Are these worth the investment? When do you fish them ?

I love them ...them have a unique walk and spit ...across between a popper and a walker ....try one out

My opinion, buy a Sammy and a spook of the appropriate size. The Sammy casts better, and works on surfaces from glass to class 1 river rapids. I know the gunfish spits, but on the end of my line a spook catches more fish for a 3rd of the cost.

Are these worth the investment?

Yes sir, they're that good. A Gunfish caught the biggest ever "documented" bass I landed: a 7-11 northern strain LM.

What are some advantages of the Gunfish vs Storm Chug Bug? I love the Chug Bug, but have a hard time paying 2x as much $ for a bait to do the same thing.

Are these worth the investment?

IMO... yes

oe

What are some advantages of the Gunfish vs Storm Chug Bug? I love the Chug Bug, but have a hard time paying 2x as much $ for a bait to do the same thing.

Great question, its been a few years since I've thrown either but if I recall correctly. The G.F. has a weight balancer which results in it being more tail weighted, which ensures the fish usually takes the bait better. I had the best luck working it more frantically and not necessarily pausing it. Years ago guys would purposely tail weight CB's and other baits to get the same effect.

Offf the shelf the CB will lay perfectly horizontal on the pause. Which can be a good thing, especially in shallow water. It also "pops" more. The most useful technique I found was using a frog colored chug bug in late summer when the grasshoppers are at their largest on ponds I fish, think of it as a magnum rebel crickhopper.I caught some huge fish on them, beware the hooks suck.

I really love the gunfish, it is my favorite topwater. What I like about it is the versatility. You can work it in different ways, either by "walk-the-dog" or similar to a popper. You can also fish it fast or slow, depending on what the fish want. But what I like best for the places I fish is that it can be subtle, and you can get good action from it with just minor twitching of the rod. It also casts nicely even in the wind due to it's shape.

What are some advantages of the Gunfish vs Storm Chug Bug? I love the Chug Bug, but have a hard time paying 2x as much $ for a bait to do the same thing.

Here the thing, and you can apply this to many different baits. They aren't the same. It would be like comparing a DD22 with a CBD20. Yes, they are both deep diving crankbaits, but fish both of them enough, and you'll start to see the differences. Some of those differences can be used as an advantage once you know. One example would be the way they rise on a pause. The DD22 has a tendency to spiral a bit. The CBD20 backs up as it rises.

In my experience, the gunfish is a finesse option to a hardbait topwater presentation. In the super clear natural lakes up this way and S Michigan, there are times when fish rise on a spook but just slap at it. You can rapidly (or slowly) walk a gunfish in a similar manner, but it displaces much less water and offers a smaller "flick." A lot of times this has triggered them to strike and eat it more readily when the spook's just not happening.

That said, if they're eating a big spook, I'm not sitting it down

JP

I've only seen a gunfish in a Skeet Reese video, he said he swears by it. After reading what you guys have said, it looks like this deserves a much closer look, this time in the store. Thanx guys!

They are a good bait but I usually find myself opting for a straight popper or walker instead of the combo of the two. I have one in American shad with almost no paint left on it though.