Berkley goes hard on Forward-thinking baits

Technology continues to move leaps and bounds all around us. Whether you’re talking about the vehicle you drive to the TV on your wall, many things that would be considered “Sci-Fi” decades ago now exist in our lives, in some ways making us think how we ever lived without this technology. The simple activity of fishing is no exception.

With the massive adoption of Forward-Facing Sonar (FFS) amongst anglers of all skill levels, the next puzzle left for fisherman using this technology is what in their tackle box can be used to entice the creatures that they are seeing on the screen. One thing that many FFS users found frustrating was that while they may have a lure that they see is getting the attention of the fish, they find that either they have worked the lure back to the boat before the fish could possibly commit and must make another cast or that they wished had a way to keep the lure working in front of the fish a bit longer. The mad scientists at Berkley have been hard at work in developing lures that stay in the strike zone and forward-facing sonar cone longer.

Berkley recently held a media event to launch and showcase their hard work at none other than the appropriate grounds of the NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. Having launched their first FFS-focused lure, the Berkley Power Switch, just a few months earlier, this event introduced 2 new hard baits; the Finisher and the Krej. Let’s take a look at what each bait brings to the FFS game.

The Berkley Finisher

The Finisher takes its inspiration from Northern anglers that used “glide baits” to entice fish. Not to be confused with big swimbaits, this category of lures is popular as both an open- and hard-water lure. With their slim bodies and heavy-for-their-size weight, these lures are made to fall rapidly and be fished vertically. The Finisher borrows these traits and adds more to make it a standout amongst the established.

Besides being able to fish it vertically, where you try to get a reaction strike due to the sink-rate, this bait also works great when fished horizontally. It can be fished on a straight retrieve, where it has subtle wiggle to it. This presentation worked so well that it triggered a fish to bite and hold on during the tank demonstration on the first cast reeling it back.

Similar to a jerkbait, this lure has great darting action. Its side-to-side motion was so much that you can almost get it to swim about 90 degrees to you before it does a 180 and turn the opposite direction. 

The Finisher comes in 3 sizes: a 2 inch weighing 1/3 oz, a 2.75 inch 1/2 ounce option and the final size being 3.5 inches and 3/4 ounce.

The Berkley Krej

Though the name may look like it came out of a fantasy book, it is merely the word jerk spelled backwards. 

Taking what was established with the Stunna jerkbait, the Krej almost turns things upside its head. 

With an upturned bill, upon first impression, you would think that it was an upside-down jerkbait. Upon closer inspection, you’ll notice that the line tie is located on the very tip of the bill whereas most traditional jerkbaits will have the line tie be on the nose of the lure. This line tie location helps with keeping the bait swimming in the right orientation.

Though it can be fished like a traditional jerkbait, one key characteristic unique to this hardbait that I recall only seeing in certain soft plastics is that it slides back to the fish. After a few jerks of the rod or turns of the reel, if you pause and give it some slack, the lure will back up and shimmy as it slowly sinks. Not only are you now keeping the lure in the strike zone longer, you may end up making contact with a fish that was aggressively chasing the lure before the lure backed up into it. I can definitely see this presentation coming in quite handy around docks.

The Krej does have a nose-up attitude in most presentations, which is possibly influenced by the bill design and angle. 

This lure is also designed to fish all parts of the water column, from the top to bottom, making it a versatile bait to have tied on at all times

The Krej is currently only available in one size; a 100 mm size weighing 1/2 oz.

The Next Step Forward

As part of a big push by Berkley to help anglers be effective in using Forward-Facing Sonar, the Power Switch, Finisher and Krej are just the tip of the iceberg from the brains at Spirit Lake, Iowa. As anglers try to get themselves dialed in to the electronics and what lures to use in the FFS game, the designers at Berkley are continuously hard at work, trying to find more ways to help you become better on the water. 

If you’re not a fan of FFS or have yet to make the jump to that technology, you might be thinking whether or not if these baits will have spot in your tackle box. I tell you that these offerings deserve consideration and should be a part of your lure lineup. The action that I witnessed from these lures ensured me that they are just as effective regardless if your head is down, looking at a screen or not. 

These lures should be in stores shelves soon as of this writing.