Real World Tests: As I worked my way through the baits I needed to test this season, I took the Rock Claw out on a couple of different trips. However, it wasn't until I was more intentional about fishing it that I was able to uncover it secrets.

I was thankful to have my BKK OCD Tackle Box to help me quickly figure out the right sized hook for this bait!

Ease of Rigging : The biggest challenge with the Rock Claw? Finding a properly sized hook to fish it TX-style. Fortunate for me, I had my BKK OCD Tackle System on hand to help me work through this exact task. In fact, my first trip out with the Rock Claw, I tried to rig it on a 3/0 wide gap hook I had set up on one of my soft plastics rods only to discover that 3/0 hook was way too long I rigged the Rock Claw anyway because I wanted to check it out in the water, but with the bait's tail, halfway down the hook's shank, it looked more like a trailer than the main attraction.

Lining up BKK's Offset Worm WG in size 1 with the Rock Claw

Failing that, I slid the Rock Claw onto the back of a Keitech Model II finesse jig and while it suited that purpose fine, I really wanted to test how the bait fished on its own. Enter the OCD Tackle System and my search for the right hook. At first, I was worried I might not have a suitable hook shape in the collection, but then I saw the row of Offset Worm WG hooks with sizes from 2 through 6/0. I knew I needed something smaller than a 3/0 and progressively compared sizes from 2/0 down against the Rock Claw. I was getting worried when even the 1/0 was a tad long, but that worry soon turned to relief when I lined up the Rock Claw with a size #1 Offset Worm WG - perfect.

Tiny baits means more tiny fish, but it's still fun

From there, I slid a half ounce tungsten bullet weight onto my 65lb Seaguar Smackdown, snelled the BKK #1 Offset Worm WG to the end of the line and TX rigged the Rock Claw onto the hook. All this on board my ARK Rods Cobb 2.0 Flippy Floppy casting rod paired with my ARK Gravity 1 casting reel. So while the bait and weight were on the smaller, finesse sized scale for flipping and pitching, my intent was to fish the bait in the weeds and through open pockets of overgrowth. The combo still had to be stout enough to work a fish out of that cover.

The flip side

Ease of Actuation : In the water, as one might expect, the Rock Claw's appendages flap as you hop the bait along the bottom. On a pause, the claws will float for a second or two, responding to currents in the water, but they eventually sink down to the bottom.

The body

Position at Rest : This means, if you pause the Rock Claw for very long, it just kind of lays there, flat, hugging the substrate and is not very enticing. The good news is, any bit of action you impart to the line and the Rock Claw responds instantly.

Poison Craw (Green Pumpkin and Purple)

Cover Dawn (red and black)

Quality of Movement : Water clarity during fishing this bait was not enough for me to see whether or not its claws were actually able to trap air in its ridges, so I continued these tests in my pool where I'm sad to say I didn't see evidence of this occurrence. Perhaps the ridges are too shallow, but they're certainly deep enough to give a different feel texturally, assuming that matters to the fish.

Black Blue Reflection

Spector Craw (PBJ)

One benefit of playing with this bait in the barren waters of my pool was the ability to watch the action of its claws waving up and down while hopped along the bottom. I have to get out more because I found this was quite mesmerizing. The Rock Claws's large appendages really stand out in the water which must make it easy to see and feel by any bass in the area. I'd liken this bait's movement to a person wearing beach balls over each hand attempting to start the wave in a sports stadium.

Design & Ergonomics: Nories checks all the boxes with the Rock Claw for packaging the bait in a resealable bag and infusing it with fish attractant. If there's a downside to this little craw bait, it's that Nories only offers it in six colors. The colors that are offered are done well, so maybe if popularity picks up, so will the selection.

The realistic profile of the middle set of legs

The back end and legs (which are attached and can be unattached for more action).

Price & Applications: Retail on Nories's Rock Claw is $8.99 which comes out to just under $1.50 per bait. That's definitely on the premium side for a soft plastic and especially one that is as small in profile as the Rock Claw. Otherwise, typical of most soft plastic baits, how you use it is up to your own imagination. You can rig it straight up on a TX rig like I preferred, use it as a trailer on the back of a finesse jig, put it on a free-rig, probably even fish it on a drop shot.