If you put a bass fishing crankbait in my hand, you can consider me a happy man. It’s my favorite technique of all time which has led to me testing a bunch of them throughout my career. I’ve always been a big fan of Yo-Zuri’s lineup so when I heard they had a new flat-sided crankbait on the market, I was super excited to give it a shot.
I’ve tested this crankbait for several weeks around various types of cover and it can become a major player for anglers in the fall and winter months. Stick with me for a few minutes and I’ll tell you why I say that.
I say it all the time and I’ll keep saying it until I’m blue in the face; I don’t want to spend my hard-earned money on a lure only to be forced to modify it before I feel confident fishing it. I don’t like lures with cheap components and cheap paint jobs. We all work hard to save money for fishing gear, so quality is incredibly important to me.
The Yo-Zuri 3DR-X Series Flat Crank is one of the highest-end crankbaits you’re going to find at this price point. From the paint schemes to every single piece of hardware, this lure looks and fishes like a lot of baits that are priced above $20. I don’t know how Yo-Zuri makes their lures so beautiful and affordable, but my gosh, they have a special thing going. It’s awful tough to find a better bang for your buck out there right now.
As mentioned earlier, as flat-sided plug is one of my favorite ways to catch a bass. So I’ve become fairly familiar with just about every one on the market. I can confidently tell you that the Yo-Zuri 3DR-X Series Flat Crank has comparable to action to many of the hand-made wood baits some folks buy. This is an incredibly effective flat-sided plug and one you should seriously consider.
It maintains a tight wiggle throughout the retrieve which is excellent for clearer water, colder water or highly pressured fisheries but it also kicks hard, if that makes sense. It’s a very impressive blend of both subtle and attention drawing. This crankbait strikes a great balance between the two.
The rattle is also interesting, in my opinion. It’s a more high-pitched rattle which, in my experiences, tends to work really well in colder water temperatures. It’s not too loud but just loud enough to draw a slight bit of attention to the lure in dirtier water conditions.
These hooks are outstanding and you can take this lure right out of the package and start fishing with it. The hooks are a fairly light-wire hooks which help with hook penetration on lighter tackle. I have been testing the Yo-Zuri 3DR-X Series Flat Crank on a 7-foot, medium-light casting rod and 12-pound fluorocarbon and hook penetration has been excellent.
Hook penetration also becomes especially important when you’re fishing these flat-sided crankbaits in cold water. The mouth of a bass gets tougher in colder water temperatures, so it’s imperative you use the sharpest hooks you can find throughout the winter months. You won’t have to worry about a thing if you’re tossing this crankbait.
This is one of my favorite attributes of all Yo-Zuri lures. I think the big eyeballs they put on their baits make a bit difference when it comes to hookup ratio. Will the bass eat other lures? Yeah, of course they will. But my buddies and I have realized how much better the bass “get” a Yo-Zuri plug; those suckers will flat-out choke ‘em.
The best we can tell as we hang out in the shop and talk fishing, is that the big eyeballs are a huge differentiator. I’m not saying they make the lure look more realistic or anything, maybe they do, but most importantly, I think it gives the bass a target on which they can hone in. I like to think of it as a cat with a laser pointer; it gives the bass a big target they can easily track and chase down.
You’re going to have a tough time finding any better value for a beaufitul, high-quality flat-sided crankbait. Whether you’re fishing in the fall or the winter, I sincerely think you’ll want to have a few of these rigged and ready to go.
