Inshore saltwater guides and tackle retailers talk Z-Man® PrawnstarZ™ and what makes it popa
Fresh—and we mean fresh— off the menu, the ElaZtech® empowered PrawnstarZ had just won Z-Man’s third consecutive ICAST award for Best Saltwater Soft Lure when the posts and fishing reports started rolling in. Even before it hit (and quickly vanished from) baitshop shelves, the new snackable shrimp cocktail had already juiced more appetites than an Old Bay seafood boil.
Just down the road from the Orlando based angling expo, Captain Honson Lau gave a resounding thumbs-up, live from the Florida Everglades, speaking to the PrawnstarZ’ astonishing endurance: “Right off, I couldn’t believe the durability of this soft, segmented shrimp bait—totally capable of getting bit dozens of times without even showing battle scars. So, yeah, the bait is virtually indestructible. At the same time, the PrawnstarZ’ stout hook easily handles all the pressure from a bull redfish or a very large tarpon. The thing’s that tough, which is crazy considering the fragile nature of most artificial shrimp baits today.
“What’s also cool is that the PrawnstarZ’ ElaZtech body lets me insert a DIY mono weed guard into the bait, extending its versatility to fishing potholes on sticky grass flats. Without question, the PrawnstarZ has already become a staple in my Everglades tackle bag”.
Legendary South Carolina inshore guide, Captain Ralph Phillips, who’s fished every shrimp bait in existence, weighed in with recent success stories: “This bait is a true performer. Everywhere I’ve fished the past several weeks, the PrawnstarZ has been the hands-down winner for good numbers and impressive sized redfish, trout and flounder.
“And just to make sure it wasn’t all a fluke, I recently returned to these same areas with different baits. The PrawnstarZ continued out-fishing its competitors to the tune of four-to-one.
“The bait’s even been eaten by some big brackish water catfish—and I plan to cast it for largemouth bass in these same areas next. When every species eats, you know you’ve got a great bait tied on.”
Captain Stephen Flook, a full-time fishing guide from coastal McClellanville, South Carolina, fished the PrawnstarZ side-by-side with live crustaceans for the ultimate soft plastics test. “We’ve been on an unbelievable bite with the new Z-Man PrawnstarZ! On one recent half day charter, the bait produced 75 fish. We ‘slammed out,’ catching big redfish, seatrout, black drum and flounder, all on the same bait
“We even pitted the PrawnstarZ against live shrimp under popping corks and it still went fish-for-fish versus the real deal, including our biggest redfish of the day. From Virginia to Texas—as well as overseas in Australia—this bait is destined for greatness and countless smiles from anglers everywhere.”
All the way down where the Mighty Mississippi meats the Gulf of Mexico, Captain Eric Newman is putting clients on epic sight bites for bull reds crunching on crustaceans. “We brought back two baits from ICAST, which Z-Man designer Jose Chavez gave us and told us to protect like pets,” recalls Newman, co-owner of Venice, Louisiana’s classy Journey South Outfitters.
“First trips back on the Delta, we put the PrawnstarZ in front of bull redfish chewing on popping white and brown shrimp and were hooked up nonstop—shrimp sizzling and birds diving everywhere. We put it under popping corks and caught big seatrout, too. Didn’t matter.
“Biggest thing we noticed, beyond the bait’s uncanny realism and movement was the PrawnstarZ’ incredible durability. Until now, all soft plastic shrimp baits just fell apart after a few bites. The resilient new ElaZtech bait is going to completely change the perception and practice of tossing shrimp imitations for big selective predators. Like, we’re catching dozens or more big redfish on a single PrawnstarZ. That’s crazy stuff.
Newman continues: “Coming in to fall and winter, our trout and redfish key almost single-mindedly on shrimp. And with so many spot-on color phases, particularly patterns like Golden Boy, Brown Shrimp or the classic Cajun Cricket, we’ll be outfitted to match every water clarity and condition.
Dave Fladd, an exceptional inshore angler and co-owner of Eye Strike Fishing, filed another impressive PrawnstarZ report: “Ever since all the buzz surrounding Z-Man’s ICAST win, we’ve been stoked to fish the PrawnstarZ ourselves and find out if the hype matched its on-water performance. We were lucky to be among the first retail shops to carry the new shrimp bait, and the sales have been hot.
“In the meantime, we’ve had several great days casting the PrawnstarZ for everything that feeds on shrimp, which is pretty much every fish that swims. We’ve caught countless big flounder up to 21-inches and back-to-back 27- and 29-inch redfish.
“In the water, the bait sits and swims exactly like a live shrimp. But the PrawnstarZ’ appeal is way past skin deep. It’s the toughest shrimp bait ever made. And, the weight distribution and sink rates are dead-on. So you can retrieve the PrawnstarZ almost any way you want—slow crawl and swim to quick pops of the rod tip. Or, don’t work it at all. Just let the bait flutter naturally on a semi-slack line and wait for that hard thump. It’s just an amazing bait that’s easy for anyone to fish, and that builds confidence with every bite.”
Impersonating the most prolific inshore saltwater snack, the 10X Tough ElaZtech PrawnstarZ is hitting fishing retail outlets now. Each lure is armed with wicked sharp, 2X Strong Mustad® UltraPoint® hooks–2/0 (3.5” size) / 5/0 5” size). Twelve super vivid, hand-painted color apps match every water clarity and shrimp color phase, coast to coast. Available in 3.5”, 3/16-ounce (2 per pack) and 5”, 1/2-ounce (1 per pack) sizes, MSRP $8.99.
About Z-Man Fishing Products: A dynamic Charleston, South Carolina based company, Z-Man Fishing Products has melded leading edge fishing tackle with technology for nearly three decades. Creator of the Original ChatterBait®, Z-Man is also the renowned innovators of 10X Tough ElaZtech® superplastics, among the most coveted baits in fresh- and saltwater. Z-Man is one of the fastest-growing lure brands worldwide.
