It takes a lot for me to introduce a new bait into my pitching and flipping lineup. I’m a creature of habit and when I find one that works for me, I stick with it in an attempt to boost my confidence and keep my selection process simple.
Due to my location, I’m able to flip and pitch shallow cover all year long which allows me to test countless new shapes and colors. Very few make the cut for a very simple reason: They’re nothing new. Just the same shapes with a different logo, essentially. It’s hard to reinvent the wheel.
The BioSpawn VileCraw, however, has some interesting features that anglers should know about. I’ve been tinkering with it for a few months and it’s making quite the impression on me.
Castability
Stick with me here—I know talking about the castability of a soft plastic sounds dumb. But shallow-water anglers have to be able to skip their jigs and Texas rigs quietly and accurately. If your current trailer or flipping bait doesn’t skip well, you’re probably missing out on a lot of fish.
The BioSpawn VileCraw skips really well, which is a big deal for me. I was initially worried that the big flanges on the claws would catch too much water, but that hasn’t been the case. It’s designed with a flat body and two wings on the head of the bait that allow for ample surface area for seamless skip casts.
Threaded onto the back of a 1/2-ounce jig, I can easily make complex casts and put this bait wherever it needs to go. It has proven to be a great option for skipping boat docks.
Action
As earlier mentioned, there are noticeable flanges on the claws of the VileCraw. This allows the bait to displace a bunch of water whether it’s on a traditional flipping jig, swim jig, bladed jig or Texas rig.
These flanges open up a lot of doors in regards to versatility. You can swim it around vegetation and wood, aggressively stroke it on a football jig in deep water or even burn it across the surface on a high-speed casting reel.
One of the most unique design elements is the single paddle-tail antenna. It looks a little weird when you first take it out of the package, but it has a bunch of action underwater. Simply popping the slack in your line causes it to jump and twitch without moving the entire body of the bait.
If you’re fishing thicker cover and need a more streamlined, snag-free profile, you can simply pinch this antenna off and you’re left with a great-looking and highly effective punch bait.
Durability
I’ve been very pleased with the overall durability of the VileCraw throughout my testing. It holds up excellently to multiple fish catches and stays on shank of the hook when making aggressive skip casts.
The claws withstand pesky bluegill bites without issue and maintain their structural integrity after several bass catches—it’s not uncommon to catch 5 or 6 fish on a single VileCraw. Surprisingly, the antenna also stays attached well.
Packaging
I really like the packaging on this bait. Inside the bag, each VileCraw has its own cut-out in a pre-molded plastic container. This ensures that there is no bending or warping of the claws or antennae. Each VileCraw you pull from the package is perfectly preserved.
Final impressions
This is a very impressive jig trailer and pitching bait. It’s going to get a workout this year on the back of my jigs and I think it’s going to surprise a lot of anglers.
The BioSpawn VileCraw is available at TackleWarehouse.com.
