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Good things come in small packages : Specialty Tackle USA's Flagship Bait, the Junior-D
(continued)
 Applications: Our success with the Junior-D came when retrieved along breaks, weed lines, and isolated structure. We had little success pulling the lure through weedbeds as we spent more time trying to free it than fish it. Then again, it's rounded bill is not really built for such an application. We found the Junior-D effective in both stained and clear water situations and it excelled as a search bait when moving fast and pounding the shore.
Quality hooks come standard with this lure
Durability: While we did not subject our Junior-D's to the usual toss up against rocky shores we did retrieve the lure over rocks and other underwater obstructions. The bills showed their normal signs of wear but we're quite impressed that even after several months of normal use, the finishes on our lures have held up amazingly well. We also like the construction of the diving bill that sports an extra beam-like projection at the bottom of the bill, cantilevering out from the bait to guard against fractures.
This hungry bass hit our Junior-D like a freight train
Effectiveness: We found the Junior-D to be effective during pressure bite situations where there were a lot of boats on the water and you needed to get something down just a little deeper to coax the bass into biting. The more pronounced thumping action of the lure together with its smaller size seemed to be an added element of surprise that worked when other, more traditional cranks weren't getting fish.
To our surprise the
lure even managed to coax a five pound channel cat into biting!
Ratings:
|
Junior-D Ratings (?/10)
|
| Construction/Quality |
Very well built lure |
9 |
| Performance |
A pint sized crank with muscle |
9 |
| Price |
In the arena of import crankbaits, the Junior-D is priced competitively |
8 |
| Features |
Reinforced diving bill, available with stock luresaver split rings, big bait sound |
9 |
| Design |
A little more subtle in design even when compared to its big brother, but a very nice composition nonetheless |
8.5 |
| Application |
A very effective
crankbait
in a
wide
range of
conditions |
9 |
|
Total Score
|
8.75 |
Pluses and Minuses:
|
Plus
Minus
|
| J Nice, compact size |
L
Difficult to find in some regions |
| J
Available stocked with luresaver split rings |
|
| J
Unique, large bait sound |
|
| J
Sharp stock hooks |
|
Conclusion: Ed Jerbic,
proprietor of
Specialty Tackle
USA, relayed to us
stories of top Bass
Pro's hovering
around his booth in
hushed tones during
trade shows
inquiring about
these little
wonders. Many of the
pro's with full
sponsorships from
other lure
manufacturing
companies were
interested in
purchasing, out of
pocket, some of
these little cranks.
Is it any wonder why
these baits have
been difficult to
keep in the store
shelves? These baits
have made their way
from our test bin,
into our tried,
true, and relied
upon collection.
Testament enough to
how much we
appreciate the
effectiveness of
this lure.
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