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zload wrote:Back when Bomber made soft plastic I liked their 5” jerk bait in white but no longer available and I’m almost out of them after buying every bag I could find at some discount online clearance place. DOA and Saltwater Assain are my goto now.

Gulp works but hate the oily slime in the boat and on my hands.

Bombers and Bay Side plastics used to be my "go to" but they're gone and that was years ago... I've got probably 25 or 30 bags of the Bombers hanging on the wall I'll never use. I've been experimenting with pouring my own plastics lately and they are actually working... which proves trout will eat just about anything!

I think the new formula GULP has been the best thing that has ever happened to Z-Man. I got so frustrated with getting one or two casts out of the new Gulp jerk shad that I refused to buy any more. If you have the Gulp bag with the white background you have the new softer baits. The shrimp seem to work okay, but the Jerk Shads are not worth buying anymore.
Those of you who are using ZMan will do well to put a tube of super glue in your tackle box. I put a drop at the back of the jig head / top of the hook shank when I rig a Zman bait and it lasts for a day or so of catching. One other thing I noticed is that the Zman baits are more buoyant, so sometimes you need a heavier jig head. It is unfortunate that the Zman version of the jerk shad floats with a 2/0 hook in the nose.

- Steve Stinson

Zman makes a specific hook for their jerkbaits with a small weight so they don't float, I use the trokar hook instead. The trout eye jig head usually holds the zman well without glue.

Where do you all get zman grubs at besides online?

drucker wrote:Where do you all get zman grubs at besides online?

Anywhere, Kevin’s , west marine, bps, academy, dicks......

Someone please post a picture of a zman swim bait. I bought some once and they were certainly tougher than gulps but almost too touch and a lot skinnier than gulps. They might have been old or I didn't buy the right thing. I've been trying to ween myself off of gulps for years but still buy the darned things. I hate em but the trout still love em.

Edit: Never mind.. I found the zman lures. It wasn't them but Trigger X I didn't like.

Anyone use the scented version of Zman? I have a few bags, but the mullet and the trout trick have been the ones I have pulled out and used most. Just wondered how the scented work.

I like the idea of the super glue. Even with the correct keepers, they still will slide down sometimes. Plus, my favorite jig head is not Zman effective, but I bet a drop of super glue would change that!

Here's one from the past....the Cocahoe Minnow!

Steve Stinson wrote:I think the new formula GULP has been the best thing that has ever happened to Z-Man. I got so frustrated with getting one or two casts out of the new Gulp jerk shad that I refused to buy any more. If you have the Gulp bag with the white background you have the new softer baits. The shrimp seem to work okay, but the Jerk Shads are not worth buying anymore.
Those of you who are using ZMan will do well to put a tube of super glue in your tackle box. I put a drop at the back of the jig head / top of the hook shank when I rig a Zman bait and it lasts for a day or so of catching. One other thing I noticed is that the Zman baits are more buoyant, so sometimes you need a heavier jig head. It is unfortunate that the Zman version of the jerk shad floats with a 2/0 hook in the nose.

- Steve Stinson

There is a positive aspect of the jerk shad floating with a 2/0 in the nose, it can be fished with a carolina rig which can prove to be irresistible to Trout at times.

That's true, I suppose, but I save my Carolina Rig fishing for Talquin. I like the slow, sinking jerk baits for trout and reds. The weighted hooks seem to make them dive more nose-down.

Borrowing tricks from the bass guys again, I guess I could shove a nail in the ZMan's.

- Steve Stinson

I have mostly switched to Zman paddletails on weedless, weighted worm hooks. I also like the Down South 5in paddle tails in Chicken of the Sea. However, Winter/early spring fishing is all about Corkys (Paul Brown Lures) IMO.

I carry very few baits in the box, but here's what I've always got in there. I fish stained water and prefer darker colors with chartreuse tails. Lighter colors with chartreuse tails are what I use when I fish clear water... or just use the darker colored baits anyway.

1) DOA 5.5" jerk shads in rootbeer/chartreuse. Usually I use a very light jighead, like 1/16 ounce but will go heavier for deeper water

2) Z-Man "Trout Tricks" in the same color, or white with chartreuse tail out on clear water grass flats. I like a little heavier jighead on this one, 3/16 ounce

3) Mirrolure Lil-Jon YYYYEAHHH. You almost have to use a super light jighead on this one, it sinks like a stone. I like it on my really light tackle setups because it casts a mile and holds up to multiple fish. All of the baits I've mentioned do. I got rid of Gulp and a lot of other similar soft plastics that just didn't hold up to multiple fish. I want to use one bait basically all day and these baits let me do it.



I don't really use any of the paddle tail baits anymore. If I'm going to throw something out and reel it back in I'll use a spoon.

Z Man for me also all kinds

rammerjammer wrote:Z Man for me also all kinds

I had two bags of Zman that I had to throw away. While fishing they fused together into one mass laying in the top of my tackle box. Never had that happen before.


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I also like mirrolure soft plastics. They are super tough. Caught 20 trout one one tail.


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