo]

20 hours ago, FishTank said:

 

Always

 

 

I would check a JDM site for the best deal on this bait. 

 

Thanks. I didn't see much stock domestic or other. And for sure didn't see the color I wanted. Not sure how much that matters but I do have preferences when there are options. The heavy hitter is a different bait correct.

[wdp]

2 hours ago, Standard said:

 

Love the Wakebull, although I only have 2.  I didn't realize they were discontinued until I tried to buy more...

 

Speaking of KVD, I really like their Hybrid Hunter.  It's versatile, fishes a little deeper than a wake bait but I've had really good luck with them.  Checking the website I see they have a Shallow Hybrid Hunter now, I'll probably have to pick up a few of those.

I have a Berkley wakebull too. That thing has super loud rattles. You can hear it rattling more than half way back on a cast. 😂 I tend to do well with it on super windy/choppy days. Wanted to get a few more & realized they were discontinued. 
 

I have a couple SK hybrid hunters too but don’t really consider those wakebaits. Even the shallow one goes about 1-2 ft deep. Not great for my areas where I’m fishing around grass that comes up to 6” - 1 ft from surface. 

[MediumMouthBass]

3 hours ago, wdp said:

I have a couple SK hybrid hunters too but don’t really consider those wakebaits. Even the shallow one goes about 1-2 ft deep. Not great for my areas where I’m fishing around grass that comes up to 6” - 1 ft from surface. 

Throw it on really thick mono that floats well. It wont dive further than a wake bait then.

[wdp]

4 minutes ago, MediumMouthBass said:

Throw it on really thick mono that floats well. It wont dive further than a wake bait then.

Could be my problem. I’ve been throwing it on 12# fluoro. I don’t really like using mono anymore. Made switch about 10 yrs ago to all fluoro and braid & haven’t looked back. 

[Standard]

On 12/9/2024 at 6:58 PM, wdp said:

I have a Berkley wakebull too. That thing has super loud rattles. You can hear it rattling more than half way back on a cast. 😂 I tend to do well with it on super windy/choppy days. Wanted to get a few more & realized they were discontinued. 
 

I have a couple SK hybrid hunters too but don’t really consider those wakebaits. Even the shallow one goes about 1-2 ft deep. Not great for my areas where I’m fishing around grass that comes up to 6” - 1 ft from surface. 

 

The Hybrid is usually my next step if I'm not getting any interest in the wake bait.  Depends on where I'm fishing, but I usually start with topwater and work my way down through the water column.  

[RRocket]

Because of this thread, I went and purchased a Deps Buzzjet Jr. 

 

Am VERY excited to try it! 

[Hogs_n_Logs]

Buzzjet is a ton of fun to fish.

 

I really like "weak" action wake baits too like the Nishine Abino that are meant to be fished with really soft reeling/rod input. Theres those times like early morning were it seems like topwater is the go to but you dont get bites or you get weak trailing strikes, and these weaker action baits that dont put off too much water disturbance but still have quite a bit of action seem to work for me during those times. 

[Mr. Aquarium]

If you can find them, AR lures made a great small wake bait! 

[RRocket]

Colors added:

[BensBaits]

I am a huge fan of the toxic baits whippersnapper. You can slow roll it so slowly but it’s still creates so much disturbance. Also can crank it down as a large crank bait if needed. Either way that’s my go to. Gets big fish too!

[scaleface]

I dont have a bait that meets the 2.5 to 3 inch criteria. I use the old school Bomber Long A's. The one with the prop on the tail . It gets hammered while waking it in the spring. S\

On 12/9/2024 at 5:02 AM, rangerjockey said:

The redfin has always been popular around here

I have one of the old Ripplin Red Fins in my top water box and for some reason have never thrown it. I'll have to give it a go this next season. Its probably close to 40 years old or older.

[rangerjockey]

2 hours ago, scaleface said:

I dont have a bait that meets the 2.5 to 3 inch criteria. I use the old school Bomber Long A's. The one with the prop on the tail . It gets hammered while waking it in the spring. S\

I have one of the old Ripplin Red Fins in my top water box and for some reason have never thrown it. I'll have to give it a go this next season. Its probably close to 40 years old or older.

The standard fix that I use is 2 suspend dots behind the joint and add a feathered treble on the back.

The idea is to get it to squat at rest and keep it from diving on the retrieve.Some never do run right .

Some guys heat the bill and bend it down but I've thrown a few in the trash trying that method.

Smokey Joe or the chrome are the best colors for me.

 

[Darth-Baiter]

On 12/8/2024 at 5:48 PM, FishTank said:

OSP Buzzin Crank. Fish seem to come unglued when this bait goes past them. 

I with this guy. Casts better than I imagined.  Everything eats it.  I have Buzzjets.  Fun!  But the buzzin cranks seems to pissthem off more. 
 

[wdp]

On 12/21/2024 at 9:15 PM, RRocket said:

Colors added:

Talk about these got me intrigued & had the bait monkey knocking on my door. 🤣 But just saw the price tag. Wow, those are high dollar. I don’t mind occasionally snagging or losing an $8 wakebait, but I might have cardiac arrest if I lost one of these bad boys. 😂 These sure do look good tho. 

[RRocket]

3 hours ago, wdp said:

Talk about these got me intrigued & had the bait monkey knocking on my door. 🤣 But just saw the price tag. Wow, those are high dollar. I don’t mind occasionally snagging or losing an $8 wakebait, but I might have cardiac arrest if I lost one of these bad boys. 😂 These sure do look good tho. 

PM Sent! 

[scaleface]

The largest spotted bass I have caught came on a Rebel maxi PopR fished like a wake bait. There were no such category of baits then. I was retrieving it straight ,  just under the surface with a slight wiggle and pushing a big wake in front of it . Brought it by an emergent tree and a four lber jumped all over it.

[primetime]

Personally, I just wake the original Rapala Floating Minnows and Jointed Minnows as wake baits in all sizes and just reel slowly...Only issue is they are a bit light for casting gear......Rapala has every size and plenty of good color patterns from 1-3/4 up. 

 

The Smaller Bomber Long A makes a great wake bait in that size range, pretty sure the 13A is barely bigger than 2", and 14A is about 3".  I Have never had success with the Bomber "Wake" Baits but the regular old school Long A is a great wake bait over weeds. 

 

Yo-Zuri has a saltwater wake that is 3.5" but a slimmer profile than a crankbait style, made for saltwater and has a really aggressive side to side roll. Only needs a few inches of water. Older version is the SS Minnow which you can still find, now they make it in the 3db series I believe.

 

 

 

[primetime]

On 12/24/2024 at 8:27 AM, scaleface said:

The largest spotted bass I have caught came on a Rebel maxi PopR fished like a wake bait. There were no such category of baits then. I was retrieving it straight ,  just under the surface with a slight wiggle and pushing a big wake in front of it . Brought it by an emergent tree and a four lber jumped all over it.

I believe Heddon used to make a popper style bait with a wide mouth that was designed to be a wake bait. I forget the name but can picture it. May have been Arbogast...I remember watching a video of Patrick Sebile throwing one of his poppers like a wake bait and pulling them like a c-rig to get it to dive and it looked awesome....Never actually tried it for more than a few times but it makes sense....I have had a ton of strikes like most people reeling in all sorts of lures to make a new cast, waking a fluke or sluggo actually can be a good technique at times...