Stan Fagerstrom
06-15-2004, 07:57 AM
The “Limp Stick”
It Ain’t Pretty But It Works!
By Stan Fagerstrom
Part One
It ain’t pretty.
Pick the thing up at the head end and its body droops like a slug that needs back surgery. Check the rear end of this 5-inch hunk of ugly plastic and you’ll see that it’s open. Drop the thing in the water and that hole in its rear end burps out a string of bubbles as it falls.
But like they say, beauty is in the eye of the beholder----and those evil-eyed bigmouth bass must think it’s a plastic version of a bass-style Bourbon Street Blonde.
Odds are you’re not familiar with the plastic bass bait I’m talking about. It’s called the “Limp Stick.” It was introduced just last year by Outlaw Baits, a company based in Florence, Oregon. This bait is new and may not yet be in your favorite sporting goods store. My guess is that’s fixin’ to change as word of its effectiveness gets around the country.
http://www.ifish.net/sfweboutlaw.jpg
I've caught bass on the new Outlaw Baits Limp Stick wherever I've given them a look at it. The one I'm holding here came out of a lake in Central Oregon.
The Limp Stick, and that’s an appropriate name for it, is sort of a cross between a Senko style lure and a tube bait. Its head end is similar in shape and design to what you’ll find on most tube lures. As I’ve mentioned the rear end is open, but there are no trailing strands of plastic that you’ll find on a typical tube.
I’m not engaging in wishful thinking when I say bass whack the bejabbers out of these things. A couple of the best days I had last year came while I was throwing it. I’ve done a little poking around and I find I’m not the only one who has had the same experience.
One such angler is a knowledgeable pro named Jim Pearson. Jim lives in Florence and for years he’s been one of the top contenders in competitive bass fishing contests in that part of the world. Few plug pitchers have more hardware on their trophy shelves than he does. I was curious how Pearson’s experience with this new bait compared to my own. I knew he had been fishing it since it first came out.
http://www.ifish.net/sfwebcloseup.jpg
Learn to be a line watcher when you fish a Limp Stick. Bass often pick it up as it falls.
That's what this one did.
“I’ve done really well with this lure ever since I started using it,” Pearson says. “I just let it sink and I watch my line very carefully as it does. Lots of times fish pick it up on the drop and you want to be ready when they do.”
Pearson’s right. This new Outlaw Baits Limp Stick is loaded with salt. It may be tubular plastic, but the amount of salt it contains really adds to its weight. Place one on a scale and you’ll find it’s just a hair under a ½-ounce. “The weight of this bait makes it really easy to cast,” Pearson says. “It’s a dandy bait for skipping in under overhanging trees and brush.”
Pearson shared one little trick that he uses for fishing the Limp Stick in water more than 10-feet deep. “I smear Smelly Jelly fish attractant on a split shot and insert the shot in the opening at the rear end of the bait,” Jim says. “Then I push the shot up to the head end. When I fish it this way in deeper water I give it a bit more action once it gets down than I do in when I’m fishing the shallows.”
Bass don’t only grab the Limp Stick, they flat out grab and hang on. The bait’s salt content undoubtedly is one of the main reasons. You won’t find it necessary to let a bass run with this bait before setting the hook.
Even thought it’s relatively new to the market, it’s catching bass in other parts of the country besides the Pacific Northwest. I’ve learned it has also done very well in parts of both Idaho and California.
That doesn’t surprise me because I’ve caught fish on the darn thing from Oregon to Mexico. In my next column we’ll take a look at some of the other reasons the Limp Stick has captured the attention of building number of bass anglers who’ve thrown it.
It Ain’t Pretty But It Works!
By Stan Fagerstrom
Part One
It ain’t pretty.
Pick the thing up at the head end and its body droops like a slug that needs back surgery. Check the rear end of this 5-inch hunk of ugly plastic and you’ll see that it’s open. Drop the thing in the water and that hole in its rear end burps out a string of bubbles as it falls.
But like they say, beauty is in the eye of the beholder----and those evil-eyed bigmouth bass must think it’s a plastic version of a bass-style Bourbon Street Blonde.
Odds are you’re not familiar with the plastic bass bait I’m talking about. It’s called the “Limp Stick.” It was introduced just last year by Outlaw Baits, a company based in Florence, Oregon. This bait is new and may not yet be in your favorite sporting goods store. My guess is that’s fixin’ to change as word of its effectiveness gets around the country.
http://www.ifish.net/sfweboutlaw.jpg
I've caught bass on the new Outlaw Baits Limp Stick wherever I've given them a look at it. The one I'm holding here came out of a lake in Central Oregon.
The Limp Stick, and that’s an appropriate name for it, is sort of a cross between a Senko style lure and a tube bait. Its head end is similar in shape and design to what you’ll find on most tube lures. As I’ve mentioned the rear end is open, but there are no trailing strands of plastic that you’ll find on a typical tube.
I’m not engaging in wishful thinking when I say bass whack the bejabbers out of these things. A couple of the best days I had last year came while I was throwing it. I’ve done a little poking around and I find I’m not the only one who has had the same experience.
One such angler is a knowledgeable pro named Jim Pearson. Jim lives in Florence and for years he’s been one of the top contenders in competitive bass fishing contests in that part of the world. Few plug pitchers have more hardware on their trophy shelves than he does. I was curious how Pearson’s experience with this new bait compared to my own. I knew he had been fishing it since it first came out.
http://www.ifish.net/sfwebcloseup.jpg
Learn to be a line watcher when you fish a Limp Stick. Bass often pick it up as it falls.
That's what this one did.
“I’ve done really well with this lure ever since I started using it,” Pearson says. “I just let it sink and I watch my line very carefully as it does. Lots of times fish pick it up on the drop and you want to be ready when they do.”
Pearson’s right. This new Outlaw Baits Limp Stick is loaded with salt. It may be tubular plastic, but the amount of salt it contains really adds to its weight. Place one on a scale and you’ll find it’s just a hair under a ½-ounce. “The weight of this bait makes it really easy to cast,” Pearson says. “It’s a dandy bait for skipping in under overhanging trees and brush.”
Pearson shared one little trick that he uses for fishing the Limp Stick in water more than 10-feet deep. “I smear Smelly Jelly fish attractant on a split shot and insert the shot in the opening at the rear end of the bait,” Jim says. “Then I push the shot up to the head end. When I fish it this way in deeper water I give it a bit more action once it gets down than I do in when I’m fishing the shallows.”
Bass don’t only grab the Limp Stick, they flat out grab and hang on. The bait’s salt content undoubtedly is one of the main reasons. You won’t find it necessary to let a bass run with this bait before setting the hook.
Even thought it’s relatively new to the market, it’s catching bass in other parts of the country besides the Pacific Northwest. I’ve learned it has also done very well in parts of both Idaho and California.
That doesn’t surprise me because I’ve caught fish on the darn thing from Oregon to Mexico. In my next column we’ll take a look at some of the other reasons the Limp Stick has captured the attention of building number of bass anglers who’ve thrown it.