Drawing Power cont'd: I should note after a season and change fishing a variety of topwater rats, I'm still not convinced that knocking sound makes much difference to the fish. I think a lot of the drawing power of a topwater rat has more to do with the amount of water the bait moves. It's my belief the vibrations sent through the water from that type of disturbance has a greater effect stimulating the fish's lateral line than does the knocking sound. Baits like the PB Rat and LitRat are sloshers with little to no knocking sound yet can be every bit as effective.

Stock hooks are Owner ST-36

Our Editor-in-chief, Zander, has a different view and feels that in many conditions, like when the water is glass or on a calm night, that the knock a rat exhibits can make a huge difference. For example in these conditions he likes working rats slowly, or even twitched or walked, to maximize the knocking noise and vibration in an effort to draw interest to the bait. He will often choose a wooden rat for these still water conditions and a resin bait which can be retrieved faster on a crankdown, due to higher float characteristics, when there is a ripple on the water. I will say that the amount of confidence a wake bait that knocks instills in me is undeniable. That sound just makes it easier to concentrate and find that right cadence in your retrieve to induce a strike. Like I said earlier, the knock inspires confidence.

Ears are molded into the bait with rounded edges - nothing to accidentally catch your line

Vitality: The Rumble Rat is a stout bait made with quality components. Aside from normal hook rash, my bait showed no evidence of premature breakdown. The tail is vulnerable to damage, of course, but Stray Rats includes spares with each bait and if you're a respectable rat fisherman, you already know to have a bag of Zoom Trick Worms in your preferred color on standby. Although for this bait, you'd probably want to go with the magnum sized option.

Other than the normal hook rash, this bait has held up extremely well

Bait Detail : A feature and dimension breakdown of the Stray Rats Rumble Rat as detailed by our Swimbait SkunkWerx division

Price & Availability: Stray Rats Swimbait Co. retails the Rumble Rat for $145. Quite reasonable considering the size of this bait. Availability is planned with drops announced through their social media pages and actual transactions conducted through their website. They are not accepting pre-orders at this time, nor are there any waiting lists as far as we can tell. Be advised, product disappears quickly during each drop. I'm talking within seconds. Failing that, possibilities always exist through the secondary barter and sell market, but that strategy poses its own risks.

Though these baits are hard to procure they are quality fish catchers and worth the effort to land one. Zander has been on the hunt for both the Rumble Rat and the smaller Rocker Rat (5" and 10.5" with tail) for over a year and regularly fishes the Stray Rats wake and crankdown gill called the Gilliath 2. Like the Rumble Rat the Gilliath is also made of resin and exhibits a pretty loud clack when waked on the surface.

Ratings:

Pluses and Minuses:

Conclusion: If you've had the desire, but lacked the fortitude to throw and fish baits in the classification of a true "big bait," a good place to start that journey is with a topwater bait. The ability to see the lure working and how aggressive (and even sometimes subtle) those strikes are when they come (and they will come) serve to build confidence. This is part of the allure of rat baits though honestly, most are pretty pedestrian in terms of actual size. The Rumble Rat by Stray Rats Swimbait Company is anything but pedestrian. It requires some stout gear to cast and fish but the bites are thrilling because, due to its size, each and every explosion carries with it that anticipation of a big fish. This is what makes big bait fishing so fun - the possibility the fish at the end of the line is going to be HUGE.

If a true heavy weight happens to be lurking below, I have every confidence this rat will trigger it to rumble

Honestly, I'm happy if a fish is about three pounds or over, because a fish that size makes for a good photo op. Bigger is always more fulfilling, but it's not what fuels my preference for throwing big baits. That drive comes from the simple desire to stop catching fish that don't qualify for a Major League Fishing leader board update. Don't get me wrong, it still happens. There are times that aggressive bluegill will even hit a big bait - one that's larger than they are! But the instances are fewer and farther between. The Rumble Rat's size carries this auto-cull action to the top. If a fish hits the bait and can't bring it down, it's simply not worthy. But if a true heavy weight happens to be lurking below, I have every confidence this rat will trigger it to rumble.

Ready to Rumble with the Stray Rats Rumble Rat?

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