For most of my youth, a jig and spinnerbait was all I cared about. If they wanted it moving, they got the spinnerbait. If they wanted it slow, they got the jig. That hasn’t changed a lot for me over the decades, but I’m always on the hunt for a good jig trailer or universal soft plastic bait that will do a lot of things. For that reason, I’m really liking the new Missile Baits Chunky D. It can be used in a lot of ways, has great action and colors and it gets bit.
I have fished the Chunky D a handful of different ways and caught bass on it rigged a couple different ways. Here’s my thoughts on why this plastic is a good choice for bass anglers.
Find the Chunky D at these retailers:
Great Tail Action
I like the tail design on this craw. I’m not a huge fan of craws with flappers out wide. I like them to be a little more streamlined and a better profile for skipping jigs and Chatterbaits around. Or slipping in and out of bushes and branches easily. So the fact that this trailer has a craw profile but is streamlined with a great tail kick makes it the pefect package for a lot of techniques.
The tails kick well and the bait looks very natural in the water lifted and dropped and swam through cover.
Top Shelf Unique Design
I also like the ribbed design that gives the Chunky D some bulk without being bulky. It also gives the bait a chance to trap air bubbles and displace more water as you fish it around. And the two tone laminate coloring on several of the craws is really great. Looks more lifelike when the craw has a dark back and brighter under belly. That’s how most bass encounter crawfish in and other forage in the wild. A dark back and light belly.
The formulation of Missile Baits plastic is top notch. There is a fine line between being too soft and too rigid. You need some rigidity to hold the bait on your hook, but too much and it will tear. And you want the bait to be soft enough to move freely in the water but not too soft that it tears up on every bite.
The Chunky D held up well to several fish and stayed rigged correctly without tearing after a couple of fish.
Lots of Applications
I have fished the Chunky D on a jig, on a vibrating jig like the Thunder Cricket and on its own on a Texas rig. I really liked it for a swim jig and finesse jig trailer and also for a vibrating jig trailer. I can see this being a staple now for my jigs. That Bammer Craw color was fire on my finesse jigs in stained muddy water and Super Bug has always been one of my favorite colors for soft plastics.
Specifications on the Chunky D
The clam shell packaging on the Chunky D keeps the tails kicking perfectly right out of the pack.
The Chunky D comes 6 to a pack, measures 3 1/2 inches long and comes in 8 colors for $5.69.
Perfect Jig Trailer
I fish a light finesse jig a lot this time of year. I put Chunky D on a 5/16 ounce Jewel Tactical Finesse HD Jig and it was a fire combination. The size of the Chunky D gave this jig an ultra slow fall, and a super slow swimming action that was perfect for cold winter bass on cover and drops. I caught fish slow swimming, popping the jig and just crawling it on the bottom.
Even Compact
A compact profile is nice in the winter, but this jig had some bulk to it as well with the Chunky D added that slowed it down and made it look very slow and natural in cold water.
The fish really responded to how it moved in the water.
Gets Bit
I’ve caught enough bass on it to know it holds up well to fishing, will catch several fish on one bait and gets bit often. The plastic is perfectly formulated to move well in cold and warm water alike. It looks great on a small jig and a bulkier vibrating jig or swim jig if you want.
I have no doubt it’s going to be a dynamite flipping bait. I love a D-Bomb for flipping bushes, but this will probably give the D-Bomb a run for its money because I catch a lot of fish lifting a dropping my baits in brush multiple times. Sometimes it takes 5 yo-yo’s to get a bass to hone in on the bait and bite it in a big bush. So having that subtle added tail kick is going to be fire I think come this spring.
Do More with your Jigs
I have helped design skirt colors for a lot of companies. I am a big proponent to mis matching colors and sizes when I put a jig together. A big trailer on a small jig works wonders at times. A flash of bright color in an otherwise plain jig can be very enticing to bass.
I have often caught bass on black and blue jigs with blue trailers or chartreuse trailers on a brown jig. I often will put a subtle color like green pumpkin or black with a bright color like orange or chartreuse. So you can do a lot more with your jigs by adding a trailer like a Chunky D that has contrasting colors to it.
Find the Chunky D at these retailers:
