In today's video, @Alex Rudd Fishing is here to give you some bladed jig tips you can use RIGHT NOW to catch some Monster Bass! Bladed Jigs, like the Strike King Thunder Cricket, come in many different shapes and sizes. The Thunder Cricket is a Chatterbait, and has previously been featured in the MONSTERBASS box!

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Video Transcript:

Alex Rudd:
What's up, guys? So before we get into today's video, I just want to let you know and give you guys an announcement that all my merchandise went live today on the MONSTERBASS website. So you guys actually got an Alex Rudd fishing sticker in your MONSTERBASS box for this month. So we gave you guys the sticker for free, but we also dropped some awesome T-shirts. So if you guys are an Alex Rudd fishing fan and you guys are wanting an Alex Rudd fishing T-shirt, we have got several different colors, all kinds of different sizes that just went live on the MONSTERBASS website with the release of this video. So go down below, hit the link, go check out all my new merchandise, pick yourself up a shirt, and become part of the Alex Rudd fishing committee.

Alex Rudd:
What's up MONSTERBASS family? Welcome back to another episode. Today, we're going to be talking about one of my favorite bass to throw this time of year, and that is the bladed jig. But more specifically, the Strike King Thunder Cricket, which you guys are going to be receiving in this month's MONSTERBASS box. Now, if you guys do not know me, my name is Alex Rudd. I have a YouTube channel called Alex Rudd Fishing. I make instructional videos. I make fun fishing videos. I just go out and enjoy the lake, enjoy fish. And if you enjoy that kind of stuff, go down below. There'll be a link to my channel. You guys can check it out. Go down there, hit the subscribe button and join my community.

Alex Rudd:
Now, if you're new to the MONSTERBASS community, we want to thank you for taking time out of your busy day, your busy week to come hang out with us and to watch this video. If you are new, please hit that subscribe button, that lock button, and go down below in the comment section and leave me a comment. Let me know that you're new to the MONSTERBASS channel. We love to get to know all our new subscribers. And if you've not checked out the MONSTERBASS box yet, and you just happen to be watching this video, we'll also have a link down below, so you guys can check out all of our products.

Alex Rudd:
But let's get into today's video, and let's talk about the Thunder Cricket. So the Thunder Cricket is in a category of bass that we call bladed jigs. Now, they're really known as chatterbaits, and that's probably what most of you guys know them by as their name is the chatter bate. And it's kind of like an interchangeable name, like a lipless crankbait, most people know it as a rattle trap. So the original bladed jig was known as the chatterbait, and that's where the design came from. But over the years, a lot of different companies have come out with their style of chatterbait.

Alex Rudd:
Well, Strike King did the same thing a couple years back with the Thunder Cricket. And what's awesome about the Thunder Cricket is it is a very unique take on the bladed jig. And a lot of it has to do with the shape of that blade, the way that the blade's connected to the head, and the thickness of that blade. And it gives it a very unique vibration. Something different that you won't find in most bladed jigs. And that's one reason that I really, really like it is because it is one of those baits that I can get a ton of bites on. Especially this time of year. Now, this little bladed jig is going to do a really good job of mimicking bluegills bait fish or any other kind of small prey item that may be in your lake.

Alex Rudd:
The fish in your lake, your pond, your creek, wherever you happen to be fishing, as those water temperatures start to drop, are going to start feeding up and getting ready for winter. As well as the bait fish that live in that lake are going to start moving up shallow and feeding on all the little microplankton and things like that, that they feed on. Another great application for this bait is around sparse grass. Now, you don't want to throw this thing into the mat. It's not like a frog. You're not going to be able to get it out. But if you've got sparse vegetation, like what's all around me right now, just that submerged vegetation that's broken up, those fish will use that vegetation, because that's where the bait fish, the crawdads and the bluegills go as well. And this is one of the best baits for fishing around that kind of vegetation.

Alex Rudd:
Now, I want to talk to you about what I actually throw my bladed jig on and the setup that I have found works best for me, because I think that is very, very important. Now, for me, I'm throwing my bladed jig on a seven and a half foot Lew's Custom Speed Stick. This is a seven and a half foot medium heavy moderate action rod. Now, it's a moderate action rod. You would associate with crankbait fishing. They have a really good parabolic bend. They load really far down into the blind. And most people use those kinds of rods for treble hook baits, which I do myself.

Alex Rudd:
Well, what I have found is with the bladed jig, it is the best rod, in my opinion, to get a good hook into those fish. And there's a couple reasons for that. Number one, there is a big piece of metal on the front end of that jig. That blade creates a very big hunk of something that can knock that fish's mouth open. And so what I've found is when I use a faster action rod, when I actually hit those fish, I can blow their mouth open, and I don't get a good hook in those fish, or I don't get a hook in them at all.

Alex Rudd:
So with the moderate action rod allows that to do is, it allows that rod to load up a little bit slower, and it really allows the rod to set the hook for you. So what that does is, it helps to drive that hook in. And then once it's in that fish's mouth, that more moderate action can really absorb the shock of that fish fighting. And oftentimes, you're going to be able to get and have a better chance of getting those fish in the boat, the bank, or the kayak, wherever you guys happen to be fishing.

Alex Rudd:
And then I've got that paired up with a 6:8 gear ratio reel, little bit slower reel, just because I'm a faster fisherman. Some guys will fish them on a 7:1, but for me, I like a little bit slower reel, and then some 15 or 17 pound fluorocarbon.

Alex Rudd:
Now, on the bladed jig itself, on this little Thunder Cricket, I actually pair it up with some kind of trailer, always. And that's super, super important when you're fishing any kind of jig. But with the bladed jig, it's super important, because that trailer can really dictate how that bladed jig is going to act in the water. More of your straight-tail trailers, like Flukes, and your Yamamoto Zakos, and other trailers like that, are going to give that bait a more erratic darting action or hunting action while it's in the water. Whereas trailers like this, which is your Strike King Rage Menace is going to make it track a little bit straighter in the water, but you'll get the secondary action of those tails actually flapping in behind that bladed jig.

Alex Rudd:
Now for me, I have found the Menace to be a really good trailer, rigged a certain way. And what you'll notice is I've got that trailer rigged vertically instead of horizontally. So what that means is I've actually got the tails of that Rage Menace in line with the hook point on the bladed jig. Now what that does is the bottom tail works perfectly fine, but the top tail has just a little bit of a slow limp to it. And a lot of that has to do with the blade actually pushing water over that tail, and it keeps it from working very well.

Alex Rudd:
Now I know what you're thinking, "Alex, why would you not want the tail to work very well on your bladed jig?" Well, the biggest reason is, is you've got to think a bass is like any other predatory animal in the animal kingdom. You think of a lion or a tiger or a cheetah, when they're tracking prey, they don't want to try to take down the biggest, baddest buffalo in the herd. They go for the slower, injured one or the smaller one.

Alex Rudd:
Trailer kicking with that slower, almost limping action is going to do is number one, it gets those fish's attention. If this bladed jig starts coming through the water column, a lot of times they'll just react to it. But sometimes they'll actually track in behind it, and they'll start to really examine it before they decide to eat it. And that little bit of a limp, that little something different that just sits that bait apart can get those fish to actually react to it and eat it.

Alex Rudd:
And then number two, it gives off that unique vibration, or that vibration into the water, that there is actually something wrong with this bladed jig. And you can get a lot of bites that way, because that trailer really works in tandem with the bladed jig. So when you are getting your bladed jigs out, and you're starting to use them, especially a Thunder Cricket, your JackHammers, your ChatterBaits, whatever you happen to be fishing with, you really need to take into consideration the trailer that you're using on the back of that bladed jig. Now let's jump up on the front of the boat, and I'll show you guys how I actually like to retrieve this bait and the kind of stuff that I like to fish it around.

Alex Rudd:
We'll start talking about how I actually like to retrieve the Thunder Cricket and really any bladed jig out there. Now what's cool about the Thunder Cricket and about all the other bladed jigs on the market is you can hop them. You can drag them, you can burn them, you can slow roll them. You can do all kinds of different, awesome things with them. You can fish them around laydowns, around grass, around boat docks, around man-made cover, man-made rock, natural rock. It doesn't matter what it is, this bladed jig can pretty much get in it and get out of it. The only thing you really got to worry about is laydowns. The bladed jig is notorious for wanting to get hung up on wood. But for the most part, if you're careful, you can get this thing in and out of about anywhere, and it can get bit about anywhere.

Alex Rudd:
So for me, 90% of the time, I'm just doing a straight, steady retrieve on my bladed jig. Like I said, I'm fishing a 6:8 gear ratio reel. So if you're fishing just a little bit faster reel than I am, I would slow down fishing it. In this video, obviously, I'm fishing it pretty quickly, but a lot of that has to do with my reel speed. So if you're fishing a little bit faster reel, you may want to slow down. But like I said, just throw it out there, and just a steady retrieve back can get a ton of bites.

Alex Rudd:
Now you'll see, I am jerking and popping that rod tip every now and again. And what's going on is, I don't know if you can actually see it, but there's a lot of emergent grass. What this is, is just a pocket full of grass. There's a little bit matted in the back. But for the most part, I mean, anywhere from three and a half to five and a half foot of water, and there's a ton of grass. And so what I'm doing is I'm actually filling that bladed jig pool into that grass, and I'm popping that rod tip to get it to pop out of that grass.

Alex Rudd:
Now, if you're fishing a grass field like I am right now and you're fishing around a lot of grass, those bass are going to use that grass this time of year. And what happens is when that bladed jig starts to mar up in that grass, what you can do is pop it. And what it'll actually do is it'll pop that bladed jig free and cause it to dark forward really, really fast. And that can cause a reaction bite.

Alex Rudd:
And a lot of the times, those bass, what they'll be doing is they'll actually be using little isolated grass clumps as ambush points. And when they see this bladed jig come darting by their face, they just have to react to it, because it looks like a bluegill or a bait fish or something trying to get away from them. And a lot of the times, with a reaction bite, literally, bass can't help but try to eat it. Instinctually, they just have to try to kill it. And so it's not something where you're trying to trick them into eating it, like say something slower, like a jig or something like that. You can just instinctually get them to eat it.

Alex Rudd:
And you guys can see here. Some of the grass I was talking about, well, maybe try to get it here. Here's some of the grass. So you guys can see, this is what these bass are actually orienting to and what they're using. And this is just a hydrilla or some other kind of aquatic vegetation. So if you can get them to react off of one of those clumps of grass, or off a laydown, or off of boat dock post, you guys can have a ton of success, because those bass can't help but to eat that thing.

Alex Rudd:
All right, guys. Hopefully, you enjoyed today's video. And hopefully, you learned something about fishing, the bladed jig and fishing, your Thunder Cricket, and some different tips, tricks, and tools that you guys can use to go out and to catch some fish wherever you guys happen to be fishing. And just remember, MONSTERBASS is here for you guys. Because what we're trying to do is we're trying to broaden and deepen your tackle box as well as broaden and deepen your understanding of bass fishing and equip you guys with some tools and techniques and tips to go out and catch more fish wherever you live in the country and whatever time of year you guys happen to be fishing.

Alex Rudd:
Also make sure to go down below and hit the link for my new merchandise. Again, Ms. Bethany, please. You guys got the free sticker in this month's box, but we also released some awesome T-shirts with my face on it as well. So if you're brave enough to wear my ugly face on your chest, please go down there below, hit the link, go check out my merchandise. Also, if you've never heard of me, hi, again, my name is Alex Rudd. Go down below, hit the link. You guys can check out my channel as well as, like I said, check out the MONSTERBASS website and see all the different box options and different things that we offer. But as always, guys, thank you for watching, and we'll see you next time.