Mantas

This is my first year throwing these baits. I am really diggin them so far. The Pike have been crushin these things with reckless abandon. Had one today that just about had the whole thing down its mouth. All I have to say is that I am VERY glad that I pinch the barbs on all of my hooks. A quick push with the pliers and the hooks popped right out and Mr. Pike was on his way. Didn't even have to cut any.

How are these baits for Musky? Seems too good to be true that this bait would kick butt for both Musky AND Pike. LOL

I love my manta but, I can't get the fish to eat it. I have only had one interested customer....... I think it is the color I will feel more confident with a natural color one right now I am throwing an orange w/black dots.

That 45-incher Tootyfisherman posted last week was caught boatside on a Manta. They work. They were almost discontinued last year because the company was going out of business, but I guess they sold it or something, so the Manta was saved. For a while they were selling on eBay for like $40 a piece.

They are a good bait. I have only been on them for 2 years and you will loose your share of fish on them as well. Try "T-ing" the trebles or even upsize the hooks for better connnection. Make sure you keep the "extra slack" out of your line on the pause. It is very easy to build up excess slack when pulling them with the current....keep your spool packed full of line to minimize the potential for excess slack. The more line floating on the surface (river applications) will not allow the bait to work like it was designed and will help you loose more fish.

Sometimes the fish will simply miss the bait, over and over again.

I had three fish miss a glider on Sturday. It wasn't a manta, though. That happens a lot. I'd say about half the hits I get on a glider either the fish miss or I mess up because get too excited when I see them hit and set the hook too early.

One fish this weekend torpedoed completely out of the water parralel to the surface like a dolphin and flew right over top of my bait about 1-2 feet above the surface of the water. It was pretty funny. You see some wierd things fishing gliders.

I've had fish throw a high wake all the way back to the boat and never hit.
I had a fish last year swim side to side, just like the glider, all the way back to the boat. See lots of acrobatic , arial misses also and I don't even cast that much. Gliders are fun (one of my favorite) and seem to work well in the cooler water periods.

That all sounds good to me, even the misses. :) At least it gets the blood going. The handful of Pike that I have landed on them hit well away from the boat. Thats another thing that I have really liked so far. I've had more hits/hook-ups than I have had follows. So far, only two follows that I noticed. But, we'll see how things go once I start finding the Musky.

I also agree that they are extremely fun to fish. They really seem to keep my focus since I have to try to keep up with any slack line. I like the fact that with a short hard snap, you can make that bait just about stay in place but glide back and forth. Very cool. These baits will be in heavy rotation for me this year.

I also have another glider that I think is called a Deviator from Savage Gear. Its got a great glide but a completely different profile than the Mantas. It sends out some serious flash coming through the water. I missed a couple of fish on it last Fall. Just hope the Musky like it as much as I do!! LOL

I do like the Mantas but got a bunch of fish on the Hellhounds. I work the manta a little slower then the Hellhounds. T the hooks like Ivan said and set the hook hard as soon as you feel them hit.

I picked up a couple of the Savage Gear "Freestylers" and they look good. They run a little shallower than the Phantoms. The rainbow and pikie colors are very nice.

Whats your thoughts on the Quality of the Savage Lures! I wasn't crazy about the hardware!

Brian

I have not thrown them enough to really know. We will see if the paint stays on them soon enough. The hooks/split rings seem ok.

My favorite DDD doesn't really have paint left on it, both eyes fell off.
It still catches fish and the one I throw the most even though I have new ones now to replace my ole' friend.
Who knows? The action or the color? Right place at the right time?
That's what keeps bring you back for more!

If you read any of the MH board, you'll see Jaime from customfish really put the savage gear lures to the test with a trip to great slave lake for trophy pike in June 08. Tons of fish caught on the 4-play and no broken baits.

Speaking of Manta's, they are not listed in the '09 Rollie's catalog. I know they are back in production because I was just on their site.

Hey Red,

We put up their new online catalog a few months back. Here is the link

http://www.riverruntackle.com/


Bob
Outdoor Network

one of my favorite big fish lures I think the key is you bang them hard the virbrations attracts big fish . you will lose some but at least your in the game . my best one has no paint also you must t the hooks Tom

I was looking at the video on their website and the mantas look to have great action that can work over a wide area quite well in a single pass. I think I'm going to have to order a couple.

my question is on rigging. in the video I don't see a leader (well the snap/swivel really), but I think the right weight balance in front of the bait is important to make sure it tracks level. do you rig them any different than any other bait (braid with flouro leader and crosslocks connecting everything?)

I recently upsized the hooks from the stock 7/0 to Mustad 3551 7/0..a little heavier and wider gap hooks. This change has made a noticeable difference in running depth (if that is what you desire)...probably added another 6-8 inches deeper in the column (if pulling with the current). The larger hook increases drag and weight plus a little extra gap space added and by T'ing the hooks, there is a greater chance of NOT missing fish, which is why I made the change in the first place.