The 50 Greatest Lures of All Time

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photo: Todd Huffman

Mepps Aglia
These are everybody's favorite trout spinners, even though most people don't fish them well. Use a size 0, 1/12-ounce version with a silver blade for most small trout streams. The secret lies in casting upstream and bringing the spinner back slightly faster than the current. Reel just quickly enough to spin the blade while steering the spinner with your rod tip so it travels next to submerged boulders or other trout cover. mepps.com

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Comment on This Article

At 11:41 AM, 2009-01-07, Green Card said:
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At 9:56 PM, 2009-01-04, dustin larson said:
i cought 11 big northerns in 2 days with this lure non under 29 inches

At 9:12 PM, 2009-01-04, Bubba said:
i can't believe they don't have a black and silver hot-'n-tot in the top up in the ranks! i have caught many fish on that lure

At 10:24 AM, 2008-12-17, Al V said:
Everyone who's caught a few fish thinks that lure is the best. Here's fact. I fish 6 days a week even if only a few hours a day. I can afford to experiment. For trout the 1/8th oz rainbow trout pattern zray is the most prolific trout catching lure I've ever used. It's consistent. Fished it in 6 states with same great results. Yes, you have to have a little technique. I've caught trout over 20" and smaller trout as well with this lure. Yes, I sometimes use PM's or Mepps and super dupers. If I could only use one for trout, It's the Zray. How many 100 trout days have you had?

At 4:03 PM, 2008-12-04, eric olsen said:
Curly grubs rock!!! They work wonders fishing for anything. Walleye, bass, panfish all bite on it. You guys got it right. A lure doesn't have to be fancy and expensive to work.

At 4:01 PM, 2008-12-04, eric olsen said:
when I ish the Wi lakes around here I love to use a curly grub. You guys got it right. I catches anything!!!!!!!

At 12:31 AM, 2008-12-04, haha said:
You got it all wrong bubba, it should start with the yamato senko, and then go into the jigs and finish with the rooster tails. 14yo in school

At 11:14 AM, 2008-10-14, anonymous said:
that makes no sence

At 8:26 PM, 2008-10-07, fisher Z said:
if i would uv listened to my pops

At 11:09 AM, 2008-10-02, jim said:
slug-go's are the best lure ever should have been #1

At 9:17 PM, 2008-09-30, fishlakechamplain said:
i am having a problem navigating the list. if i click on the list of lures that's on the right it refreshes the screen but does not swithes to that lure. so if i want to see a specific lure i have to scroll through all previous ones. i have tried with both ie and firefox. do you experience the same?

At 12:20 AM, 2008-09-29, caligetsita said:
varrolpasc4

At 7:14 PM, 2008-09-15, delgetc4t said:
orbastr

At 1:05 AM, 2008-09-09, bluepearl said:
i really enjoyed your list. thanks for adding the comments about each lure with tips on how to fish them. i cut and pasted some of your tips as future references for those lures i have yet to own. thanks!

At 9:14 PM, 2008-08-31, kris said:
me and my dad tried some power bait and crawlers for catching perch and catfish, the power bait didn't work at all and turtles kept getting in the way, would crawlers be better or just a different spot?

At 9:05 PM, 2008-06-30, website design said:
great list! my personal favorite is the jitterbug. in the right spot a bass will hit it within a second of the lure splashing down on the pond.

At 11:30 AM, 2008-06-30, Mike. said:
toc is not working with ff 3.0 :(

At 10:59 AM, 2008-06-30, coffeeffoc said:
surprised you didn't include the classic white or yellow jig.

At 5:53 AM, 2008-06-30, Win a Green Card said:
i learned about "twister tail grubs" back in "worm dipping 101". they will work on about any fish that swims. if'n you wanna' come back from the hole smellin' fishy, better take a poke of them twisters along y'all... it shore beats diggin' fish worms behind the outhouse.

At 4:12 PM, 2008-06-22, me go fish all time said:
ummmmm i catch fish on nightcrawler and meal worms and a litte power bait on the same hook

At 11:27 AM, 2008-06-18, T-MITCH said:
peter ur my hero!! haha

At 9:53 AM, 2008-06-16, peter said:
some bastard called pimp slap yo sister/wife said fishing sucks, go back to the beach you sissy bastard if you dont like fishin don't go on the dame website. fishing is the second best thing in the world after hunting

At 11:44 PM, 2008-06-07, jaybird said:
powerbait makes a 3 inch trout worm (get the orange peel color if you can). rainbow trout will hit all day with it- at least for me. love the article.

At 2:32 PM, 2008-05-31, mike said:
i just caught a monster largy today on one of them but it was an older vintage model green w/tiger stripes

At 3:32 PM, 2008-05-23, sdfsd said:
right on about the storm wild eye i like the bluegill version in a 1.5 oz for suspended largies in light cover it works especially well on a cloudy day

At 5:48 PM, 2008-05-21, ??????? said:
i love the wildeye swimbait. i caught 15 pound largemouth bass with it!i don't like clinton.

At 12:53 PM, 2008-05-17, rance said:
yozuri lures are good in crank baits caught yellowstone trout to walleye large mouth small mouth catfish crappie perch and bluegill and the infamous bugle mouth bass aka the carp just using one color pattern

At 5:56 PM, 2008-05-15, bassmaster from the qc said:
hot steel shad rap will catch fish all day long

At 5:54 AM, 2008-05-12, Sen. Hillary Clinton said:
i like using nightcrawlers and live shad smashed together. vote for me!

At 5:53 AM, 2008-05-12, Pimp Slap yo sister/wife said:
fishing sucks! i like crabbing south of the pu tang strip.

At 5:52 AM, 2008-05-12, Snoop Doggy Dogg said:
yamamoto senkos are the shiznit! i get mo' bass comin out the deuce deuce, fo' shizzle.

At 12:48 PM, 2008-05-10, brendan said:
the mepps aglia is a great river lure...i just caught 3 native brookies and a small rainbow in my local river in 20 minutes

At 7:52 PM, 2008-05-06, cj and john said:
i have caught something everyday with a rapala lure weather it be a husky jerk, original floter or x-rap 14 i think this is the lure

At 12:43 PM, 2008-05-06, Eric said:
after seeing the article i couldn't believe so many of the lures in my tackle box made it on the list. i personally love the black rooster tail with silver spinner. it has proven itself to me many times over.

At 12:44 PM, 2008-05-05, Cueball said:
a 1/8th oz white roostertail was first lure i bought as a kid way back in mid 60s. wish i still had that first spinner but the army movers got it. still use rooster tails a lot and of course, lots of great memories with the bait

At 7:50 PM, 2008-04-29, MNFISHING.ORG said:
i like to see that there is a mix of classics and newer lures in here. nice job!

At 7:49 PM, 2008-04-29, MNFISHING.ORG said:
i like to see a good mix of classics and newer lures. nice job!

At 5:34 AM, 2008-04-26, Pimp Slap said:
fishing sucks! i like crabbing south of the pu tang strip.

At 5:30 AM, 2008-04-26, Sen. Hillary Clinton said:
i like using nightcrawlers and live shad smashed together. vote for me!

At 5:23 AM, 2008-04-26, Snoop Doggy Dogg said:
yamamoto senkos are the shiznit! i get mo' bass comin out the deuce deuce, fo' shizzle.

At 1:34 PM, 2008-04-25, Jackmehoff said:
rapala is sexy.

At 6:06 PM, 2008-04-24, Bassman21 said:
i have the new x-rap shad, it's the same wobble then zig! zag! left! right! bam!

At 6:04 PM, 2008-04-24, Tarponfisheriesltd said:
whamo! i love it when that lure gets destroyed by big saltwater fish!

At 6:01 PM, 2008-04-24, Tj Pipines said:
rattle traps are one of the -best- smallmouth lures i've -ever- used!!!!! lipless all the way!!!!!

At 4:56 PM, 2008-04-24, Fisher-man said:
my friend loves rapalas

At 3:23 PM, 2008-04-24, Matt C. said:
mepps aglias are my go to bait. i recently caught a bunch of fish on one. fish love them. greatest all time in my opinion!

At 10:10 AM, 2008-04-24, Colin said:
rapala shad rap is the best lure of all time

At 10:08 AM, 2008-04-24, WAYNE GORHAM said:
will catch fish anywhere. my son & i once caught 135 crappies in two hours on this bait & color

At 3:50 PM, 2008-04-23, shonras said:
how could you not have a jake's on the list? i would put it ahead of the kroc and the kastmaster any day.

At 8:45 PM, 2008-04-22, Slayer .45cal. said:
i love the lure i put a flasher on it so the fish can see it easier. me and my grampa were trolling and we both caught 2 15 in. largemouth that wighed 4 to 5 lbs. all in all i love it

At 3:31 AM, 2008-04-22, ojescareno450 said:
i have some put don't know how to tie it to the line. please someone tell me how or where. send me info. to feo450@ayhoo.com

At 12:02 AM, 2008-04-21, FishOregon said:
i once caught 5 largemouths over 2.5 pounds in 6 casts on this bait.

At 10:04 PM, 2008-04-21, christian said:
this lure is da best

At 8:14 PM, 2008-04-21, Nate said:
when i am in need i turn to this bait and it always porvides big bass

At 8:05 PM, 2008-04-21, Billy joe said:
love mepps aglia and hula popper-caught 12 pound bass on them-but where in the world is the kicktail xl_5?have caught monster pike,walleye,smallies,and largemouth on it!

At 12:11 PM, 2008-04-21, joe said:
hula-popper provided me with some great weekends bass fishing. turn the skirt around cast near the shore give it a couple of quick jerks and hold on. if any largemouth are in the area you will know about it.

At 8:04 AM, 2008-04-21, Qwami said:
just tools to inflict pain and suffering on innocent animals. i like the hula popper best....just for the memories of fishing with them as a kid. i'm sure they still work great today. should re-try some of the classics!

At 9:42 AM, 2008-04-13, LISTRIPEDBASS said:
curl tails are for sure the #1 out of those fifty, i've gotten fish in fresh,and salt on em.. fluke, striped bass, bluefish, weakfish, flounder, herring, shad.. you name it, it will eat a curl tail.

At 9:01 AM, 2008-04-12, cody said:
it stinks

At 3:44 PM, 2008-04-07, kmyszko324 said:
the jitterbug is a great lure. i have caught many of fish using this lure and will continue to use it for many more years.

At 10:49 AM, 2008-04-07, DanH said:
i meant the curly tail grub. sorry brain freeze

At 10:48 AM, 2008-04-07, DanH said:
i use this every trip. north cove open two days after ice. first cast three pd bass, third cast 28" northern. had to leave to fix guide i should have tied last year. chartruse works best.

At 5:20 PM, 2008-04-02, keith said:
so far the best lure ive ever used..i went and saw it in a store..i went straight to the lake and caught a monster bass!

At 8:19 AM, 2008-03-31, fishman said:
i always catch monster bass on this lure. caught five bass that were over five pounds on it this year alteady.

At 4:06 PM, 2008-03-29, mikedbboy said:
i grew up using h&h spinners. it's the greatest bait i've ever used.

At 2:48 PM, 2008-03-26, Tim OBrien said:
best top lure of all time, i personally love the broken back rapala. thanks rapala

At 6:15 AM, 2008-03-24, Dan said:
i like the phoebe . that baby really works well at moscrips pond in n.y. and other ponds in the upstate region .

At 9:53 AM, 2008-03-22, renny said:
reread list no abu spinner? even worse than no ????66

At 9:51 AM, 2008-03-22, renny said:
can't remember the name. ?????66 lead head spinner feathered trailer hook have not seen one since late fifties

At 10:03 PM, 2008-03-21, braggerwalleye said:
the lindy fuzz-e-grubb! i am totally surprised that one of the most productive and reliable lures of all time didn't make your 50 best lures list. what a disappointment!!

At 7:53 PM, 2008-03-21, Geoff said:
i just got the hula popper and excited to use it. what fish does it work for the best? whats the best way to use it

At 12:39 PM, 2008-03-21, chris said:
i am surprised that the swiss swing is not on this list! it is great in fast moving streams or rivers, and kills trout and bass.

At 4:30 PM, 2008-03-19, WVEagle said:
al's goldfish...now there's a memory. first lure i ever bought...near 40 years ago. i'll have to find one and try it out again. wonder how it would work on smallies????

At 4:04 PM, 2008-03-19, Joe Mladenik said:
you left out the heddon minnow,the only trouble ihad with it, ihad to clean the fish to get my plug back.

At 6:28 AM, 2008-03-18, Bud Wiser said:
i take any lure or bait and pour beer on it and outfish my buddies 3 to 1,strange but it works,now thats what i'm talking about..............

At 12:34 AM, 2008-03-16, Cedric said:
i catch all my fish on the needlefish...and it works amazingly...i don't need to buy bait and it out fishes bait.

At 10:40 AM, 2008-03-13, anonymous said:
i think mepps shold be at least number 2 they catch so many fish and big ones too i have caught bass,musky,walleye,perch,bluegill, catfish,northerns and just about every fish you can name on that lure

At 10:37 AM, 2008-03-13, anonymous said:
h

At 11:20 PM, 2008-03-12, Fishin' Magician said:
you guys can't spel.

At 7:04 AM, 2008-03-12, ozzy said:
i agree with denny....the thomas bouyant really rocks,caught 18 trout one saturday afternoon and 11 the next with this lure.

At 12:25 AM, 2008-03-11, Denny said:
you didn't mention thomas bouyant and better yet the acme thunderbolt series.

At 1:40 PM, 2008-03-10, Jerwinn Crane said:
all lures are great at different times but what makes the lures is great presentation, and the will to be patience.

At 9:22 PM, 2008-03-07, him said:
love it

At 11:03 AM, 2008-03-07, paulmetto said:
flatfish worked great for bass on lake saint claire in michigan. daredevle spoons, red and white striped and the yellow with red diamonds, worked like a charm for northern pike in northern alberta.

At 8:09 PM, 2008-03-04, peter said:
rapala kick ass

At 11:20 AM, 2008-03-04, Todd said:
we used hula poppers as a kid in small northern california bass ponds. they always worked great. that was over 30 years ago.

At 3:40 PM, 2008-02-29, coolio said:
great

At 6:08 PM, 2008-02-26, Cody said:
ive caught many largemouth on this bait

At 12:07 PM, 2008-02-25, FishOntario said:
ahh yes i love this lure i have caught big fish wit htis

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The 50 Best Lures: Table of Contents
1: Curly Tail Grub
2: Dardevle Spinnie
3: Rapala
4: Mepps Aglia
5: Johnson Silver Minnow
6: Slug-Go
7: Zara Spook
8: Berkley Power Worm
9: Original Gitzit
10: Flatfish
11: Storm WildEye Swimbait
12: Rat-L-Trap
13: Terminator T-1 Spinnerbait
14: Gibbs Pencil Popper
15: Needlefish
16: Kastmaster
17 Krocodile
18: Little Cleo
19: Lucky Craft Flashminnow
20: Rooster Tail
21: Panther Martin
22: Cordell Red Fin
23: Swedish Pimple
24: Blue Fox Foxee Jig
25: Rebel Pop-R
26: K.O. Wobbler
27: FoodSource Minnow
28: Zoom Trick Worm
29: Rapala Shad Rap
30: Yamamoto Senko
31: Hopkins Shorty
32: Phoebe
33:

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