How to Choose the Right Bladed Jig Trailer

By Brandon Palaniuk | BMP Fishing • January 18, 2023

Bassmaster Elite Series Pro Brandon Palaniuk here and I'm going to give you guys a little rundown on when and why I select different trailers on my bladed jigs. I always throw a trailer of some type on a bladed jig and a bladed jig is just simply a lead or tungsten head comes in various shapes and sizes and then just a blade attached to that bait in some form or fashion and then you've got a skirt. So, it's similar to a jig or a spinner bait, but has just a slightly different makeup with that blade.

Now, the trailer is really where things start to change and separate. I'm going to start with the X Zone Mega Swammer, which is more of a bait fish profile. It has that thick little tail. As it moves through the water, it's going to kick side to side much more like a bait fish, much more of a straight, less erratic type of action. I usually go to this type of trailer if I'm fishing outside grass lines, if I'm kind of just slowly winding this bait and I want that nice subtle movement, or if I'm fishing around rock and wood and things like that where I want that more bait fish profile. I know the fish are feeding on that type of forage, and I'll really just kind of slowly wind this bait through. Then, when I'm picking the colors, I just try to adapt those and match them to the skirt and the forage that we are fishing. This can be a great imitator for golden shiners, shad, bluegill, lots of different things.

The other type of trailer I fish is more of a craw-style trailer. I like the X Zone Adrenaline Craw. It's going to produce much more aggressive movement. The claws have little ribs that are going to cause a lot of erratic action. This is the trailer that I select when I'm stopping and starting this bait a lot more. So, if I'm fishing shallower vegetation, if I'm skipping it up underneath docks and I really want a lot of up and down movement, this is the trailer that I select because it's going to continue to move the entire time. Whether that bait's swimming, whether it's going up when I pump the rod, or whether that bait is dropping, those claws are constantly moving and that's going to get you more bites.

So, that's my quick little run down on how to select your bladed jig trailers. Hopefully that helps you out!

--Brandon Palaniuk

Related Products

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  4. Berkley SlobberKnocker Bladed Jig White Chartreuse 1/2 oz $11.19
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Brandon Palaniuk | BMP Fishing

Growing up in Northern Idaho, Brandon was constantly surrounded and immersed in the outdoors, whether it was hunting, fishing, or hiking. He found his love for fishing and, at the age of 8 years old, decided he wanted to be a professional angler. It was a dream far-fetched for a young kid in Idaho. Now he is living out that dream on the Bassmaster Elite Series with BMP Fishing, spending most of his year traveling the country with his wife and daughter. As the air begins to cool and September rolls around, he is then drawn to the wild places the Elk call home.

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