Rattlin' Rapala

Bassassinator · 08-31-09, 06:30 PM

wait i am confused....is this lure a Lipless Crankbait, or a rattletrap?

nofearengineer · 08-31-09, 08:17 PM

It is a lipless crankbait. However, Rat-l-Trap has become sort of synonymous with lipless crankbaits, due to being the best known one.

Kind of like a lot of people say they were "drinking a coke", when they were drinking a soda of any kind, not just a Coca-Cola.

Bassassinator · 08-31-09, 08:19 PM

ok So the one I have is a Liplees crank, but the two are kindof like different brands? so it does the same thing just has a different name then?

nofearengineer · 08-31-09, 08:24 PM

Exactly! Rat-L-Traps are just the lipless crankbait put out by Bill Lewis lures. Rattlin' Rapalas are made by, well..Rapala. Cotton Cordell makes a good cheap lipless crank too.

Bassassinator · 08-31-09, 08:27 PM

ok now i checked my reel earlier, i only have the one Ugly Stick spinning combo from walmart, until i can get better gear anyways, but my reel is 4.6:1 gear ratio...is that ok for my 7' MH action ugly stick rod? and what do I do with the lure in the water? is it cast and retrieve?

islandbass · 09-01-09, 01:48 AM

Don't worry about your gear ratio at this time in the game and don't let anyone here tell you it is too low a gear because it probably isn't. They will fail to realize that a lower geared spinning reel is not comparable to a casting reel with the same ratio.

Anyway, all it means is this. The second number, the 1 represents one revolution of the reel's handle, there will be 4.6 wraps of line around the spool. To determine how much line that recovers, it is best done with the spool is filled to optimum capacity. If it is, lay on the ground a tape measure. Tie a weight to your line and place it at 0" next to the tape. Keeping the rod at a low angle to the ground, slowly make one complete revolution of the handle and make sure when you do this, that the weight never pops off the read.

Take a reading. It will probably be somewhere between 20" to 30". Wherever the weight stops, say 26" is the line recovery rate of your reel. This means that for every complete turn of your handle, the reel will recover 26" of line.

Note that this recovery rate is directly related to the amount of line on your spool. The more line you have the more line the reel can recover.

Generally speaking, lipless crankbaits are usually sinking baits, meaning if left uninfluenced by the angler, they will sink. Now there are suspending and floating versions but many times people get the sinking types. I think that all of the rattlin' raps sink "at rest." and I have seen suspending Rat-L-Traps

There is no wrong way to fish it. Some folks will cast and retrieve it. Some cast it out, let it sink and retrieve it. Some like to use a yo-yo retrieve (cast it out, let it sink, sweep or jerk the rod in a horizontal or slightly upward direction, reel up the slack and repeat. Some like to keep it just above the tops of grass, some like to rip it through.

Now one of these or a combination of these methods could make a bass react, but that is something you're going to have to figure out through experimenting with a variety of retrieves and cadences. Whatever you do, have fun.

Bassassinator · 09-01-09, 07:50 AM

Hey Thanks Island. I will try using some of those methods, and will remember that whatever i do with it in the water is not a wrong way. Even though some days i come home frustrated from lack of strikes or catches, the one thing that i can say is it was a good day just relaxing by the water.

nofearengineer · 09-01-09, 09:20 AM

Man, with that attitude, you've already got bass fishing half licked. It makes those days where you get skunked a lot easier to swallow.

Bassassinator · 09-01-09, 12:42 PM

Yeah, i just keep coming home and try to find the reasons for not getting bit, it's a little discouraging to go day after day without a good bass on the line, but the more i read, and advice i gete, the more i want to practice. and i can't have a bad day everyday. I started fishing just for the time i got waterside. It was a nice change from all the strersses of daily living at the house you know? that's a big part of why i still do it. another is because when i caught my first Bass, i got out there the next day and was so confident in myself that i caught 2 bass and 3 Pickerel. but now, i am not catching anything....so i come home and try to think of ways to do it differently. but, who knows maybe they just moved from the area.

islandbass · 09-01-09, 06:02 PM

Bassinator,

Just keep at it. I am not much farther along than you. I've only been fishing for about 5 seasons and where I live the bass season is short. Let us know when you're ready to try the drop shot.

One last thing I learned... if ever I learned anything.

It doesn't matter how excellent or awesome your presentation is if there are no fish in the area you are fishing. The angler simply will not get a bite. Presentation is but one component, and finding them is another. If you are shorebound like I am, trust your gut and be willing to move around.

And on every outing, try to learn at least one thing. When you're starting out, learning something new every time you're out is easier.

Bassassinator · 09-01-09, 08:00 PM

Hey, i just got back from an extra hour and a half i got to go fishing and caught Lure catches with my new BPS XPS Nitro Minnow! first fish i ever caught on a lure...yay! i will have pics in a few minutes...

08-31-09, 06:30 PM	#1
Bassassinator BassFishin.Com Active Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Groveland, MA Posts: 161	Rattlin' Rapala wait i am confused....is this lure a Lipless Crankbait, or a rattletrap? __________________ When in Doubt, Cast, Cast again...

08-31-09, 08:17 PM	#2
nofearengineer BassFishin.Com Premier Elite Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Southwest IN Posts: 5,630	It is a lipless crankbait. However, Rat-l-Trap has become sort of synonymous with lipless crankbaits, due to being the best known one. Kind of like a lot of people say they were "drinking a coke", when they were drinking a soda of any kind, not just a Coca-Cola. __________________ Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing it is not fish they are after.

08-31-09, 08:19 PM	#3
Bassassinator BassFishin.Com Active Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Groveland, MA Posts: 161	ok So the one I have is a Liplees crank, but the two are kindof like different brands? so it does the same thing just has a different name then? __________________ When in Doubt, Cast, Cast again...

08-31-09, 08:24 PM	#4
nofearengineer BassFishin.Com Premier Elite Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Southwest IN Posts: 5,630	Exactly! Rat-L-Traps are just the lipless crankbait put out by Bill Lewis lures. Rattlin' Rapalas are made by, well..Rapala. Cotton Cordell makes a good cheap lipless crank too. __________________ Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing it is not fish they are after.

08-31-09, 08:27 PM	#5
Bassassinator BassFishin.Com Active Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Groveland, MA Posts: 161	ok now i checked my reel earlier, i only have the one Ugly Stick spinning combo from walmart, until i can get better gear anyways, but my reel is 4.6:1 gear ratio...is that ok for my 7' MH action ugly stick rod? and what do I do with the lure in the water? is it cast and retrieve? __________________ When in Doubt, Cast, Cast again...

09-01-09, 01:48 AM	#6
islandbass BassFishin.Com Super Veteran Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: WA State Posts: 1,783	Don't worry about your gear ratio at this time in the game and don't let anyone here tell you it is too low a gear because it probably isn't. They will fail to realize that a lower geared spinning reel is not comparable to a casting reel with the same ratio. Anyway, all it means is this. The second number, the 1 represents one revolution of the reel's handle, there will be 4.6 wraps of line around the spool. To determine how much line that recovers, it is best done with the spool is filled to optimum capacity. If it is, lay on the ground a tape measure. Tie a weight to your line and place it at 0" next to the tape. Keeping the rod at a low angle to the ground, slowly make one complete revolution of the handle and make sure when you do this, that the weight never pops off the read. Take a reading. It will probably be somewhere between 20" to 30". Wherever the weight stops, say 26" is the line recovery rate of your reel. This means that for every complete turn of your handle, the reel will recover 26" of line. Note that this recovery rate is directly related to the amount of line on your spool. The more line you have the more line the reel can recover. Generally speaking, lipless crankbaits are usually sinking baits, meaning if left uninfluenced by the angler, they will sink. Now there are suspending and floating versions but many times people get the sinking types. I think that all of the rattlin' raps sink "at rest." and I have seen suspending Rat-L-Traps There is no wrong way to fish it. Some folks will cast and retrieve it. Some cast it out, let it sink and retrieve it. Some like to use a yo-yo retrieve (cast it out, let it sink, sweep or jerk the rod in a horizontal or slightly upward direction, reel up the slack and repeat. Some like to keep it just above the tops of grass, some like to rip it through. Now one of these or a combination of these methods could make a bass react, but that is something you're going to have to figure out through experimenting with a variety of retrieves and cadences. Whatever you do, have fun. __________________ ARX "If people concentrated on the really important things in life, there'd be a shortage of fishing poles." Doug Larson (Shimano 2005 Reel Catalog)

09-01-09, 07:50 AM	#7
Bassassinator BassFishin.Com Active Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Groveland, MA Posts: 161	Hey Thanks Island. I will try using some of those methods, and will remember that whatever i do with it in the water is not a wrong way. Even though some days i come home frustrated from lack of strikes or catches, the one thing that i can say is it was a good day just relaxing by the water. __________________ When in Doubt, Cast, Cast again...

09-01-09, 09:20 AM	#8
nofearengineer BassFishin.Com Premier Elite Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Southwest IN Posts: 5,630	Man, with that attitude, you've already got bass fishing half licked. It makes those days where you get skunked a lot easier to swallow. __________________ Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing it is not fish they are after.

09-01-09, 12:42 PM	#9
Bassassinator BassFishin.Com Active Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Groveland, MA Posts: 161	Yeah, i just keep coming home and try to find the reasons for not getting bit, it's a little discouraging to go day after day without a good bass on the line, but the more i read, and advice i gete, the more i want to practice. and i can't have a bad day everyday. I started fishing just for the time i got waterside. It was a nice change from all the strersses of daily living at the house you know? that's a big part of why i still do it. another is because when i caught my first Bass, i got out there the next day and was so confident in myself that i caught 2 bass and 3 Pickerel. but now, i am not catching anything....so i come home and try to think of ways to do it differently. but, who knows maybe they just moved from the area. __________________ When in Doubt, Cast, Cast again...

09-01-09, 06:02 PM	#10
islandbass BassFishin.Com Super Veteran Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: WA State Posts: 1,783	Bassinator, Just keep at it. I am not much farther along than you. I've only been fishing for about 5 seasons and where I live the bass season is short. Let us know when you're ready to try the drop shot. One last thing I learned... if ever I learned anything. It doesn't matter how excellent or awesome your presentation is if there are no fish in the area you are fishing. The angler simply will not get a bite. Presentation is but one component, and finding them is another. If you are shorebound like I am, trust your gut and be willing to move around. And on every outing, try to learn at least one thing. When you're starting out, learning something new every time you're out is easier. __________________ ARX "If people concentrated on the really important things in life, there'd be a shortage of fishing poles." Doug Larson (Shimano 2005 Reel Catalog)

09-01-09, 08:00 PM	#11
Bassassinator BassFishin.Com Active Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Groveland, MA Posts: 161	Hey, i just got back from an extra hour and a half i got to go fishing and caught Lure catches with my new BPS XPS Nitro Minnow! first fish i ever caught on a lure...yay! i will have pics in a few minutes... __________________ When in Doubt, Cast, Cast again...

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