FivePoundBluegill Posted October 27, 2007 Posted October 27, 2007 I bought some X-Raps a while back and from what you guys have said this bait works better when the water is starting to cool off. The water in my area has cooled off and the water is a little bit murky at this point. I live in southern California and the water has been stained with ash from the recent fires in my area. I have been hammering decent size fish on rattle trap type baits. Anyway the water is a bit more clear now yet is still murky in some spots in the lake I am planning to fish tomorrow. It will probably clear up then get murky again quickly since the water is cooling down and the plant life will die off. Just wondering if you guys think the X-Rap slashbait will produce bass at this time or not. I know how to work the bait so that does not need explaining. I am just wondering if under the current conditions the bait will work? Also do you guys find the bait produces better in clear or murky water? Quote
Super User T-rig Posted October 27, 2007 Super User Posted October 27, 2007 Since you're allways catching these strange fish, I bet you're going to catch something but it won't be a bass! ;D ;D Quote
Cory20 Posted October 27, 2007 Posted October 27, 2007 Jerkbaits work well in both muddy and clear water and are a great choice for the fall. Quote
Super User MALTESE FALCON Posted October 27, 2007 Super User Posted October 27, 2007 I have caught bass from spring through fall with my X-Raps. I've caught smallies in water from 39 to 80 degrees with my hot pink and silver blue X-Raps, in clear and stained water. It's a very versatile lure. Falcon Quote
Guest avid Posted October 28, 2007 Posted October 28, 2007 Alot of folks think that jerkbaits are best suited to cold water, so conventional wisdom says to throw it. Quote
Super User Crestliner2008 Posted October 29, 2007 Super User Posted October 29, 2007 X-Raps work well in either warm or cold water. You just have to adjust your cadence and pause periods accordingly. Right now, here in the Northeast, most rivers and lakes have water in the 55 - 58 degree range. Ideal for hard jerkbaits. I'd pause about 3 - 4 sec. between jerks now. As the water decreases into the low 50's to mid-40's, I'd pause a lot longer....sometimes as much as 30 seconds. Quote
Senko4life Posted October 30, 2007 Posted October 30, 2007 Deffinatly give it a try! When the spinner and buzz bait hits started to die down for me i went irght to the x rap and got my numbers right back up. This is a killer bait but jsut remember to adjust your retrieve untill the bass tell you what they want. I have the best luck on the smaller size rap. Quote
Super User roadwarrior Posted October 30, 2007 Super User Posted October 30, 2007 This is DEFINITELY jerbait season! Quote
Cajun1977 Posted October 30, 2007 Posted October 30, 2007 during this time of year when i use jerks i start my dead sticking practice Quote
Davis Posted October 31, 2007 Posted October 31, 2007 Okay so this post got me wanting to try my small xraps up here in the cold Northeast. Caught two......both bluegill lol. Must be they were in the way or brushed up against it because I snagged both. :'( Got them free quickly though and they same off fine. No takers from the bass though. I tied on a actual GYCB watermeleon senko and threw it in the same spots that I ran the xrap through and caught two 13" inchers. I fished it like a jerkbait too. Guess I just have more confidence in my plastics as of right now. But I'm not going to stop with the jerk..jerk...jerk...pause either. Fun bait to fish and I did the vary the pause with 3 to 10 second stops. But no takers. Quote
AngryMongoose Posted October 31, 2007 Posted October 31, 2007 Crestliner2007, thanks for the tip. I been fishing x-raps since spring with good results but I have been using a pretty much a steady retrieve. Hopefully my numbers will go up. Quote
lubina Posted October 31, 2007 Posted October 31, 2007 I have been using a pretty much a steady retrieve. . Rapala has a very good video of the X-rap.....steady retrieve doen't get the best of them. Quote
Super User roadwarrior Posted October 31, 2007 Super User Posted October 31, 2007 I have been using a pretty much a steady retrieve. . Rapala has a very good video of the X-rap.....steady retrieve doen't get the best of them. This is the #1 reason a lot of guys don't have any luck with jerkbaits and end up giving up on them. Quote
FivePoundBluegill Posted October 31, 2007 Author Posted October 31, 2007 I tried throwing my X-Raps thismorning and had decent luck with the XR-8 size in the black and silver coloring. I ended up catching three bass within about two hours fishing with the bait. Two of them were keeper size fish but just barely. Still it seems the rattle traps are working much better yet the X-Raps are working right now as well. I was fishing the X-Rap with the jerk-jerk-pause retrieve which is probably the most common way to work the bait. Quote
FivePoundBluegill Posted October 31, 2007 Author Posted October 31, 2007 Oh when i said "keeper size" fish I did not mean that I kept those bass. I released all of them. I just said "keeper" to mean they were decent size fish. Quote
Cajun1977 Posted November 1, 2007 Posted November 1, 2007 Oh when i said "keeper size" fish I did not mean that I kept those bass. I released all of them. I just said "keeper" to mean they were decent size fish. we all know what you mean buddy ;D Quote
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