Rapala's for Browns

[bluewater]

I have never used rapala's for browns. I was wondering if any one could tell me what size, color and type work best for trolling for browns.

[GAMBLER]

J-9's in perch, black and gold, orange and gold, and firetiger are my favorites.

[LongLine]

Brian - you like the fast wobble or the slow wobble? I've found the direct tied work best for me.

Tom B.

(LongLine)

[GAMBLER]

Tom,

I like that nice slow wobble in the early spring.

[Legacy]

I run alot of rapalas in spring. j7s are great too. typical colors- black/silver, black/crome, orange, purple, rainbow trout patterns, perch. for me its all about speed dictating the action. some days they like it slow and some days fast.

[Gray Fox]

We've got a lot of big browns late in the morning fishing a little bit deeper water with J-13's. Primarily run black/silver, black/gold, and chartreuse/silver. We remove the trebles and add 1 single hook on the back and paint the bellys orange, especially on the chartreuse/silver. Shallower water we run the lures mentioned above and attach all with a small clip.

[ray koziatek]

if you see a little silver and gold bout 2.5 " long, slight rattle ya might try to pick one up and if it sunny and muddy it just might work its not a rapella finish its very shiny dont know brands or size numbers ..... and even tho there pricy the silver/black yozuri crystal minnow 3.5 in and 5 in might get ya a tug or two ....

[lakebound88]

yozuris

dont for get your tiger hot n tot toooo

[bluewater]

I have always used the jointed rapalas j-11's and j-13's for pike in shallow water in the spring and they work great I didn't realize that browns like them too. Thanks for all the info guys.

[Dipsey]

F9 Vampire, this lure should be outlawed!

[Has Been]

The stright 9 & 11 on boards & riggers set shallow worked well for me. Also in very shallow water I used jointed rebels & smithwicks. Bent nose eye down to give a wide wobble and so it would not dive as deep. Ran them off boards on shore in wave trougth for browns and did well .75-125' back w/ riiger ball just under surface was good on choppy days in 8 - 15 ft also.Adjust lead length & color to water clarity.Also I put small split rings on all sticks & tied direct for max action.

[kingslamon22]

should never even try the smithwick brand

[bluewater]

I was curious if all these J-9 & J-11 rapalas you guys are talking about are the jointed ones or the straight stickbait type?

[spoonfed-1]

I run 7's for jointed and 9's and 11's are straight.

glen

[GAMBLER]

I was talking the jointed raps.

[Tim Bromund]

bluewater, the J in the size means jointed, straight rapalas have an F prefix (for floating).

Tim

ps Smithwicks kick serious butt in a good mudline.

[bluewater]

I was pretty sure thats what it meant but when I was checking some lures out on e-bay they had a stick bait type rapala listed as HJ-9. I was't sure if that was just a typo or not. I have used the jointed rapalas for years for pike and bass just never thought to try them on trout. I just ordered several of them to try in the spring. Hope they work as good as you guys say. Can't wait to get out again!

[Tim Bromund]

bluewater, the HJ is the designation for the husky-jerk line of rapalas.

Tim

[LongLine]

"C" is for count-down. (the ones that sink - like the 17 that I have)

sure - now you guys tell me about the jointed floaters............. No wonder I can't catch a Brown.

Tom B.

(LongLine)

[raider44]

Does anyone run Reef Runner crank baits for browns?

[Jolly II]

Depending on depth, and water conditions I run straight rapalas, size 5 to 11, and the jointed ones sizes 7 to 11. If it's super early, before the big boat goes in the water, and the warmest water is really cold, like 38-40 degrees, I tend to run the smaller stick baits as I have a tendency to troll slower and shallower (water depth 4-5 feet), and the smaller stickbaits run a little better at slower speeds. Once the big boat is out storage, and the spring fishing season is in full swing, I tend to run the 9-11 sizes. I also run Bombers, Smithwicks, Yozuri. My favorite spring colors are perch, black and silver, gold and silver, and gobi.

This is just a base for me to start a game plan for that day of fishing. As you know when it comes to catching fish anything goes.

[chowder]

Does anyone run Reef Runner crank baits for browns?

Got a good one on a Reef runner little ripper just last week!

[raider44]

I'm glad they catch more than sheephead- we have about 150+ on board for walleye. First year they came out, one was $4, now they run anywhere from $6.50-$12.00. There new big thing is this Ultra Violet paint job... I don't know if UV paint makes a difference or not, but I know there arent any black lights floating around the lake