Rapala Shad Rap

[fishing 101]

I just purchased 2 jiggin Shad Rap's. Just wondering if anyone has used them and if they like them.

Thanks

[HoleHopper]

I have used them. They look pretty cool darting through the water, dont they?

Though I have never cought anything on them

[Blaine]

I use them all the time here in CT. Perch, bass and lots of crappie

[loebs93]

I just picked up a bunch of them too. I am going to give them a try this winter in search of crappies and walleyes. I'm still a little skeptical of them.

My first run was to Wal-Mart where I picked up three of different sizes and colors but no glow. Then I went to Gander a couple of days ago and picked up some that glow and I also got a couple of the Nils Master jigs too.

My only concern is the jig catching an eye of a pike and bam your out five bucks with out a fight.

[jtroop]

Someone at work mentioned a "Rattling" jigging shad rap but I can't find one at the store and it's not mentioned on the Rapala web site. Does one exist ?

[Catfish John]

May have confused the Rattlin Rap with the Shad Rap.

[deeky]

Out of curiosity, do you think the rattle raps would work? The split ring is towards the middle, so they should hang fairly well, and I would think that an upward pull would drive them forward a little. I have a couple of real small ones. What do you think?

[Deitz Dittrich]

Deeky- Too would think they would work... Gie it a shot and let us all know..

[deeky]

Made it out today looking for some northern to pickle. I have the smallest size rattle rap and put one on. It's not quite as erratic in direction as the normal jigging rap, but I like it. With a quick, stiff tug, they have a good wobble/flash and I could swim one out of sight beyond the hole. Tipping the front treble with a minnow head pretty much killed the action, especially the forward swimming. But a minnow head on the rear treble had little to no effect on the action, and in some respects possibly made it better. The lure would swim/wobble forward and then slowly turn and settle back, never swimming backwards with a head on the rear treble or with no minnow head.

I was using a gold/black rap and, without a minnow head, had a northern rocket past the hole and then come in for a second, closer look. Just couldn't seal the deal.

My opinion is that they definitely have potential under the ice. The flash with the wobble combined with the rattle, from my experience one time, definitely will call the fish in.

Deeky

[Ed Carlson]

Rattle Traps and Rattle Raps do very well in aggressive jigging situations. Pike especially go for ripping rattletraps.

You Rip-Jig them aggressively in a start the chainsaw fashion and fallow them back down on a semi taught line. Tipping the lower hook is often best and will effect the action the least. As you Rip-Jig the Trap Baits you can hear them clattering away even at some substantial depths making them ideal for dirty water. They call in fish at a great distance with sound and vibration.

In less aggressive situations they can be effective with subtle jigging movements or with a pounding motion. In the more aggressive presentation as I mentioned above you Rip Jig them 3-4 times and let them rest 20 to 30 seconds. Since stirring up a pike is likely to draw in a very aggressive strike a steel leader is well advised.

A good 1-2 punch system that works well is what I call "Hog Calling" for pike. Set a deadbait on a tip-up and jig a RattleTrap style bait near the set. When they come into the call they may decide to skip the aggressive bait and go for the easy deadbait set.

Some of the best colors and patterns for me to Hog Call with are Blue/Silver, Gold, and Firetiger patterns. Size wise I go for the 1/2 to 3/4 oz traps and Raps. At times, I have used the Mag Traps for very big toothy critters like Muskie.

Rods need to be longer and more substantial then the average ice rod. A Thorn Bro.’s style Professional in a fiberglass configuration is a very solid bet for this heavy jigging situation. Whacking and icing a fired up sumo pike takes a little fighting power so the longer rod blanks serve you best.

RIP-RIP-RIP......THUD!......Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

[marine_man]

I too picked up two of these last week and used them at LOW... with good results. I picked up the glow orange and a glow perch... the glow orange worked well... it has a similar color scheme to the new luminescent glow chubby darter... but I did have good luck with them.

As someone else already mentioned though... at 5 bucks a piece they're pretty spendy.