Good Tackle Thread (overlooked products)

[DirtyD64]

So a while back there was a bad tackle thread, now I'd like to see the opposite. What is a good product you use that is overlooked or overshadowed?

For me, the Strike King Rage Blade Swim Jig was a hidden gem. They are cheap, fairly weedless, and catch fish. If they had a better skirt that's all they would need.

Another overlooked brand in general is Decoy. I've always had strong, sharp, rust resistant hooks and jigheads from them.

[LowRange]

Gilly 110, Savage Gear 5" 3D Bluegill slow sink and Cover Craw. These all fly under the radar or people don't like them. I'm sure about 80% of Cover Craw users fail to realize it's a Fat Ika like back gliding bait and just treat it like a craw. The Gilly is awesome but people keep rigging it wrong or adding weight to it that ruins in action and appeal. No one fishes the 5" 3D Bluegill it seems but its basically a slow sink soft Gantarel with a quieter entry into the water. Thing is deadly fished around big fish near cover.

[DirtyD64]

Gilly 110, Savage Gear 5" 3D Bluegill slow sink and Cover Craw. These all fly under the radar or people don't like them. I'm sure about 80% of Cover Craw users fail to realize it's a Fat Ika like back gliding bait and just treat it like a craw. The Gilly is awesome but people keep rigging it wrong or adding weight to it that ruins in action and appeal. No one fishes the 5" 3D Bluegill it seems but its basically a slow sink soft Gantarel with a quieter entry into the water. Thing is deadly fished around big fish near cover.

I have not tried the Gilly, mainly due to a few bad reviews that said it wouldn't run right. Would like to give them a shot still though. The Savage Gear I have heard positives about, just not sure which ones I bought. I bought some on a TW sale when I got my first "swimbait" rod, just haven't thrown them yet...

[LowRange]

Gilly 110, Savage Gear 5" 3D Bluegill slow sink and Cover Craw. These all fly under the radar or people don't like them. I'm sure about 80% of Cover Craw users fail to realize it's a Fat Ika like back gliding bait and just treat it like a craw. The Gilly is awesome but people keep rigging it wrong or adding weight to it that ruins in action and appeal. No one fishes the 5" 3D Bluegill it seems but its basically a slow sink soft Gantarel with a quieter entry into the water. Thing is deadly fished around big fish near cover.

I have not tried the Gilly, mainly due to a few bad reviews that said it wouldn't run right. Would like to give them a shot still though. The Savage Gear I have heard positives about, just not sure which ones I bought. I bought some on a TW sale when I got my first "swimbait" rod, just haven't thrown them yet...

The Gilly 110 has to be rolled sorta slow to swim right and will still often swim sort of at an angle but this doesn't stop bites and based on my success I think it helps. It must look like a struggling baitfish and with it running so near the surface it is trapped and is showing its profile to the bass. I get bit on these in spring and anytime bass are shallow. Just cast it out let it sink for a second or two and wind it in on a 6 gear ratio. If you feel a tap stop the bait and let it flounder on the fall. Then check for weight and set the hook. All my big fish crush and stun the bait then scoop it up. They dont inhale it. I think its fooling them into thinking it's a crappie or gill and they have to stun it to not get spikes in their throat and die. The small fish just grab it and run off with it. They're dumb.

[Craiger12]

Gilly 110, Savage Gear 5" 3D Bluegill slow sink and Cover Craw. These all fly under the radar or people don't like them. I'm sure about 80% of Cover Craw users fail to realize it's a Fat Ika like back gliding bait and just treat it like a craw. The Gilly is awesome but people keep rigging it wrong or adding weight to it that ruins in action and appeal. No one fishes the 5" 3D Bluegill it seems but its basically a slow sink soft Gantarel with a quieter entry into the water. Thing is deadly fished around big fish near cover.

I have not tried the Gilly, mainly due to a few bad reviews that said it wouldn't run right. Would like to give them a shot still though. The Savage Gear I have heard positives about, just not sure which ones I bought. I bought some on a TW sale when I got my first "swimbait" rod, just haven't thrown them yet...

The Gilly 110 has to be rolled sorta slow to swim right and will still often swim sort of at an angle but this doesn't stop bites and based on my success I think it helps. It must look like a struggling baitfish and with it running so near the surface it is trapped and is showing its profile to the bass. I get bit on these in spring and anytime bass are shallow. Just cast it out let it sink for a second or two and wind it in on a 6 gear ratio. If you feel a tap stop the bait and let it flounder on the fall. Then check for weight and set the hook. All my big fish crush and stun the bait then scoop it up. They dont inhale it. I think its fooling them into thinking it's a crappie or gill and they have to stun it to not get spikes in their throat and die. The small fish just grab it and run off with it. They're dumb.

What rod are you tossing these things with? How much is the total weight of the Gilly?

[LowRange]

Gilly 110, Savage Gear 5" 3D Bluegill slow sink and Cover Craw. These all fly under the radar or people don't like them. I'm sure about 80% of Cover Craw users fail to realize it's a Fat Ika like back gliding bait and just treat it like a craw. The Gilly is awesome but people keep rigging it wrong or adding weight to it that ruins in action and appeal. No one fishes the 5" 3D Bluegill it seems but its basically a slow sink soft Gantarel with a quieter entry into the water. Thing is deadly fished around big fish near cover.

I have not tried the Gilly, mainly due to a few bad reviews that said it wouldn't run right. Would like to give them a shot still though. The Savage Gear I have heard positives about, just not sure which ones I bought. I bought some on a TW sale when I got my first "swimbait" rod, just haven't thrown them yet...

The Gilly 110 has to be rolled sorta slow to swim right and will still often swim sort of at an angle but this doesn't stop bites and based on my success I think it helps. It must look like a struggling baitfish and with it running so near the surface it is trapped and is showing its profile to the bass. I get bit on these in spring and anytime bass are shallow. Just cast it out let it sink for a second or two and wind it in on a 6 gear ratio. If you feel a tap stop the bait and let it flounder on the fall. Then check for weight and set the hook. All my big fish crush and stun the bait then scoop it up. They dont inhale it. I think its fooling them into thinking it's a crappie or gill and they have to stun it to not get spikes in their throat and die. The small fish just grab it and run off with it. They're dumb.

What rod are you tossing these things with? How much is the total weight of the Gilly?

Gen 1 Orochi EMTF. I also used a gen 1 Orochi PP at 1st but it didn't cast it well and really only pitched it decently. Any standard MH rod woukd work. I like the old EMTF because its no slouch of a MH and I can fish the 130 on it too. I would guess the Gilly 110 weighs near 3/8 oz. It's a good hunk of plastisol but there is no added salt weight either. I use a lighter wire 4.0 "super line" ewg screw lock hook to get the bait to glide and spiral on the fall. A heaver hook just folds the bait in half and drops straight down. I fish on 14# or 16# flouro. Just casting and winding them in clear water shallow cover. They are real good in low light periods like dust and dawn when fish move out of cover to roam. The bait wlso has drawing power. Mid day fishing I can draw fish up to it and get followers. If the fish aren't keyed in on bait near the surface or shallow over the bait isn't all that great. It's imposible to get them deep weightless with all but the 130. That one sinks faster and can be fished deeper. I'm a 110 guy and just throw that in shallow water from spring to fall. I always have one rod rigged with one or able to have one on. The pre through post spawn period is the most effective with big females coming at dusk when they feed. There all all sorts of HD colors but I like green pumkin. It just works. Biggest fish I have caught on them came on cast #2 with a black with blue flake 110 in clear water on a bright clear sky early post spawn day. I don't think color matters when it's that close to the surface.

[Cracker]

Gen 1 Orochi EMTF. I also used a gen 1 Orochi PP at 1st but it didn't cast it well and really only pitched it decently. Any standard MH rod woukd work. I like the old EMTF because its no slouch of a MH and I can fish the 130 on it too. I would guess the Gilly 110 weighs near 3/8 oz. It's a good hunk of plastisol but there is no added salt weight either. I use a lighter wire 4.0 "super line" ewg screw lock hook to get the bait to glide and spiral on the fall. A heaver hook just folds the bait in half and drops straight down. I fish on 14# or 16# flouro. Just casting and winding them in clear water shallow cover. They are real good in low light periods like dust and dawn when fish move out of cover to roam. The bait wlso has drawing power. Mid day fishing I can draw fish up to it and get followers. If the fish aren't keyed in on bait near the surface or shallow over the bait isn't all that great. It's imposible to get them deep weightless with all but the 130. That one sinks faster and can be fished deeper. I'm a 110 guy and just throw that in shallow water from spring to fall. I always have one rod rigged with one or able to have one on. The pre through post spawn period is the most effective with big females coming at dusk when they feed. There all all sorts of HD colors but I like green pumkin. It just works. Biggest fish I have caught on them came on cast #2 with a black with blue flake 110 in clear water on a bright clear sky early post spawn day. I don't think color matters when it's that close to the surface.

Interesting, I some how overlooked thit bait (was concentrating primarily on JDM baits only).
Do you rig this Gilly sideways? it has two slots to do that.

[Randingo]

Pretty much everything in the Lunker City catalog is overlooked and underrated. Since the Super Fluke appeared, people stopped talking about the SlugGo, which was the first soft plastic jerkbait. They invented the best softbait keeper system for jigs, were almost the first to have a grub with a paddle tail, created the first Wacky-rig-specific worm, were among the first domestic companies with a solid-body swim bait, created the first soft plastic “buzz toad” type of bait (admittedly with a single tail), etc. And everything they make that I've ever fished catches fish. Oh, and they were the first company with high quality and cylinder shaped dropshot weights.

[uljersey]

Man, there are literally thousands of baits that qualify for this category … one that comes to mind for me are the Booyah XCS squarebills (the resuscitated old XCalibur XCS series) … no mind blowing paint schemes or JDM mystique but simply a well made bait that consistently gets bit.

[LowRange]

Gen 1 Orochi EMTF. I also used a gen 1 Orochi PP at 1st but it didn't cast it well and really only pitched it decently. Any standard MH rod woukd work. I like the old EMTF because its no slouch of a MH and I can fish the 130 on it too. I would guess the Gilly 110 weighs near 3/8 oz. It's a good hunk of plastisol but there is no added salt weight either. I use a lighter wire 4.0 "super line" ewg screw lock hook to get the bait to glide and spiral on the fall. A heaver hook just folds the bait in half and drops straight down. I fish on 14# or 16# flouro. Just casting and winding them in clear water shallow cover. They are real good in low light periods like dust and dawn when fish move out of cover to roam. The bait wlso has drawing power. Mid day fishing I can draw fish up to it and get followers. If the fish aren't keyed in on bait near the surface or shallow over the bait isn't all that great. It's imposible to get them deep weightless with all but the 130. That one sinks faster and can be fished deeper. I'm a 110 guy and just throw that in shallow water from spring to fall. I always have one rod rigged with one or able to have one on. The pre through post spawn period is the most effective with big females coming at dusk when they feed. There all all sorts of HD colors but I like green pumkin. It just works. Biggest fish I have caught on them came on cast #2 with a black with blue flake 110 in clear water on a bright clear sky early post spawn day. I don't think color matters when it's that close to the surface.

Interesting, I some how overlooked thit bait (was concentrating primarily on JDM baits only).
Do you rig this Gilly sideways? it has two slots to do that.

Sideways with a 4/0 screw lock thinner wire superline hook on the 110. I'll open the clip a bit to get it to unclip from the hook eye rather than rip the nose out.

[DirtyD64]

Man, there are literally thousands of baits that qualify for this category … one that comes to mind for me are the Booyah XCS squarebills (the resuscitated old XCalibur XCS series) … no mind blowing paint schemes or JDM mystique but simply a well made bait that consistently gets bit.

I had a TON of these in the biggest (like a KVD 2.5) size. Sold them all and bought more SPRO and Rapala's. Really regret selling them. The brown crawdad pattern they had was a killer squarebill.

[uljersey]

Man, there are literally thousands of baits that qualify for this category … one that comes to mind for me are the Booyah XCS squarebills (the resuscitated old XCalibur XCS series) … no mind blowing paint schemes or JDM mystique but simply a well made bait that consistently gets bit.

I had a TON of these in the biggest (like a KVD 2.5) size. Sold them all and bought more SPRO and Rapala's. Really regret selling them. The brown crawdad pattern they had was a killer squarebill.

Both sizes still available, a steal @ $6.00 a pop - https://www.lurenet.com/booyah-xcstm-series

[Cracker]

Sideways with a 4/0 screw lock thinner wire superline hook on the 110. I'll open the clip a bit to get it to unclip from the hook eye rather than rip the nose out.

I'll try this! Thanks!

[DirtyD64]

Another one... The Strike King Bitsy Minnow has produced thousands of panfish for me. It can be bought at Wal-Mart for a fair price, but still hangs with my most expensive micro hardbaits. What really wakes it up is adding some Decoy or Owner #12 trebles and Decoy light game #0 rings. Even with those added, still a cheap bait that draws strikes pretty much anywhere and anytime.

[LowRange]

Sideways with a 4/0 screw lock thinner wire superline hook on the 110. I'll open the clip a bit to get it to unclip from the hook eye rather than rip the nose out.

I'll try this! Thanks!

This is what the 110 and 130 looks like when running correctly. It will sometimes lean to one side when swimming but that's not a problem to the fish. I think it looks like a baitfish struggling to maintain attitude suffering from a swim bladder issue or just dying all the while trapped near the surface as an easy meal. A thinner wire hook helps them run more upright and will encourage the bait to glide and spiral on the fall unlike the "fold and fall" seen here.
https://youtu.be/3gAjzbkUmNQ