Rats Heading South for the Winter
I’ve been pretty explicit in past blog entries about how much I enjoy throwing topwater rats and mice at Lake El Salto. Primarily that has meant the SPRO BBZ-1 in the 40 size, although at times I’ve “manned up” and gone to the larger 50. When available, it’s a quality bait that produces heart-stopping strikes from larger-than-average bass. I’m not sure if I’d have the cojones to fish one in a tournament situation, but when I’m out looking for one or two big’uns it’s a fun way to fish.
Historically, the SPRO has been an inexpensive option for this type of fishing. Unfortunately, the SPROs have become tough to find at a reasonable price. I’m told that they will be releasing an updated version in the not-too-distant future and then happy days should be here again. In the meantime, I have a few still in the package that I plan to put to good use. However, if we’re fortunate enough to get on a good rat bite at El Salto this month I’d like to gain confidence in some other options. Accordingly, here are some recent purchases that I hope to test:
This resin monster is the one that excites me the most and simultaneously scares me a little. It’s fricking huge. At the same time, it comes highly-recommended by both the guys at Tactical Bassin’ and my friend Dennis “Cal” Shew of TackleTour fame. In fact, I purchased my PB Rat from Dennis. I brought it in June but only made a few halfhearted casts with it. With the water still high, I may be intimidated to throw this $149 giant back in the buckbrush -- even if I know the guides will work diligently to get back any hung-up lures – but I’m most excited to see what lives back there.
This one gets mixed reviews, but I know that Steve Kennedy swears by G-Ratt’s glide baits so I figured I’d give another category a try. With a 5-inch body and a total length of 10 inches, it’s big but not overwhelming. While $35.99 is a lot by conventional lure standards, it’s more than reasonable in this genre, so it was worth taking a flyer on it.
Right after Tackle Tour reviewed the larger Trap Rat and gave it a rating of “Great” I saw these come up for sale on the website of MGC Fishing (a great resource for swimbaits if you’ve not previously heard of them) and pressed the “buy now” button before I could change my mind. Less than $60 seemed like a bargain in the moment – at that rate of thinking I may die broke, but I’ll die happy. Even though the review distinguished the two lures, the idea of a “crank down” appealed to me, as did this lure’s “garage” credentials.
This is the smallest one of the four newcomers, but sits in a class of its own, with a metal cupped mouth that produces a distinct spitting and walking action. It can be fished either with the included feathered treble or that can be swapped out for their more traditional rat tail. At only ½ ounce, this will likely bridge a gap between my favorite Ricos and the world of rodents. This lure is available through Japan Import Tackle or various eBay sellers.
What other rodents (of unusual size or not) do we need to test in Mexico or at home?
