Paddle-tail lures, also known as shads are soft plastic lures designed to mimic baitfish. The name paddle-tail refers to the style of tail. The ‘paddle’ catches water as the lure moves forward, causing the tail to wag from side to side. Depending on the lure design this can also cause the lure body to roll back and forth, creating flash. Check out the following catches made on paddle tails and shads.
Some of you might already know that I sell AquaWave lures and jig heads on eBay. AquaWave products have been some of my most successful over the past few years. I’ve used everything in the range and I’m more than happy to recommend these premium Japanese products for use in the UK and Europe. In fact I’m so confident in their fish-catching ability that I bought up all the remaining UK stock.
The Reins Rockvibe Shad 1.2″ has been a staple in UL perch fishing for a long time now, but shouldn’t be ignored for saltwater duties.
The HTO French Fry has landed.
Here’s a pictorial example of how to rig a tiny 1-inch soft plastic shad (paddletail) on an equally tiny size 10, 1 gram jig head. The lure seen here is a HTO Stink Pots Paddle Tail and the jig head is a HTO Maikuro Head.
The Aquawave Shad 1.3 is probably my most successful lure for catching Ruffe. Apart from just being small, the 1.3″ Shad is extremely supple and buoyant, so I think it helps the Ruffe engulf the lure more easily.
With the first proper frost the water clarity is already much better on the canal, mainly down to less boat traffic. The last couple of trips to the K&A have seen good numbers of fish, big and small.
Nice little Ruffe from the K&A, caught on the tiny Aquawave Shad 1.3 mounted on a size 10 Maikuro jighead.