Entry 292-1
My Five Best Techniques for Catching Bass with Luke Estel of Illinois
Editor’s Note: Luke Estel of Murphysboro, Illinois, one of Strike King’s regional fishing pros, has been quite successful fishing numerous state and regional tournaments. This week, Estel will tell us his five best techniques for catching bass.
Part 5: The Rage Toad for Me
Question: Luke, I know you’re a Toad fan. Why?
Estel: I like to fish the Rage Toad because I can swim it over grass. Once you cast out the Rage Toad and get it up on top of the grass, you really can slow that lure down and see that it has lots of action. The beveled edges on the Rage Toad give the bait an unusual swimming action that draws bass.
Question: How do you rig the Rage Toad?
Estel: I’ll use a No. 6/0 wide-gap hook. After I bring the hook through the lure, I put the point of the hook just under the bait’s skin. When I’m fishing the Toad in grass, I’ll put a plastic bead on the line ahead of it, which helps keep the grass off the bait. Although the Rage Toad hasn’t received much publicity, I like it. It may be the best and the most-overlooked bait in Strike King’s arsenal of lures. I’ve found that oftentimes if you select a lure that isn’t getting as much publicity as other lures, you can use it to catch bass that other lures won’t catch. I know that bass wise-up to certain lures and techniques. The Rage Toad has such a different action and swimming technique that many people overlook this lure. 
When you fish the Rage Toad around grass, through lily pads and around any other type of vegetation, hold on to your rod and reel, because the bass will eat that bait up.
For 2009, Strike King has created and released a wide variety of soft-plastic lures. I haven’t even had the opportunity to test all the new baits. Strike King is using a new type of plastic, and I love to fish soft plastics. I can hardly wait to get my hands on some of the other new lures like the Rodent and the Rage Space Monkey. From the other pros I’ve talked with, I hear that they’re catching a number of bass using these lures. So, you can bet I’ll be fishing these new soft plastics this spring and summer.
Contents:
- Part 1: Bet on the Jig
- Part 2: You’ve Gotta Love a Spit-n-King
- Part 3: Strike King’s Series 5 or Series 6 - It's All Cranking
- Part 4: The Anaconda for Action
- Part 5: The Rage Toad for Me
