Hookin’ Eyes on Ebay: Rapala Cranks
I know sometimes it seems like I am bashing Rapala, and with good reason. In their own product line they have made some great lures for catching walleyes. Then they get rid of the best colors in that lure series.
For fishing on Lake Erie, the Deep Diving Shad Rap is the most effective lure while trolling for walleyes. On Saginaw Bay, spring time means trolling the 7 + inch original floating Rap minnow. One of the biggest sins was the discontinuation of the “clown” pattern in both these lures. This is the Shad Rap(DDSR) in clown. This lure represents what is a HOT pattern on Erie, and catching on up in Saginaw….METALLIC, METALLIC, METALLIC!!!!!! Not that the pattern wasn’t a producers on the Bay already, but it seems like the metallic series of baits just caught on in Erie’s waters a little sooner. Its got a silver base, chartreuse back and a bleeding head, what more could a walleye angler ask for? The same can be said for this “Gold” pattern. Erie=gold lures, its a standard that goes back to the days of the Golden Nugget. It really seems like we are punished, while the anglers fishing those ponds in Minnesota get the preferred treatment.
This new X-Rap Jointed Shad Rap has a color very similar to another bait that was discontinued, and later brought back. The metallic perch pattern ranked right up there with the clown and gold colors. This bait is not a deep diving lure, so fishing on Erie has its limited time windows. During the heat of the day, leave it in the box. Prime time for this lure is when the sun is just cracking the dawn and your lines are already out, or when the breeze kicks up late in the evening as the sun goes down. Walleye rise off the bottom to feed, and catching suspended fish 6 or 7 ft down is well within their strikezone.
This time when I looked I did not see any of the bigger sized floating raps that are popular while running leadcore for this time of the year, but I did get a decent selection of the bigger Husky Jerks . These two are size 12’s and the colors are fish catchers on sliver plated bodies. Both the Clown and Silver/Blue are time tested lures. The HJ-14 is the slightly bigger size that is used as well, but both sizes have their time and place for catching Eyes. With a day to go, right now the price is really good, with only 3 bucks for shipping.
More later………….