BY STEVE QUINN

Roman Made Mother

DRUMBEATS >>> ON THE > > > SCENE Other categories of included internally of lure styles and uses for them. At the annual ICAST weighted boot-tail baits, such as Storm’s WildEye series, Show last summer, industry veterans were wowed In- published the first expose on swimbaits in 1995, with Field Jackall’s Swimmin’ Ninja, and Berkley’s PowerBait Swim by several gigantic new soft swimbaits, topped by Editor Matt’s Straw’s feature, “It’s a ; It’s a Submarine!” It chronicled the garage production Shad, to name a few. These originated in California as the 16-inch Savage Gear Mads Mega Pre Rigged of giant wooden jointed swimbaits, such as Alan Cole’s A.C. , beginning around 1987. Ken Huddleston adjusted internal weight to alter the Trout. Though it’s rigged with a leader, so likely Rate Of Fall (ROF). Huddleston motivated the move intended for giant pike, muskies, or offshore toothy ¶ We’ve covered the rise of hollow-belly swimbaits, heralded by Bruce Porter’s Basstrix Fat toward massive softbaits, sometimes labeled “big rub- critters, some California big bass hunters were drool- Minnow Paddle Tails with a slit belly that enabled lifelike action and made hooking bass easier. ber.” His Deluxe line ranged from 8 to 12 inches, with ing as they draped the giant lure across their palms. YUM’s Money Minnow, Berkley’s Hollow Belly Swim Bait, Strike King’s Shadalicious, and others larger models weighing more than half a pound. Other Looking all the world like a 2-pound , notable baits included Castaic Soft Baits Platinum Series, it’s fit to fry. followed and anglers recorded great catches with them. Today, this category has declined in Alan Cole’s A.C. Plug Casitas, Jerry Rago’s Line Through George Coniglio of Mission, Viejo, California, popularity, though I still catch loads of big bass on them, Texas-rigged in shallow cover or on Series, and several models from Optimum Baits. These knows how to catch big bass. His largest weighed 19.7 lures continue to tempt many of the year’s largest bass pounds, caught on Lake Mission Viejo in California. jigheads around deep structure. When Berkley ceased production of the Hollow Belly a couple across the country. And when the Alabama exploded Though he plucked that one from a bed, he’s been a fan years ago, I made sure I had cases of baits stored. The attraction of these lures does not go away. on to the scene, small swimmers became the rage, imitat- of swimbaits for many years, fishing many models in Nor does the attraction of solid-body boot-tails. Witness the success of Alabama-born Scottsboro ing a school of small baitfish on umbrella setups. These the lakes of the West Coast and beyond. “Many of the baits also fish extremely well on a jighead or as trailers jointed soft swimbaits I fished produced realistic action Tackle Company’s Swimbait, which Tennessean Jay Kendrick parlayed to victory on Lake on , swim jigs, or bladed jigs. only in a narrow window of retrieve speeds,” he says. Guntersville in Alabama at an FLW Series competition early last spring. “Some looked good on a slow pull, but started to flap Soft Swimmers Today wildly in a S-wave when you cranked faster. If you look Anglers have embraced the swimbait category to at trout, shad, or other preyfish, their movements are a greater extent than ever, and we see a wide range highly efficient but subtle. I JUNE 2016 IN-FISHERMAN.COM 21 with a guard, and a 7/16-ounce jig became clear that the key to these in Lake Biwa. He used a Mother erratically, in the manner of a walk- with 8/0 Mustad for the Monster so lures lies in their ability to direct to catch the 18-pound former lake the-dog surface bait. But, depending SWIMBAITS it can be Texposed. This one can be the flow of water around them,” record there. He and other swim- on design, they perform that deadly “I started working on a lure motion, packaged with a treble hook retrieved steadily or worked with Takeyama says. “The head region bait experts emphasize that the very action near the surface, mid-water, over two years ago. My neighbors and slipsinker for rigging. Its vertical a pull-pause cadence to tease big is particularly important as it parts size that turns many anglers off has or down deep. When I designed the undoubtedly thought I’d lost it, as and horizontal control planes can be predators into striking. As with the the water. But the other jointed seg- the potential to turn on the biggest BBZ-1 for SPRO, I made lures with I stood for hours on my dock, mak- adjusted to maintain stability at any Dominion Swimbait, check the web- ments also create currents in differ- bass in any body of water, sometimes three sink rates for that reason.” ing short casts; then tweaking the speed. I’ve tested this 4½-inch lure site for videos. ent ways.” Roman Made offers eight even summoning schools of giants. Several other jointed baits have lure; with nary a fish in sight and and it does indeed possess a unique swimbait styles, each with a unique Lure designer and veteran lunker gained fans as well, including the my Ranger tied to the dock! I felt ability to mimic a fish at a wide Jointed Glide Baits manner of swimming and gliding hunter Bill Siemantel of Castaic, Cal- Deps Slide Swimmer, River2Sea that a moderate-size lure would range of speeds. Packs include extra Perhaps the hottest swimbait cat- through the water. They range in ifornia, also has spent lots of time S-Waver, Evergreen International have the greatest application across control planes and instructions. egory is the large trout-shaped baits cost from $140 to $450. The most rec- studying lure designs and how Timberflash, 3:16 Bait Company Glide the country, and would appeal to Mann’s Bait Company has intro- of wood or plastic, with a joint to ognized is the 11.8-inch, 10.5-ounce physical properties cause lures to Swimbait, and Megabass I-Slide. New bass of all sizes that feed on shin- duced another unique soft swim- allow lifelike motion. Jointed swim- Mother, hand-carved like a salmo- move, which is what causes bass to for 2016 is the DUO Realis Onimasu, ers, shad, and other baitfish. mer, the Reel ’N Shad, originally baits are far from new, as the classic nid. Each one is tank-tuned to run bite. “The power of swimbaits lies the first product in company owner “I studied fluid dynamics to designed by Ron Walter. Looking A.C. Plug was of this basic design, perfectly and takes 12 hours to pro- in their large sphere of influence,” and designer Masahiro Adashi’s Pro- understand the forces that cause a superficially like a fluke-style lure, though with a soft-plastic boot-tail duce. This lure became a favorite for he says. “That’s particularly true metheus Project, which promises lure to move under water. I learned it has a key feature—a slot that runs and lacking the ultra-realistic scale Manabu Kurita, co-holder of the all- for articulated baits that glide from more exciting swimbaits in the near that inserting clear plastic con- from top to bottom in the middle details and coloration of today’s tackle record largemouth, caught one side to the other when retrieved future. Onimasu is a shallow-run- trol planes vertically and horizon- of the lure. When pulled, the slot baits. One spur for the recent rise in ning lure that slowly rises when the tally into the body creates a natural opens, and water generates a natu- their popularity was the appearance retrieve is halted. Company repre- swimming action at slow, medium, ral swimming action and tail kick of the Roman Made baits in 2009. Jointed Gliders sentative David Swendseid explains: and fast retrieves. With my partner on a straight retrieve. Mike McPher- These beautifully painted wood › “Most glidebaits are built for working at Dominion Lures, Marc Estrada, son, Operation Manager at Mann’s, lures were designed by owner Toshi- we began working with a patent explains: “When Walter showed me nori Takeyama, a lifelong angler attorney. We have a patent covering his video, it was an ‘aha’ moment,” who grew up near Japan’s legendary the insertion of clear plastic control he says. “Its action was amazing. We Lake Biwa. As an avid fish watcher planes in each segment of a soft-plas- tweaked the original design to go and angler, he studied the fluid Biovex Joint tic swimbait and more patents in the from concept to product, lengthen- movements of fish and began to try Bait 142 SPRO BBZ-1 works. While field-testing it, I was ing the slot, slimming its side-walls designing lures that moved natu- Shad fortunate to catch what’s now the all- and adjusting durometer of the plas- rally, unlike many mechanical-act- tackle length record for largemouth tic to achieve maximum action.” ing hardbaits he tried. He established bass (65 cm from nose to fork), iron- The company released 3.75- and his company in 2006. ically surpassing one caught by lure 5.25-inch versions in 2015 and 9-inch “After working with lure shapes designer Patrick Sebile in Florida.” Monster Reel ’N Shad for 2016. Baits and observing their movements, it This double-jointed lure is made come with a specially designed jig- SPRO BBZ-1 Jr. of Thermoplastic Elastomer for a head—smaller ones with a jighead combination of toughness and fluid Bull Shad Mann’s Bait Company Reel ‘N ›Swimbait Softies Shad (3.75-inch and Monster)

Megabass I-Slide Dominion Lures Swimbait Savage Gear 4Play Herring Swim & Jerk

DUO Realis Onimasu

Savage Gear Mads Mega Pre Rigged Trout

22nd Century Swimbait Company Triple Trout 22 IN-FISHERMAN.COM JUNE 2016 Ito also added magnets to the released to the U.S. market last sum- It’s a versatile, realistic-size lure that SWIMBAITS body to hold hooks in place next to mer at the ICAST Show. The Joint Bait I’ve used to catch largemouths, small- the body while it’s fished, to stream- (4½- and 6-inch models) is a floater mouths, and spotted bass.” slowly, either in a steady cadence that line action and to look more lifelike. with four sections. It moves sinuously One of several hot new swim- moves the lure in a S-pattern, or with It also helps keep hooks from tan- at the surface or just below it, creat- baits to arise in the East is Mike sudden snaps that cause the lure to gling the line when the lure makes its ing a wake. Josh Douglas of Minne- “Triton Mike” Bucca’s Bull Shad, turn and dart. Onimasu performs dramatic turn. Its density is adjusted sota is a rising star in tournament a four-piece bait shaped like an these maneuvers but can be worked so it slowly sinks at 50°F, suspends at fishing and a member of Biovex’s adult gizzard shad. Bucca, a highly fast as well as slowly. That snakelike 55°F, slowly rises at 59°F, and floats pro staff. In shad-based , he touted spotted bass guide on Geor- action with a tail kick provided by its at 68°F, generally matching the mood uses it in place of a standard topwa- gia’s Lake Allatoona, noticed that soft tail section has proven deadly of bass at those temperature ranges. ter like a or popper. “And whenever he or his clients boated from California to Alabama. And Bassmaster Elite pro Brandon it’s deadly in rivers,” he adds, “ espe- a big spotted bass or outsize large- one neat feature is that you get can it Palaniuk of Idaho has been a fan of big cially in fall when the water’s clearer. mouth, it often had the big forked to run down to at least 5 feet by what hard-body, jointed swimbaits, start- I call ‘tumbling,’ snapping the rod ing about 10 years ago. “Folks think downward, which causes the lure to of California as the home of giant dive a bit, then run deeper.” bass, and that’s true,” Palaniuk says. Despite the similarity of jointed “But we have a lot of big ones here swimbaits to the uninitiated, each of in Idaho, too. In many waters, they these lures fishes differently, offer- feed on trout and kokanee salmon, ing more subtle or aggressive action, »Josh Douglas of Minnesota has found the Biovex Joint Bait deadly which helps them pack on pounds, different sink rates, and ability to for largemouth, smallmouth, and spotted bass. and causes them to feed offshore. I’ve execute directional changes. Subtle been intrigued by studying how each variations can make a lot of differ- baits—converting followers. While makes it spin completely around to of these baits works, as they’re far ence in bass response. the lure moves in a smooth S-shaped face a following bass, a move that more complicated than a crankbait.” Megabass president Yuki motion when steadily retrieved, rarely fails to elicit a strike. This Palaniuk should know as he’s on Ito designed the I-Slide 185 to sharply snapping it forward, then motion is enabled by the asymmetric the design team for Storm Lures, and solve a vexing issue with big throwing slack line toward the lure placement of weights inside the lure. contributed greatly in producing the

PHOTO // BILL KOHLS Storm Arashi Square Bill, which has Mojo Bass 2016 Ad_MojoBass_2016_7x4.875 1/25/16 2:17 PM Page 1 24 IN-FISHERMAN.COM JUNE 2016 become a big hit in that category. “I’ve been working with Storm on a design that will perform like the Roman Made baits, but at a fraction of the price,” he says. “I’ve learned there are many details involved in the balance and construction of these lures to get them right. It takes time.” MOJO BASS This style of swimbait has tra- ditionally been used from fall into early spring, times when bass tend to hold offshore on deep structure and feed on large preyfish in temperate waters. But where bass feed on large gizzard shad along the ledges of riv- erine impoundments, they can also work well in summer, in addition to waters where blueback herring are a prime prey. On the Savannah River impoundments such as Hartwell and Clarks Hill on the Georgia-South Completely new for 2016, our Mojo Bass Carolina border, these big baits are III technique-specific bass rods now feature SC graphite deadly on shallow flats in early sum- and IPC® for stunning performance at an incredible value. mer. Their slaloming action makes PUT A LITTLE IPC® INTO YOUR the lure look vulnerable and their size Don’t just sit there. Get your butt in line for one of the next generation make big bass react. Mojo Bass rods. Completely redesigned for 2016, these technique- OTHERWISE CHARMED LIFE. specific sticks have been upgraded to include high-modulus SC III graphite as well as St. Croix’s proprietary IPC® technology. Together they deliver better balance, increased Multi-Jointed Teasers strength, greater sensitivity and up to 15% lighter weight. The all-new Mojo Bass has once again revolutionized the Added joints increase flexibility high-performance, value-priced bass rod landscape. Wait, what? You’re still sitting there? WWW.STCROIXRODS.COM and lifelike movement. The Joint Bait from Biovex was designed by com- pany owner Katsushi Umeda and fellow designer Hiroto Kusaba. It was the last green plants of fall. And in late spring, guardian bass are espe- SWIMBAITS cially aggressive toward nest-rob- tail of a gizzard shad sticking out of molds we’ve built. I make two styles, bing sunnies. And when it’s the its gullet. “I began using some west- shad and herring, with the shad baits bluegills’ turn to bed, bass give them ern trout-style baits,” he says. “But running from 5 to 11 inches. The her- no rest, holding near nest colonies to by 2006, I wanted to make a shad ring are 6 inches long. We have baits pick off love-starved lepomids. bait so a friend and I got some wood with three rates of fall: floater, slow Sunfish swimbaits generally and started carving. Once I got a sink, and fast sink, and various color fall into two categories—soft-body working model, I made a mold and combinations, too.” Savage Gear swimmers with a boot-tail or jointed learned how to make lures of resin. has added the 4Play Herring Swim baits. Examples of the soft style are “My intent in building the lure & Jerk in three sizes, 3¾-, 5½-, and Little Creeper Baits’ All American was to have my clients catch more big 7½-inch. Depending on line choice Trash Sunfish, a realistic shaped fish, but I eventually started selling and retrieve, it runs between the sur- lure with a boot-tail, and Storm’s them locally and to clients who saw face and 8 feet deep. Though built WildEye Live Bluegill and Live Red- how well they worked. Word spread like a European herring, its S-Curve ear, shaped and colored naturally, about the Bull Shad and demand is tempting to predators of all sorts. with boot-tail, belly treble, and sin- grew. I moved to new quarters with gle hook on top, in 2- and 3-inch a large garage and it got so busy I Sunfish Swimbaits sizes. These baits can be worked couldn’t find time to guide anymore. In many waters, bass feed heav- around bluegill beds or over vege- “The Bull Shad has accounted ily on bluegills and other sunfish tated flats where bass often attack for many big tournament wins and species from early spring and into small bluegills from spring into fall. I have a large warehouse and five autumn, when big bass bust schools Jackall offers the Swimming Ninja employees that work on the 150 of 2-inch fingerlings holding among G90, which mimics a 3½-inch, 3/4- ounce bluegill with a thumping tail, and the Clone Gill, with realis- Sunfish Simulators tic coloration and body details. It’s a › 2.5-incher for drop-shotting in vege- tation pockets or on bass beds. Jackall Jointed hardbaits offer the profile Clone Gill of sunfish, with the darting action of jointed baits. Jackall’s Giron, a 4-inch sinker that has a tail-kicking action and realistic hues, and their latest Gantarel and Gartarel Jr. (2½- and 1½- ounce), have a jointed body and fine features, plus a bearing swivel Storm at the line tie to prevent line twist. WildEye Live Redear The Gantarel works on a slow steady Biovex retrieve, but also pivots 180 degree to Joint Gill 90 the side when given a sharp twitch, a deadly trigger for bass that follow, a common phenomenon with big baits in clear water. Biovex’s Joint Gill is a 3-piece, 3½-inch bluegill bait with pre- cise body colors and scale patterns. Douglas uses it for postspawn bass that cruise the shallows in search of spawning sunfish. Jackall Gantarel The swimbait category continues to grow, offering an array of new lure styles that fish well in many situa- tions. The key is learning the retrieve nuances that turn these hunks of wood and plastic in to magical fish catchers. While some fish best at a Savage Gear super-slow steady retrieve, others 3D Bluegill come to life with twitches and turns you perform like a puppeteer, con- rod and line and ultimately, the desire of big bass to bite. ■