Tried And True Hard Baits

Rapala’s reputation of crafting premium fishing lures dates back to the 1930s when Lauri Rapala began carving lures to mimic the movements of a wounded minnow. These prototypes eventually lead to the legendary Original Floater Rapala, which has helped more fishermen experience the thrill of more big fish than any other lure.

The Original, though, is just one of many innovative Rapala hard-baits that have stood the test of time and continue to catch fish today. Below are a few others, along with a look towards the future by showcasing some recent releases of industry-leading lures.

The lure that started it all remains potent to this day. Whether slow crawled or twitched on top as a surface bait, swam steadily as a shallow runner, weighted with a split shot for medium depth  or brought to bottom using a three-way rig or bottom bouncer, the Original’s wounded minnow action remains irresistible to fish everywhere. Available in sizes spanning 3 cm to 18 cm, this premium balsa hard-bait catches everything from perch to big pike.

Building on the successful design, profile and action of the Original, the CountDown is precision weighted to sink at a consistent rate of 30 cm per second, letting an angler easily target specific depths whether trolling or casting. No matter if the fish are suspended, hovering at the weed tops or holding on bottom structure, the CountDown gets to them consistently.

The Shad Rap set the standard to which all other crankbaits are measured. Its taller, “shad” profile and deeper running depth complements the slender, shallow-running attributes of the Original Floating Rapala. Constructed of premium balsa, the Shad Rap is equally effective cast or trolled, and performs from ultra-slow to super fast speeds without fail. Hence, why this lure is considered a must-have for anglers targeting pike, zander, trout and many other fish species.

Often replicated but never duplicated, the premium balsa wood DT has long been a fan favourite. The genius of DT Series is their ability to dive fast to a preset depth and stay in the strike zone longer than any than other crankbait on the market. And with six sizes delivering consistent running depths of 1.2m, 1.8m, 2.5m, 3m, 4.3m, 5m (4, 6, 8, 10, 14 and 16 feet), fish have no where to hide.

When the Jigging Rap hit the scene over 60 years ago, it embodied Rapala’s ethos of creating baitfish profiled hard-baits with tantalizing lifelike actions — but this time with a lure designed for jigging applications. Fast forward to today, and Jigging Raps remain one of the hottest lures for catching fish in open-water and through the ice. More, the Jigging Rap has spawned similar lures with distinct features, like the Jigging Rap Magnum and Jigging Shadow Rap.

Never one to rest on their laurels and fame of past successes, Rapala continues pushing the envelope with many new, innovative hard-baits. Nowhere is this more apparent than the recently released Elite versions of the CountDown and Shad Rap, and the Precision Xtreme Series.

The CountDown Elite and Shad Rap Elite are crafted out of premium balsa wood and retain the classic Rapala wobbling, wounded-minnow action fish can’t resist — yet feature modern upgrades. Cutting-edge construction enhances durability and performance. The premium high-def patterns and metallic gilded faces cause Elite lures to reflect light and produce fish-triggering flash.

Another major advantage is the Elite’s tungsten weight system, which maximizes casting accuracy and distance, and gives the CountDown Elite a faster sink rate. The dense metal is also responsible for an Elite lure to produce a strong return on forward-facing sonar.

The Precision Xtreme Series are meticulously constructed with unmatched technical qualities and eye-catching finishes. The Precision Xtreme Mavrik and Precision Xtreme Mavrik Saltwater boast ultra-long, precise casting ability, strong returns with forward-facing sonar, and a hard-cutting, semi-erratic action fish can’t resist.