January 20, 2015
By Ned Kehde
The Curl Tail Worm in the Black Pearl hue.
Trigger X's Curl Tail Minnow and Boot Tail Minnow were designed for beguiling panfish. But there are times and waterways that some Midwest finesse anglers will find them to be useful baits for pursuing largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, and spotted bass.
For example, Matt Straw of Brainerd, Minnesota, who is a longtime field editor with In-Fisherman's publications and television productions, wrote a stellar article in the March 1998 issue of In-Fisherman entitled "Smalltime Jigs, Big-Time Smallmouths," and subtitled "Won't Bite? Feed 'Em Peanuts" about such a phenomenon.
In this almost biblical treatise on finesse tactics, Straw focused on how, when, and where Jim Lindner of Brainerd, Minnesota, used one- to two-inch soft-plastic baits that are similar to Trigger X's new Curl Tail Minnow and Boot Tail Minnow. Lindner affixed them to a 1/16-ounce Gopher Tackle's Mushroom Head Jig, and he caught smallmouth bass that were unresponsive or tentative when he attempted to beguile them with bigger and conventional baits. Lindner said: "I've weighed some of my biggest tournament smallmouth ever on these tiny jigs" and small soft-plastic baits.
The Trigger X's Curl Tail Minnow is 1 1/2-inches long. It has a flat head, and the back of its torso is adorned with ten ribs. From the tenth rib and the junction of its curled tail, its back is smooth. Its belly is smooth and shad-shaped. Trigger X describes its tail as being long and micro thin, and it is curled downwards and emits what they describe as "a light and subtle vibration" with a "life-like swimming action."
The Boot Tail Minnow is a 1 1/2-inch swimbait. Its head is flat. Its back is embellished with 16 ribs, and its belly is smooth. The entire torso exhibits the profile of a minnow, and some of the folks at Trigger X say it is fry-like. Between the ribbed-section of its torso and its boot tail, the torso and the tapering portions of its tail are smooth. When the boot 0f the tail wiggles and wobbles during the retrieve, alluring vibrations radiate up the tapering tail into the torso.
This is the Boot Tail Minnow's Natural hue.
Both baits are available in 13 colors: Black, Black Chartreuse, Black Pearl, Bloodred, Blue Pearl, Bubble Gum, Chartreuse Glow, Glow, Natural, Orange Chartreuse, Pearl White, Pink Glow, and Red Pearl.
Nine of them are laminated colors, and three of them are fluorescent or Ultra Glow models. When fully charged, the Ultra Glow colors will glow for 15 minutes. They are also augunented with what the folks at Trigger X call a "proprietary blend of scent and taste enhancers to slowly release into the water and cause enhanced bait retention when the fish bites down on the bait."
Dan Quinn of Hudson, Wisconsin, who is the Field Promotions Manager for Rapala, said that the Glow Colors are easy and quick to recharge. Quinn says any light source will recharge them. Rapala also makes an accessory that is called the Charge 'n Glow, which anglers can use to recharge glow lures, and Quinn says it is an extremely efficient way to recharge them. One of the merits of Trigger X's Glow Colors, according to Quinn, is the charge lasts longer than it does on other glow-style baits that are on the market.
A package of 10 sells for $2.99.
Endnotes:
1. On Nov. 24, 2014, we published a gear guide that featured Trigger X's Flap Tail Grub, Nymph, and Wingding. These are also soft-plastic panfish baits. Here is the link to that gear guide: http://www.in-fisherman.com/panfish/triggerxs-flap-tail-grub-nymph-wingding/ .
