Every now and again a bait mold comes along that just can't quite get passed up and this Do-It 2 1/2" Thump-It rub is one of those. A full inch shorter than its larger cousin, also from Do-It as a 3 1/2" Thump-It Grub, this bait steps right up to take on closed mouthed walleye and sauger in the dregs of winter when the water is at its coldest. Seen here the bait is done in a super productive color combo commonly referred to as Pro Blue but this formula has some changes.

Pro Blue commonly is done using a pearl / smoke with blue hi lite. As seen here the Smoke side has been toned down and so its quite transparent, depending on the angle from which its viewed. The light color is done without using any color or pearling agents whatever and gets its sparkle and depth from liberal doses of both Super Sparkle mica compound and fire/opal micro glitter. Both colors have uv enhancement added.

Winter fishing the river generally has much clearer water and the current is usually a whole lot tamer. When its at its coldest, the river is at its best for a plastic bite. One day may see fish hammering a larger bait but then the next they might not touch anything unless its scaled back in size. This Thump-It is a perfect down-sizing bait that still produces a tantalizing tail wag with a minimum of movement by jigging. Quite often the hits will come when this baits is just left the drift a half foot off bottom with no other action added. The Pro Blue color is one that allows a super natural bait presentation that almost perfectly mimics a minnow in color.

When fishing the winter chill has been good but then slowed down due to a front or pending weather, try down sizing to a bait in this size range and slowing the presentation way down. Try going to a natural color and fish it on a plain or purple head. This presentation with this color combination is one that works good if simple black/white dotted eyes are on the head.