Tom Mann's Blade Baits
January 28, 2009
GYCB pro Tom Mann Jr. doesn’t claim to have invented the mousetrap when it comes to blade baits for bass. He just thinks that he and his partners at Buckeye Lures have improved the basic concept.
“These lures have been around for 30 years,” he said. “Way back in the day we called it the horse head. All we did is refine it.” Their improvements led to two distinct baits for very different conditions.
The first is the Ditch Blade, a jig head with a single willowleaf blade riding under it. In contrast to most of the competitors on the market, it also has a bullet-shaped weight in between the lead and the blade.
“When we designed the Ditch Spin, we wanted to create a lure for cold water, when the fish are lethargic and on the bottom,” Mann said. “They set up in those ditches in 25 to 40 feet of water. When this lure goes to the bottom, it’ll stand upright. It won’t lay over under any circumstances. You just fish it real slow, with a slight pumping action and it acts exactly like an injured shad.”
In temperatures under 50 degrees, Mann says the best technique to use with the Ditch Spin is to “cast it out, let it go all the way to the bottom, let it settle, then engage your reel and barely pick it up. Almost fish it like a Texas rigged worm. You can’t fish it too slow.”
The second tool is the Su-Spin Blade, which features a similar head design (both lures are available in ¼, 3/8 and ½ ounce sizes), but lacks the lead weight. Instead, it differentiates itself from the competition through the use of two willow blades.
“It provides more flash than any other,” Mann said. “It’s built for fishing in the top of the water column and for suspended fish. You can wind it over brush piles and through standing timber. It swims just like a blueback herring.” He stressed that even though it’s a bit more of a chunk-and-wind lure than its sister bait, he does not use it as a search bait. “You need to be around a lot of bait to use it,” he said.
But while the lures are niche tools to be used under specific circumstances, their application is not limited solely to spotted bass, the species for which Mann is most widely considered one of the all-time experts. “Last year at St. Clair, the first day I had almost 20 pounds of smallmouths with them,” Mann said. “And for largemouths, they’re particularly awesome anywhere there are bluebacks, lakes like Clarks Hill and Hartwell.”
While there are many soft plastic bodies that go well with the two blade baits, Mann said that his “absolute favorite is the three-inch Yamamoto swimbait in white pearl.” He’ll also use a Zoom Super Fluke Jr. or Yamamoto single-tailed grub on occasion. “With the Ditch 
Blade, I like the swimbait most because of the straighter tail. You’re not trying to create a lot of action. With the Su Spin, the grub is sometimes better because it creates more action.”
He fishes both lures on a 6’6” All Star baitcasting rod – “Medium or medium-heavy action, it’s a matter of personal preference,” he said – paired with a Pflueger baitcasting reel with a moderate speed Pflueger reel. “You’re not moving the bait very fast so you don’t need a high speed reel,” he explained. Unless he’s fishing around a lot of big fish, he spools up with 10 pound test Berkley Professional Grade fluorocarbon.
Mann guides on one of the most heavily fished lakes in the country, Lake Lanier, which is further burdened by unreal levels of recreational boat traffic. When he says he’s developed special tools to catch finicky and pressured fish, it pays to listen. If you haven’t already added blade baits to your own fishing arsenal, you’re behind the curve.
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For more information on these two blade baits, go to www.buckeyelures.com.
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If you want to experience a quick education in spotted bass fishing on Georgia’s Lake Lanier, Tom Mann Jr. is available for guide trips when his tournament schedule allows. Information can be found at www.tommannjr.com.