False bulging style of spinner with two # 8 Colorado blades that you can fairly easily burn or bulge over the weed tops. Even though this bait is 11” long and weighs 2.6 ounces, it handles and pulls like a much smaller bait. The Agitator- X is ideal from the mid- summer peak until late summer. The Avenger- X is A- Team’s answer to a big double bladed spinner. Everyone seems to have one now, but what sets the Avenger- X apart is that it doesn’t have # 10 Colorado blades like everyone else’s. A- Team has designed the Avenger- X around their custom # 12 high vortex Pounder blades that have all the flash, but not the pull of the Colorados. It is a large bait at 11” and 3.2 ounces, but pulls far easier than its competi-tion. If you are looking for a little more of a bite size snack to of-fer your poten-tial muskie guests, then look into the Avenger- X- JR. It is 8” long and weighs 2.5 ounc-es. It has one tie of marabou in-stead of two but still has the two big Pounder blades. A- Team’s most unique bait is the Assassin- X. It is a hybrid bucktail and spinnerbait all in one. What is really unique is that the # 8 Colorado blade on the bucktail part of the bait makes contact with the Pounder blade on the spinnerbait arm so you get vibra-tion from both blades plus the noise from blades bang-ing together. As an added benefit, the bait stutters and surges as the blades hit, then falter and then re- engage. All of A- Team’s baits are made on .051” stainless steel wire except the Assassin- X, which is made on .062” wire. The Assassin- X is 9” long and weighs 2.75 ounces. All A- Team baits feature curved point Eagle Claw 374 treble hooks in a 5/ 0 size and premium lure bodies. The only tip I can give you on all of A- Team’s baits is to shrink wrap the back hook so it doesn’t get tangled up in the marabou and tinsel. This will eliminate all wasted casts and missed fish.

False The Poe’s Havana Jack is the Giant Jackpot’s big brother. Coming in at 8.25” and 3.2 ounces, it is a big walk the dog topwa-ter. What separates it from its other magnum topwater competition is its ease of use. It works so easily that you can fish it on a fluorocarbon leader and an eight foot rod! Soft taps or gentle short pulls work best - if you hit it too hard you can actually overwork it. Just take it easy and let the bait do the work. Com-pared to its competition, the Havana is a joy to throw and is easy on the wrists, ten-nis elbow and/ or carpel tunnel. Like the original Giant Jackpot, the Havana Jack has a lot of lead in the back and allows you to make long, smooth, effortless casts. This bigger bait also sports large, stainless steel hardware. This is a big improvement over the original Giant Jackpot, and beginning in 2009, the Giant Jackpot will also be equipped with this bigger, beefier stainless steel hardware. Even though you can work the Havana Jack on a long rod and fluorocarbon leader, I find it works best on a single strand wire leader and a 6’ 8” to 6’ 10” jerkbait rod. My only suggestion with the Havana is to upsize the hooks. They come with 5/ 0 trebles, but for a bait this big I would recommend bumping up the hooks to Mustad 3551 treble hooks in a 7/ 0 size for better hooking and holding percentages. The Havana Jack comes in most of the classic Giant Jackpot colors and some of the newer ones like jailbird, hangover, black magic and flame black spot. All of A- Team’s baits and the new Poe’s Havana Jack were de-signed by Bob Mehsikomer. You might have noticed a theme as you read along: baits are easier pulling, easier casting and easier to work. So the question is this. Is Bob thinking about you, is he getting lazy, or is he just getting old? Just kidding, Bob! Any time you can get a lure that is just plain easy to use, it makes your time on the water more enjoyable and less fatigu-ing. Alright, time to wrap this up. Supper is over with and sunset is coming. Time to get serious and stick a big fish. The lake is glass calm and just crying for a slow moving topwater like a Ha-vana. The water temps have just barely broken 70° F as this year has been a very cool one and slow to warm up. The night bite is just kicking into full swing right now. Time to go. See you next month! The ALL NEW Poe’s Havana Jack, Jackpot