Tube Baits - New Bass Fishing Tubes

These new St. Clair Goby Tube Baits were a near sellout at the Detroit Showspan Show and a real hit with the bass anglers.

This 5", laminated tube is my latest design for teasing smallmouth bass into striking. Smallies are extremely color sensitive in their plastic bait selection and St. Clair Goby combines at least three proven, bass catching elements into one bait. It was first introduced at the Ford Field show in Detroit on January 29, 2003 and was a near sellout. I have a few in stock and more are on the way.

Smallmouth bass tend to favor baits that resemble their prey as opposed to realistic baits made to look like the real thing. Just like we drive down the road looking for place to eat these eating machines cruise their territory with a selective appetite. One big consideration is to avoid what turns them off then on the other hand, find out what they crave.

BASS FISHING RESEARCH
Through my years of research with the Combat Bass Fishing newsletter I've discovered several key elements in tube baits that increase our catch percentage.

* For smallmouth, 5" tubes have proven to be dominant over smaller baits.
* The top tube color on Lake St. Clair for the last 3 years has been a smoke tube with small gold and purple flake.
* Smallies have responded better to laminated tubes in deeper water situations in the lake and most definitely in the river system. St. Clair Goby has all three, top-producing elements.

TUBE BAIT DESIGN
I studied gobies in Lake St. Clair through the 2002 season and found that for the most part, they resemble a plastic color we know as smoke pepper. Any visible color comes in the form of highlights. As you hold the goby in your hand and rotate it in the sunlight, color highlights jump out of the otherwise bland shading. Here is where my design work began in earnest.

Until now, the 5" laminated tube was thought to be a technical impossibility. By working with our friends in manufacturing, we were able to overcome the obstacles and make the impossible a reality. This was the first, and possibly the most important element. We know that gobies in the 5" class are found regularly at the bottom of tournament weigh-in tubs.

Another question was: "Could we lay color flake into the laminate to animate the bait through a carefully measured pattern of purple highlights?" Again, our friends in industry made this happen. This laminate not only has intermittent purple flake, but small silver hologram flake as well.

OK, the technical talk is cool but I can personally tell you that this bait looks right, feels right and is a bait that I choose to enter battle with. Already one customer has said, "You know, this would be a good bait to swim back to the boat." I hadn't considered that in the design phase. I know we will discover more about this new tool when the bass tell us when, where and how they like it.

Wayne Carpenter - Editor: Combat Bass Fishing Newsletter

To order:
Email wayne@combat-bassfishing.com to reserve a quantity on the next shipment. Leave your name, address and phone # so I can contact you when they come in. Allow up to 10 weeks for delivery so order soon to have them ready when the season opens.

10 pack - $5.98
25 pack - $14.25
50 pack - $26.98
100 pack - $49.98
(plus shipping and any applicable sales tax)

OR

Catch me at the next ShowSpan show:

Lansing, Michigan on March 13 - 16
Grand Rapids, Michigan on March 20 - 23

See my Show Schedule Here