Berkley Senior Project Engineer Dan Spengler shares the design secrets behind the Berkley Dime Crankbait, born at Berkley Labs and derived from exhaustive prototyping and testing. The result? A high-performance crankbait with exceptional action and versatility that covers a range of depths and mimics forage everywhere bass swim.
FEATURED BAIT (retail links)
BERKLEY DIME
- Buy at Bass Pro Shops
- Buy at FishUSA
- Buy at Tackle Warehouse
INTRODUCING THE BERKLEY DIME CRANKBAIT SERIES
According to Spengler, the Dime series sets a new bar in crankbait innovation. Crafted after extensive research and over 140 test models, this series includes the Dime 4, 6, 10, and 15. Each bait reaches a specific depth range and delivers a consistent action at all retrieve speeds. Spengler discusses how this is achieved by testing and perfecting bill shape, bill angle, and pull point dynamics design elements.
DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT INSIGHTS
The design team had the goal of creating a crankbait that mimics balsa wood’s action but also with plastic’s durability, consistency, and room for translucent color options. The Berkley Dime uses advanced materials, including a tungsten weight transfer system for enhanced castability, Flash Disc weighting for better action, and high-grade plastic that allows for diverse colorways to include translucent color options.
CASTING AND RETRIEVE PERFORMANCE
Casting distance is key to quality crankbaits. The Berkley Dime’s tungsten weight transfer system is a testament to this, allowing you to cast it a mile, even with the smaller models. Another key point is the ability to retrieve the Dime from a slow crawl but also to speed cranking. As the underwater video shows, the Dime has a unique fish-triggering action on the pause, further improving performance.
Like other versatile crankbaits, such as the Money Badger, the Dime series isn’t limited to bass. Its action, coupled with 21 proven colors and four dive depths and sizes, makes it effective for catching many fish species.
