2016 ICAST: Freedom Tackle Corp Marabou Jig

Freedom Tackle Corp. is please to announce the following additions to their line of Customizable Swing Hook Products for 2017.

    Marabou Jig

The Freedom Marabou jig is a must for any serious walleye or smallmouth angler. Features the Freedom changeable swing hook that doesn’t allow the fish to get leverage using the jig head. Coming in two sizes, 1/8 oz. & 1/4 oz., and 6 popular colors, the keel weighted head keeps the razor sharp hook in the upright position ready for your hookset. Want to switch to live bait or a weed less lure? With a simple twist of the hook you can replace the marabou hook with your own hook and rig anyway you want giving you the ultimate in customization. The Freedom Marabou head is also eco-friendly and can be fished anywhere in North America.   MSRP is $3.99 USD

 

NEW CHATTERBAIT® FREEDOM™ BLADED JIG

Freedom Tackle and Z-Man Team Up!

Z-Man Fishing Products, maker of The Original ChatterBait brand bladed swim jigs and 10X Tough ElaZtech® soft plastics, is pleased to introduce the ChatterBait Freedom vibrating jig as a new addition to its ever-evolving lineup at the 2016 GEICO Bassmaster Classic. Widely regarded as the ‘Super Bowl of bass fishing,’ the event will take place March 4-6 on Grand Lake O’ the Cherokees in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

The ChatterBait Freedom launch is the culmination of a product partnership between Z-Man and Canada-based Freedom Tackle Corp. that merges Z-Man’s patented head-to-blade connection with Freedom Tackle’s interchangeable, swinging-hook design made possible by the company’s proprietary internal connection. The result is an all-new bladed jig that allows for easy hook changes, infinite lure customization and snag-free fishing. As important, the new product launch showcases the sharing of advancements and intellectual property between two tackle companies that also share the common goal of providing anglers with a unique—and genuinely better—product offering.

“We’ve been prototyping and testing bladed jigs with swinging hooks for several years now, and the best design we’ve found—bar none—is Freedom Tackle’s interchangeable hook design because it not only allows for easy customization and weedless rigging, but prevents fouling altogether,” states Z-Man President, Daniel Nussbaum. “While other companies in the industry seem intent on copying and working around the intellectual property of others, we felt that we could provide anglers with the best product possible by partnering with another innovator like Freedom.”

Mustad Snags Mark Rose

Mustad, global leader in fish hooks since 1877, continues to strengthen their commitment to Bass Fishing with the signing of Professional Angler Mark Rose. 

A veteran on the FLW circuit, Mark Rose has honed his expertise in fishing river systems and offshore structure into an impressive career as one of the sport’s most consistently successful anglers.  Along the road to 7 professional titles, he has earned 48 Top Ten Finishes (nearly 5 per year average since 2008), qualified for the Forest Wood Cup 9 times, was chosen a Cabela’s First Team All-American (2011) and won a Rayovac Midwest Angler of the Year title (2005).  Notably, Mark is the only angler to qualify for all 9 Texas Bass Classics.

Says Rose, “Most of the fish that I have brought to the scales in all six of my major event wins were caught on Mustad Hooks, so I'm very excited to be a part of this great company and join their Elite Prostaff!"

Mustad® Signs Bassmaster Elite Series Pro Kevin Short

Kevin Short, is a 5 time B.A.S.S. Tournament Champion entering his 14^th year as a professional angler.  Known to Bassmaster fans as “K-Pink”, Kevin is a tough competitor recognized both for his larger than life Hot Pink jersey and Bass Cat boat, as well as his outgoing personality and sense of humor; and in 2014 overcoming great odds to make the cut for the 2015 Bassmaster Classic, his third appearance at the event.

“Mustad is very pleased to have a man of Kevin’s energy and character on our team; his knowledge and experience is a great asset.  When you attend a Bassmaster Event you can easily see the appreciation that the fans have for him,” says Mustad Sales Manager Steve Tagami.  “The inner strength Kevin has shown in dealing with a major personal catastrophe in the loss of his home, and to work through it with such a positive outlook commands great respect.  To come back after that with two consecutive top ten finishes in a row is inspiring.”

Five Fabulous Fall Baits for Bass: Tube jigs

Terribly terrific tubes.

By Luigi  De Rose

Tubes are a favourite of northern anglers and for good reason – they catch a lot of fish. Dragged on the bottom or pitched into shallow weeds, the tube is very versatile.  

Tube jigs are amazing at catching smallmouth and largemouth
in the autumn. 

Fall triggers a migration for bass from summer shallows to deeper water. Anglers who follow them will be able to benefit when bass school on predictable pieces of structure. One of the best presentations for catching bass during this calendar period is a tube. Regardless if bass are munching on craws or minnows, there is a colour scheme that will match the local prey perfectly.

Key Factors:

• Water depth
• Jighead size
• Hook quality
• Colours

 The most versatile open water method of rigging a tube is slipping an exposed jighead into the hollow cavity. Spinning gear is most ideal but baitcast loves don’t have to sulk as long as they scale down and lighten up on gear and line choice. A selection of jig weights from 1/8oz to 5/8oz will work everywhere regardless of wind speed and water depth. Don’t cheap out when shopping for jigs. Search for extra sharp hooks with good wire. You won’t recall how much you saved when a monster bass pulls free. 

Most baits are 3” or 4” and that is fine. Name brand tubes have salt or scent or both. The real key is to have a large selection of colours. Bass can ignore one colour and gobble up another. Rotated between proven colours and don’t be stubborn to change.

Many pros favour a rattle on the jighead. Finding jigs with one can be difficult but a bag of rattles and some heat shrink tubing can convert any jighead quickly.  Worrying about the details can be madding but it is usually better to rotate between spots than trying to force feed fall bass. 

2014 ICAST VMC Swinging Rugby head with Jacob Wheeler and IBASSIN

2014 ICAST in the VMC booth with FLW Cup winner Jacob Wheeler. Jacob Wheeler explains why we all need to have a few VMC Swinging Rugby head jigs especially when ledge fishing.



VMC® updated its popular Rugby Jig design with an articulated, free-swinging jig head that allows soft-plastic baits to flow and move more naturally on the retrieve. A cross between a traditional round-ball head jig and a football head jig, the Swinging Rugby Jig's head features a recessed line tie, which helps it come through cover much better than other jigs. Extra long z-bend hook leg ensures soft plastics will not hinder action when rigged.

River2Sea Releases 8 New Baits at ICAST 2013

Richmond, CA - July 2, 2013 - River2Sea has long held a history of being aggressive at introducing new products to the industry at the annual ICAST Show, and 2014 is no different. The Richmond, Calif. based manufacturer of premium lures is poised to introduce eight new products at the industry show in Las Vegas next week.

Among those will be additions to the signature lines of Ish Monroe, Scott Martin, John Murray and Larry Dahlberg as well as a new signature introduction of bass fishing legend Tommy Biffle, a contest winning design and a new size to one of our best products. The signature products to be released are:

Tommy Biffle's Junkyard Jig - a jig made for the way this Flippin' legend operates, custom, short shank wide gap hook create and extremely compact jig with punch. Extra loud rattles on a custom Biffle designed head and hand tied skirts highlight this package.

Ish Monroe's New Jack Flippin' Hook - This extra strong straight shank Flippin' hook has a unique second eye / keeper barb that makes holding plastics easy, but also gives the angler a choice of tying a Snell Knot or most of the popular knots used by anglers today.

John Murray's Papa Mur Football Jig - A structure fishing king, Murray knows that a great jig starts with the right hook, and he designed this jig with a reverse gap round bend hook to maximize hook gap and fish holding power. An elongated Football head means less opening of the fish's mouth, and hand tied skirts make this a premium structure jig named after one of the best structure anglers in the business.

Feathered Hooks for Jerkbaits

Last week, I explained how the feathered hook make all the difference on finicky smallmouth. I was planning on tying up a batch myself but didin't find the time. I popped by the local tackle shop and saw these hanging on the rack. Not having the time, patience or feathers I bought them. The Mustad treble has white with a hint of chartreuse. It also offered a red treble which was all the rage a few years back. The VMC came all white, red or in the VMC Sureset treble. I stuck to the standard treble in white. If you're as lazy as myself, stop by your local store and pick a few up.

Mustad Introduces New Grip-Pin Max Hooks

MUSTAD® INTRODUCES NEW GRIP-PIN MAX™ HOOKS FOR SOFT PLASTICS

Anglers take notice; two new Grip-pin series hooks are here! The Grip-Pin Max (G34131NP-BN) is a straight-shank, wide-bite hook with a sleek, integrated keeper on the upper shank to keep baits perfectly positioned without hanging in the grass. This versatile “no slip/no slide” design securely anchors baits without tearing or slipping. The hook eye is completely sealed for 100% confidence when fishing braid lines.

In conjunction with the launch of the Grip-Pin Max, Mustad has also modified the original KVD Grip-Pin® hook (38101NP) with a new smaller, sleeker keeper that holds baits securely and makes presentations perfectly weedless.

Like all UltraPoint® hooks, both hooks feature Mustad’s 4.3 Micro Sharp Point Technology for an incredibly sharp point which is ultra-durable. MUSTAD® INTRODUCES NEW GRIP-PIN MAX™ HOOKS FOR SOFT PLASTICS

MUSTAD ® EXPANDS RANGE OF KVD ELITE TRIPLE GRIP ® TREBLE HOOKS

 The KVD family of Treble Hooks is growing! 


When KVD designs a treble hook you know it's worth taking a second look.   The first KVD model ( TG76NP-BN) had a short shank and extra strong wire, which allowed anglers to upsize their crankbait hooks without having them tangle with one another.   The extra strong wire also offered better hook-setting power and more muscle for powering fish away from heavy cover. 

Now Mustad has added two new versions of UltraPoint® KVD Elite Triple Grip® Treble to meet angler needs for a broader range of applications.   

The TG58NP-BN   Features standard wire diameter and standard shank length.   The longer shank length increases the distance between the hook points and the lure body, raising hook-up percentages. A great option when hooks are spaced far enough apart to prevent tangling. 

The TG78NP-BN also features the new longer shank length, but in 1X strong, like the Original KVD Triple Grip. 

Mustad has also added extra strong round bend hooks to their line-up as well. 

Of course, all Ultrapoint hooks include 4.3 Micro Sharp Point Technology know for it's balance between sharpness and durability. 
  

The HAUL part 2 (Cool lures from Japan)

Here is more of what I bought. I cannot show some of the baits because many are presents. I don't want to reveal them just yet.

D- Frog! Got one. These are the hottest frog out there. I got the last one.
My wife asked, "why only one?" What happens if it works well?  You'll only have one.
(Didn't think of that, plus it was the only one left) 

Senko hooks. Love those weedless Wacky hooks. I make my own
but these are more professional. Left is Diawa right is Zappu.
(Sorry the flash killed the shot)

FOR THE REST OF THE PHOTOS. PLEASE VISIT IBASSIN.COM ON FACEBOOK. Like it if you wish.

The Haul! What I bought.

Some might be disappointed after reading this. It is easy to loose your mind in a big fishing store here. When on vacation, people always buy. Shoes, cloths and for me and you, fishing gear. But, you have to bring it all back. I would love to splurge on a few rods but the airplane gorillas would make kindling out of them. Also, this stuff isn't cheap. If you were starting out, you could blow a couple grand just to get a few rods and reels with gear. I was thinking of getting a new Shimano reel. At $625, it will have to wait for another trip.

When in Japan, I always try to get something I cannot get in Canada or the States. Also, I tend to fish targets and shallow water, so my eyes focus on those types of lures. I am not a big crankbait guy. Stores are full of cranks. I use to be on pro-staff ages ago with Bill Norman and recently Rapala has been good to me, so I think I have plenty. If I fished less grass then I might hit the crankbait aisles harder.

Here is a look at a small fraction of my haul.

EverGreen Shower Blows Shorty. Should be a smallmouth killer.
There was a sale on EverGreen so I got it for $12 but it is about $19.

Look at that tail!