Elite

Hamner’s postspawn plastics tacklebox

Posted on
Photography by
Kyle Jessie
Photography by
Shane Durrance
The postspawn can be a challenging time to put bass in the boat, but Progressive Bassmaster Elite Series pro Justin Hamner has rotation of soft plastics that tend to get the job done.
“Most of the time during the postspawn, you’re going to be dealing with lazy fish,” said the Alabama pro. “When it comes to river situations, I’m going to be looking for the nastiest cover I can find like laydowns, matted vegetation or shad lines.”
“However, on clear bodies of water, the fish can act much differently, which is why I use such a wide variety of soft plastics during this time period.”
So many choices!
The 2024 Bassmaster Classic champion lays out a variety of soft plastics that he leans on during the postspawn.

Let’s dive into Hamner’s favorite soft plastics for this tricky time period!

NetBait Baitfuel BF Toad & BF Toad Jr.
“I love to catch them on a toad,” he said. “I really tend to throw this bait a lot around overhangs, bream beds and overall just burning down the bank with it.”
NetBait BaitFuel HexTek Eko Shad
“The Eko shad comes in a 3-inch size and a 4-inch size, but I typically throw the 4-inch in the postspawn,” said Hamner. “This bait has such a natural, subtle action that just gets bites.”
NetBait Prop Duster
Hamner shows off the 3.5-inch version compared to the 6.5-inch version of the Prop Duster.
“This is another great minnow-style bait,” he said. “When I’m fishing bodies of water that have bigger forage like gizzard shad, I’ll use the 6.5 but when I’m targeting fish that are keyed in on smaller baitfish like threadfin shad I’ll go to the 3.5.”
NetBait Prop Shot Worm
“This has become my new favorite Neko rigging bait,” said Hamner. “It’s also great on a drop shot, but for me it’s just an excellent worm that can be rigged a number of different ways.”
NetBait BaitFuel HexTek The Rascal Craw
“The Rascal is all about versatility for me,” he said. “Whether I’m flipping it on a Texas rig around shallow cover or using it as a jig trailer for a swim jig or a flipping jig, this bait gets bites.”
NetBait BaitFuel HexTek Eko Craw
“Punching matts in the postspawn can be a great way to catch a big one, and the Eko Craw is the perfect bait for punching,” said Hamner. “It’s got a smaller profile which allows the bait to come in and out of the cove with ease.”

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