04Lures

Lures

Lures fall into four broad groups. When choosing a lure, ask three questions: What depth are the fish at? What cover is there? Are the fish active or inactive? The answers mostly decide which kind of lure to use. Or just try the Lure Finder.

FIG.1Depth Chart

The horizontal axis is water depth (m). Bars show typical running depth; arrows mean it can be fished deeper. Actual depth also depends on line diameter, cast distance and retrieve speed.

Hard Baits

Hard Baits04 TYPES

Rigid plastic or wooden fish-shaped lures, usually with a lip and treble hooks, that swim on their own as you reel. Great for covering water.

Topwater

Topwater04 TYPES

Lures that work on the surface, drawing fish with sound, splash and wake. Strikes are visible and exciting; most effective in low light early and late.

Pencil Bait / Walking Bait

Pencil Bait

0–0.2 m5–25 g

Popper

0–0.1 m5–20 g

Prop Bait

0–0.1 m8–30 g

Hollow Body Frog

Frog

0–0.05 m10–25 g

Metal & Bladed

Metal & Bladed06 TYPES

Lures built around metal blades, metal bodies or lead heads that draw fish with flash and vibration. Some are very snag resistant.

Inline Spinner

0.2–2 m1.5–10 g

Spoon

0–4+ m0.5–30 g

Spinnerbait

0.2–3 m7–28 g

Bladed Jig / Chatterbait

Chatterbait (Bladed Jig)

0.3–3 m7–21 g

Rubber Jig

0.5–8+ m3.5–28 g

Metal Jig

0–8+ mFresh water 5–30 g

Soft Plastics & Rigs

Soft Plastics & Rigs08 TYPES

Soft plastics are fished on a hook, weighted or weightless. Some tails, like paddle tails and curly tails, have built-in action, and different hook and weight combinations (rigs) dramatically change how they're presented and used.

Jighead Rig

Jig Head + Soft Plastic

0–5+ mJig head 1–14 g

Texas rig

0.3–6+ mWeight 3.5–28 g

Carolina Rig

1–8+ mWeight 10–28 g

Drop Shot Rig

0.5–10+ mWeight 2–10 g

Weightless / Wacky Rig

Weightless Rig (incl. Wacky)

0–2 mSoft plastic's own weight only

Neko Rig

0.5–6 mNail weight 0.5–3.5 g

Free Rig

0.5–8+ mWeight 5–21 g

Ned Rig

0.5–6 mJig head 1.8–7 g

+Soft Plastics

Soft Plastic Shapes

Shape	Action	Common rigs
Paddle tail	Tail kicks side to side on a steady retrieve, like a baitfish	Jig head, Texas, Carolina, swim jig trailer
Curly tail	Swims even at low speed, and the tail moves on the fall too	Jig head, free rig, drop shot
Stick bait	Almost no built-in action; sinking and shaking give it a subtle shimmy	Weightless wacky, neko, Ned
Finesse worm	Long and slim with a soft tail that quivers when shaken	Drop shot, Texas, Carolina
Craw / creature	Many appendages that flap on the fall and when hopped	Texas, jig trailer, free rig
Soft jerkbait	Darts side to side when jerked and paused, like an injured baitfish	Weightless (offset hook)

Many soft plastics are salted or scented. Some special materials (such as buoyant TPE elastomer plastics) shouldn't be stored with regular PVC plastics, or they may melt into each other and deform.

+Hooks

Hooks

Hook type	Features	Used for
Treble	Three points, high hookup rate; snags easily and can injure fish	Minnows, crankbaits, VIBs, pencil baits and other hard baits
Single hook (for hard baits)	Replaces trebles to reduce snags and fish injury; friendly for pay ponds and catch & release	Converting hard baits, spinners and spoons
Offset / EWG	The bend near the eye lets you bury the point in the soft plastic	Texas, weightless, free rig
Straight-shank / drop-shot hook	Small and compact, ideal for nose-hooking soft plastics	Drop shot, neko, wacky
Jig head	Hook and lead head in one	Jig-head plastics, Ned rig
Assist hook	A single hook tied with PE cord and hung from the head of a metal jig	Metal Jig

Barbless hooks unhook quickly and harm fish less; they're a common requirement for catch & release and pay ponds. You can flatten barbs with pliers.