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Trying out a bait I got from a SU member and I am liking it.

Just got this bad boy and so far I'm loving it! It can actually do 8oz comfortably and is versatile enough for treble and single hook baits.Shimano Expride B 8' XXH rated up to 10oz. If I had to nitpick I wish the handle was a little longer but that's my only complaint. It's only 1" shorter than my Blackjack though so not too bad. It's currently awaiting it's permanent reel....

And, a few $$MONEY SHOTS$$

Well, this update is long overdue and will be lengthy and somewhat pic heavy. Bottom line is that the STC 6" Fatty is a great bait that gets bit. Period. Especially now that the Citizens have been pulled from production (for the foreseeable future, according to the latest WCZ mailer) this bait is a strong option. Hook and spring lock selection. I use the Owner Beast 10/0 weighted 1/2oz hooks. I've seen them rigged on 12/0 but to me it looks like too much hook for the bait. There are some concessions that have to be made for the 10/0 to fit properly. The screw lock cannot be buried into the nose of the bait or the shape of the chin interferes with the geometry of the hook. Additionally, the removal of the nub fins also facilitates a more streamlined fit for the 10/0 hook. I tried a few baits on the 10/0 with the nub fins and found that the belly weight of the hook tended to ride on the outside of the fins on one side or the other, and rarely stayed in the center. This caused the bait to swim "Not Allowed"-eyed and not track true. Removal of the nubs eliminated this issue. I would like to try the BKK Titan Diver hooks to see how they fit. I found the Owner size L and XL CPS screw locks to be inadequate. The diameter of the wire of these screw locks is too small. With even a moderate amount of side pressure, the wire cuts through the plastic of the bait and the nose is blown out. I give full credit to Ceaser from Toxic Baits for the following solution. I purchased these heavy-duty 1.2mm wire / 45mm centering pins from Alibaba. I cut the wire at the loop where it goes into the coils to form the center pin. Then remove the pin, leaving the spring. It is longer, and the larger diameter wire does not tear through the plastic of the bait.

TK’s And magdrafts!

A little late to the game, but this is my first full year of swimbait fishing and being able to compile at least 5 decent fish! Finished with 33lbs14oz. Cheers to breaking 8 in 2023

I also use Mend-It to tighten up the hook slot. Since the heavy-duty spring lock goes further in, I usually close up the top front section of the hook slot before I rig the bait. I also seal up the wound between the main body and the outer 'dip' layer of the bait where I remove the nub fins. After the bait is fully rigged, I seal up the entire section of the hook slot behind the hook, from top to bottom. This does not impede the movement of the hook on a hookset, and really helps to hold the hook in place so it doesn't ride up, keeping the bait snag-free.

Those were the same ones recommended to me by Kevin aka BGC to replace a lost eye from one of his baits.

Good fish Brian, looks like that bait is working out

If I’m remembering correctly, they should be 10mm eyes. The Fish Skull eyes are very similar. https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Fish_Skull_Living_Eyes/descpage-FSLIV.html

It’s how we all learn

I had always wanted to make my own rat bait that was relatively small and would be effective in the areas that I fished. I had been mostly focused on glide baits for quite a while, but decided that I really needed some type of topwater swimmer in my arsenal. I finally got around to carving this rat, and boy am I glad that I did! This quickly became one of my my most effective baits and was able to fool a number of bass in the 1-5# range. I was amazed to find that even 7" dinks would take a swipe at it! I found that the best retrieve was to walk the rat in place using small, quick pumps of the rod. This makes the rat slosh around in one spot and seemed to drive the bass crazy. The rat bite has slowed down because of the cold weather and rain that we're having, but I have high expectations for this rat once the weather warms up again!

1. Not a big bait by any means but a Crawler bait gets the job done. I got into a couple good open water bites this summer. Called them up over 20 ft / 30 fow. Not just for shallow water applications. Its been my go to for river smallies also. 2. Rat with a loud knock. WSB and a Spro 50 come to mind.

All rods mentioned are great options. The Dobyns Fury line has always been a staple budget rod that’s pretty versatile. However, I’ll throw a dark horse into the mix which you don’t hear much about for budget swimbait rod for soft, jig hook baits: Daiwa DX Swimbait Rod XH rated for 3-10oz** baits. ** Like a lot of of production rods, with no industry standards, this rating is subjective. For a $99 rod, it has a fast tip and strong backbone for driving jig hooked baits on a hookset. Pair it up with a used Shimano Cardiff 300 size reel, and you have yourself a great budget soft bait rod & reel combo for under $200, with money to spare for line to spool on that reel.

The silent verison is the one I like. Really cool action different than most. It’s is super buoyant so you can reel at all speeds on top. I like it in calmer conditions creeped. Although it’s big it sits super high in the water so leaves a smaller foot print. I haven’t had any issue with hook ups or losing fish.

Wasn’t planning on fishin today. Brutal storm today, heavy rains, 50mph winds. Rain held off a bit. A local winter stud told me I should go. So I grabbed my gear, hauled ass to a good winter spot. Few cast In with nothin to show. I got a decent whack up shallow on a wind blown shoreline on the Ds glide . Missed it, Few cast later I stuck a good one on the Ds glides. Kept grinding. Rain picked up. I tried a real prey forage trout. Couldn’t get any love! Tried my other DS glide, got whacked but didn’t stick em. she went 4.6, no winter 5s yet

Take some pics because my waters have 10 inches of ice. You can probably guess which one my favorite. Leviathan daily w/ antares dc md xg 95mm varial Mojo bass w/ curado 200hg 117mm varial Leviathan MH w/ scorpion md xg 117 varial

Finally pulled them all out of the boat. Here’s a few nameless custom rods!!

My newest setup I just got this week. Megabass Orochi XX Leviathan with 18 Daiwa Zillion HD.

I’ve got some too and like the swim. Viper shad looks a lot like wcz militia