Swimbaits have become a bigger part of a lot of anglers fishing lure mix. Hard swimbaits and soft swimbaits both have their place, but soft swimbaits have proven to be very versatile in conjunction with other tackle. So I’m constantly on the lookout for swimbaits that can serve multiple duties in my bass fishing. I found another swimbait that meets those requirements with the Megabass Spark Shad.
The Spark Shad was designed by Megabass using input from Japanese big bass angler Tetsuya Nakamura. They wanted to incorporate a lot of attributes to make a better swimbait. I’ve found several things interesting about this design and many different uses for my own bass fishing with the Spark Shad to include the following:
- Shape and weight offer better balance
- Hook stays upright for good hooksets
- With or without eyes
- Variable sizes work well on other lures
Great shape and design
The Spark Shad comes in 3, 4 and 5-inch varieties. I’ve used all three sizes for a while now and found their scale and design at all three sizes impressive. The bait features a wider body with a flat top, and grooved belly for symmetrical rigging on weighted hooks and jigheads alike.
This design gives the bait a nice shimmy and a great tail kick thanks to its softer plastic material and great boot tail. But the bait swims straight, keeps it’s upright profile as it’s dropped or sped up.
The hook comes up through the back in one of three preset groves in the back. But more importantly as the bait swims, the hook stays up top. The bait does not roll too much side to side where the hook is cocked off to the side too much when a fish strikes. It keeps a level profile which I like. It also makes it nice when you use the swimbaits as trailers on swim jigs, vibrating jigs, spinnerbaits or on multi-bait rigs like castable umbrella rigs.
The eyes have it
I found it interesting that you can put eyes on the swimbaits or leave them off. But it actually makes a lot of sense. When I fish a swimbait on a jighead that already has eyes on it, I don’t want 4 eyes on my natural looking swimbait. So if I put it on a hook or bare jighead I can put the eyes on. Or I can leave them off when I’m putting them on the back of a swim jig with eyes already on it.
A size for everything
I used the big sizes by themselves casting around on ledges, fishing them on flats and on channel swings. I put the 3-inch ones on the back of a spinnerbait for a great added trailer that I think helps draw the fish into hook more. I also fished the 4-inch version on vibrating jighead with and without a skirt. It looked great and swam great with it’s balanced design.
The baits held up pretty well. They are made of some soft plastic material so they will tear up. But I’ve been able to use glue and keep them locked in place and they held up really well that way. I’ve put 5 on an umbrella rig and been able to use them for weeks. So I’m very happy with their performance.
I like the bigger 5-inch swimbaits on a jighead for fishing deep and even on a weighted hook or a threaded treble hook for fishing in shallower water. I feel like I’m getting a higher end individual 5-inch swimbait, but I’m getting it in a 5 pack for much less money. My favorite color is probably silver shad. Gold shad and Ayu look good too.
The baits come in 3 sizes and 6 colors priced between $6.99 to $9.99 a pack. You can find the swimbaits here on tacklewarehouse.com or other retailers that carry Megabass soft baits.
