Primus

I tried one split grip and it didn't feel comfortable in my hands. I own several Loomis & Roque rods and they are plenty light & very sensitive with the full cork.

bhorlings I bought couple of the River to Sea Tungsten Vibes last fall but haven't go them wet yet, should know next spring. For all the Xcalibur fans they are now offering their lipless in a 3/4 oz & 1 oz size in both a 1 knocker & a rattling version. I bought a few last night to try for next season.

I will try new stuff out of curiosity. An example was the Ima Flit jerkbait, I bought one last season that was on sale from Tackle Warehouse in the ghost color which is a color that I'm very confident in for my area. I definetely gave this bait a try in situations that called for a jerkbait and it turned out to be a winner. There were a couple of occasions when it seemed to be the best choice on a given day compared to my X raps & pointers etc. This bait seems to run a little deeper than a Pointer and with it's triangular body profile seems to flash a little more. This bait earned a spot in my jerkbait arsenal for the upcoming season and I plan on picking up a few more colors along with a back-up Ghost pattern in case I get bit off from a Pike. Same thing last season with the Jackall Muscle Deep, I started off with 1 Chartreuse shad, now I have app 10 of them and will likely pick-up a few more back-ups/ colors this season. I also consider post on Forums such as this one as well as baits that earn prominence on the Pro tour such as the Sebile Magic Swimmer & Bass Trix paddle tail. Like any angler my ultimate feedback comes from the fish in my area as well as my execution of the needed techniques to bring out the potential of the bait. I'm more loyal to specific lures than brands however certain brands like Lucky Craft, Yamamoto generally will make me more likely to sample their new products based on track record.

JMAC the Lucky Craft RC 1.5 & 2.5 are outstanding baits, Bass Pro usually has them on sale a couple of times a year for $ 9.99. I haven't tried the Bandit Maxx.

It's definetely a good idea to have some options to choose from, some of my favorites would include the Jackall, Red Eye Shad & Yozuri. I would also suggest the Sebile Flatt Shad, available in transluscent colors and doesn't rattle which could be a plus on sunny days when fishing clear water.

Fishin'Boy I would thin out the strands on your weedguard where it takes a minimal amount of pressure to set the hook, get a small jig and if you can afford fish it with 10#- 14# braided line which will help with your feel & hook sets. A nice jig for that set up would be a Booyah Baby Boo jig which comes in a 3/16 & 5/16 oz size (close to 3/8 oz) with a 2.75" Yum Craw Papi superglued to the head. If you get this in a dark color along with a green pumpkin you'll have a set up that will catch you a lot of fish. Good Luck, and if you get a chance introduce some of your buddies to this great sport.

I'm fortunate enough to already own more tackle than I can could ever use in a lifetime. I would reccomend to anyone that's new to the sport or has limited funds to spend on fishing to stock up on Rapala'a, Bombers, Strike King etc. all these companies offer nice selections and they will catch a lot of fish. That said there are times when 15$ premium cranks will give you an edge in certain situations, it's just another tool in the box. Though there are exceptions most of these baits come with premium hooks, weight transfer systems for longer cast and more realistic finishes. Sometimes it makes a diffrence, sometimes it don't. I rely on a lot of crankbaits and topwaters through the season. Some of my best baits are Rapala DT series, Shad Raps, Wiggle Warts etc. standard 5$-8$ baits. However there are times when my best bait on a given day will be the Lucky Craft RC series, Pointers etc. and other premium $ 15 baits and on those days I'm sure glad they are in the box. One bait that I'm very high on is the Sebile Flatt shad a very unique lipless bait and I've smoked a few of my buddies (some very competent tournament fisherman) when they were throwing regular trap baits. I'm convinced on those occasions the fish were turned off by the rattles. That doesn't mean that the Flatt Shad is always the best selection but it was on those days, another time it might be a $6 Strike King Red Eye Shad. Are the premium baits worth it? I wouldn't say they are essential but there are times it will give you an edge. The great thing about this board is if your considering an unfamilar bait it is likely a few of our posters have already tried it and you can consider there input before you buy.

Very good bait, nice transluscent colors with no rattle makes it a great choice for clear water spooky fish. There are times when fish are shy about hitting lures with a rattle this will be a nice complement to your other Trap style baits, I would definetly pick up a few.

T-rig, saw this in the Cabela's catalog, caught my eye as well. I might have to buy one and try it out next season.

I was thinking about picking up a few this winter, one that looked good and was reasonably priced were the D baits, any opinions on this one or others that you've tried. Thanks.

1 Jig with Poor Boys Craw or Paca Chunk trailer. 2 Texas rigged Zoom Speed Craw or baby Paca Craw 3 RC series (non rattling) 0.5 & 1.5 cranks 4 Deep Diving Cranks (Rapala DT series, Norman DD 22 & Jackall) 5 Topwater Reaction Innovations Vixen or Yellow Magic Popper 6 Whatevers working

All the post so far have had excellent suggestions, the Ima Flit was one of my top new additions of 2008 and I plan on getting a few more for next season. I've also done well on the Pointers, X raps & Husky Jerks.

I enjoyed Stringjam's report, good stuff. I haven't tried the spro's yet but bought a few for next season. Last season was my first year using the Jackall & Red Eye shads and was very impresssed with both. I've made a lot of cast with the Yozuri Rattlin' Vibe over the years and I would definetly rate this as a 5 star bait. I was also impressed with the Sebile Flatt Shad, doesn't rattle and comes in transluscent colors, a great weapon for clear water spooky fish. Another one that's been productive over the years has been the Luhr Jensen Sugar Shad, reasonably priced rattler that I use in lakes that have a lot of Pike so it doesn't hurt so bad when I lose one.

It's definetely a good color that has it's time and place, I've done well with Strike King's Red eye shad in this color.

It's a good popper, but I've done better with the Yellow Magic and the Excalibur Zell Rowland popper.

I like the 1/4 oz. Outkast Pro Swim Jig, I usually thread on a Kalins or a Yamamoto single tail grub and fish it like a spinnerbait. One feature on the outkast that I really like is the double barb keeper, keeps the grub on real well. Recently *** posted the swim jigs he offers, they looked like another good choice.

The original & still available RC cranks did not have rattles, they later added the deep diver series and made both baits available with and without rattles. Last season they came out with a wake version and this year they added a 1 knocker. The wake bait they came out with last season proved to a very effective bait for me. The original non rattling version is in my opinion a 5 star bait.

I don't have any expierience with Powell rods but I've done well with Roques (under $200) & Loomis IMX series (under $300) for soft plastics and jig fishing. For light jigs, texas rig senko's etc. I like a 7' MH, for Carolina rigs a 7' Heavy action rod will get the job done (though some will reccomend a longer rod for your Carolina rig rod which allows you to pick up more line when you do a sweep set). I like the 7' because it's more comfortable for me, stores in my boat better and also has performed very well.

The vast majority of my rods are Loomis or Roques and one of the reasons I've bought them is because they were made in the USA. The one chinese rod that I still buy is the BPS crankin stick, tough to turn down when they are on sale for $40 and I've been very pleased with this series. I don't buy American made all the time, but I will often pay a few dollars more when it says "made in the USA".

detroit1 why do you think they missed the mark on this one and why do you prefer the SSR 700E ? So far I've done all my shakeyhead fishing with the BCR 852 (casting) rod with Curado 101D reel with 8# floro, I usually use 3/16 oz or 1/4 shakeyheads. This set-up has actually done well for me, since most people do this technique with a spinning rod I feel compelled to try it that way next season to see what I like better. I can always use my BCR 852 for small jigs if I convert to a spinning rod. Thanks everyone for your feedback so far.

Skilletsizebass the LC RC series runs app 2'-4', they do also offer a Deep Diving version as well. I have a few of the deep diver version and they've been a solid bait so far but I haven't fished it enough to determine if it's a must have 5 star bait. App 2-3 times per year the RC cranks will be on sale for app $ 9.99, when that happens I plan picking up another dozen or so including their new one knocker version.

My must have from those companies would be the Lucky Caft RC series 0.5 & 1.5 cranks, Lucky Craft Pointers,Flash Minnow & Sammy topwater baits. I have a few Megabass Griffon's but haven't used them enough to form an opinion, they did catch a few when I gave them a chance. I have become a big fan of the Sebile Flatt Shad, a great complement to the rattling lipless cranks that you probably already have. Though I haven't put in a lot of hours with it some have done quite well on the pro trail as well as other weekend anglers on their Magic Shad swimbait.

Thanks, I appreciate your feedback.

If you have one how has it worked out so far and would you reccomend it. The application would be as the name implies for shakey heads with 8 lb. florocarbon line. Thanks

Jackall Muscle Deep is another good choice, I would also recomend the Rapala DT series, Norman DD 22. I 've been hearing good things about the Bandit 700 series, I'm thinking of picking up a few for next season.