IF YOU are in the market for some new gear now is the time to head to the Boatshed - the shop is stocked with some great Shimano gear at unbelievable prices.
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We have some fantastic deals on combos for whiting and bream (for both bait and lure fishing) and we quite possibly have the cheapest Shimano bass fishing combos around. I had to repeatedly check the price to see if it was correct they are that good!
There’s been a few great innovations in lures over the years, one of which is probably the ugliest weirdest looking lure ever, the Spinner bait!
With its coathanger-like wire frame, colourful silicone skirt and flashing spinning blades, it does not look like anything would eat it. I actually thought they would scare fish the first time I saw them ... but, I was completely wrong!
I bit the bullet and purchased one, thinking it would get swum a few times then be retired to the depths of the tackle box and for a few months I was right. Flathead seemed to dismiss it and only one bream with eyes bigger than its stomach had a half-hearted strike.
Then one spring I was paddling my canoe in a local freshwater section of river, the day was getting on and the fish had retreated into the dense snag piles. I hadn’t had a hit on the surface for a while so out came the weirdo looking spinner bait. I tied it onto my line thinking “oh well, let’s see how this goes” - having seen big bass in the pages of magazines with spinner baits hanging from their jaw I knew they worked. So with not much thought I threw the lure into the nastiest shadow covered pile of logs in the hole, let it sink for a second or two then started a slow rolling retrieve.
As the wire arm of the lure bumped over the logs I remember saying “wow this thing is really snag proof” when I had the hardest hit of my life! The rod loaded up, I jammed the butt into my ribs and pumped and wound as hard as I could to get the fish out of the mass of logs. Sure enough after a few tense moments I had a fat, 40cm bass doing circles near the canoe. These spinner baits work!
Nowadays I don’t go near freshwater without one or two ... or five. They have saved many bass trips.
And that’s only the tip of the iceberg, people!
Now get in here and see for yourself - that’s what Riley Reckons this week.
