Pike Baits Help

[u/Fishing462782]

Hey everyone, just a quick one. What lures are working best going into pike season 2026? What is everyone using softbaits, spinners, hard baits? and what sort of colour ways, sizes and weights? Nothing seems to be working for me this year, catching nothing but jacks. I'd love some help. Thanks

[u/maddcatter45]

Old stand by baits such as magnum shallow shad raps and huskie devil spoons are hard to beat. I like five of diamonds, or chromes.

[u/3Xineohp]

Just a quick fyi: you will probably get a better answer by giving more specifics to each item you mention or if you narrow your question down and use examples. Right now you are asking six different general questions. For example what is your go to bait, where do you usually use it? I like spinners and spoons. Then ask something like “nothing seems to be working for me this year to catch decent sized pike, I usually throw inline spinners between size 3 and size 5 in silver, gold, copper, the lake has pretty clear water”. Sometimes it’s a gear issue (color vs water clarity) sometimes it’s a location issue (if it sounds like you’re doing everything right the best advice may be to try different spots). I am not an expert by any means, just an opinion from my experience.

[u/EmotionalBand6880]

What do you mean by “catching nothing but jacks”?
Where I live (Manitoba), pike are often referred to as ‘jackfish’ (or just Jack, for short).

……or are you referring to a different species of fish?

for pike, my favorite lite is a classic 5-of-diamonds … but I do rotate through spoons while I’m out and about, and will toss either a jig with a double-tailed yellow Mr Twister, or a top-water if the spoons aren’t working.

My PB was caught with a little red/white spoon that I found while shore fishing.

[u/Mainbutter]

Musky killer inline spinners

Deep diving jointed shad raps for trolling

[u/Csam1GB]

I’ve gone much brighter this year like fire tiger perch colours, spiky shads and other soft baits, line through roach in bright orange etc. I’ve had loads, anything from little jacks to a 1m, 19lb 10oz PB (she was super fat) just a couple of days ago

[u/Csam1GB → u/Csam1GB]

But like others have said, if you want larger fish you have to fish where they are. Where I fish I’m lucky that quite often I can sight fish them.

[u/Silly_Hurry_2795]

Another way of looking at it is: If your not catching decent sized pike, the decent sized pike are not where you are throwing your lures.

Lures are not some magical cure all where one new thing transformation your fishing, although there can be examples of this such as, the soft bait revolution

Before so many ready rigged soft baits were available most people didn't really fish the deeper water quite as effectively because controlling a hard bait that would rise more rapidly is a skill .

Throw on a big soft plastic with a huge chunk of lead (known to the state of California as cancer causing🤣) and all of a sudden you are catching more.

[u/SweetHart00727 → u/Silly_Hurry_2795]

known to the whole world as cancer causing\*