HARD LURES: REGULAR DIVING MINNOWS
The sort of hard lures most bass anglers don’t go out fishing without, what I call the regular-diving minnows. Most of them cast well, they swim relatively shallow (I wouldn’t class them as ultra-shallow, but you can get your rod tip up and slow the retrieve down to get them swimming a bit shallower if needs be), and these lures here tend to have strong actions in the water and work well for bass in so many different situations.
IMA SASUKE 120
The IMA Sasuke 120 (17g) is quite simply an outstanding bass fishing lure. A great caster, very grippy, you can fish it fast or slow and they so often sort the bass out. Stunning range of colours and good treble hooks.
Affiliate links (my sincere thanks if you choose to buy via these): Veals Mail Order or Lurefishingforbass.co.uk
IMA/DUO NABARONE 125F and 125S
A killer, very long-casting floating minnow that has an awesome action and catches fish. I actually lost the largest bass that has ever hit me on the IMA/DUO Nabarone 125F (125mm, 16g). The sinking version of the IMA/DUO Nabarone 125 might only weigh a mere 1.5g more than the floating model, but it flies out there even better than its floating counterpart if that is possible.
Affiliate links (my sincere thanks if you choose to buy via these): Veals Mail Order or Lurefishingforbass.co.uk
SAVAGE GEAR SEA BASS MINNOW 12CM AND 14CM
Available in 12cm and 14cm sizes, the Savage Gear Sea Bass Minnow has a strong rolling action and casts well if you slow down a bit and cast nice and smoothly. There are Floating and Sinking versions of both sizes, the hooks are good, the colours are outstanding, and the prices are rather nice as well. I remove the split ring from the front of the lures as well as the middle treble hook.
Affiliate links (my sincere thanks if you choose to buy via these): Veals Mail Order or FishingMegastore.com
Berkley DEX Long Shot
A 14cm diving minnow which doesn’t cost much at all, the Berkley DEX Long Shot is pretty good. Casts very well when you catch it right, it’s a sinking hard lure (14cm, 21.8g) which comes up to what I would call a medium/shallow depth on a straight retrieve. Really good colours, this thing is growing on me.
Affiliate links (my sincere thanks if you choose to buy via these): Veals Mail Order or FishingMegastore.com
APIA DOVER 99F
I do like the smaller bass lures, and this very grippy Apia Dover 99F (99mm, 15g) is a peach of a lure. It casts really well, it’s got a very intense action, I love how well it grips into rougher conditions, and although the quoted diving depth is a handy 60cms, you can get this Apia Dover 99F up a little shallower if need be.
Affiliate links (my sincere thanks if you choose to buy via these): Art of Fishing or Lurefishingforbass.co.uk