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Our Academy has started stocking these new H2OX baits also. Kinda limited supply, but they are hanging on pegs where the old branded baits were located. Hoping as Spring approaches that even more inventory is brought in. I’m just hoping they bring back the house branded wakebait!!!! But I did see some jerkbaits. Best I could tell, bait looks exactly same as the old H2O express jerkbait, other than maybe some new colors.

There’s a company called Wobblehead lures that might have a similar action as that Wiggly Jig. These used to be sold at Bass Pro, but I think you gotta order directly from the website now. Thankfully, it looks like they’ve upgraded the hooks & design a little. The ones I bought 10+ yrs ago at Memphis Bass Pro have crummy hooks, but still catch fish. They work with any straight tail worm, like a trick or finesse worm. I’ve had good luck using a Zman finesse worm on the Wobblehead. https://wobbleheadlures.com/shop

Yeah, you’re prob missing out, at least a little. There are occasions when I can’t seem to buy a bite fishing my normal topwater baits in the high percentage areas, ie submerged wood, vegetation. But for some reason, they’ll absolutely clobber a wakebait burned just beneath the surface.

I’m an admitted wakebait fanboy. I love em & regularly fishing 4-5 different brands during Spring - Fall. While I agree with what WRB and Scott804 are saying above, to a certain extent, I have to disagree a little. There are a couple advantages to fishing true wakebait type lures. Yeah, you can hold your rod up at different angles and fish any shallow, floating diver as a wakebait, but the major disadvantage for me is I tend to miss more fish. If a fish hits pretty good, it feels tension immediately & sometimes will let go before you even know what happened. Not to mention it’s harder to set the hook with your rod tip high. Another advantage with wakebaits is that they’re designed to only go around 2”-6” deep, no matter how fast you fish em. Some shallow divers are gonna go at least a ft deep on a fast retrieve, no matter how high you hold the rod tip. And sometimes, the only way I can get em to bite is with a very rapid stop & go retrieve. So, yeah wakebaits might be a niche lure, but they have their place, at least in my arsenal. I love burning em over shallow grass in the spring & summer. Just my 2 cents worth. ?

Yeah, I have a couple but haven’t used them in a couple of fishing seasons. I prob should break them back out for this spring. They def have the same super exaggerated, wide wobble that the normal Movement 80x has. But the wake version might go only 2” deep max. It makes a very distinct “V” wake on the surface. If I remember correctly, my only complaint is that at really high cranking speeds it tended to get too crazy & almost blow outta the water. But at slower & medium retrieves it was pretty good. Or, it coulda been the way I was fishing it, maybe rod tip too high. I dunno, like I said, been a while since I fished it. ?

Actually, 6th Sense makes a waking version of the Movement 80x. Whereas, the normal 80x goes 1-3 ft deep, the wakebait version bulges just beneath the surface. https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/6th_Sense_Movement_80_WK_Wakebait/descpage-6SM80WK.html

Sounds like I need the 10 amp charger then. And I still need to do a little more research on which battery brand to get. I gotta pull the trigger on something soon. I’ve got a fishing trip in Georgia scheduled for early March. Thanks for all the info.

I’ll try to check out some of his videos. Thanks for the info.

@casts_by_fly and @MN Fisher think I’m about to take the LiFePO4 battery plunge but still trying to decide on a charger. I’m looking at this Noco Genius 5. But is there any advantage to getting the 10 amp charger instead? Does it charge the Li battery significantly faster? The 5 amp is about half the cost of the 10. Also, it looks like on the Noco charger you just set the mode to 12V Li & let it charge overnight, is that correct? If the 5 amp takes all night to charge, no biggie for me. https://www.amazon.com/NOCO-GENIUS5-Fully-Automatic-Temperature-Compensation/dp/B07W8KJH44/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?crid=1HU02J468KCJR&keywords=noco+genius+5&qid=1674537268&sprefix=noco+genius%2Caps%2C135&sr=8-3 @AJ Hauser I’m still undecided on which brand to get. I’m not sure a lot of these brands are nothing more than a small store front/office space on the stateside that is really just a Chinese company. I put in the New Jersey address for Mighty Max in Google maps & looks like it’s a small space in a bunch of warehouse/strip mall type businesses. And no phone number to call. I don’t think many are actually based in the US other than Battleborn & Dakota. And I’m not ready to pay Battleborn prices. ? With all that being said, I’m leaning towards something like this LiTime (I think it was formerly branded AmpereTime). It’s only $300 & weighs only 25.2 lbs. I figure if I get 3-4 yrs out of it, I’ll be doing good. If it craps out after 2 yrs, then I won’t be losing as much as if I bought a $420 - $500 battery. We’ll see how it goes. https://www.amazon.com/LiFePO4-Battery-Perfect-Applications-Warranty/dp/B084DB36KW/ref=mp_s_a_1_1_sspa?crid=28SETMTKEUA0V&keywords=lipo4+battery+12v+100ah+deep+cycle&qid=1674534283&sprefix=lipo4+deep++battery+12v+100ah%2Caps%2C95&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUExWFpCUVFWVVY1OFY2JmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwMjY3NTU2MlpPTDJLR1dJNFVQSSZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwMTc2NTUyMUNBWUxJNE5FNFE0MiZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX3Bob25lX3NlYXJjaF9hdGYmYWN0aW9uPWNsaWNrUmVkaXJlY3QmZG9Ob3RMb2dDbGljaz10cnVl

A Zoom super speed craw on a 1/8 oz Owner shakey head has been one of my best techniques for 5-6 yrs. Works great in 5 ft of water or less. The 6” Zoom ultra vibe speed worm is another great bait for shakey head.

I agree with @TOXIC, just getting broken in. Doesn’t sound like anything duct tape wouldn’t fix. ?

A friend and fellow Bulldawg sent me this article that’s a quick 2 minute read. Just goes to show you what a great human being Mike Leach was. It’s seriously a huge loss to all of college football. https://247sports.com/college/georgia/board/19/Contents/great-leach-story-i-just-read-200602425/

As a alumnus of Miss State and a long time fan, this really saddens my heart. When the news first broke of his medical emergency on Sunday, we held out hope that he would recover to be back on the sidelines next season. Just so so sad. He was so fun & entertaining to watch. And his half time & post game interviews and press conferences were quite hilarious at times. Plus, not to mention the MSU offense was setting all kinds of records the past couple seasons. College football lost a true national treasure in my opinion. ?☹️

Still looking at a few. I might start looking at Mighty Max as well, but their 100 AH battery is a few lbs heavier than the model from Rebel which is why I was leaning towards Rebel. I hate to say it because their so much more expensive, but I’m prob gonna reach out to Battleborn. They have a 10 yr warranty (twice that of most other companies) & if the customer service is great & quick to respond, it may be worth it. Over the span of 10 yrs, the cost upfront would be worth it I guess. It’s just hard to find good customer service these days. Luckily, fishing season is winding down. I’ve got all winter to research & mull it over. So plenty of time before I pull the trigger.

So far, Rebel batteries’ customer service is not giving me the warmest & fuzziest feelings. I’ve tried calling 4-5 times & always get voice mail. Very slow responding to my email & didn’t answer all my questions. So I emailed back on Friday asking some of the questions again, 5 days later still no reply. Beginning to look like I’ll be going with a different brand when I decide to buy. If I need warranty replacement during fishing season, I can’t be waiting weeks or more to get a replacement battery.

Appreciate the info. Yep, I had kinda already decided to go ahead & get the 100 AH considering not too much more expensive or added weight. Rebel def seems to be better in terms of reviews for all the “off-brand” Li batteries. Mighty Max looks pretty good too but they weigh more than the Rebel. Will def do some more research & hope to buy soon. Thanks for your help.

Thanks for info. Think I’m about to take the plunge into the Li battery realm. Couple more questions for you guys with experience. 1. What kind of charger are y’all using? I’m not looking for any kind of on-board charger. 2. Is the 100 AH necessary for 6-8 hrs (or even 10 hrs) of fishing. Seems like I could get by with a 50 AH even on a windy day. My humble vessel is a 12 ft jon boat with a 30 lb minn kota. 3. Do these off brand companies have good reliability? I see that Dakota & Battle Born offer 11 and 10 yr warranties, respectively. These other companies only seem to offer a 1-2 yr warranty. $300-$400 is a lotta cheddar to spend on a battery that dies off after a yr or 2.

Where are you sourcing the lithium batteries? I’m in same situation as the original poster, I’m in 12 ft jon boat with 30 lb minn kota & my 24DC battery only lasts about 3 hrs before it starts losing power. Been trying to find a better battery locally with zero luck. I’m getting too old to lug around a bigger group 27-31 size battery. My back can’t handle it.

I’ve been noticing same trend in our area Academy stores: Olive Branch, MS; Collierville, TN; Starkville, MS. They are totally out of the H2O express hardbaits now. I asked an employee last night if they were discontinuing the baits & he had no clue. Says nobody tells them anything. There are actually folding chairs stocked in the section now where the H2O hardbaits we’re located. ? Actually, stocking in the whole fishing dept is very lacking! I’m hoping this is just temporary as fishing season winds down. Guess we’ll see next spring if the inventory gets restocked. Really hoping the H2O hardbaits come back.

Well, we’ve had record heat wave and drought conditions for about a month or more. The bite has practically shut down for me. Looks like some rain is finally coming end of this week & my money says the bite will turn on. All I keep thinking is…… I’ll be stuck at work. ??

Hey @Darth-Baiter, it’s Monday. Aren’t we supposed to be complaining about not being retired today? ?

Zoom Super speed craw Zoom ultra vibe speed worm Zoom horny toad

We are living parallel lives. I’m also 55 and been working for 30 yrs now but prob won’t be able to retire for at least 10 more. We’re investing well now (although late), but getting married later in life with college aged kids currently, no way I can retire early. I too have a somewhat stressful job, and there are days I really dread the commute & going to work. Staying home to either go fishing or just to do yard work is so much more inviting. ? Don’t worry, I’ll be right there with you. I can be your Bass Resource pre-retirement blues support team member. ????????????

Kinda crazy that 3 of us all were thinking of this article recently. ? For life of me, can’t remember what made me start thinking about it. But I’m pretty sure it was in an issue published 8-10 yrs ago, cause not long after the article I cancelled my subscription. And I cancelled at least 8 yrs ago.

Funny you bringing this up, because my mind was wandering the other day and I started thinking about this exact article. Some of claims about the “mystery angler” in the article were extremely outlandish. Like he could catch fish anywhere and was like the best bass angler ever & nobody had ever heard of him. I think the article was like 10 yrs ago or so. I wish now I hadn’t purged all my old copies of Bassmasters so I could go back and look at it. But I always wondered if it was legit or so kind of fictional story for April Fools in an April issue or something similar.