[Beave]

I'm looking to pick up some Rapalas for spring fishing on the big lake.

I've got a pretty good idea of the colors I need. I'm planning to pick up a few clown, some perch, some rainbow trout, silver and black or shad, maybe a gold and black or two, and a few flouresant orange. I'm thinking two of each color for ~14 of them. A bit of an investment.

My question is this....

What kind do you guys recommend? Floating, Husky Jerk, Jointed in floating or sinking?

I was going to get mostly Husky Jerks, but a few jointed sinking ones were a thought too. Is there really a reason for floating anymore? Usually I find myself putting weight on to get them down in the 10-15 foot range rather than the top 4 or 6 feet.

 

[Tech Rally]

Beave,

I love the Husky Jerks however if I were you, I would plan on throwing out the front treble and replacing the back two trebles with Larger and higher quality hooks. They just don't hold up to the salmon. Also change the split rings. I've had those copper split rings straightened out by Salmon.

 

[ausable_steelhead]

Original Floating Rapala's are great spring brown lures, chart./silver, orange/gold, rainbow trout, perch, blue/silver, black/silver, and sometimes, black/gold are good colors. Husky Jerks are good too, blue/silver/orange, green, clown, firetiger, rainbow trout(ask Jeremy L ), black/silver are good. The blue/silver/orange is a brown killer, I seen several caught this past spring on that color. Clown and firetiger are good for salmon, as well as redhead/white body. And don't forget Bomber Long A's, they have a great action, and alot of great color patterns.

 

[Termie33]

I actually prefer bombers beacause they take a lot more abuse, but since you mention rapalas, we'll stick with them. Model depends on what youre using. COlors, same as the other people have said, but one color not mentioned is the Vampire. Ive done pretty good on it. I honestly like the silver plated models too.

 

[jaid]

Im interested in this info as well. I plan to give the body baits a shot first thing next spring also. Can you guys get more specific?

Husky jerks: HJ10? HJ12? HJ14? How about Down Deep Husky Jerks?

Countdown: CD11?

Floating: F11? F13? F18?

Jointed: J11? J13?

Super Shad Raps?

Im very curious to see what size you guys go with. Ive got a lot of musky lures that have actions I prefer over rapalas, that I may give a shot come spring. Anybody ever try Bucher Baby Shallow Raiders? How about Baby Depth Raiders?

Come on guys, we've got a great J-Plug thread, lets get a great body baits thread to go along with it!

 

[ESOX]

Jaid, never under estimate the power of a HJ-14.
I put Excalibur rotating trebles on them with Sampo split rings and they wiork great.

 

[jaid]

Hey ESOX,

thanks for the tip on the husky jerk. Ill plan on picking a few of those up for next year.

You ever try the Super Shad Raps for salmon? I cant get a musky to bite one to save my life, id like to get some use out of them.

And what do you think about a baby shallow raider for spring salmon?

 

[Lunker]

Bomber Long A's in any color I paint them. Redheads are my favorite. Ive caught walleye first cast with that one.

 

[ausable_steelhead]

For floating raps, size 9 is my favorite in spring. Husky jerks, size 10 or 12. The 14 can be a good salmon lure as well as night-times eyes.

 

[ESOX]

Originally posted by jaid
Hey ESOX,

thanks for the tip on the husky jerk. Ill plan on picking a few of those up for next year.

You ever try the Super Shad Raps for salmon? I cant get a musky to bite one to save my life, id like to get some use out of them.

And what do you think about a baby shallow raider for spring salmon?

Baby Shallow Raiders? SHHHH Water was 47 degrees in this pic, so I guess I can post it in cold water. See that little bit of orange head sticking out of the mouth? A Shallow Raider. I have caught a suprising number of Salmonids on Baby Shallow Raiders and Jakes in the St Clair River while chasing muskie and pike. If I recall properly, they even put Salmon and Lakers on the packaging.


Before anyone rips me, this pic is a couple years old, I no longer weigh my muskie......

I dont know about Super Shad Raps catching salmonids, I never caught any salmonids on one, but they were the #1 producer of muskie on my boat last year.

 

[jaid]

Well if you have caught salmonids on the baby shallow raiders, they will get some time in the water this year from us for sure. Probably my single favorite musky lure to fish(the jackpot is up there, too). Ive become a baby shallow raider zealot. Great for trolling, great for twitching, great for cranking, in fact, I havent found a way to fish them bad! I love the things.

The super shad raps on the other hand...want to buy a few? They are all nice and clean, I spent plenty of time washing them this year.