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"Baby Mega Ring Shad" |
 When
first looking at Gene Larew's Baby Mega Ring Shad it presented
a challenge on how to rig it. The lure looked like it was going
to have possibilities, but it was uncertain as to what the best
approach would be to unlock the full fish catching potential.
The color being tested was green pumpkin with green flake, which
is one of my favorites.
There were three lakes on which the lure was tested. One was
shallow, with stained water, wood cover and rip rap, another
was deep, with clear water, cat tails and submerged weed, and
the last was shallow, with clear water, moss, wood cover and
submerged weeds. The water temperature in all of these lakes
was in the 75 to 82 degree range. The techniques used were flipping,
pitching and casting.
The first rig tried was with a 2/0 Daiichi Bleeding Bait Copperhead
hook. The head of the lure was attached to the spring screw
device on the hook eye, and the point inserted so the lures
body would be vertical to the hook. I thought this would work
well for a jerk bait. The lure stayed perfectly up and down,
as if it were a swimming shad. There was one bass caught, and
some strikes, but it wasn't the best of producers.
From this point a Texas rig using a 1/0 Xtra Strong XGap Xpoint
hook, and 1/8 or 3/16 ounce slip sinker was tried. This was
the most productive rig during the testing period. The hook
was inserted so that the body laid horizontal, giving the big,
paddle tail a waving action, much like a leech type lure. Bass
and catfish were caught on this rig.
I also tried the lure as a trailer on a 3/16 ounce Gripper Hair/Rubber
Jig. This caught a few bass along the edge of a weed line, but
still didn't out produced the Texas rig.
Durability was a draw back on the lure. Many times it was a
one or two fish lure, or was broken in two on a strike. The
break would always come at the point where the hook was inserted.
The large rings were a benefit. These would act as a weed guard
so that the hook point could be exposed through the main body.
In fact, there were occasions when I inserted the hook in the
rings along side the middle portion, and used them as the lure's
body. This seemed to somewhat eliminate the problem of the lure
splitting on a strike, or catch. Another plus to these rings
is for the use of fish attractant paste. I applied a small amouth
of Kodiak Minnow or Crawfish Paste between a couple of the larger
middle portion rings.
It is still uncertain as to what this lure is supposed to represent,
but on the lake with the moss and submerged weeds, some leeches
were spotted. This is the area in which the fish were feeding
heavily, and being that a 23 1/2 inches channel catfish was
caught in this same area, it is highly likely that one of the
primary imitations is a leech.
While this lure is short, the big rings and paddle tail provide
a bulky profile. This, combined with the waving action when
rigged horizontally, may be the reason that it seemed to lure
bigger bass. Fish measuring 15 to 18 inches were common, plus
some much bigger ones were lost in heavy cover.
This is a lure that every bass angler should have rigged on
a rod, so it is ready for a quick cast to a prime spot. It is
a great lure on tough fishing days, as a follow up to missed
strikes, and when fishing behind another angler.
My overall rating is 4 1/2 stars out of 5... learn
more |
| Review by Dan
Galusha - Bassin' USA Prostaff Team - Illinois |
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"Floating Series Finesse Craw" |
Gene Larew's Floating Series Finesse Craw performs well for
catching fish, but is not the most durable of lures. This is
a trade off for its great floating abilities.
There were three lakes on which the lure was tested. One
was shallow, with stained water, wood cover and rip rap, another
was deep, with clear water, cat tails and submerged weed,
and the last was shallow, with clear water, moss, wood cover
and submerged weeds. The water temperature in all of these
lakes was in the 75 to 82 degree range.
I used colors of green pumpkin with green flake, and black
with blue claws. The green pumpkin craws were rigged Texas
style with 1/0 and 2/0 XGap Xpoint and 2/0 Daiichi Bleeding
Bait Copperhead hooks, and on 1/16 and 1/8 ounce lead head
jigs. The black/blue craw was used as a trailer for a 1/4
ounce, black/blue, Mann's Stone jig.
A 3/16 ounces Gambler Pro Ratlin' Sinker was used with the
Texas rig when flipping/pitching brush and working the lure
through rip rap areas. On a pause the lure would float upward,
with the claws in a defensive position.
The floating ability was so great that the lure would float
the 2/0 Copperhead hook on the surface, when fishing without
a weight. This makes a great lure for working over weedy and
moss covered areas. The claws stay on the surface, and when
twitched, they look like kicking legs, which in turn makes
a crawfish lure double for a frog. While the lure was not
tested with a Carolina rig, it should be an excellent choice
for that style of fishing.
Fish would strike and hold onto the lure, which made for
a higher percentage of positive hook sets. I believe this
can be attributed in a great part to the garlic and salt,
which are in the lures. As mentioned earlier, the durability
did create some problems. Points on thinner wire hooks would
pull out easily while working the lure; claws, especially
on the two colored lure, would come off without being struck
by a fish; and fish would tear the back part off when rigged
on the lead head jig.
To help eliminate this problem, to some extent, I used the
thicker Xtra Strong 1/0 XGap Xpoint and 2/0 Copperhead hooks.
These seemed to hold better, and make the lure last longer.
The Copperhead design, for those not familiar with this hook,
has a spring type screw attached to the hook's eye, which
screws into the head of any soft plastic lure. During the
testing period the Gene Larew Finesse Craw accounted for several
largemouth bass in the 12 to 18 inches size range. On one
day it accounted for all the fish caught in the boat, while
my partner did not catch a fish until I let him use one of
the craws. Although not fishing water with smallmouth or Kentucky
spotted bass, I'm sure they would be a perfect choice for
these species.
Even with the durability problem I would give this lure a
4 1/2 out of 5 star rating... learn
more |
Review by Dan
Galusha - Bassin' USA Prostaff Team - Illinois
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