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Sunday - November 24, 2008 was day 2 of the Bass-a-thon at Angler's Marine in Anaheim. I caught a late flight after the WON Delta team tourney Saturday and spent the day at the show Sunday to see what was new and cool in the world of bass. Here's a run down, as best I can.
Cl8Bait
Clayton Bryant is making a 9" trout hardbait and it immediately caught my eye walking past the booth. This is a brand new bait that Clayton says has been in the works for six years. When you see the bait, you'll believe it. The lure has 4 joints with a soft tail section. What makes the Cl8Bait most interesting is the lure body material and the embedded style hooks.
Take a Cl8Bait and push on the dorsal fin. You'll notice that it has a hard rubber feeling. Clayton says that this material helps keep the bait from breaking when casting it off of rocks and docks. Great idea. You'll see when you have one in hand. It's a very cool material.
There's a large frog hook on the belly and a standard EWG syle hook with a prong cut off on the tail. What makes the hook setup great is the way they are recessed in to the body of the bait and held in place with a magnet. And did I mention that the hooks are painted up to the barb? A man after my own heart made this one. This is a very well thought out lure. I threw it around at DVL Sunday and the action was just as solid as the construction. You can work the slow sink model at a creep and it balances just right. This was my favorite new bait at the show.
http://www.calfishing.com/files/Images/2008_11_23_bass-a-thon/cl8bait.jpg
http://www.calfishing.com/files/Images/2008_11_23_bass-a-thon/cl8bait3.jpg
http://www.calfishing.com/files/Images/2008_11_23_bass-a-thon/cl8bait5.jpg
http://www.calfishing.com/files/Images/2008_11_23_bass-a-thon/cl8bait6.jpg
Castaic
If you've read my reviews of the Platinum and the Rock Hard you know that I've always felt like these baits had a ton of potential but were executed poorly in production. With the Catch 22 I feel like Castaic is finally getting in the game with a bait that has action, clean molds, and most of all - durability.
The Catch 22 has the Rock Hard body and each size is identical in terms of body shape and detail. There's a kevlar "skeleton" inside the lure that Castaic is calling Inner Armor and when you pull on the bait it feels solid. They are advertising that the bait will catch at least 22 largemouth bass before being torn up.
On the water I liked what I saw. The action of the lure is not like the platinum, but it looks tasty. The first thing that jumped in to my mind was that the lure moved like a Stocker Trout - which is strange because the lure is shaped nothing like a Stocker. But I liked the action, and after 50 casts I did not notice any degradation in the bait.
My only hangup with the platinum is that it's tricky to rig a trap hook on it. Not a big deal on the little baits, but it will require some thought to trap up the 10". Regardless, I will be throwing this bait more and I think that Castaic has finally gotten it right in production. The guys at Castaic also said they have a big product lineup on the way and I'm hoping that the rest will match the quality of the Catch 22.
http://www.calfishing.com/files/Images/2008_11_23_bass-a-thon/castaic_catch22.jpg
Black Dog
Had a chance to sit next to Grant and Jeremy at the Black Dog booth and get the run down on their new product. I'm kicking myself for not getting a photo but maybe one of you guys who were at the show can throw up some photos of the new plastic punkers. The new injection plastic Punkers are hitting a lower price point around $40 and offer some good looking transparent colors.
It sounded like sales were strong on the new baits, and there is a new size. A really big new size. Really big.... Har. The big Punker is something like 12" long and just enormously wide. It's a monster. Dude's were walking by checking it out all day. This could be one for Casitas or for the jumbo stripers. So the basic word is - new plastic baits, cheaper prices, transparent colors and massive size option :) Somebody post a pic, c'mon.
Okuma
Mark at Okuma was the one who encouraged me to come down and gave me a place to stay - thanks bro. I hung out at the booth when I wasn't busy oogling new baits and chatting it up with everyone. Okuma has a new rod lineup in protoype mode right now called the C3 and I'm damn excited to see the new stuff.
The rods are made from a high end carbon and are very very light. They're so light it doesn't even feel like a regular fishing rod. The grips are made from this sort of gummy fiberglass which gives a great connection to the rod blank. We put the whooping to 40+ fat DVL bass on Sunday using the prototypes and I'm way in to it. When is the swimbait rod coming? Don't know yet. But it'll be sick. Price point - $150-$160 retail.
Mark showing off the new stuff.
http://www.calfishing.com/files/Images/2008_11_23_bass-a-thon/11_25_08_mark2.jpg
Basstar
This is Joe Uribe Sr's brand new company and brand new bait. Some of you may know Joe and his son as the guys who mopped up just about every tournament at DVL the first few years the lake opened. Joe Jr. also just made it in to the Forrest Wood cup via the East v. West showdown at Falcon last week.
The bait, which I'm not sure if it has a name yet, is a hybrid prop tail bait. The body style is like a giant Deps Buzzjet but there are a variety of mods you can do to the lure which make for some interesting options. With the prop on you can wake the lure (it will swim straight and throw a large wake). You can also walk the dog with it, or rip it like a Devil's Horse. The prop can be removed and left off for a subtler spook type action, or you can put a spinnerbait skirt on the end for an even softer approach. The skirt will ride close to the bait so that if a bass grabs the skirt - it gets the hook.
It's in an interesting bait that I think will be productive in warm water and clear water situations. Guys fishing the Mexico lakes should take a look at this one.
http://www.calfishing.com/files/Images/2008_11_23_bass-a-thon/bass_star1.jpg
JSJ
John St. John lives up in the North Bay and has two new baits out. The JSJ Snack Size Swimbait is a Triple Trout style 8" body with molded in fins. The Bluegill is a 4-piece, thin body, very realisitc in shape. Both lures have a subtle action, not nearly the S pattern of a Triple Trout or BBZ-1. This could be something to try when you want to work the bait a little slower in the zone. There are floaters and sinkers. Price on the Swimbait is $75 and there are a variety of colors.
I haven't had a chance to put these on the water, but if you want to take a look visit www.thewiredangler.com and check the day on the water post with Tackle Tour. At the show I thought that the bass pattern looked great in person
http://www.calfishing.com/files/Images/2008_11_23_bass-a-thon/jsj_snack_size_trout.jpg
http://www.calfishing.com/files/Images/2008_11_23_bass-a-thon/jsj_snack_size_bluegill.jpg
Mattlures
Matt and I chatted it up for a bit. He has a new line of swimbait rods that look solid (including a monstrous rod for the 1lber type baits, you have to see it :) ). Matt was also debuting his new bluegill hardbait which has the same great paint job as the soft gills but offers a new look with surface action.
I put the bait in the water at DVL and it swam perfect out of the box. Stoked. The back of the bait just barely sticks out of the water as you work the lure and the action is solid. Not a big wide wobble, but a soft, sort of frantic kick. Taxidermy eyes, good hardware, a replaceable tail. I feel good about this one. Should be a lot of fun around shallow cover, and gives you a good shot at tournament sized fish. Thanks Matt.
http://www.calfishing.com/files/Images/2008_11_23_bass-a-thon/mattlure_bluegill_hardbait3.jpg
KSH Custom Bait Weights
Before I say how much I like this rig, just take a deep breath and try to get over the $3.50 price tag. Yes you are paying $3.50 for a 3/4oz lead sinker. But you know, when you stuff this thing inside a Basstrix it's a thing of beauty. After my initial excitement with the Basstrix Paddletail Tube and all the bites it generates, I must say that I have shyed away from fishing it out of irritation with the number of missed bites.
This rig is going to have me back in the Basstrix saddle here shortly, and I'll pay a few bucks if it means I can land the bites. Will Hesch at www.centralcoastbass.com had these for sale at his booth.
http://www.calfishing.com/files/Images/2008_11_23_bass-a-thon/ksh_custom_baits_bait_weight2.jpg
Mend-it
The other thing Will had at his booth was the new Mend-it packaging. I like the Mend-it product but like many people I had a problem with it drying now. Will says the new bottle fixes the problem and I'm glad to hear it because I have more than a few torn up baits in need of Mend-it.
http://www.calfishing.com/files/Images/2008_11_23_bass-a-thon/mendit2.jpg
Huddleston Deluxe
Ken has the new transparent colors out and while I'd already bought them online it was good to check out the full color lineup in person. The Phantom Trout looks fantastic in the water and while the bass weren't on the swimbait at DVL Monday I still drooled every time my 8" ROF12 Phantom Trout hudd came in to view. www.huddlestondeluxe.com for photos.
Basstrix
Bruce was at the Basstrix booth and they had a few new products to show off (along with a pile of the original Basstrix in a wide range of colors). The new bait is a fat body that gives a little more profile vs. the original paddle tail tube. Talking with Big Fred it sounds like the new bait is working well. They're matching them up with a shad style head with a brush guard and I'm excited to give this lure/jighead combination a try.
I know it looks a little weird with two sets of eyeballs but I feel strongly that this head will keep the fish hooked better than the traditional weedless rigging. Check it out see what you think:
http://www.calfishing.com/files/Images/2008_11_23_bass-a-thon/new_basstrix2.jpg
Orso Swimbaits
If you're like me, you've watched Dave Robertson's videos more than a few times on www.orsoswimbaits.com. They have some great clips from Casitas of fish exploding on their big topwater trouts. The Orso stuff is in production now and there are a variety of big photo-finish style baits available. 8, 12, and 16" trout and two sizes of bluegill including the jumbo sized "Gilzilla".
Listen, you're looking at these baits thinking they are kind of ugly. Yeah. But if you've watched the actions you know that these have that hand-made attention to detail that means your bait is going to run right and generate bites. When it's in the budget I look forward to getting these on the review pages.
12" and 16" Trout
http://www.calfishing.com/files/Images/2008_11_23_bass-a-thon/orso_16_and_12_inch.jpg
Gilzilla on top
http://www.calfishing.com/files/Images/2008_11_23_bass-a-thon/orso_bluegill_and_gilzilla.jpg
16" shown with 8" trout
http://www.calfishing.com/files/Images/2008_11_23_bass-a-thon/orso_trouts.jpg
SwimBaits Inc
Bill Egan is making a line of hardbaits that are in the prototype stages right now. He showed me a few of the baits on my way out of the show and I took a few photos to give y'all a sense of what he will be offering. He's doing the photo finish thing and offering some jumbo sized baits for you guys that like the big stuff. More on these in the coming months. www.swimbaitsinc.com
10" Top Water Spotted Clone
http://www.calfishing.com/files/Images/2008_11_23_bass-a-thon/swimbaits_inc_bass.jpg
7" Top Water Little Clone Gill
http://www.calfishing.com/files/Images/2008_11_23_bass-a-thon/swimbaits_inc_bluegill.jpg
4' Deep, 12" ET Trout
http://www.calfishing.com/files/Images/2008_11_23_bass-a-thon/swimbaits_inc_jointed.jpg
7" Top Water Little Spotted Clone
http://www.calfishing.com/files/Images/2008_11_23_bass-a-thon/swimbaits_inc_small_bass.jpg
Tylure
Ty is a So-Cal guy who has been making baits for many years down in the Castaic area. He had a strong variety of product at the Bass-a-thon. The one that really caught my eye was the bluegill bed bait with a weight on the nose. Unfortunately I didn't get a photo of that one. Grrrr. But here are some shots of his other baits for you to check out. I haven't had a chance to test any of these guys.
http://www.calfishing.com/files/Images/2008_11_23_bass-a-thon/tylure.jpg
http://www.calfishing.com/files/Images/2008_11_23_bass-a-thon/tylure_bluegill.jpg
http://www.calfishing.com/files/Images/2008_11_23_bass-a-thon/tylure_shad.jpg
http://www.calfishing.com/files/Images/2008_11_23_bass-a-thon/tylure_trout.jpg
To everyone who came up to me to say what's up - thank you - it was a pleasure to meet you. From what I gather the show had a pretty low turnout this year, no doubt due to the economy, but I still had a great time and enjoyed the chance to put names to faces.
If you're wondering about the fishing at DVL ... my advice is to rent a boat, look for birds, throw light line with a lure that looks like a shad on the end - then sit back and enjoy the whack fest. Fun lake.
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