Kevin VanDam Wild Shiner

Over three years in the making, these are the best performing "jerk baits" on the market! Countless hours spent by Strike King's lure design team and Kevin VanDam have produced a jerkbait:

• Designed with the perfect combination of flash, wiggle, and erratic side to side movement
• Designed for increased casting distance
• Designed for reaching greater depths
• Available in floater/diver and suspending models

"I spent countless hours working with the lure designers to get this new Wild Shiner just right. It truly is awesome and is my favorite jerk bait on the market. The rest of the Strike King pro staff and many other touring pros are becoming infatuated with this lure. We are continually receiving stories of great catches on them." Kevin VanDam

In Strike King Journal entry #15, Shaw Grigsby talked about using the Kevin VanDam Wild Shiner...

Question: What is another lure that you like and that you use a lot?

Grigsby: I use all the Strike King lures. I really like the Wild Shiner jerkbait. It only comes in one size of floating and sinking models. If I had to chose one, I'd choose the suspending model. I like the one with the gold and black back and orange belly. The orange belly is just one of the key ingredients to catching bass which seem to like an orange belly.

I also like the new color that's kind of clear with a greenish back to it. It is a killer bait. I usually throw that bait on 12-pound-test line, and I'll cast next to grass beds, grass points and/or weed edges. I'll twitch it down one time while it is on the surface, and then bring it on down maybe three, four or five consecutive twitches. I'll stop once I get it down close to its maximum depth. I'll twitch it once or twice, and I'll stop it. Then I'll twitch it once or twice and stop it again. That helps it to keep from coming back to the surface.

This technique tends to keep it down there in the bass strike zone. The bait will dive down to 7 or 8 feet on 12-pound-test line. So I make sure to not throw this bait in super-shallow water. If you plan to fish shallow, go back to the floating model.

I usually use it on a about a medium-action rod as opposed to a medium-heavy rod. The medium-action rod has a lot of flex that gives plenty of action to the bait. And, I'll twitch it fairly hard. You'll hear that line snap when you pop the rod. That makes the bait dart side-to-side. Then you stop it, twitch it again, dart it side-to-side and stop it again. This bait works tremendously all through the summertime and especially in the fall when the bass are after shad.

Find Tips & Tactics for other Strike King Lures here!