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5 Tips - Bream on ZMan CrusteaZ

By Steve Crawley

The majority of my lure fishing these days tends to be chasing bream on soft plastics and in these I tend to favour creature baits.

In an effort to find something a bit different I've become a big fan of the ZMan 2" CrusteaZ. These little jellybean sized baits are designed to imitate a crustacean, like a crab or prawn and I really like to use the CrusteaZ around pontoons and pylons in the canal systems that I fish.

They're a really simple little lure to use and these are my Top 5 Tips for catching bream using ZMan 2" CrusteaZ;

1. Separate the claws: The lures come out of the pack with a tag that connects the large claws together. You can fish them like this, however the claws have far more action if you separate them. You don't need to trim them neatly, just snip the tag to free them up.
2. Compensate for the buoyancy: ZMan plastics are made from ElaZtech, which is 10X Tough and buoyant. This is good because it will help the claws to float around in the current, however being a bigger bodied plastic than the 2" or 2.5" GrubZ, it will have a slower sink rate on the same jighead. I like to rig them on a TT Lures Tournament Series HWS (Hidden Weight System) jighead - 1/20oz with a #2 or #1 hook; but play around to find the sink rate you like in the current.
3. Fish them slowly: Most of my fish take the CrusteaZ on the drop. If they don't, I let the lure sit on the bottom with the claws waving about and give it a couple of gentle lifts and rest it again. It's not the only way to fish them though, so mix it up to find what the fish respond to.
4. Get in close: Cast them as close to the structure as possible. The CrusteaZ will imitate a crab or prawn that has come off or is swimming close to the structure. A hungry fish may chase down a wide cast, however getting in close to the structure can be too good an opportunity for the sluggish ones to pass. The profile of the plastic lends itself to skip casting really well, which helps with this.
5. Lighten Up: I like to fish the CrusteaZ really light and that goes for rods, lines and jigheads. I fish 1-3kg spinning outfits, with 4-6lb braid and 2-4lb leaders, and they are capable of handling big bream. By-catch, like trevally and mangrove jack, can even be coaxed to the net, with a little patience and luck.

Tackle

The CrusteaZ come in a range of colours, however my go-to colours are Motor Oil, Watermelon Red and Gudgeon. My CrusteaZ are often smeared in scent like Pro-Cure Super Gel in Shrimp flavour.

I rig them on a TT Lures Tournament Series HWS (Hidden Weight System) - #2, #1 or a HeadlockZ Finesse - #2, #1.

My spin outfit is an Okuma Cerros 7" 1-3Kg rod (CER-S-701L) and Okuma Helios HSX-30 spinning reel, spooled with Platypus P8 Braid 6lb (PE0.4) and 2-4 lb leader (depending on water clarity).

Cheers, Steve