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Mattlures Hardgill


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I'm going to share a few thoughts about Matt Servant's (Mattlures) hard bluegills. I have owned and fished

#1. original 3-piece floater

#2. original 3-piece slow-sink

#3. original 3-piece billed floater

#4. new 2-piece wake (billed)

 

Of these, the slow-sinker is the one I've fished the longest, and my review will concentrate on that one. I'll also touch upon the others, including a special emphasis on the new 2-piece wake, which I've just started to play with.

 

Original 3-piece Slow-sinker Hardgill:

 

I have owned two of these; one was bought new, the other used.

 

Casting: Casting these baits is a breeze. It casts well and far. Like most other multi-section baits, they have a slight tendency to tumble in mid-cast, which can be controlled by keeping a low cast trajectory.

Since they weigh around 1.75 oz, they can be easily fished on a medium-heavy powered swimbait stick. I used the Mattlures MH power rod, and also the Okuma 7'11" MH to fish the bait. They will probably also cast well on a flipping stick, but I haven't tried it for the simple reason I don't have a flipping stick.

 

Action: IIRC, the slow-sinker sinks at around 0.5 ft/ sec (ROF 5) on a horizontal plain. On a slow steady retrieve, the motion of the bait is very fluid. It also has a slight rolling action , which I like. The joints are quite flexible right out of the box. Of course, the longer I used my bait, the better it swam. It tracks straight and true at all speeds. Keeping the rod tip low can help this. Jerks and pauses would cause the bait to do a 180. Personally, I've had the most luck with these erratic retrieves.

 

Hardware: The split rings and the hooks are top grade right of the box. I haven't had the need to change them out.

 

Durability: I used them only on bass, and they've held up well. Also, I never casted one onto rocks, so I don't know if that would have had any adverse effects. I haven't had any chipped fins. The paint did get damaged after catching a ton of bass, however the paint is such that missing a bit of paint looks like the bluegill has lost a couple of scales. Which makes it all the more realistic.

 

 

Original 3-piece Floater Hardgill:

 

It has a similar action to the slow-sinker, except of course that it floats. I haven't caught a lot of fish on this one, mostly because I like fishing billed floating hardbaits way more.

 

 

Original 3-piece Billed Floater Hardgill:

 

Similar to the non-billed floater. The rolling motion is much better on the billed hardgill though IMO.

 

This brings me to the

New 2-piece Wake Hardgill:

I'm not going to talk a lot about this one, because I have fished it for less than a coupla hours.

The next pic shows the flexibility of the joint.

image12192011154624.jpg

 

Slow-roll action:

For it's size, it leaves a huge wake on the surface, and you can really feel the thumping even on mono. Even at super-slow speeds, it has a nice action, which is good since I like to work wake baits quite slow. It also has a side-to-side rolling action, similar to the billed 3-piece floater I talked of.

 

 

Ripping action:

Directional changes are fast and crisp. The bait responds very well to rod movements. I could also make the tail splash with two successive jerks (similar to the wake Jr).

The best part is that the hooks never got fouled after 30 odd tries on slack line.

 

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Great review!!! I too am a fan of these baits. I have many of them and a few colors. Most of my success has been on the floating bait. They stand up well to everyday use and are a bit like good wine......just gets better with time. I would say that they are pretty durable. But if your fishing around pilings or docks and happen to let the bait get away from you some damage can be done. Even with broken fins all around one of my floaters I just touched it up with a light coat of rattle can paint(black). Still swims great and is my go to bait out of all of them.

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The SS male is the first bait I caught a legit SB fish on. Stil have that bait and 4 other Hardgills. Definitely one of my favorite baits. I still get a kick out of showing them to non-swimbaiters and seeing the looks on their faces.

 

Deep, great review!

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  • 2 weeks later...

This is one of my all time favorite baits. I have caught a ton of fish on the floater and look forward to trying the new version. My old version one did get the fins chipped up a little but that didn't affect the action or its ability to catch fish. Great review and to me this is one of the must have baits if you have gills in the water you fish.

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Let me start by saying this bait does flat out catch fish. I would have it in some of my top bait pics.....however

 

It's a crap shoot.....the baits do not have any consistency. I have owned/own prob 20-25 of his gills. I have had floaters that would sink at super slow rates, ss that sink faster than others etc...doesn't mean those don't or won't catch fish....it can be frustrating trying to replicate a bait that may have produced for ya before.

 

I agree with the baits chipping/cracking Matt has supposedly taken care of this with his new baits....just haven't been able to throw the ones I have yet.

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Let me start by saying this bait does flat out catch fish. I would have it in some of my top bait pics.....however

 

It's a crap shoot.....the baits do not have any consistency. I have owned/own prob 20-25 of his gills. I have had floaters that would sink at super slow rates, ss that sink faster than others etc...doesn't mean those don't or won't catch fish....it can be frustrating trying to replicate a bait that may have produced for ya before.

 

I agree with the baits chipping/cracking Matt has supposedly taken care of this with his new baits....just haven't been able to throw the ones I have yet.

Thats been my experience to except I didn't buy that many. :o

 

I hope he comes out with a perch and bass in the new style too.

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  • 4 weeks later...
  • 3 months later...

The Baby Hardgill(figured just add to this thread even though its about the actual hardgill) is hands down my favorite swimbait i have used so far, i have caught 3/4 of my swimbait fish on it.

 

I have The Floater in Female Gill. I throw it on a normal set-up, calcutta 250-b, and a xps tournament rod. With 40lb braid.

 

Pro's: The bait is very small, but still gets the big bites. Doesnt go crazy when you cast it, never spins or flips. Doesnt break that easily.

 

Con's: Paint takes awhile to wear down but when it does the paint just keep peeling off from that spot, and soon the paint is gone from most of the segments of the body of the bait. Hooks arnt the strongest.

 

I have videos with some nice fish on this bait, including my PB that was a little under 8lb(that video is in Got'em.)

 

But im in school right now :lol::lol::roll:

 

So no access to youtube. Overall its a great waking bait that gets some good top water explotions and fish

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  • 3 weeks later...
I fish fast sink perch and its killer straight up catches fish.Got to get somw gills they look amazing and sound even better from reviews thanks everybody very helpful

 

I love that bait, has a very realistic swimming motion for a hard bait and like the gills it gets bit. I lost my first one because my line broke, fortunately I replaced it along with a couple of back-ups.

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