bucktail Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 Has anyone here had much luck on lipless cranks ie: the Rattlin Rapala, cordell Spot and such. i never seen to have much luck, last year I treid an experiment on a big weedflat casting a rattlin Rapale....caught nothing. Switched to a old trusty spinnerbait and got 6. I know its not a valid experiment but maybe I am dong something wrong?? Darren Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Live2fish85 Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 Hi there I use them alot out on Lake Erie if its a bit windy and choppy around 20 feet or so i let it drop and you can just reel it in or try jigging it kinda or reel, stop, reel stop and so on. they will usually hit it on the fall so when you go to reel be ready. That is fishing for Smallies to I have had luck with largemouth to. But I really like them silver with the blue top and red/orange bottom is a great one on Lake Erie. The Cotton Cordell Spot is a great one a few sizes is good to they work in shallow as well, Under certain conditions. Good Luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
solopaddler Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 One of the all time best search baits imo. Sometimes they don't want a super loud rattle though. Many of these baits are made with a much more subtle rattle, sometimes that's the key. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OhioFisherman Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 One of the all time best search baits imo. Sometimes they don't want a super loud rattle though. Many of these baits are made with a much more subtle rattle, sometimes that's the key. I agree with solo on this, I have caught 10 bass on ten casts using them, 4 walleye on 6 casts, pike, crappie. Like anything though, you don`t go fishing with one lure? Sometimes they are hot sometimes there are better choices in your lure selection. A great search bait, but a spinnerbait can be also, and is more snag free. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushart Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 Good success throwing them on shallow gravel bed shorelines--searchin my buddy used to speed troll them over humps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillM Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 If I'm bass fishing, I'll start off with a search bait such as a Rattlin' Rap. If that's what the fish want, I'll toss it the entire day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aaron Shirley Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 Lipless baits do work well at times. I think you need a good trip using them one day, and then you will have confidence in them I have caught walleye, smallies, largies, pike, brown trout, Chinook salmon, steelhead and lake trout on Rattlin' Raps and Rattlin' Spots. Good fishing! Aaron Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uglyfish Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 Yup, I love them. I throw them a lot for bass through spring and summer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
perchslayer666 Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 They are the ultimate Smallmouth lure in my opinion. Cast them around gravel beds, boulders, not in the weeds.... Pike love em too so put on a floro leader so that you don't get bit off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snidley Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 Rattle traps are like any other hardbait, there's a time and place. With that consideration I personally never use anything but hardbaits for all species and still do well virtually every time out and in heavily pressured waters. I think that for many anglers their lack of success is rooted in throwing baits that the fish are conditioned too. Cordel spots and Rattlin Rapalas have been around for 25 years. Same goes with Bill Lewis rattlers. They were good a decade ago. Try Lucky Craft LV300/500, LVRs, Evergreen Buzzerbeaters, Yozuri Hardcore Drums, Jackal TN 50,60,70. First thing you will notice is that these baits look much different (ultra realistic)and are offered in loud rattle, soft rattle and silent as well as 3 or 4 sizes. They are designed to fall with a shimmey and some will rest on bottom without falling over (for jigging). If you really want to catch fish go to the absolute king of this style of bait and bag yourself some Viper Design Risebackers. They are configured so as to come through weeds like no other hardbait and in early season they will load your boat. Like all artificial presentations fish will become conditioned to lures they get caught on or see their fellows get caught on and if you rely on the same lures that thousands of other anglers use, like Rapalas, Cordels etc. then you should expect to do poorly. I'm constantly amazed that this basic fact of fishing eludes so many anglers. I guess it comes down the $$$ but the same guys trying to catch fish on inexpensive lures will own a $50K truck towing a $40K boat burning through large amounts of $1.35/ltr gas just to get there. Then they tie on a cheap unrealistic looking lure that the fish have seen a thousand times and wonder why no luck. Bottom line is that rattlers work, for all species but not all the time. This means you have to have backup plans for when they don't want a fast moving, or loud, or big, or small or bright, or ghost etc. Finding out what they want IS the fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mercman Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 10-4 Snidley Always fun trying to outsmart your prey. I will be trying out a lure this summer that i'm sure no one has used in the waters where i fish. I saw it on WFN, and even though it has been around for a while,i'm pretty sure no one uses it locally. it seems to have great top water action, plus it rattles and i'm sure Bass and pike will knock it hard.Bombers Badonk-a-Donk. Have to admit, i bought it for the name, but i bet it turns out to be a winner Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beans Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 (edited) They sure do work !!! My bro-in-law and I spent a few days on a lake up Bancroft way and were doing poorly the first couple of days...landed the odd bass but sure worked for them...On the third day of more of the same we decided, mid-morning, to try drift casting the area we called the flats...For no special reason I tied on a black and silver "Rattlin' Rap" First cast, Bang!...nice three pound smallie...Dave ties on same and between us we must have landed around fifty bass including a couple of five pounders, some fours and a bunch of threes and twos...come noon hour we headed back to where we were staying for lunch and afterwards headed back to the flats...same lures and all we caught was a couple of perch and rock bass...not that we minded as we were still smiling over that mornings catches...Have been back several times over the years but never experienced bass fishing like that since... Yep, they work,just have to present them at the right time I guess... Edited March 8, 2011 by Beans Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DoubleDigits Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 Rattle traps are like any other hardbait, there's a time and place. With that consideration I personally never use anything but hardbaits for all species and still do well virtually every time out and in heavily pressured waters. I think that for many anglers their lack of success is rooted in throwing baits that the fish are conditioned too. Cordel spots and Rattlin Rapalas have been around for 25 years. Same goes with Bill Lewis rattlers. They were good a decade ago. Try Lucky Craft LV300/500, LVRs, Evergreen Buzzerbeaters, Yozuri Hardcore Drums, Jackal TN 50,60,70. First thing you will notice is that these baits look much different (ultra realistic)and are offered in loud rattle, soft rattle and silent as well as 3 or 4 sizes. They are designed to fall with a shimmey and some will rest on bottom without falling over (for jigging). If you really want to catch fish go to the absolute king of this style of bait and bag yourself some Viper Design Risebackers. They are configured so as to come through weeds like no other hardbait and in early season they will load your boat. Like all artificial presentations fish will become conditioned to lures they get caught on or see their fellows get caught on and if you rely on the same lures that thousands of other anglers use, like Rapalas, Cordels etc. then you should expect to do poorly. I'm constantly amazed that this basic fact of fishing eludes so many anglers. I guess it comes down the $$ but the same guys trying to catch fish on inexpensive lures will own a $50K truck towing a $40K boat burning through large amounts of $1.35/ltr gas just to get there. Then they tie on a cheap unrealistic looking lure that the fish have seen a thousand times and wonder why no luck. Bottom line is that rattlers work, for all species but not all the time. This means you have to have backup plans for when they don't want a fast moving, or loud, or big, or small or bright, or ghost etc. Finding out what they want IS the fun. Snidely do you really think that the original poster's issue was that he was using 'cheap' played-out lures that the fish were conditioned to seeing, and that he hadn't spent enough money on tackle??? That's funny. Sounds more like a case of not spending enough time fishing a certain type of bait, and building confidence. Just curious... on a given day, on a random lake in Ontario, how many 'cheap' lipless rattle baits do you think a bass sees? Is the knowledge about certain lures passed down from generation to generation? How often do these discerning bass chuckle at the stupid looking Rapala only to slam a $20 japanese lure?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DoubleDigits Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 They sure do work !!! My bro-in-law and I spent a couple of days on a lake up Bancroft way and were doing poorly the first couple of days...landed the odd bass but sure worked for them...On the third day of more of the same we decided, mid-morning, to try drift casting the area we called the flats...For no special reason I tied on a black and silver "Rattlin' Rap" First cast, Bang!...nice three pound smallie...Dave ties on same and between us we must have landed around fifty bass including a couple of five pounders, some fours and a bunch of threes and twos...come noon hour we headed back to where we were staying for lunch and afterwards headed back to the flats...same lures and all we caught was a couple of perch and rock bass...not that we minded as we were still smiling over that mornings catches...Have been back several times over the years but never experienced bass fishing like that since... Yep, they work,just have to present them at the right time I guess... Sounds like you got onto schooling smallies that were working bait. One of the best situations for rattletraps, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ranksda58 Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 ive never had much luck on lipless rattle baits, but they still take up a few slots in my tackle box i love them for searching water, feeling for structure etc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ehg Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 Lipless baits do work well at times. I think you need a good trip using them one day, and then you will have confidence in them I have caught walleye, smallies, largies, pike, brown trout, Chinook salmon, steelhead and lake trout on Rattlin' Raps and Rattlin' Spots. Good fishing! Aaron I swear by RattlinRaps for fishing multispecies out of warm water discharges in midwinter. Almost use them exclusively there. On a windy day this past summer tried slow trolling RattlinRaps along 10 ft. break and hammered smallmouth by surprise.They are now part of my bass chucking arsenal. I will be trying out a lure this summer that i'm sure no one has used in the waters where i fish.Bombers Badonk-a-Donk. A Badonk-a-Donk is purely a topwater not a lipless crankbait. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishindude Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 I'm actually quite fond of the smaller "junior" sized rattle baits, run these over the tops of weeds and HANG ON! For the common sized rattle baits, I agree that they are good search baits in deeper water and are great for calling the fish in. I like working these baits with a steady retrieve, and also reeling in the slack line and sweeping the lure back with the rod, then reeling in the slack again and repeat; I find this method produces the loudest rattle out of the bait depending on how hard your sweep the rod. It all depends on the mood of the fish, temperature, conditions etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snidley Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 Clearly Double Digits likes common lures. Thank goodness after all there's always live bait. For the rest of the guys here, there's a reason top anglers use Japanese lures when money is involved or they want to max out their success. Bottom line is if you are satisfied with Rapalas or any other "domestic" lures you are missing LOTS of fish virtually antwhere you fish around the GTA or even southern Ontario. Same goes for quality spinnerbaits over the 3 for $10 ones you see on bait store racks. Quality lures take research and execution to manufacture, just like cars, boats, clothes etc. Even in remote locations where the fish are not conditioned quality Japanese lures will consitently out fish Rapalas and the other American hardbait products (except Hildebandts of course) This is somthing virtually all dedicated high profile anglers know (but frequently do not tell to the general public) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spiel Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 Clearly Double Digits likes common lures. Thank goodness after all there's always live bait. For the rest of the guys here, there's a reason top anglers use Japanese lures when money is involved or they want to max out their success. Bottom line is if you are satisfied with Rapalas or any other "domestic" lures you are missing LOTS of fish virtually antwhere you fish around the GTA or even southern Ontario. Same goes for quality spinnerbaits over the 3 for $10 ones you see on bait store racks. Quality lures take research and execution to manufacture, just like cars, boats, clothes etc. Even in remote locations where the fish are not conditioned quality Japanese lures will consitently out fish Rapalas and the other American hardbait products (except Hildebandts of course) This is somthing virtually all dedicated high profile anglers know (but frequently do not tell to the general public) Geez, quite an opinion for an occasional forum member who's best contribution to this forum has been spamming the classifieds with Japanese lures. For what it's worth I've never owned anything you promote and do quite well without them, thank you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
solopaddler Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 Clearly Double Digits likes common lures. Thank goodness after all there's always live bait. For the rest of the guys here, there's a reason top anglers use Japanese lures when money is involved or they want to max out their success. Bottom line is if you are satisfied with Rapalas or any other "domestic" lures you are missing LOTS of fish virtually antwhere you fish around the GTA or even southern Ontario. Same goes for quality spinnerbaits over the 3 for $10 ones you see on bait store racks. Quality lures take research and execution to manufacture, just like cars, boats, clothes etc. Even in remote locations where the fish are not conditioned quality Japanese lures will consitently out fish Rapalas and the other American hardbait products (except Hildebandts of course) This is somthing virtually all dedicated high profile anglers know (but frequently do not tell to the general public) Dude you are so wrong it's laughable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OhioFisherman Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 (edited) there's a reason top anglers use Japanese lures when money is involved or they want to max out their success. LMAO, I didn`t see KVD throwing Japanese lures in the classic? I think they were made in China? If you think the price of a lure makes it better? keep buying them. Edited March 7, 2011 by OhioFisherman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bassmaster4 Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 my favorite lure to throw out is any lipless rattle bait, i began using them years ago and slayed the largemouth on stoney lake, ever since then i keep myself nicely stocked up with them. My favorite would have to be the cotton cordel suspending spot in texas red. Lots of success with these lures. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adempsey Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 Rat-L-Traps are considered one of the all time best lures! Another quality crank I don't use often enough. IMO any crank will fail and others succeed in a given environment. That particular time and place the spinnerbait was the ticket. Some other day it could easily be a lipless crank,a jerk bait or just meat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lookinforwalleye Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 Geez, quite an opinion for an occasional forum member who's best contribution to this forum has been spamming the classifieds with Japanese lures. For what it's worth I've never owned anything you promote and do quite well without them, thank you. Take that Snidley!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kickingfrog Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 Just like most/all lures it's a confidence thing. Catch a fish on one and BAMM! You have a new favourite lure. Different brands have different sounds and that will make all the difference sometimes. I also like them when the winds is blowing because they cast well into the wind, or I'm shore fishing and want to cover more water. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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