KeepinItReelFishing

Feelin' that black nickel blade....subtle. Good fish man.

Yeah man...I'm no guru, but I do my best. I do have a ton of gear though and love to talk shop. Feel free to hit me up with any questions.

Dude....SUPERB write up. I could FEEL the energy. And, I know precisely what you felt both before and after that one special catch. The crazy part was you got, and capitalized, on a second opportunity that same day. So often those moments have large gaps of time between them (days or weeks). Congrats!! -Carl

Agreed. When they first came stateside I used the 5.8's and 4.8's like that.....super slow in the cold water. But, the 6.8 and definitely the 7.8 you have to pick up the pace to get that tail to kick. However, the largest Easy Shiner (8") you can go CRAZY STUPID SLOW with and it achieves fulll tail kick and body roll. I've put them side by side and I would estimate you can go roughly 1/2 the speed that you have to go in the 7.8" Swing Impact Fat to elicit the swimming action. They have been my winter antidote for a large-ish bait that you can maximize its time in the strike zone for cold water (under 50 degrees) lethargic bass.

Good stuff Mike. You can't hold a good Keitech down! I'm about to move to the Swing Impact Fat in a few weeks myself. I roll with the Easy Shiner until water temps hit 60.

Nice one Justin! Congrats on a NJ stud. Condolences on the Hudd. In other news....I found a Hudd 68 just laying on the ground at a launch a few weeks back. -Carl

Nice one man!

The Slash gill was a limited release....I believe it was around 100 units. They were all initialed and numbered by Matt Servant. The joints had much more limited travel than the standard Magnum Hardgill. The 'slash' title was intentional due to the fact that it doesn't glide out on slow inputs, but rather quick 1/2 reels turns elicit a fast and erratic (slashing) side to side ('gliding') action. Basically it comes to life worked fast, but isn't a slow, wide glider.

Solid looking fish man. What did she clock in at?

Love that combo as well. Well done!

This is the same color as Cal's above....just not in as bright of lighting.

Can I share a pic on here Matt? -Carl

This is a Mattlures' product. Whether he is now deciding to release it I don't know. The fact that Cal is showing the images makes me think there is a strong likely hood that it will. I have been fishing the same model for about two years. Sworn, of course, to secrecy until Matt decided if he was going to release it. The build quality is incredible. He is doing all new things with the tail, and now fin material. Front AND rear rotating hook hangers (I love how the rear fin is notched to integrate the hanger). And yes, like some of you I was surprised to see a different hinge design from him. Someone mentioned the clear coat, and fear not it is robust like usual. As Matt's stuff goes its really more of a revolution than evolution (as compared to his Strong Shad). In hand and in water it is near the top of the finest stuff I have ever used. Again, no idea if what I have is going to be released (I sure hope it is!!), but its identical to what Cal is showing on T.T.'s IG. I'm reluctant to post images unless I hear from the man himself. If he chimes in I'd be happy to share my images. -Carl / Keepin'It REEL Fishing https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEDHbmZGQ4vuf7ApYUJWjmg?view_as=subscriber

I have always heard something like that Conner...."if a fish isn't eating the bait all the way, change the color". I dunno man, I've always been skeptical. Having said that, I think it stands to reason that the very bright or obnoxious colors could potentially elicit a different response. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. So, yeah.....I would say either a black model or one of the white ones (Pearl White or "LCR" (Left Coast Reaction)).

You did perfect! Come on....those are great colors. Your G2 set 4-life.

Thank you Wayne. With my daughter now 3 and she wanting attention all the time / me wanting to give her attention all the time, it took about 4 months. Ten mins here, 20 mins there, etc.

That's a SERIOUS fish for WA! Awesome, AWESOME stuff man.....big congrats!!!

Well that took forever. Been amassing clips of this things since I got it six years ago. I knew it was special then, and the more I fished it the more I wanted to do create a video worthy of the bait. In 2012 I bought a Shellcracker G2, a Hudd 68, and a Mattlures Ultimate Gill. Seven years and hundreds of swimbaits later the Shellcracker G2, without question, makes the short list of must haves if I was forced to only keep a handful of lures. My opinion is based solely on my experience. That experience being my outcomes and relating those outcomes in terms of numeric data. Its not conjecture....the G2 has, for me, literally out fished my other small wake baits. Part of that no doubt is due to the fact that its compact (more bites from all sizes of fish), and also in part due to its ability to effectively be a crankbait and also a squarebill. But, therein lies one of the things that I'm always looking for....a bait that is competent at doing multiple things in any given cast. Even amongst long videos this is a long one. But, fear not as all the chapters/topics are time stamped in the video description and you can shoot right to those areas you want to know about and skip others (if you want). From Youtube Video description: "The Black Dog Baits Shellcracker G2 is a smartly designed, multi-function swimbait that punches higher than its weight. It performs exceptionally well in three distinctly different areas: Waking, Cover Bumping, and Cranking. Its this versatility coupled to its small, but very chunky profile that has earned this bait a stallar reputation since its release and not only a "numbers" bait, but a legit big fish bait. It is an early choice of many anglers who are starting to get into big baits/swimbaits and want something appreciably bigger than "traditional" lures, but aren't comfortable or ready for the really big baits. It is at the very top of my segue lures due to the fact that you don't need swimbait gear (rod or reel) to use it successfully. However, while it catches fish of all sizes it has developed a well earned reputation of catching more giant bass than you would expect from a lure of its size. It is without question in my select group of SUPER confidence lures as it seems to get bit when other lures in the same category are not. Call it "the juice" or the "X-factor", but something about the Shellcracker G2's design, size, sound, and action come together to make it a truly special lure." Make some popcorn and grab a beverage.....cause she's feature length!

Man....thats a GIANT for Indiana! HUGE congrats bro.

Great stuff dude! Way to connect on the 250. I'm looking for my first fish of the fall on that too.

Nice work bro! Way to stay committed. I feel you on the long pause after the lure hits....that seems to really pay dividends in the fall/cooler weather.

I have the M1 as well in heavy. Yes, it is a true mod/fast....the taper is such that it loads a bit deeper. Another very interesting thing is the 1-6oz rating is accurate. It seems most manufacturers rate something along the lines of 1-4oz and then go 2-7oz or 3-8oz. I was unsure of what to make of the 1-6oz rating.....if Phenix was over or under rating the blank. Well, as it turns out it is accurate. As you probably know Phenix makes their own blanks and this one is super dynamic because it balances handling something like the Hudd 68 as well as the 8" Hudd superbly. Like any rod it doesn't load well at the ends of its rating (1oz and 6oz) but in the 2-5oz range it is so at home....which allows the one rod to cover SO many lures. I will note though even though its mod/fast its not my favorite for treble hook style baits....for that I still prefer a dedicated mod action rods or even slower (ie: LDC and their slow tapers).

Do you know the shallow bite to be consistent in this location? Unless it was a break of dawn, dusk, or night session I would not be focusing any energy to slow sink lures. Are you on a boat....any electronics? If so, first step is find out where the thermocline is and eliminate a ton of dead water. Next I would be putting all my effort into fishing as deep as possible. Summer sun + clear water = bass are hiding. If they can't do it in weeds, its going to be where the light penetration is minimal (but still above the thermocline). While not a swimbait, this is the time of year and those are conditions where xtra large (7" - 9") spoons excel. Stroking them off the bottom. When I am fishing similar conditions I personally think two things....keep it deep, but because of the warm water keep the lure fast/erratic/unpredictable. I actually REALLY love giant, heavily weighted tubes this time of year. Canyon Plastic makes 7", 8" and even 10" tubes. If you a hardliner on it being a swimbait and not a big bait then forget what I'm about to say. But, if you want to target BIG fish via BIG baits take those 7-10" tubes and drag them, stroke them, and work them all over those dark abysses where daytime summer giants reside. I have a 7" slow sink triple trout too (in sunfish). And while I know the erratic nature of it can bring fish from a distance in clear water, it has been the extreme exception to the rule for me. Instead I find its effectiveness on flats, above weed beds, and/or tightly paralleling the shoreline. Good luck man! -Carl

"very high rate of retrieve" is the variable here. I've had (and still have) at least a dozen Ultimate Gills. Of different colors (including white) and from what I'm assuming are a multitude of separate pours/manufacturer dates. I mention all that because those would be the only things to possible allow for a slightly stiffer plastic, and consequently the need for a higher retrieve. It is not a bait you can crawl like a Hudd 68 or really any vortex style tail, they simply swing at the slowest of speeds. Also, among paddle tail baits the design is such that you do in fact have to go faster that say the 3:16 Rising Son, which kicks at particularly slow speeds for a paddle tail. I would classify it as needing at least a moderate retrieve. Which, on any reel in the 6 ratio class (eg. 6.3:1) would, IMO, be around one revolution of the reel's crank / 2 seconds. Absolutely try boiling the tail. I've done it to a few of mine that bent tails from being in storage poorly. I didn't notice much, if any difference in swim, but it can only help and wont' hurt anything.

Yup. I did see it and removed it. It looked to be one of those Eagle Claw snelled hooks. I feel like some kid was fishing with a little worm for some bluegills and then met this bass!