Entry 57-2

Strike King Lures Are For Saltwater Too

Zulu for Trout

Editor's Note: Shaw Grigsby of Gainesville, Florida has made more than $1 million dollars professionally fishing on just the B.A.S.S. circuit. He has a TV show and is one of the Strike King pros. Although Grigsby earns most of his living from freshwater fishing, he is an avid saltwater fisherman. This week he will tell us the joy that he has found in fishing Strike King lures in saltwater.

Question: What makes the Zulu effective for catching trout?

Grigsby: One of the easiest ways to catch trout on the Zulu is to use a R-Bend hook made by Eagle Claw. I use spin strips, which are strips used primarily to make lures spin. I wrap about five of the spin strips around the belly of the hook to weight the hook. These spin strips will not affect the hooking ability of the hook; they simply add a little weight.

Then I rig the Zulu with the hook and cast it on a 6-1/2-foot rod and a high-speed reel. I let the Zulu slowly sink and then begin to twitch the Zulu. When the trout see the Zulu dancing under the surface of the water, they can't stand it. They have to eat it. They attack the bait so hard that they'll nearly jar the rod out of your hand.

Question: What makes the Zulu a better bait for catching speckled trout?

Grigsby: Speckled trout have two sharp teeth in the top of their mouths that look like fangs. With most soft-plastic jerkbaits, the trout will shred that soft plastic with their fangs. But with the Zulu you can often catch 10 to 40 trout with this lure and never have to change your bait. That new 3X material that the Zulu is made from is awesome. It not only gives the Zulu a lot of action, but it is tough enough that the sharp teeth of the trout do not destroy it.

One of the tricks that I have learned to get maximum use out of each Zulu is to use a system of pegging the head of the Zulu through the hook. I use 40-pound-test monofilament and run the monofilament through the Zulu and the eye of the hook. Then I use a match or a cigarette lighter to burn the ends of the 40-pound-test monofilament. That burnt monofilament makes a blob of plastic on either side of the eye of the hook. It will keep the Zulu from sliding down the hook, not only extending the life of the bait, but making sure that the bait stays in the proper position on the hook at all times.




 

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