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G-Ratt's Signature Glidebait, only
Smaller. Match the Hatch with the Pistol Pete
(continued)
 The Pistol Pete also
weighs only half of
the Sneaky at only
1.2oz. and fishing
the smaller bait
with just about any
swimbait rod feels
like overkill. You
can cast this bait
very easily with
traditional casting
rods, and I actually
found that rods
designed for fishing
bladed jigs and
jerkbaits suited the
Pistol particularly well,
and made it not only
easier to cast with
a simple one handed
swing or roll, but
also gave me some
extra dexterity in
which to bring the
lure to life.
Once in the water
the Pistol Pete also
fishes a little
differently than the
Sneaky Pete. While
it is a miniaturized
version I found the
action to be a
little tighter, and
it is a little
easier to get the
bait to dart
erratically with rod
twitches because it
displaces less
water.
I also found it very
easy to cast the
Pistol accurately or
into tight spaces
around timber
Over the course of
the last season and
a half I tried many
different setups and
retrieves and
ultimately found I
liked fishing this
bait best with
straight mono in the
Spring and Summer,
and fluorocarbon in
the Fall to help get
the bait down a
little quicker. The
downside of this
setup is not having
the strength and raw
muscle of using
straight braid, but
with the Pistol Pete
I think the added
stealth is sometimes
worth the tradeoff
as this lure can be fished
with more finesse
than its larger
sibling.
Don't sleep on the
Baby Bass pattern. I
found it very
effective a month
after the spawn
Using a larger
swimbait like the
Sneaky Pete acts as
a natural culling
mechanism at times,
with the smaller
fish less willing to
take on the more
substantial prey.
However if you fish
swimbaits long
enough you have no
doubt been surprised
at the dinks that
you will sometimes
hook with big baits.
Bass are incredibly
aggressive and never
cease to amaze me by
what they are
willing to attempt
to eat. The same is
true about the
Pistol Pete. While
the average size of
the fish I caught
were smaller I did
catch some really
nice fish over the
season up to 6lbs.
with this bait as
well. There are some
times, like a month
after the spawn,
where the fish were
just more keyed in
on smaller baitfish.
It is in situations
like this where the
Pistol better
matches the hatch,
and can be even more
effective at not
just drawing more
fish, but also
converting larger
ones as well.
Similarly to the
full sized Sneaky
Pete I found the
Pistol to be best
fished at slow to
moderate speeds.
There are times when
fishing the bait
fast is the ticket,
but due to the slow
sink rate this was
usually during the
hottest months when
the fish were
actively feeding on
the surface.
Once again proving
the moniker that
small baits catch
big fish the Pistol
Pete delivered some
quality largemouth
for me
Price and
Applications:
One of the added
benefits of going to
mass production on
baits like the
Sneaky and Pistol
Pete is the ability
to offer many more
patterns. There are
14 different
patterns available
in both sizes, and
they range from
semi-translucent to
multiple fully
painted up trout
patterns. The Ayu
and Bone patterns
were some of my
favorite, but don't
sleep on the Baby
Bass either. The
Baby bass is a
pattern where the
Pistol Pete easily
outperformed its
larger sibling, and
it seemed like bass
were eager to
cannibalize these
smaller baits
throughout the
Summer.
The tail can be
replaced if damaged
or simply swapped
for a different
color to mix things
up
Retailing for $19.99
the Pistol Pete is
reasonably priced,
and even cheaper
than some premium
jerkbaits and large
crankbaits. I had
one Sneaky Pete
where a seam opened
up the lure flooded,
but never
experienced a single
Pistol failure. I
did observe more
hook rash on the
patterns opaque
patterns but that
comes with the
territory for most
swimbaits, and
didn't impact
performance. The
fish certainly
didn't seem to care,
and often times my
swimbaits that are
the most chewed up
seem to perform the
best. Overall the
G-Ratt baits are
built pretty tough,
and the hardware on
the Pistol Pete is
also decent. The
generic trebles have
also held up well,
but mostly because
they are mounted on
a rotating swivel
which helps reduce
torque and did to a
good job keeping
fish pinned during
battles.
The Pistol Pete is a
nice option when
there are a lot of
baitfish in the
water, or you simply
need a break from
slinging the big
stuff all day long
On many swimbaits
the rubber tail is
the weakest point of
the bait, but I've
found the rubber
semi-rigid tails on
G-Ratt swimbaits to
be pretty durable. I
haven't had a single
one tear but the
company does offer
replacements for
$6.49. What I like
about this is the
option to switch out
colors if you want
to better match the
hatch, or simply
give your bait a
little more pop in
stained water.
Ratings:
(We've
re-calibrated our
ratings standard for
2008 and have
included a key at
the bottom of the
following matrix as
a guide):
|
G-Ratt
Pistol
Pete
Swimbait
Ratings
(?/10)
|
|
Construction/Quality |
If you
have one
of the
original
Sneaky
Pete
resin
baits
you will
want to
hold on
to it as
they
still
have the
undeniable
look and
feel of
custom
baits
that we
love.
The
Pistol
Pete
does
seem
pretty
solid
for an
injected
bait and
the new
finishes
are more
detailed
and
diverse.
The
finishes
do rash
up after
use
(more so
on the
larger
Sneaky
Pete
baits)
but this
didn't
seem to
impact
performance.
Overall
build is
"good"
but does
exhibit
that
mass
produced
feel
|
7.5 |
|
Performance |
There
are
times
when a
smaller
swimbait
like the
Pistol
can
actually
outperform
a full
sized
big
bait.
The
Pistol
is a
great
option
for
times
when
there
are a
lot of
baitfish
in the
water
and
while
this
bait is
good for
catching
numbers
don't
count it
out as
it
certainly
is
capable
of
producing
giants |
8 |
|
Price |
Retailing
for only
$19.99
the
Pistol
is a
great
overall
value |
8.5 |
|
Features |
These
baits do
a good
job
channeling
the
original
and
making
the
design
available
in a
smaller
size.
The
variety
of
finishes
are
great
but not
as
detailed
as some
competing
offerings.
The
hardware
on the
bait is
also
good,
and the
rotating
hook
hangers
are a
great
addition,
and I
like the
ability
to swap
out
tails |
8.2 |
|
Design
(Ergonomics) |
So light
and easy
to fish
that it
doesn't
even
feel
like
your
fishing
a
swimbait
at
times. I
found
the
Pistol
Pete so
light
that I
had to
remind
myself
to slow
down on
retrieves
at times
but it
is easy
to bring
the bait
to life
with a
few
light
rod
twitches.
Overall
much
less
intimidating
to fish
than the
vast
majority
of
swimbaits |
8 |
|
Application |
Sometimes
a
smaller
bait
better
matches
the
hatch.
The
Pistol
is a
good
finesse
swimbait
and is
not only
great
for
largemouth
but
particularly
well
suited
for
smallies
as well.
One
thing
that
would be
great to
see is a
faster
sinking
model to
aid with
getting
deeper,
or more
aggressive
retrieves |
8 |
|
Total
Score
|
8.03 |
Ratings
Key:
1 =
terrible
: 2 =
poor : 3
=
lacking
: 4 =
sub par
: 5 =
mediocre
: 6 =
fair : 7
= good :
8 =
great :
9 =
excellent
: 10 =
unbelievable!
For More
Details
of the
updated
rating
system
visit
our
explanation
here |
Pluses and Minuses:
Plus |
Minus |
|
+ The proven
design of
the Sneaky
in a more
compact form
factor |
- Finishes
will rash
up, but
performance
was
unaffected |
|
+ Easy to
cast and
fish, just
have to
remember to
slow down
retrieves |
- Wish there
were more
sink rates
available |
|
+ Many great
patterns to
pick from to
match the
hatch |
|
|
+ Great for
targeting a
variety of
fish |
|
|
+ Reasonable
price for a
quality bait |
|
Conclusion:
Swimbait anglers
love leaning back
and sending those
giant baits. I
personally relish
bombing glides with
the hope of a giant
rising up for an
explosive strike.
Putting one of those
baits down and
opting for a
swimbait as small as
the Pistol Pete just
seems
counterintuitive at
times. This bait is
simply too "cute" to
do any real damage!
The Pistol Pete is a
"cute" bait that I
absolutely learned
to respect as it
delivered quality
fish and there were
just times where the
bass wanted smaller
baits and I was able
to finesse the glide
a but more to draw
strikes
Over the past year I
have caught quite my
share of dinks on
the Pistol Pete but
there are also days
when I not only got
more bites, but the
bait delivered more
quality fish than
larger, and much
more expensive
custom swimbaits.
The ability to match
the hatch, or simply
serve up easy prey
when the bass just
want something
smaller, is the key
to this bait. It may
be cute but it is
every bit as deadly
as its Sneaky
sibling, and is
worth having in the
arsenal simply for
the adaptability.
Sometimes the little
bait really does get
the big fish.
Looking for the G-Ratt Baits Sneaky
Pete and Pistol Pete Glide Baits?
Try
Tackle Warehouse
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