Sarley: The next big thing in fishing lures is already here, if you can find it

It always seems that a new and innovative fishing lure comes on the market and quickly sells out. The word spreads like wildfire and before you know it, the lures are available from secondary market vendors like E-Bay at astronomical prices.

I remember when I was a kid that Rapala balsa wood minnows came out and took the walleye fishing world by storm. My dad went and stood in line at a Lac du Flambeau tackle shop while we were on vacation, in hopes of grabbing a couple of the magic baits.

Musky fishermen always seem to have a hot new bait every year that is hard to fine. I was going to Canada with Spence Petros one year and the day before our departure, he told me to get in my car and head to the Bass Pro in Hammond, Indiana. He said they were holding the only two DC-10 lures in the state.

DC-10 stood for “Double Cowgirl,” a giant musky bait that provoked a lot of strikes. I picked up the baits and we headed to northwest Ontario. When we arrived, I tied one on, quite anxiously. I heaved a cast as far as I could throw it, but the bait kept flying on and on. It seemed that I didn’t close the clip on the leader and the lure was never really attached. You wouldn’t believe the chewing out I got for that.

Today’s hot bait looks like a sea urchin. I know there aren’t any sea urchins in our lakes, but these new baits are the hottest things on the market. The baits look like a round ball of plastic with a number of long, wiggly soft spikes that protrude from the center of the bait. This style of bait is referred to as urchins, coikes and Berkley’s is called the Moeba. Coike is the Japanese name for this bait.

The baits are meant to be used to look for fish on or near the bottom. The lure sinks on its own and wiggles and undulates all by itself. It seems incredibly easy to work. All of the pros have their own ways of rigging these baits. You can use them wacky style, as a drop shot, on a jig or other ways. Whether you use treble hooks, four hook rigs, number one, two, three or four wide gap hooks is up to you. Experimentation is the key.

I stopped at the Bass Pro store in Bolingbrook to ask about these baits and was told that they didn’t have any in stock. The clerk told me that there were about 20 brands of these baits being made, but all of them were sold out.

I asked the BPS clerk when a new supply would be coming in and he said he didn’t know, but they’d be sold out within minutes if they came in. He told me that he didn’t think these baits were worth the effort. I asked him why and he responded, “Sure they catch fish, but the fish will get used to them and will tire of them in three or four years.” I’ll take my chances with three or four years of fish catching and look for something new at a later date.

Even with all my fishing contacts, I can’t get my hands on any baits of this style. I know that my bait of choice here will be the Berkley Moeba. Berkley’s reputation for quality, strength and flexibility cannot be compared. Add Berkley’s MaxScent fish attracting aroma to the Moeba and I am sure this is a winner. I’ll let you know when I finally get my hands on some.

• Daily Herald Outdoors columnist Steve Sarley can be reached at sarfishing@yahoo.com.