Tough as HerculeZ – By Dan Kaggelis
Z Man’s reputation for developing quality, tough, fish catching soft plastics is well known not only in Australia but across the world. Its hard to find an underperformer across their entire range with some plastics like the swimmer, diesel minnow and frog range having an almost cult like following amongst anglers. Every time a new Z Man plastic hits the shelves I find myself wondering if this one’s going to live up to the high standards anglers have come to expect. So when I heard the news that Z Man were releasing a pre rigged paddle tail style soft plastic I was very interested to see how it would play out. Let’s face it, pre-rigged paddle tail style soft plastics would have to be one of or the most common type of soft plastic on the market. Just about every brand you have heard of and most you haven’t heard of have at some stage released a pre-rigged paddle tail and the vast majority have been pretty ordinary. Apart from the exceptions such as the Squidgy Slick Rig and the more recent Molix Swimbait, there haven’t been too many standouts which have made a name for themselves. In fact, many have come and gone unnoticed due to their lack of originality and innovation. So, for me this was going to be one of the biggest challenges yet for Z Man as it is in every aspect a hard pattern to crack.
The jacks have absolutely been belting the 5 inch models with the help of a size 1 stinger treble.
So, what makes a good pre-rig swim bait and how does Zman’s latest offering – the HerculeZ Swimbait match up to this? Well let’s start with the design. One of the biggest issues with common pre-rigged swimbaits is they have a slender almost flat profile. This is mostly to enhance the tail beat of the plastic which is the main attraction of the profile. However, the more successful swim baits all have one thing in common and that’s a wide rounded barrel body profile. What this brings to the plastics action is a wide rolling action which gives off a tonne of attraction and gives off a wounded bait fish effect. Take a look at the roll of some of the better swim baits like the Molix or Slick Rig and you will understand what I am on about. This can be difficult to engineer in a pre-rig swim bait because getting the lure roll evenly can be difficult and if it is unbalanced it can ruin the lures action completely. Imagine rigging your own plastic on a jig head and not getting it perfectly aligned. The lure loses so much of its effectiveness, especially its roll. One of the first things I noticed about the Zman HerculeZ was its wide barrel body starting from the nose of the plastic right to the start of the tail. With a high toe point connection this creates an awesome side to side exaggerated roll which greatly enhances the action of the lure. From the moment you cast it and begin a slow roll back to the boat you will notice it straight away and most importantly it works even better at a super slow or burn retrieve. Some plastics require you to work the lure at a certain speed to achieve this action but not the HerculeZ.
The HerculeZ is definitely going to be a big barra favourite.
Whilst the plastics roll makes the grade so does its other major feature – its swim bait tail. It’s no secret that the best swim baits have the best tail beats and the HerculeZ is no different. The lures tail though is not the same as your typical out of the packet swim bait and its sculpted curved tail provides a huge amount of attraction at both fast and super slow speeds. If you want to test the effectiveness of any swim baits tail cast it into the water and let it sink. If the tail does not beat on the drop you can pretty much call it for a dud straight up. You really need that tail moving with little to no retrieve at all and the HerculeZ has this in spades. I’ve retrieved this lure on my 4:1 bait caster which is as slow as an old Datsun 120Y in terms of retrieve speeds and its tail works incredibly well. If you are a barra fisherman then this is news to your ears as the slower the retrieve the better in most occasions gets the bite.
So if you have a lure which has all the right parts working the way they should then the only weak link would have to be its pre rigged terminal gear. This has always been an issue with pre-rigs as the hooks are often not built tough enough for our bigger species such as barra or jacks. Many bend pretty quickly or are lucky to get one fish in before they are compromised. The HerculeZ is not one of these lures’ and is built on a solid heavy duty 5/0 or 7/0 ultra-point Mustad hook. Mustad are the bench mark when it comes to hook quality and when you rip them with the hardest hook set you can muster they will not let you down.
The biggest concern with pre-rigs are the pre-set weights and most of the time they come either far too heavy or way too light. Being a 4 ich or 5-inch plastic the 3/8- or 5/8-ounce options are well suited to the shape and size of the plastic, especially if you are fishing between that 1 and 3 metre depth mark. The weight is actually moulded from zinc not lead which is also better in terms of slowing down that sink rate.
Finally comes a real bonus with this lure and that is the built-in bottom stinger toe point on the belly of the plastic. Soft plastic companies are finally catching on that there is a demand from anglers to have ready to go stinger options and Z Man have come through here big time. I absolutely can’t say enough about where they have positioned the stinger toe point on this lure and it is perfect. It’s not too far back that it interferes with the tail action of the lure and not too far forward that it hinders the lures roll. It’s also in a good spot that you don’t get hooked up on the initial contact on the water which is ideal as this is where you most likely snag up on structure and also when you are most likely to interact with the fish you are trying to catch. It’s also well positioned that it can help hook up from a front and rear attack. Often pre rigs have a large protruding single hook which is ideal for big barra but they can be difficult to hook up on smaller fish like jacks. However, add a stinger to the mix and you are able to hedge your bets both ways which is always a bonus. The stinger toe point is also useful to add a flasher as well which is a very good option when you are fishing dirty water and want that extra bit of attraction.
The HerculeZ in the 4 and 5 inch size are well suited to our northern species. You can also see some of the stinger and flasher options they offer anglers.
At 4 and 5 inches in size the HerculeZ is well suited to the larger estuary species like barramundi, jacks and salmon. Whilst I haven’t had the chance to fish them in the impoundments they are proving to be quite effective. I would have preferred to see a little bit bigger model for this work but you never know what’s in store later down the track.
When it comes to retrieves the HerculeZ is best fished in my opinion on a slow roll back to the boat. You can twitch this plastic if you want but I have had more success on the simple roll retrieve.
When it comes to toughness I don’t even think I need to write anything about Z Man’s quality here as they are one of the strongest plastics on the market and the HerculeZ is no different. You will be catching a lot of fish on a single lure and they wont be tearing anytime soon.
The one final thing I feel is worth mentioning is the packaging these lures come in. Many pre rig swimbaits come with single use packaging which makes storing your plastics a pain. The HerculeZ comes in a handy resealable packet which means after you use them you can put them straight back into the mould and store them perfectly for next time even with a stinger attached. Environmentally sound and fishermen friendly, can’t beat that.
The Z Man HerculeZ swim bait is by far one of the best pre-rigged swimbaits I have fished in terms of a plastic straight out of the packet. It is perfect for the novice angler wanting a lure they can tie straight on or the more advanced fisho who wants to bling it up or add a stinger or two. They certainly do live up to the quality we have come to expect from the Z Man range and I have no doubt they will become a favourite for anglers like many other Z Man lures.
