September Tackle Warehouse Staff Picks

This bait is a standout for targeting herring eaters. It's a lot more subtle than a traditional popper or pencil-popper-style bait and is sometimes the only topwater you need on days with minimal wind. The topwater bite gets insane on our local highland reservoirs going into the fall, and the IMA Skimmer is the perfect bait for finicky clear-water bass.

A simple walk-the-dog retrieve works best with or without occasional pauses. The Skimmer walks effortlessly and has a perfect bob at rest that drives fish crazy.

My favorite color is Chattahoochee Chrome. It is basically the only color I throw, but regular Chrome and Bone are also old mainstays that produced plenty of bites in the past. Chattahoochee Chrome is a very good representation of herring in our local highland reservoirs.

I had a day in late September 2025 where Walker, Matt, and I caught well over 60 fish on Lake Lanier using the IMA Skimmer. Hungry spotted bass were blowing up 360 degrees around the boat, and at one point we tripled up on four pounders.

I like the Daiwa Kage 7'0" medium (KAG701MRB-B) which features a regular (moderate) action. A typical jerkbait rod will also get it done, but I prefer a little more length for my rod than most jerkbait rods provide. I pair the Kage rod with a Curado 150M and 30-lb braid attached to a 15-lb monofilament leader. This setup makes long casts and offers enough cushioning to keep fish hooked while using trebles.

One reason I think underspins are so effective is because they can easily be adapted to fishing different depths and/or closely matching the size of local baitfish. Also, the hint of flash provided by a small underspin blade seems like it often helps get more bites over a standard swimbait without being as intrusive as something like a double-willow spinnerbait.

Focus on finding the bait. If fish are actively feeding on a bait school, let the underspin sink until it’s about even with the bottom of the bait, bring it through at a slow to moderate pace, then kill it for a half second before continuing the retrieve. If bait is hunkered down in a pocket but fish aren’t actively feeding, try working any choke points or ambush points near the bait.

I gravitate to realistic shad colors. The Damiki Rig Underspin Head in Natural Shad paired to a Megabass Spark Shad in Albino or Silver Shad are great combos to start with.

Unfortunately, no real giants or particularly memorable catches really stand out, but I’ve had some solid days on Clear Lake with small underspins during the September/October time frame. It’s a blast on light casting gear!

One of my preferred rods is a 7’2” medium-heavy Fenwick Elite Crankbait casting rod with a moderate-fast action. This rod helps me toss lighter baits a mile but provides a desirable combination of power and cushioning to keep the hook securely pinned during the fight. My favorite reel for this type of fishing is a Daiwa SV105 casting reel (discontinued), but I think the comparable casting reel on the market now is the Tatula 70 SV. A 12-lb line is a good starting point for much of my underspin fishing.

The blades on this bait are big and loud, and I have mine tuned specifically so they contact the head and each other. I often remove the stock skirt and fish the bait rigged with a Keitech Swing Impact FAT 4.8 instead. I think fishing with a swimbait instead of the stock skirt helps make the fish target the bait itself rather than the blades. Other buzzbaits just don't seem to have the lift required to keep a salted (heavy) swimbait out of the water like this one does. Also, I do not run a trailer hook.

I have caught a fair number of fish casting around grass, but I mainly like to throw this buzzbait around bushes. Since the water level at our local lakes is always fluctuating, it seems like we always have bushes to fish, especially during summer/fall. This bait comes through bushes very well, and a lot of my bites happen as the buzzbait contacts a piece of wood.

One color I really like for the buzzbait is Black Widow paired with a Keitech in the Black or Electric Shad color.

Nothing in particular stands out, but I’ve caught a lot of bass in the 5- to 6-lb range on this bait.

My rod of choice is the Dobyns Champion Extreme HP 795. This rod is great because it offers excellent line control and power, but it has some give in the tip for easy casting. I match the rod to a Shimano Metanium MGL 151HG with a 7.1:1 gear ratio and spooled with 65-lb Power Pro Maxcuatro braid. I often fish the buzzbait around heavy cover, so I like the rougher texture of the braid and how it cuts through grass and sticks easier. The 65-lb size also tends to lay better on the spool as opposed to the thinner sizes.