[ClancyWiggum]

I finally got around to buying some x-raps tonight. I might be last person on the face of the earth to finally get these. :? Okay, so now my question is what is the best way to fish this lure. I know a lot of you love this lure so you must have some great techniques that produce for you. Any and all help is appreciated. Thanks!

 

[Islandfisher]

Here are the instructions that the manufacturer provides.

Change the amount of time between pauses depending on how the fish are biting. If the bite is slow wait for longer on each pause. If the fish are going nuts work it faster.

The rapala website offers some great information on the lure. There's even a sweet video that shows you how the lure looks in water. Once at work I spent a 1/2 hour looking at the different actions that each lure had.

Here's a link:
http://www.rapala.com/products/luresdetail.cfm?modelName=x-rap&freshorsalt=Fresh

 

[krnfishboy7786]

That's a great diagram, thanks!

 

[JasonN]

Great post Sean.

The X-Rap is a jerk/"slash" bait. It's a suspending bait that has LOTS of action during movement. I call it a Husky Jerk (one of my favorite lures) on crack.

As with all lures, conditions will dictate it's usefulness and techniques will vary, but it's a great bait. Keep using it and you'll find it to be one of your "go-to" lures for many fishing situations.

 

[FishinMatt]

Great instructions posted above. X-Raps are one of my favorite baits, and if you look back at posts, I know I have written detailed posts about how I work it on a few different threads already.

You are going to want to use braid for sure with this bait. You will not get 100% of the action the bait can deliver out of mono. No stretch will give you faster more erratic snaps, and better control and feel for the bait. When you are snapping the rod down you should be able to really hear the "snap" of the line. I usually turn the reel handle one full revolution with each snap. I try to find a cadence that the fish likes. If they are really aggresive, you may want to try 3 full snaps before a pause. If they are lethargic and hitting on more of a deadstick, then you may want to pause after every snap. It usually changes day to day. The most important thing however is the "snap". The X-Rap is a reaction bait, and you want the bait to dart violently from side to side. If you can get that down, you will have success with it just about anywhere.

 

[ClancyWiggum]

Wow! 8) I knew I could count on you guys to bring the goods. Excellent information and very detailed. I will definitely try out what you all suggest and hope it brings many great returns. Thanks again for bringing a little knowledge to an otherwise empty brain.

 

[Augy]

great posts everyone! xraps are the bomb! but like jason said, there is a time and place for these great lures.

something i like to do is to carefully evaluate a new lures action under water. simply cast to where you can see the lure in action and try all different types of retrieves. it really helps to see and know what a lure is doing under water.

the snap retrieve is so effective in xraps because it imitates a wounded baitfish. dying baitfish dart around expelling a lot of energy. they pause when they are too tired. then they thrash around again struggling then pause again. during the pause, these dying baitfish tend to either slowly float or sink. the xrap, during the pause will float ever so slightly imitating perfectly wounded prey. this is where the magic happens.

most of the hits will happen during the pause and right after the pause so be ready.

 

[FishinMatt]

Man, I like this thread. Great info everyone. Another thing to remember is to be prepared to lose some baits if you are fishing water with pike present. The snakes love this bait and have a tendency to stalk it, then hit it on the snap right after the pause. Many times they will hit it head first which will usually sever even braided lines. Last year I lost 5 or 6 baits in one weekend bass fishing with them. This year I have not thrown it much but already lost one. Its like throwing a $5 bill in the water every time it happens

 

[Gither03]

LOL matt, I just lost a strike king pure poison chatterbait at the OCC pond an hour ago and my exact thought was "I can't believe I just threw a five dollar bill in the pond." :lol:

 

[toothdoc]

It's only money. If you wanna play, you gotta pay. BTW, it pi$$es me off when I lose a lure too.

 

[twoglasseyes]

I gets me mad when I'm doing really well with a lure that I only have one of, and then I lose it and dont catch anything the rest of the day.

 

[pezdek1]

pisses me off when fishing on a windy day and you toss a nice spinnerbait or jig you just bought and the wind catches it and takes it into some slightly submerged cover(trees, stumps, brush, etc) you think you're gonna get it out... then the line snaps and kerplunk... there it goes to spend its life rusting away at the bottom of the lake :x

 

[Big Al]

Even worse Pez, is on a windy day you cast your favorite lure, and the wind takes it like a kite up into a tree.

On a different note, on days the skunk is really bad, I try to pull out every obscure bait I have in the box (i.e. stuff I don't feel confident using) and pratice with it. You gain more confidence using them, or you catch somthing.

 

[Culprit]

I always say if u use it ur gonna lose it and if u dont use it, its not worth having

It`s only money, whenever I lose 1 I usually replace it with 2 lol

 

[pezdek1]

ya the kite into the tree dilemma always sucks. you cast and then you see it floatin and youre like "no no no no no... don't do it!!! Whack... and it's in the tree and it seems like it's slow motion as the lure proceeds to wrap itself around the branch 35 times... lol :lol: :lol:

 

[Gither03]

I always say if u use it ur gonna lose it and if u dont use it, its not worth having

It`s only money, whenever I lose 1 I usually replace it with 2 lol

I like your saying! It's so logical and correct.

 

[Augy]

has this ever happened to anyone else?

i go to tackle shop buy a brand new j-11 to throw at montrose for the kings. arrive at the water, open the shiny new rapala box and attach brand spankin new lure to snap swivel.

i cast and watch in horror as i realize my dumbass didn't snap the snap swivel closed. lure just keeps on flying farther into the unknown.

 

[Gither03]

Never happened to me before, but I can just imagine a bunch of halarious stories coming soon.

Here's another one to add to augys story:
The past weekend at shabbona I had my baitcast in hand and my spinning gear sitting beside me. Just put new spools of line on both rods and had new lures on both rods too. My 10th or so cast from the boat my lure hooks my spinning gear and I toss it into the lake, lost the lure on my line, and backlashed like never before(soo bad I had to cut through the spool of line 15 minutes into my attempt). All in all, because of ONE cast I lost 2 spools of line, 1real/rod combo, and 2 lures. I guess catching the next bass made it all worth it?

 

[pezdek1]

thats rough rofl sorry to laugh at your expense/loss of gear, but that's an absolute horrible day... honestly I'd probably drive the boat to the rental place or launch and leave for the day lmao..

 

[FishinMatt]

HaHa, heck yeah we replace it with more. I have enough X-Raps now to feed half the pike population out there. What gets to me more then anything is the Luckycrafts. Those get tough to replace, especially when you lose a couple in the same day