Dock Rat 8" Trout Glide

[jkarol24]

Swimbait Review: Dockrat 8" Trout Glide

Dockrat Lures 8" Trout Glide is a 2 pc resin Glide, featuring a firm rubber tail, a subtle but detailed paint scheme, and pin to screw eye connection. The bait is a slow sink, and comes in at 3 oz of resin.

The moderate straight retrieve is wide but smooth, as the bait turns almost a full 90 degrees off center before transitioning in the other direction. A bit of body roll is present as it turns the corner, producing a noticeable flash, along with some thump felt back to the rod. The bait maintains its general depth, but does have a slight amount of lift as it comes closer to the angler. You can also hold the rod tip up and wake the bait near the surface with relative ease. The bait will also dart nicely on a pause.

The burn continues the thumping attitude, as the swim action does get a little tighter. The burn was well accepted, but the bait did turn on its axis and break the surface. I would not generally classify this as a blowout, as the bait righted itself and continued its swim.

Imparting some action into the bait, long and easy slow bumps allowed the bait to Glide with an impressive distance. I found that the slower and more intention my input, the longer I could glide it. Slow and easy is key, as a firmer input will give a slight amount of nosing at the end of the glide. I also noticed an interesting secondary action to the bait: As the bait transitions, it kind of rolls a touch and then stabilizes before straightening and gliding. It's almost like a 2-step glide for lack of a better term. This introduces some flash and a little extra action not seen in an ultra stable bait (ultra stable sometimes borders on robotic imo). I would not classify this as a lazy glide, as the bait still carries decent speed, even with the slow and easy reel bumps.

Introducing firmer and faster reel bumps/chops gets the bait moving quickly quickly as it darts back and forth. It seems to carry similar distance to the slow glide, albeit slightly shorter. The bait cuts and turns with easy, and does not travel towards the angler near as much as it travels side to side. It stays relatively in place as it shoots, with that same 2-step action and flash present. Again, I did notice a slight nose up, but it did not effect the bait. The bait did loose stability every once in a while, but it seems to right itself within another glide or 2.

Utilizing the firm chops with a rod tip up turns this bait into a sort of topwater wake/walker, as it cuts on the surface creating a commotion and wake. The bait stays level and upright, only laying on its side if the input is too firm. This specific technique is quite hard to accomplish with many glides on the market, but the Dock Rat seemed to do it nicely. I certainly enjoyed this extra versatility.

I fished the 8" Dockrat Trout on a Levaithan Heavy, paired with a Tranx 400 and 20 lb Izorline XXX. You could very easily bump down to the MH type rod, along with a smaller and faster reel if that is your preference. Mono would be a fine option, and fluro may offer a slight bit more stability to the bait, but I'd probably stay away from braid as it would would easier to overwork the bait.

I hope you enjoyed the review, and thank you for understanding the late (not sunday) review. I hope you all had a wonderful 4th, and I will be back to the normal schedule this Sunday