Mini planers take bait where the boat isn't.
October 20, 2011
By Matt Straw
This is my son, Cliff. He's a livebait enthusiast. His favorite bait is a 4 to 5 inch sucker minnow on an
Eagle Claw  L787G-4 Circle Hook. All of his bass are released healthy and alive.
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He's holding one of the new
Off Shore OR34 Mini Planers. What a cool tool. Fits in a shirt pocket. Amaze your friends. Pull one out of a your pocket, clip it to some 10-pound Maxima Ultragreen (that's what Cliff uses), and sail a livebait over to the bank. From an anchored position, the OR34 will take a livebait with or without a sinker out 30, 40, 50 feet or more from the boat.
Yes, you could cast over there. And the current will create a huge bow in the line and force the bait to drift. Because the line is going straight downcurrent from the Mini Planer, the bait will hold with less weight on the line. And the strike indication is immediate. The board pulls back, even submerges like a big, yellow bobber.
That's when the hair stands up on Cliff's neck. "OR34, where are you?"
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(If you laughed at that, you're older than dirt.)