10,000 Fish's Shimmer Shad

Since the spring of 2006, a minnow-shaped or shad-shaped worm has played an integral role in the repertoire of scores of Midwest finesse anglers. And in 2019, 10,000 Fish added a modern-day version of the minnow-shaped or shad-shaped worm to the angling world.

10,000 Fish is a new brand. It is the creation of Catch Co.

Eli Rosenberg is the Director of Media Partnerships for Catch Co. And he told us that Catch Co. was roused by the workmanship and complexities of the tackle that has been created by the Japanese domestic market. And Catch Co. spawned 10,000 Fish as a means to pay homage to the Japanese domestic market in the United States.

Rosenberg recently introduced us to two of 10,000 Fish’s first creations, and one of those is the Shimmer Shad, which in the eyes of Midwest finesse anglers is a shad-shaped worm.

Rosenberg sent us a package of Shimmer Shad in the ghost-shad hue to use and thoroughly examine.

Here is what we discovered about the Shimmer Shad:

It is manufactured in two sizes: a three-incher and a four-incher.

We worked with the four-incher, and according to our measurements, it is 3 15/16 inches long.

The contours of its first 2 1/2 inches are similar to the silhouettes of a variety of the chubs, darters, and shiners that abide many waterways that stipple the landscapes of the United States.

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Its predorsal area, which possesses its snout, eyes, and operculum, is three-quarters of an inch long. Near its junction with its torso, the predorsal possesses a height of seven-sixteenths of an inch, a width of a quarter of an inch, and a circumference of about 1 5/16 inches. The plastic portion of the predorsal area is solid. Its epidermis is basically smooth.

The plastic portion of the next 2 3/4 inches is hollow. The top of this section is opaque and graced with a series of minor ribs. The top of this dorsal, which is devoid of those ribs, is one-eighth of an inch wide and 2 3/4 inches long with a smooth epidermis. The epidermis of the bottom or ventral portions of this hollow segment is smooth and transparent. Encapsulated within this hollow area is a silver-hued element that is about a quarter of an inch high and 1 1/2 inches long. This silver element shines and reflects rays of light. A 10,000 Fish press statement notes that this silver element is “an internal strobe strip that reflects light to attract fish and keep fish latched once they bite by mimicking the feel of a baitfish body crunching.”

At the end of the ventral area, there is a hole, which is somewhat similar to the position of a chub’s, darter’s, and shiner’s anus. According to Rosenberg, this cavity is leftover from the manufacturing process for implanting the internal strobe strip inside the hollow portion of the Shimmer Shad’s torso.

The Shimmer Shad is devoid of pectoral fins, pelvic fins, an anal fin, a dorsal fin, and a caudal fin.

The final 1 7/16 inches of the Shimmer Shad consists of what the folks at 10,000 Fish describe as “a super thin tapered tail that produces a subtle quivering action.” At the junction with its body, this tail has a width of one-eighth of an inch and a circumference of about seven-sixteenths of an inch. At the tip of the tail, it has a width that is slightly larger than one-sixteenth of an inch.

It is manufactured in the following hues: Blue Shad, Ghost Shad, Natural, and Violet Shad.

It is very buoyant.

A package of four costs $5.29. Rosenberg notes that members of Karl’s Club, which is another Catch Co. branch, can purchase them for $3.70 a package. And they are wrapped in a state-of-the-art package.

A 10,000 Fish’s press statement says that it was designed for drop-shot applications, but it is also noted to be effective when it is affixed to a small jig and employed with a vertical presentation for suspended fish.

Midwest Finesse anglers, of course, will affix it to a mushroom-style jig, which will allow them to present it to their black bass quarries at a variety of waterways by employing all six of the standard Midwest finesse retrieves. Its buoyancy will be a factor that Midwest finesse anglers will relish.

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