August 16, 2018
By Ned Kehde
V & M Baits' Drop Shad has caught the eyes of several anglers on the Finesse News Network, and they are eager to know more about it.
It was designed by Cliff Pace of Petal, Mississippi, and Jacob Powroznik of Port Haywood, Virginia. They are talented black bass anglers and successful professional tournament anglers.
Pace is 38 years old. He has been competing in Bassmaster events since 2002 and won the Bassmaster Classic in 2013.
Powroznik is 39 years old. He began competing at various FLW events when he was 19 years old, and he began competing on the Bassmaster Elite Series in 2014. Across those years, he has developed a fondness for catching smallmouth bass on drop-shot rigs.
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The staff of V & M Baits introduced the Drop Shad to the angling world at the 2018 International Convention of Allied Sportfishing Trades show. In fact, Tackle Warehouse featured it and Pace in a video.
It is their version of a shad-shaped worm, which has played a significant role in the repertoire of Midwest finesse anglers since April 1, 2006.
At the top is a profile of a Green Pumpkin Watermelon Drop Shot affixed to a red 1/32-ounce mushroom-style jig. The bottom photograph features its dorsal area.
The Drop Shad is four inches long, but some anglers say it is 3 1/2 inches long.
Its belly or ventral area, which encompasses its breast, pectoral, pelvic, and anus sections, exhibits the profile of a small gizzard shad. It is endowed with a hook slot that is 1 1/2-inches long and one-sixteenths of an inch deep. This slot begins about five-eighths of an inch from the tip of its head.
Its dorsal area or back is relatively flat. It possesses a hook slot that is 1 5/16 inches long and slightly less than one-sixteenth of an inch deep. It begins about nine-sixteenth of an inch from the tip of its head. The widest spot along its dorsal area is a quarter of an inch.
The side or profile of its body is seven-eighths of an inch wide at its widest spot with a circumference of 1 15/16 inches. At the widest spot, its body has somewhat of a rectangular shape.
The tip of its head is relatively flat and three-sixteenths of an inch wide with a circumference of about seven-eighths of an inch.
From its head to its anus area, there is a 2 1/4-inch stretch that is encircled with 62 small ribs.
Once the ribs end, its body becomes smooth skinned, skinny, and virtually round. This section is thirteen-sixteenths of an inch long, and it junctions with its tail.
The tail is seven-eighths of an inch long and a quarter of an inch wide at its widest spot with a circumference of about nine-sixteenths of an inch. Pace describes it as being a diamond-shaped tail. Some call it a spear-shaped tail. Others call it a paddle tail. A few say it replicates an elliptical-shaped leaf. And according to Pace, it quivers incessantly – even when an angler is employing a deadstick presentation.
Before it was introduced to the angling world in July, Pace and Powroznik thoroughly field tested it. Although it was designed to be affixed primarily to a drop-shot rig, Pace found that it was effective when he employed it on a Carolina rig. In fact, Cliff caught a 10-pound-five-ounce largemouth bass on it with a Carolina rig at Lake Travis, Texas, on May 26 during the Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest tournament. Other field testers concluded that it worked well on split-shot rig, too. Of course, Midwest finesse anglers will rig it on a mushroom-style jig with an exposed hook and present it to their black bass quarries with all six of the standard Midwest finesse retrieves or variations of those retrieves.
It is available in the following colors: Green Pumpkin Purple Copper, Green Pumpkin Watermelon, Watermelon Bluegill, Watermelon Magic, Watermelon Purple, Watermelon Shad, and White Ice.
It is impregnated with salt and an anise scent.
Anglers can purchase a package of eight for $4.49.
Endnotes
(1) Here is the link to V&M Baits' website: http://vmbaits.com/index.htm .
(2) Here is a link to a story about how and when Midwest finesse anglers were introduced to the shad-shaped worm in 2006: http://www.in-fisherman.com/bass/a-midwest-finesse-tribute-to-shin-fukae/#ixzz5K1cApHka .
(3) Here is a link to a Midwest Finesse column that describes how Midwest finesse anglers will rig and retrieve V & M Baits' Drop Shad: http://www.in-fisherman.com/midwest-finesse/six-midwest-finesse-retrieves/ .
