TorqueConverter

I understand the search for the latest and greatest, but why so much emphasis on what the pros are throwing/wining with? Since when did the bait that Bubba Arkansas won the ABC bass tour with become our litmus test for the latest and greatest?

This is disgusting. Do bass angler really just go out and buy whatever lure wins the classic? Are we not capable of thinking for ourselves? I thought it was common knowledge that the DT-6 is the best crank on earth for the 6 foot range. The Livingston lures look alright. I'm not a fan of the shapes, as they look rather Norman in design. I really don't like Norman cranks and last thing I want is one that lights up and croaks. I'll take a hollow body frog that flashes lights and croaks. Why don't you go make that Livingston?

Funny thing is, that a lot of your really low end graphite rods are very moderate in action with soft backbones. It's fairly difficult to get a true fast action out of a rod. I've had a number of cheap sticks that have been used as cranking sticks over the years and they have done well. I still toss some of my lighter weight bala cranks on a Quantum Dance Class 6'6'' M. If you're looking for a new all graphite moderate rod, take a look at the 7' M Abu Vengeance. That rod is definitely a true moderate and the power is accurately rated as a medium.

It's nice that they have some new depths to the bait, but where is my big, balsa, hunting, scatter wake bait Rapala?

You actually want to fish in 90 degree weather? I'd get heat stroke and die at those temps. No thanks.

I've been crankbait drunk for a number of years. When I got back into spinnerbaits last year, I was surprised to see little change in bait design. There have been some interesting blade designs and there is a spinnerbait with a flexible cable for an upper arm but outside of that, I haven't noticed much innovation. I'd like to see smiley blades used in lure development. I put one in front of a slow death hook walleye rig and it gave the rig an amazing hunting action. Imagine a spybait with metal smiley blades.

I use clips. I'm using the Norman Speed clip now, but I hate it. As soon as I can find some, I'm going back to the paperclip style clip.

It's the line diameter, not the lb rating, that is important when speaking of the running depth of a crankbait. .25-.30mm is around 8lb mono and is what cranks are rated to dive with. FC has a smaller diameter than mono so you can go as big as 14lb and still run FC. 14lb mono is a bit big at around .4mm and will, depending on the brand/diameter, rob you of some diving depth. The diving depth has a lot to do with how affected a crank is by line diameter. The shallow dive angle and running depth of a squarebill is less affected by big diameter line vs a deep diving crank running to 20ft. There is simply a lot more line in the water with the deep crank. What was a few inches of lost depth with the squarebill is now multiple feet with the deep crank. I think a lot people switching from 14lb mono to 14lb FC and experiencing extra dive depth is what perpetuates the myth that FC makes the crank dive deeper because it sinks. It's all about those line diameters and not the material. I use #30 braid when deep cranking. I need the castability and diameter to get my deep cranks down to their rated depths. When I'm throwing a squarebill I'll often times use a #12 mono or a #14-#17 FC.

Bingo. I'm hard pressed to belive there is a better bait on the back of a C-rig than a Trick Worm or Fish Doctor. I'm not a shaky head guy, but they do work well there as well. When it comes to straight tails, Trick Worm all day long. Don't forget about the ribbon tail stuff. Once a fish catcher, always a fish catcher. The good ole ribbon tail worm is still my #t1 T-Rigged bait and is as old as the T-rig itself.

This. I am a firm beiliver in action and profie above color in lure selection. I also belive in collecting good data. Simultaneously changing action, profile and color leaves us with data that one cannot make heads or tails out of. We're not scientists, but the more good data we can collect the better we are at determining behavioral patterns of bass and the more we can amend the "rule of thumb" for bass thishing to something more accurate and based less on wives tails and supertition.

How much do you belive in the "cold water, tight wobble" theory? I ask this because I pay no attention to the tightness or wideness of wobble when selecting a crank. My criteria for a cold water crank is always, a good wobble, but with the ability in cold water to slow roll the bait and have a great action at low speeds combined with, if applicable, a low buoyancy to keep the bait down. Honestly, at any water temp, a good action is a good action is a good action with tightness or wideness be damned. A ultra thin billed. low buoyancy crank with a good action is always a #1 pick in cold water. Keep in mind, my bass have no idea what a shad is. While I'm not in love with the action (wobble) of the Storm Arashi, that super thin bill and "reasonable" buoyancy make it a bait I intend to throw once the water temp reach the 40s. Historically, my go to baits in low vis cold shallow water, have been the Bagleys Balsa B#2, recently replaced by the Excal XCS 200. I hope the Storm Arashi Square Bill can replace the Excal baits.

I'm a huge crankbait nerd. I can't even begin to pick a top 5 let alone a single bait, but if I had to pick only one, It would have to be the Rapala DT-6. I catch way too many fish on that bait, including 'eyes and pike to not have it be my favorite crank. I am partial to Demon Craw but I like all colors. All water temps and colors, DT-6 all day long.

Walmart has realy steped up their game. Walmarts near bodies of water have tackle aimed at the specific body of water. Even in Council Bluffs Iowa where there is a BPS and a Cabelas near by, yet no bodies of water worth a darn, they still cary stuff that is tempting to say the least. For me, it is normal to see last years tackle on super sale at Walmart. They have a $1.50 stand outside of Sporting Goods every year come spring. I always load up on Yum plastics and pick up a Rebel crank or two such as the Shallow Wee R. I plan to load up on Craw Papis this year.

Popping pad crasher. It walks well and the poping action makes all the difference in the world. I simpy do not throw non-poping frogs anymore. I need a big, as in 5/8 to 7/8 oz, frog sometimes so the spitin wa 70 is someting I look forward to throwing this season. I really like the design of the popping pad crasher. I'd pay over well over $10 for one if they made them so the paint dosen't rub off and in larger sizes with more colors. It can walk with the best of em, pop with the best of em and crawl over matted vegetation as well as anything else. The body is soft and the hooks are good.

Terminator T1 just becuase of their propriatery Oklahoma blade. That blade is amazing.

Absolutely. It's not uncomon to see swimbaits on football heads when guys are targeting big smallies feeding on bottom hugging gobys.

I think there needs to be a discussion on technique/retrive when speaking about trailers. If I'm swiming the bait with an up & down rod motion, I like flappy paddly things like Paca chunks ect. If I'm cranking it then I want something with a built in action when cranked like a boot tail swimbait or curl tails. If the trailer can do both then that's a bonus. Some of the Rage Tail stuff can do both but won't live long on the back of jig.

I really like the BPS XPS cranks. I know they are a cheapy house brand but their actions are top dollar, atleast for the baits I have thrown. Working your way down the water column: The big size 3/4oz BPS The Egg is a killer wakebait and a big fish producer. I prefer it to the Ima Roumba because it can be powerfished down to about 10'' and tear through cover like a squarebill due to it's high stability. My favorite squarebill is the BPS XPS Silent Squarebill. Its very high bounacy, light weight plastic and fantastic action have allowed me to have some great days on the water. It has consistantly kicked the crud out of every similar sized squarebill I own but it's not what I would call a big fish bait due to its size. It's rated up to 5 feet but don't believe it. It's a 3 footer all day long. I really like the BPS XPS Deep Diver for the 15 foot range. It's got a nice tail kicking action with a bit of roll to flash those two tone colors at the fish. The action is a bit slow, but the movents are good. Loud knocker rattle, good color selection ect. The Rapla DTs are great as well. I don't think there is a finer 6 foot crank than the DT-6. If there is, I'd loved to see it. The DT-20 is also a fine bait. I prefer the Dt-20s to the 6XD but the 6XDs are much cheaper and have a very similar action, just a bit slower.

I throw my chatterbaits whenever I'm throwing lipless cranks. I fish them much the same way as a lipless crank but they allow me to bang into thicker weeds and have a slower fall rate than a lipless crank. I haven't slow rolled them in 40 degree water range, but I'd give it a try.

This bait ball stuff is a bit overblown IMO. Bass eat cranks based on action and profile. Next they'll make a bait like this with fluorocarbon bodies claiming it is invisible.

I was taught to slow crank a twin tail hula grub on a Chompers standup jig head on a soft action rod by an Ozak angler on a trip years ago. The way the head moves in the rocky bottom content makes it look like a crayfish. It'll occasionally get stuck only to stand up and scoot away once the rod and line load up and pop it free. It's a really interesting technique because the bottom content, rod and head is what gives the bait its action.

#1 The hollow body frog is a fantastic slop bait and better than the weedless spoon that preceded it. It is fantastic for what it is designed to do. #2 I'm approaching 100% since I've started throwing the Popping Pad Crasher. I had some Matzuo frogs that would take on water, sit vertical in the water and result terrible hookups and wrecking my hookup ratio. I think poor hookups can be as much a bait problem as a timing technique problem.

It's an old Matzuo America bait. It appears to be a 2'' wakebait based on the bill size and the way your buddy was fishing it. If you lurk Ebay long enough I'm sure you'll find more. If you're looking for a replacement bait, take a look at the Bass Pro Shops 2'' 7/16 oz "The Egg" as well as the XPS Super Shallow Crank. Matzuo has put out a number of small wake baits over the years with the most recent being the Toryu Shad so look at those too if you trust the brand. Strike Pro has a wake bait called the Hunchback that is gaining popularity with striper guys and saltwater anglers. It's worth a look as well.