First time out with Rage Tail baits

[Clark Stewart]

Went to Dick's today while in another town - I'm an academy guy myself but when in Rome...Bought a pack of rage tail shads, and a pack of rage tail space monkeys. Tried em out today and the space monkey's are amazing - they don't look particularly better than a brush hog or anything but they have some unique qualities. First the thing compacts its shape when tossed so it will cast just like a slender frog - for a mile. Second, it's tough as nails - I missed about 20 bites today on one space monkey before I got wise and changed hooks. Unbelievable.

I also tried the rage shad - what an awesome buzzbait type lure. While I didn't land near as many bites I did manage this one attached. This was after I started letting the thing fall before starting to run it like a buzzbait. Also these two lures were incredibly weedless. The slop I threw in was so nasty that I caught one fish, and thinking he'd come off was trying to get my lure in to clean off the salad, I pulled it out of the water and the pile started wagging it's tail fin! Forgot my scale - any guesses to this one's size? I caught a 4 pounder the other day and confirmed by scale - this one is definitely bigger. I feel like 5 - 5.25

[dan1942]

I LOVE the Space Monkeys.  I have caught a lot of fish on them.  I rig them with an Owner Keel weighted hook 4/0 1/8oz.  I was fishing yesterday with another member from here and he was impressed with the Space Monkey  

Dan

[Steven Ladner]

Great catch! Gotta love those rage tail baits. Unsure of the weight though.

[Big-O]

That's a really nice fish Clark and glad you like the RT's  

Big O

www.ragetail.com

[tnbassfisher]

I have been really wanting to give those a try when I can get a few extra bucks. The new Rage Tail line just looks like it is going to be unbelievable by the videos that they have posted on here.

What size hook were you using with the Space Monkeys?

Was it rigged weightless?

[Clark Stewart]

I started off using a 3/0 academy brand offset hook rigged with a 1/4 oz tru tungsten weight - then switched to a 3/0 ewg hook with the same weight. Same for the shad.

Big O - haven't really looked but are these baits available at Academy?

[MattinOK]

I started off using a 3/0 academy brand offset hook rigged with a 1/4 oz tru tungsten weight - then switched to a 3/0 ewg hook with the same weight. Same for the shad.

Big O - haven't really looked but are these baits available at Academy?

Two I've been in have the toad, shad, craw, anaconda, and space monkey (Well the Ft. Smith one didn't have the monkey, but Tulsa did.) They're also the cheapest I've found at 4.99$ a pack.

[rondef]

Congrats on the nice looking hawg.  I am a huge Rage Tail fan, they are the only plastics that I use.  I caught 20 bass with the Space Monkey today while pond hopping.

[iceintheveins]

Are the rage tails heavy enough to easily throw on a casting reel?

[Clark Stewart]

Are the rage tails heavy enough to easily throw on a casting reel?

Yeah - I threw mine on an All Star 6'6 or 7' medium heavy (designed for weights from 3/8 to 1oz. Teemed with a bill dance edition quantum baitcaster 6.2:1 I think (comes on that quantum combo that bps sells). I throw creature baits weightless all the time, but this time I had a 1/4 oz tru-tungsten sinker on. The plastic is so dense on these baits (especially the rage shad) that those things were sailing almost 45 yards with the cast control dialed way way up around 9 or 10! It was beautiful to behold

[Hemi6677]

I let a buddy sniff my rage tail frog this past weekend and I think he almost tried to take a bite...

Man they smell good and work great!

[Clark Stewart]

I've only tried the space monkey and the shad - definitely gonna have to expand the family

[Big-O]

I think you will find that the hook up's on the Rage Shad will increase when the hook size increases. I use a 4/0 EGW superline as a standard and a 5/0 screw lock or twist lock hook as they are shorter "eye to hook point". On the Toad I recommend 5/0 EWG superline and 6/0 screw lock or twist lock hooks. These hooks are also the exact ones that the baits were designed around.

All Academy's I've seen, stock the RT's but don't know for sure if they all have them

Glad you're havin' fun with'em

Big O

www.ragetail.com

[Gangley]

I started off using a 3/0 academy brand offset hook rigged with a 1/4 oz tru tungsten weight - then switched to a 3/0 ewg hook with the same weight. Same for the shad.

Big O - haven't really looked but are these baits available at Academy?

Every Academy that I have been to has them.

[zbigbadaaron]

I don't see what all of this talk about rage tail is. I find them to be average. I'm not saying they are bad ,but I am saying you guys over-advertise them. I find GYCB, powerbait, zoom, and culprit to be better.

And I would say your bass is around 3-4 pounds.

[Clark Stewart]

To each his own. I would say that there must be something to what we're saying since they're are like 20 of us saying it and not Big O. Word of mouth being the best advertising. I don't know if they're for everyone but they have done plenty for my confidence lately.

[roadwarrior]

No doubt Big O's original designs offer something special.

The Rage Tail Shad, Anaconda, Space Monkey and Smokin'

Rooster are specific examples. I like the Lobster and Baby

Craws, too!

My frame of reference is based on a very biased preference

for GYCB products which I still fish a lot. I think the imaginative

design (profile) and action of the Rage Tail baits separate them

from the crowd.

 

8-)

[BlakeMolone]

There is no ribbontail worm that has the action of the anaconda! I dont really like the spacemonkeys because where I fish the bluegills turn them into rage craws :'(

[Clark Stewart]

Yeah, today it was rage tail shad instead of space monkey that got the action. I caught one on the first cast with my space monkey, but once I put the JJ's magic on it the bite died - go figure. Spent the rest of my lunch break fishing the shad. I missed a ton of fish but my buddy (another first time rage tail user today) caught this one that weighed 2.5...Can't wait for my mend-it to get here as my shad are dying fast!

[tyrius.]

I missed a ton of fish

You're probably setting the hook too soon.  If you set the hook as soon as you see the fish hit it then you're probably pulling the bait away from him.  You have to give him a second to get it fully in his mouth and then slam it home.

[CWB]

I missed a ton of fish

You're probably setting the hook too soon. If you set the hook as soon as you see the fish hit it then you're probably pulling the bait away from him. You have to give him a second to get it fully in his mouth and then slam it home.

Sometimes it just happens.

Last Saturday I couldn't miss. The next day I would let them take it as usual, see the line moving, feel the fish and only got 2 out of 10-12 bites to connect. Same setup, technique, different results. Even let one swim about 5 yards before hitting him and still missed. It happens.

[D4u2s0t]

I don't see what all of this talk about rage tail is. I find them to be average. I'm not saying they are bad ,but I am saying you guys over-advertise them. I find GYCB, powerbait, zoom, and culprit to be better.

And I would say your bass is around 3-4 pounds.

well then that's just your preference, which you're entitled to.  I fished the shad last night, and if you saw it in the water it would be hard to believe it was a soft plastic.  It spit out more water than my friends 10 dollar top notch buzz bait.  I like other baits besides the rage tail lineup, but I don't think anyone can say that they don't have better action and more versatility than most other baits out there.

[Clark Stewart]

I missed a ton of fish

You're probably setting the hook too soon. If you set the hook as soon as you see the fish hit it then you're probably pulling the bait away from him. You have to give him a second to get it fully in his mouth and then slam it home.

Sometimes it just happens.

Last Saturday I couldn't miss. The next day I would let them take it as usual, see the line moving, feel the fish and only got 2 out of 10-12 bites to connect. Same setup, technique, different results. Even let one swim about 5 yards before hitting him and still missed. It happens.

That's exactly how I was yesterday! I made a beautiful cast right on top of a stickup in about 6 inches of water and off it shot like a bullet. That fish drug it 40 feet and I still couldn't set the hook. I must have jerked 6 times and for some reason the hook just wasn't punching through. Who knows.