Introduction: Few baits are as fun to fish and carry with them, that big fish potential as much as a jerkbait. The exhilarating discovery of a fish at the end of your line after a few successive jerks is nothing short of addicting. Is it any wonder this technique remains among the favorites of the TackleTour editorial staff? Surprisingly enough we've been remiss to investigate and review perhaps one of the most popular jerkbaits out there today. That is, until now. Introducing our review of the Lucky Craft Staysee 90SP jerkbait.
 

 
The Field Tests: Spring 2007 has been a banner jerkbait season for the TackleTour Staff. It's been tough getting through all our other test gear because as soon as one of us on the boat catches a jerkbait fish, the others follow suit. To say we are addicted to this technique is an understatement. With that said, I had the Lucky Craft Staysee 90SP tied on one of two rigs this season: a custom Shikari PMB703 SHX built by Matt Davis of Otterods and a Daiwa Steez STZ671MHFBA. The Staysee is fabulous on both of these high end sticks.

Casting: Typical of Lucky Craft's other jerkbaits, the Staysee is as easy to cast as they come. The internal bearings that shift about during each cast and subsequent retrieve do their job well enabling effortless and accurate casts even in good cross and headwinds. After all, if you can't cast a good sized jerkbait in windy conditions, you might as well throw it away. No need to throw the Staysee anywhere but at your intended target.

Retrieve: The Staysee features classic Lucky Craft movement. Perhaps even more than the Pointer series. Witnessed in the clear, early spring waters of Clear Lake, California, we could see the Staysee doing almost a tail slap type of dance as it dashed from side to side on successive jerks. Pause your presentation and the Staysee stops, almost cold, suspended in the water column with a nose down position poised and ready to go.
 

Application: I fished the Staysee over shallow flats and in and around dock pilings. The flats we were fishing were approximately four to six feet in depth and occasionally, I could feel the Staysee digging into the bottom during my retrieve. With its rating running depth of eight to ten feet, however, I should have felt this sensation on every single cast. I suspect the actual running dept of this bait is more like six to eight feet rather than eight to ten, but I suppose that's just splitting hairs.

Durability: I switched colors and baits so often while fishing my Staysees, I didn't really give a single bait the opportunity to get beat up. I took it for granted that they would exhibit classic Lucky Craft durability and nothing in my three months with this bait would lead me to believe otherwise. I do have one Staysee in Aurora Black that has some scuffs and scratches as that seems to be my most consistent producing color, but nothing extraordinary. Its wear patterns are very much inline with my LV500 MAX and Pointer 100SP's in the same finish.

Effectiveness: I had great success with this bait fished in water anywhere from six feet deep and more. Dock pilings, weedbeds, tule islands, rocky bluffs, you name it, and I was able to find and hook up both largemouth and spotted bass with this lure. The triple crown still eludes me with this particular bait, but it's only a matter of time. The Staysee is effective in a variety of cover situations.

Ratings:

  
Pluses and Minuses:

Conclusion: If there is one bait that sits atop the Lucky Craft jerkbait list in terms of popularity, it could very well be the Staysee. On the surface, there's nothing really to set this bait apart from the Pointer 100SP or DD. It is smaller both in length and girth to those baits, but in the water, it performs a tail wagging and slapping dance that attracts the bass to strike and strike it hard. If the shallow running jerkbaits are not producing hits, go a little deeper by tying on a Staysee and you may find, like I did, that this bait is worthy of our Editor's Choice Award!