Top Pros Look at Hot New JDM Baits
The world of bass fishing is a trendy one with products coming in and out of style quickly, but sometimes these new trends are what it takes to catch a few more bass. Showing bass something different and unique is one way to get their attention when they are constantly bombarded with artificial lures, so paying attention to emerging trends is always a good idea.
One of the best ways to see what's coming next is to look at what's happening in Japan, as those unique ideas are often a sign of what's to come in America.
Two professional bass anglers, Bassmaster Elite Series pro Brandon Palaniuk, and the Bass Pro Tour's Matt Becker, are each quick to experiment with the latest trends. Both are former Angler of the Year winners on their respective tours, and each has spent time in Japan.
They know that finding ways to catch a few more bass than their competitors is crucial, so they closely watch the latest lures from Japan. Three of those that are helping them catch more bass are dice-style baits, "urchin baits," and small twitch baits. Each shared some insight into how and when they fish these three lure styles.
Fishing "Fuzzy" Baits
In the past few years, the bass-fishing world has become "fuzzy" with a multitude of soft plastics released with skirt strands protruding from them. These "dice style" baits are everywhere, and they work. Another trend is the "urchin" baits, made from durable elastomer plastic and featuring a wild, spiky appearance. While they are often grouped, Becker says they are completely different in where and when they work.
"In my mind, they are not even close," he said. "The urchin-style of baits float, have a different material, and the action and way that you fish them is completely different as you fish them in the middle of the water column. The actual fuzzy bait, you are typically fishing them with some weight or on a drop-shot and fishing them more along the bottom with a standard presentation, but each has a time and place."
His go-to among the skirted baits is now the Yamamoto Fuzzy Nut. Still, before that release, he says he's tried a plethora of them with success, including the Geecrack Imo Kemushi Cue Bomb and original OSP Saikoro Dice Rubber.
"Those were the first ones I got my hands on and now have transitioned to the Yamamoto version, but all of them have the same concept and I'll either fish them on a drop-shot or add a little nail weight to them," he said. "The times when I've seen them to be the best choice are when fishing for shallow smallmouth and for highly pressured fish, just because they are so different looking."
For these baits, he likes a 7-foot, 3-inch medium FishUSA Flagship Elite 'Shotter' rod, A 2500-sized spinning reel, and 18 lb Seaguar PEX8 braid with a leader of 10 lb Seaguar Tatsu.
"The thinner diameter of PEX8 is critical because there's no drag, so it sinks fast and you don't get a big bow in your line," he added. "Plus, you have the added castability because the line is so thin, and you need that with light baits."
Palaniuk's "fuzzy" bait of choice is the X-Zone Lures GBO, which is more of a trapezoid shape. He's also found it works well in the same situations that Becker has identified.
"It's mostly an open water technique for me, and it's deadly on smallmouth and spotted bass, but I've caught largemouth with it as well," he said. "You can put a nail weight in the bottom of that bait and get better castability, but it's also great on a drop-shot rig when you need it to get deeper. Some of the best places to fish are on grass lines, around brush piles, and even around docks."
He fishes it in an Alpha Angler "DSR", a 6-foot, 10-inch medium light rod paired with a Daiwa Exist 3000 reel, and 18 lb Seaguar PE-X8 braid with a leader of 10 lb Seaguar Tatsu. This lightweight combo allows him to cast as far as possible. "Seaguar PEX8 is an excellent line for casting distance because it's so thin, but the thinner diameter also helps with the action of your bait," he added. "A thicker braid is going to pull the bait more, where a thin line like PEX8 slices through the water for a much better connection to your bait."
The "Urchin" Craze
Like the fuzzy bait hysteria, the urchin-style baits have become incredibly popular, with baits like the Hideup Coike popularizing the trend. These bizarre-looking baits have been in America for over a year, but really hit the mainstream this year after several professional tournament wins with the bait. Unlike a finesse approach with the fuzzy-style baits, these are fished much more aggressively, with heavier gear, and often with a treble hook and a nail weight inserted into the bait.
"You want to work that bait faster and get it to pulse as you are working the bait," Becker shared. "So, I like a little bit shorter rod, a 7-foot medium FishUSA Flagship Elite' WWW' rod, 2500-sized rod, and I like a little heavier line for them," he said. "I go up to 24 lb PEX8 and 12 or even 15 lb Tatsu leader because the thicker diameter of the bait helps to float it a little better."
Palaniuk admits he's only recently started taking these baits more seriously, and he's seen them work exceptionally well in many situations. "There's no doubt that they work, but it's not magic," he said. "They have some limitations, but there's no doubt they have incredible drawing power, and if one commits to it, they choke it."
One reason Palaniuk likes fishing them is that he can be more aggressive and actively moving while fishing one, similar to how you fish a jerkbait, and he prefers baitcasting gear.
"It's a little more like power fishing for me, and I'm still no expert at it, but I've seen how well it can work in the right conditions," he said. "I've been fishing them on a 7-foot, 5-inch medium Alpha Angler 'Clutch' rod, 7.1:1 Daiwa Zillion SV reel, and 15 lb Tatsu, and it's been a great combo for fishing them."
Twitch Baits
Another trend gaining steam is the use of small, hard baits like the Megabass Karashi, often called twitch baits. These baits pack several actions in one and can be fished along the surface like a walking topwater bait or fished subsurface like a jerkbait. Both Becker and Palaniuk have seen them in action, triggering bites when nothing else seems to work.
"I started out playing around with them a little bit when Megabass first launched it in America and caught some fish on it, but really saw the power when fishing a tournament for bass feeding on herring on the surface," Palaniuk shared. "The other time it really made a difference was when I was catching them on a standard walking topwater bait, and that bite shut off, and the bite got tricky. Using this small twitch bait, I was able to continue catching them with the Karashi, and that told me that this way of fishing has some legs to it."
The original Karashi weighs in at 3/16-ounce, but there is also a Karashi 80 that comes in closer to ½-ounce, Palaniuk says. Both do a great job of imitating small baitfish and can be fished several different ways. For the smaller Karashi, he says spinning gear is a must and uses the same drop-shot setup he uses for his fuzzy-dice-style baits.
"The more you play around with them, the more you can learn different cadences," he said. "You can fish them with a real erratic retrieve, almost like a soft jerkbait, or you can get it to walk side-to-side, then you can also fish them with a straight retrieve. All of those will catch fish in the right conditions."
When visiting tackle stores in Japan, Becker noticed these small baits and brought several home to try. They've become staples for certain situations.
"They are such good baits when the bass are heavily feeding on shad that are really small or when the fish get heavily pressured," he said. "A small topwater bait like this is always a good way to catch fish that are a little skittish and since they are so small, I throw them on light spinning gear, a 6-foot, 9-inch FishUSA Flagship Elite' Minnow Shaker' rod, 1000-sized spinning reel, and 18 lb PEX8 braid with a very short leader of 10 lb Tatsu, just so the treble hooks don't get wrapped in the braid."
While the same bass lures that have worked for decades will still catch fish right now, sometimes it pays to try something new to get a few more bites. The latest fishing trends from Japan are catching fish for those willing to give it a shot, and there will surely be more unique things to come.
Seaguar PEX8 Micro Braid is available in 200-meter spools (219 yards) and comes in 12, 16, 18, 21, 24, and 33 lb tests. (This is a micro-thin braid. Please check line diameter when selecting product.)
Seaguar Tatsu Fluorocarbon mainline is available in 200- and 1,000-yard spools from 4 to 25 lb tests.
Seaguar Gold Label Fluorocarbon leader is available in 25- and 50-yard spools in 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12 lb tests for freshwater use, complementing the 15, 20, 25, 30, 40, 50, 60, and 80 lb test leaders available for saltwater.