Completing The Tackle Box - What Molds To Get Next?

[mainbutter]

Most of my fishing to this point in my life has mostly been using hard lures (cranks and spinners pretty exclusively).

Part of my future fishing plan is to further explore using soft plastics, since until last year they haven't been part of my tackle box except for the odd jig and grub.

I just started pouring this winter, and my current molds consist of a few paddletail swimbait styles and senkos.

I fish Minnesota waters, mostly close to Minneapolis. I am an all species fisherman. What types of soft plastic lures would you suggest I look at getting or making my own molds for next? What fishing situations do you like these lures for?

Thanks for any suggestions!

[FISHGOD]

I dont know what will work for your style fishing, but I send Grubs and Tubes home with a Viking buddy that visits and he kills them by fishing them off the bottom on regular jigheads. The 4" grub and the 3" tube is what he prefers for smallies and something called a Walleye... I got a few extras... pm me

[Richard Prager]

I'd go with a topwater buzzing frog. I send a lot of those out your way and Wisconsin also. Those toothy creatures you have up there will crush them as well. You can also fish them on the bottom on a jig head and pour them a little soft to twitch them under the surface. Multi function, multi species and nothing beats watching them hit a topwater bait!

[BBK]

Beaver type mold, ie; Kodiak Craw, Mud Bug

I fish over by st. cloud every year and have had FANTASTIC success flipping baits.

[mainbutter]

Beaver type mold, ie; Kodiak Craw, Mud Bug

I fish over by st. cloud every year and have had FANTASTIC success flipping baits.

Great suggestions so far, I'm definitely giving serious consideration to all of them.

As to my fishing style, the only way I can describe it is: constantly changing.

I'm going to be doing 90% of my fishing out of a canoe. I have only seriously picked up fishing as a hobby recently over the past two years. Before that it was just a treat to go fishing with dad maybe one or two weeks a year.

What I'm trying to do now is branch out from a one or two dimensional fisherman with only a handful of techniques at my disposal to being as diverse as possible, which is why I'm looking for other directions to go in

A few follow up questions to the replies so far:

How do you fish beaver-style baits?

Does anyone have a favorite hand-poured buzzing frog mold?

Keep the suggestions coming! Thanks!

[BBK]

How do you fish beaver-style baits?

Does anyone have a favorite hand-poured buzzing frog mold?

Texas Rig it with a pegged 1/4 or 1/2 oz bullet weight. Flip it around brush piles and in the pockets of weeds.

Bears as a nice buzz frog mold. I think the 3.5" is $44 and the 4" is $52.

[t-billy]

3.5"- 4.5" swimbaits have become must have lures for me over the past year. They're extremely versatile and they'll nearly always put some fish in the boat. I've caught everything from big crappie to musky on them. The more time I spend with them the more uses I find for them. Plus they're easy to pour. I also consider sticks,craws,tubes,and worms essential if not as versatile. Thankfully pop is cheap and makes great molds. I too recently started pouring,and I've gone through a pile of it with no end in sight.

[wildtail97]

Im in Alexandria, MN I use so many topwater frogs up its sad! Except that I make them so not too sad, And the jig trailers are a must up here. The lakes around the cities are the same, lots of jiggin, and wormin too. But I love the topwater, I would suggest that when your ready! Cant wait for the spring bite! Its too cold out here!

Good Luck!!