Z-Man Fishing Products, makers of The Original ChatterBait® brand bladed swim jigs and 10X Tough ElaZtech® soft plastics, revealed the next line of its revolutionary fishing lures last week. In all, Z-Man introduced 18 new products to the fishing industry in conjunction with ICAST 2014. FTR is breaking down those lures two-by-two in a nine piece series throughout the next several weeks.
While some offerings are variations of proven producers, others are completely new and unique, representing a continuation of Z-Man’s mission to provide anglers with the most innovative, effective baits on the market.
“In the past year we’ve seen a tremendous response to our new product releases and an increasing amount of interest in the Z-Man brand,” said Z-Man General Manager and Executive Vice President, Daniel Nussbaum. “As anglers realize the benefits of ElaZtech, we are constantly receiving requests for new baits and body shapes built from our proprietary material. We’re also spreading our wings and broadening the entire product line wherever we see an opportunity for newness or innovation.”
Pop ShadZ
Foremost among the launch is the Pop ShadZ™, a 5-inch soft plastic topwater bait unlike anything else on the market. Both fresh- and saltwater anglers alike recognize the effectiveness of poppers at calling in fish from a distance and eliciting surface strikes. However, anglers have been limited in the past to hard baits armed with multiple treble hooks when situations call for ruckus-raising, floating topwater baits. Thanks to ElaZtech super-plastic technology, Z-Man is able to roll out the very first true soft plastic popper, something that simply cannot be duplicated with traditional soft plastic materials. Not only will the Pop ShadZ cause a commotion on the surface and float a heavy-gauge hook on the pause, but it will also walk through grass, pads and other cover without snagging, all the while offering a natural texture and ultra-soft feel that will have all types of game fish coming back for more.
The Pop ShadZ boasts the profile and body shape of a baitfish, yet thanks to its cupped face, pops, spits, and chugs when twitched along the surface for maximum fish-calling action. Best rigged with a wide gap 4/0, 5/0, or 6/0 hook, its belly slot and shallow dorsal pocket makes weedless rigging and solid hooksets a breeze. This one-of-a-kind soft bait is equally at home for a variety of fresh- and saltwater applications, from skipping under mangroves for laid-up snook and redfish, to working through dense lily pads for largemouths, to drawing vicious topwater explosions from blitzing blues and stripers. And, like all ElaZtech plastics, the Pop ShadZ is extremely durable, capable of withstanding any schooling onslaught with a single bait, enabling anglers to capitalize on small feeding windows without having to break to search for and re-rig a new bait.
Finesse T.R.D.
The innovative Midwest finesse style of fishing, more commonly known as the “Ned Rig,” has been gaining momentum throughout the country as a subtle and easy-to-master, yet amazingly effective, presentation. While anglers have long been crafting their own jigs and carving up ElaZtech baits to create the perfect finesse offerings, Z-Man has worked with some of the nation’s best finesse fishermen to develop a complete, ready-to-use Midwest finesse system that will produce on lakes, rivers, creeks and ponds everywhere.
Inspired by the venerable ZinkerZ™, which anglers have been modifying for years to create perfect finesse baits, the new Finesse T.R.D.™ (The Real Deal) possesses the ideal finesse profile in a ready-to-fish package. Checking in at 2.75 inches in length, the T.R.D. features a familiar stickbait profile, but a unique dimpled tail texture, softer ElaZtech formulation, and custom salt content. These attributes allow the T.R.D. to mimic the sink rate, lifelike action and irresistible feel of a well-worn ZinkerZ that expert finesse anglers have learned result in longer holds and increased hook-up ratios—but right out of the package. While it may look basic on the surface, the unique flutter and near-horizontal posture on the fall created by its ElaZtech construction makes it not only an incredible black bass bait, but also a catch-all bait that has proven effective on numerous species from panfish and trout to white bass and dr! um.
Next Up: Z Man Finesse Shrooms and Project Z Football Jig
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