Back Jigs and a couple of 7- foot , 6-inch heavy action flipping sticks . Full disclosure : Yes , my flipping sticks had Denny Brauer ’ s name on them .
I hadn ’ t even wet a Rattle Back yet , but just carrying the “ sticks ,” automatically gave me the poetic license to talk “ stick .” I ’ d bump into my buddies on the floor and I ’ d say , “ Here ’ s the deal , I ’ m just fishing for five big bites in the club tournaments this year .” Or , “ Yeah , well , I ’ m not going to get many bites , but when I do , they ’ ll be big ones .” When you carry Denny Brauer signature-edition flipping sticks around on the show floor , these words flow easily .
To be clear , jigs had been around for many years previous to the Lunker Lure Rattle Back . They were a staple in many angler ’ s tackle boxes and had a solid reputation as fish producers . Pitching and flipping was not exactly novel , either , but the loud clack in the Rattle Back was the new wrinkle that made this whole package a must-have .
The ingenious design of the Rattle Back featured a large , loud rattle chamber molded into the head of the jig , but it still left clearance for any kind of chunk , craw or bug you wanted to thread on as a trailer . When you shook the jig in midair , the rattle was loud ( and even louder underwater ). I know this because I used to snorkel down to the dark depths of 2 feet in lakes to see how far I could hear the rattle . The clack could be heard from 10 to 15 feet away , teasing fish for the entire circumference of a healthy willow or buck bush . The longer you left it in the cover and just shook it , the more efficiently bass could hunt it down and find it due to the clacking .
The aggression of the bite was “ full send .” Pitching a Rattle Back was like playing with electricity – when you got hit with a jolt , there was no question about it . I caught enough fish on a Rattle Back to understand the thrill of being thumped in shallow water cover . To boot , I even had the privilege of sharing a boat with Tommy Biffle during a BASS Invitational on Lake Eufaula in the mid- 1990s where I got to see a true short-string master at work . Biffle and I spent the day fully involved in a Rattleback clack and stack ( I did most of the clacking , he did most of the stacking ).
MEGA TUBES
Once flipping and pitching became a hot technique through the 90s , a lot of shallow-water cover throughout the country got pummeled by
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bass anglers of all skill levels . Bass eventually wised up to big , loud , bulky presentations and the dedicated flippers had to reach into their bag of tricks for a sneakier offering .
In order to downsize a flipping bait for a more subtle presentation , flipping experts in the Ozarks simply took a finesse staple – a 3-1 / 2-inch tube jig , or Gitzit – and began pitching it on heavier line into shallow cover . Once this little morsel was exposed nationally by pro angler Doug Garrett with his 1997 BASS Megabucks win , the flipping tube or “ mega tube ” was born . Beefed up to 4 inches , with additional thickness and toughness , the mega-tube flipping craze was on . Brauer would eventually push the flipping tube to universal bass fishing must-have status with his 1998 Bassmaster Classic win .
The flipping tube was often used with an offset EWG style hook or a Shaw Grigsby HP hook , a kahle-style hook that clipped to the head of the tube to keep it from “ balling up ” upon hookset . In the skilled hands of a flipping technician , the bait made a splash-less entry into the water that would earn a 9.9 in Olympic diving . Due to its hollow nature , the tube would often “ burp ” up a couple of air bubbles upon impact to the bottom , which added another subtle affect to the bait .
There were a few tricks guys imparted to the tube as well . The cavity allowed anglers to get creative with sweeteners such as small glass rattles and absorbent material that held scent .
The flipping tube was the first lure that opened my eyes to the real impacts of fishing pressure . I ’ ve had many anglers tell me the tube was literally magic when fishing
MAJORLEAGUEFISHING . COM | JUNE-JULY 2023