Hard Baits Catch BIG Sabine Fish

Anglers wanting to fish the Sabine Lake area out of Port Arthur need to get familiar with hard baits.

Sure, soft plastics work in certain capacities but well-informed anglers have learned some of the biggest fish come on big, hard plastics and spoons.

Mepps Saltwater Syclops Spoon

Local anglers use spoons frequently for catching redfish, speckled trout and Spanish mackerel. This uniquely designed spoon has a great side-to-side wobble and closely mimics a wounded shad or glass minnow.

My friends and I wore out the big mackerel on nickel/no decal version last year at the Sabine Jetties and have full intentions of doing the same thing this year.

Sebile (Possessed) Splasher

This one has technically been in my tackle box since 2009 but over the last year, it had become an indispensable part of my fishing arsenal. The specially designed concave face of the Splasher makes it easy to draw attention from predators like speckled trout.

The principal behind the “possessed” title is the glitter filled fluid in the cavity that moves and flows bringing life to the lure. The moving fluid creates the “3D” appearance of loss of scales like a fleeing and injured baitfish, while improving casting distance and accuracy by optimizing weight displacement.

I caught my biggest topwater redfish ever on this lure, a whopping 40-incher, so I might be a little biased.

Rat-L-Trap High Def Series

Rat-L-Traps are certainly not anything new. They have been a mainstay in the repertoire of Southeast Texas anglers for decades. This new series however takes things to a new level in the category of detail.

The paint-jobs very closely match the variety of sunfish and other prey that swim Texas waters and give anglers an edge when fishing in clear water where bass tend to shy away from things that do not look extremely realistic.

These work great for bass, redfish and trout.

Badonkadonk SS

This slow-sinking hard plastic lure has a similar sinking action to the Corky but allows for some other unique uses. Anglers can slow dance it by “walking the dog” underwater and suspend it right in the strike zone. Its rattles produce a highly audible clue for fish to focus on and hammer with great ferocity.

This lure comes in a wide variety of color patters including a few that look very similar to some of the classic Bingo lures of yesteryear.

The Lock Lizard

This is without a doubt the most realistic surface crawling lizard I have ever seen and it will absolutely put the hurt on bass in the Taylor/Hillebrandt System out of Port Arthur.

It is effective swam slowly or in a “walking the dog” fashion. There is something really awesome about seeing a three or four pound come up to swallow it.

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This is a guest post by By Chester Moore, Jr. Photo Credit – Chester Moore. To contact Chester Moore, e-mail him at cmooreoutdoors@gmail.com. You can watch his WebTV series God’s Outdoors with Chester Moore at www.Godsoutdoors.com.