anyone had any luck with this? 

or is there a better wake bait in the same $5-6 price range?

thanks for any input...

Basgley's Bulgin B stirs up the surface very well, and they were't that costly.  Don't know their availability, but the bargain bines in some areas had them for well under $5. Bandit also had one, but I did not get a good tune up with the one I tried.  Just wasn't balanced very well. Mann's has one too now I believe that isn't very costly. I've caught lots of fish on their -1, so their wake bait might be worth a try if yuou can stand a peeling paint job.

I bought a Norman 'wake' bait but I'm very disappointed.  It isn't a wake bait at all.  It dives too deep.  Only with a VERY slow retrieve could this thing stay near the surface.

The Bandit footloose is pretty nice and the Lucky Craft RC jointed wakebait is cool too.  The footloose stays up high if you hold your rod tip up.  The RC stays right on the surface, no matter how fast you retrieve it.