I wanna get into some more chatter bait fishing. I was recommended the Z-man Custom Chatterbait which comes in a 4 ought hook. I was also recommended to use the Keitech Swing Impact FAT Swimbait. What size should I use? The color comes in 3.3, 3.8, 4.3, 4.8, and 5.3 inches. It comes in more sizes, but these are the main ones. What one/ones would you get or recommend? Any other trailers that work well for imitating shad? Thank you 

Greyson

3.8 or 4.3 is what I use on my chatterbaits.  If you choose too big of a trailer you can always cut down the trailer, if you choose too  small of a trailer you can always cut down the skirt on the chatterbait so the trailer is more visible.

I don't like the Keitech's for chatterbaits... much prefer something like a Zako or Swimon

4 hours ago, Greyson said:

I wanna get into some more chatter bait fishing. I was recommended the Z-man Custom Chatterbait which comes in a 4 ought hook. I was also recommended to use the Keitech Swing Impact FAT Swimbait. What size should I use? The color comes in 3.3, 3.8, 4.3, 4.8, and 5.3 inches. It comes in more sizes, but these are the main ones. What one/ones would you get or recommend? Any other trailers that work well for imitating shad? Thank you 

Greyson

anything in the 4 inch range works well, flukes or swimbaits with tails cut off work well, craws imitate bluegill well, 

I’ve narrowed my trailers down to the Zako, 3.8 Fat Impact and the SK Blade Minnow.

I’ve been bouncing between a GYCB Zako, a Strike King Menace or Blade Minnow, and gonna give the Yoto Worm a try this spring…

I usually just use a Zoom Super Chunk, or a Fat Albert.

My old standby for chatters and swim jigs is a 4" Berkley Pit Boss

I love spinner baits and have used them regularly for 50+ years.  I seemed to have always used jigs and chatterbaits only when other baits didn't  seem to be working.  But I started using them more frequently a couple years ago, and this past year had good success.  I caught some nice fish in places that in years past I would have probably floated past without a bite.  Whether jigs, chatterbaits or spinnerbaits, I size trailers so that their main feature...curly tail, flat tail, split tail, pincers, etc....is distinctly clear of the skirt.  I'm thinking my prior lack of success may have been a tendency to use trailers too short for the skirts.  I try to avoid trimming skirts because you can never get back what you trim, so I'll buy larger trailers and, if necessary, trim them instead.  My typical routine is to start with the trailer as it comes out of the bag, throw it what I consider a reasonable number of times, and if no bites I'll trim 1/8" off and start throwing it again.  Some days I got bites without trimming, and some days it was after trimming twice before things started happening.  My favorites trailers, because they seem to have resulted in most of my catches, is the 4 1/2" Zoom Z craw and 4" Berkley chigger craw.  I'll admit that there are hundreds of others I haven't tried, but then there are also hundreds of others I've never seen.

BUT, like with any bait, you'll have to experiment and see what works for you. (I'll share that a lot of my success with chatterbaits and jigs was on the Shenandoah.)

15 hours ago, Columbia Craw said:

I’ve narrowed my trailers down to the Zako, 3.8 Fat Impact and the SK Blade Minnow.

*The Strike King Rage Swimmer in the 3.8" size is better in my opinion than the Keitech FAT Swing Impact on a chatterbait . While Keitech FAT Swing Impact is a great swimbait alone - they are just not as good as other swim baits on a chatterbait .

9 hours ago, ChrisD46 said:

*The Strike King Rage Swimmer in the 3.8" size is better in my opinion than the Keitech FAT Swing Impact on a chatterbait . While Keitech FAT Swing Impact is a great swimbait alone - they are just not as good as other swim baits on a chatterbait .

I agree 

I have had excellent luck with the Z-Man RaZor ShadZ. Very similar action to the Zako, and they last forever. I mean, I bought two 4 packs in spring and still have 3 that I haven’t touched. And I’ve done really well with a Chatterbait this year.