I’ve been busy building out the lure selector and the lure pages for this site so I haven’t had as much time to write articles or reviews lately, but I figured I’d take a break and write one about the Z-Man Chatterbait Willowvibe. The willowvibe has been one of my favorite baits for a while. Even before strolling and minnows started to get really popular I was using this thing, and it’s only grown on me since then. In fact, this is one of the few baits that has outperformed a drop shot on certain days, and because of that (and the fact that I don’t think it gets enough credit) I figured I’d leave a review about it.
There really isn’t anything quite like the willowvibe. There are a lot of other downsized bladed jigs out there, but the willow leaf blade on the front of it and the fact that it has no skirt set it apart from everything else. It can perform well whenever you find yourself fishing in a pressured area, and I’ve found it does really well if the fish are feeding on shad and there is a little less visibility. The vibration it gives off is also unique, so while it might feel a little similar to a standard bladed jig there’s still something a little bit different about this lure and sometimes that can make a difference in terms of the number of bites you get.
In terms of trailers I’ve tried several but right now my favorite is the mooch minnow. It can be a little tricky to get it on, but once it is on it’s usually not going anywhere and one or two plastics usually end up lasting me the entire day. I also prefer a trailer that doesn’t have a paddle tail since it gives you a little more control over the depth of the lure and where you are retrieving it in the water column. I also just like the action of this particular combination overall, and the fish seem to like it too.
So in summary, if you are on a body of water where everyone else seems to be throwing a strolling bait or you just want to try out something a little different you should consider giving this bait a shot. It’s turned out to be one of my confidence baits and is just a fun one to throw when the conditions are right.
Tackle Summary
Product: Z-Man Chatterbait Willowvibe
Category: Bladed Swim jig
Length: 4″ (with a trailer)
Suggested Colors: Smelt, Pearl, Chartreuse Shad, Shiner
Suggested Trailer: 3.5″ Rapala Crush City Mooch Minnow
