Best Summer Redfish Lures (Plus Where & When To Use Them)
- By: Wyatt Parcel
- on May 21, 2021
The weather and the redfish bite are heating up!
As the temperatures are getting much warmer and we are approaching summertime, the redfish bite is on fire.
And having the right lures in your tackle box for this time of year is crucial.
So in this video, you’ll learn the best lures to use for targeting redfish as we turn the corner to summer.
Check it out below!
Summer Redfish Tackle [VIDEO]
Click here to join the Insider Club
We reviewed a ton of information in our new segment called “Tea Time with Tony & Wyatt” so here’s a timestamped table of contents:
- 0:41 – What lures to use when sight fishing
- 1:15 – When Tony uses the Alabama Leprechaun
- 1:35 – Use this to store your Gulp baits
- 2:14 – Rigging your jerk shads
- 2:38 – Paddletail rigging for more strikes
- 3:30 – Why scent is crucial right now
- 4:17 – Try out these lures for a more erratic darting action
- 5:40 – If you see activity but cannot seem to get a strike, use this
- 6:36 – Search baits and why you need them
- 7:26 – Are redfish keying in on baitfish or shrimp right now?
- 8:52 – The lure that can imitate many baits
- 9:16 – When to up the size of your paddletail
- 10:50 – Clean water vs. dirty water lures
- 12:32 – Use a wake bait if you don’t know how to walk the dog (and you can learn how to here)
- 13:17 – Larger topwaters are getting crushed by big redfish right now
- 14:18 – What are the times of day to throw a topwater in warmer weather
- 15:16 – The spots and water depths to use a topwater lure
- 18:02 – How big rainfalls affect fishing
- 18:32 – Here’s why you need to change your treble hooks to inline hooks (use this easy method)
- 19:15 – When retrieving a lure for redfish, keep working your bait even if you miss a strike
- 21:47 – The metabolism and feeding habits of redfish in rising temperatures
- 22:46 – Does your retrieval method need to change for summertime?
- 23:35 – How to adjust your presentation with different weighted jigheads or hooks
- 25:50 – Which lure to throw first for redfish
- 27:09 – Casting strategy for summertime redfish
- 28:27 – Redfish tactics for boat, kayak, and wading
- 30:07 – Know the trends and have the tools to find fish by joining the Insider Club
- 31:22 – Catching redfish with a 2×4 and treble hooks
Here are our favorite lures to use for redfish as summertime approaches:
Paddletail
Jerk Shad
Topwater
Power Prawn
Conclusion
The feeding behaviors of redfish definitely change throughout the year, especially when temperatures really start to rise.
As the water temperatures rise, redfish get very aggressive.
So, you’ll need the right lure paired with a solid retrieval method to catch more redfish this time of year.
What’s your favorite lure to use in the summer for redfish?
Let me know down in the comments!
And if you know someone who is targeting redfish this summer, please TAG or SHARE this with them!
P.S. Want access to our best fishing spots and tips, plus discounts to our online tackle store? Click here to join us in the Insider Club!
Related articles:
- HOW TO CATCH BIG REDFISH ON TINY LURES (EVEN IF THEY’RE EXTRA SPOOKY)
- HOW TO USE TOPWATER LURES TO CATCH REDFISH & TROUT
- BEST REDFISH, SNOOK, POMPANO, & TROUT LURES FOR SUMMER
Disclaimer: When you buy through links on our site, we sometimes earn affiliate commission from places like Amazon, Bass Pro, Tackle Warehouse, etc. It’s one more way we can help you quickly find the best deals on the web while making sure we’re still around to serve you for years to come (and you do want us to be around to help you catch fish for many more years, right)?
Related categories:
STOP WASTING TIME ON THE WATER!
Do what the “SMART ANGLERS” are doing and join the Insider Club.
Here’s what you’ll receive today when you join:
- Weekly fishing reports and TRENDS revealing exactly where you should fish every trip
- Weekly “spot dissection” videos that walk you through all the best spots in your area
- Exclusive fishing tips from the PROS you can’t find anywhere else
- Everything you need to start catching fish more consistently (regardless if you fish out of a boat, kayak, or land).
Great info guys. I have several top water and suspending lures that have treble hooks and I would like to replace those with inline hooks. What general guidance can you give regarding hook size, brand etc. when doing that. Thanks
Thanks the great tips and reminders! Tallied word count – Tony: 148 – Wyatt: 21,509. Less caffeine, Wyatt! Haha
Haha! Guess I need to switch to decaf for my pre-podcast coffee!
☆ Thanks guys! Been struggling a little bit with the weather, water, and bait transition.
No problem Chad! Thanks for watching!
Question for y’all, I am starting to use a twist lock weedless rig versus a jig head. The areas I have been fishing areas shallow with either shell or grass (floating or rooted. When do you recommend using a jig head versus a weedless set up?
When I fish over mud and sand, or when I’m trying to fish in areas deeper than 4-5 feet, I usually go with a jighead. Any shallower, and especially when there’s grass (or shell), I go with a weedless setup.
Thank you – Unrelated question- Do You always retrieve with the current?
I often try to position myself where I can, as it provides for the most natural presentation! But sometimes the wind or layout of the area I’m fishing doesn’t always allow for me to do so. I’m not a stickler by any means about it, but when I can make it happen, I always try to. It’s one of those factors that really can help get picky fish to bite!
Great video guys. You mentioned using 1/16oz weighted hooks in shallow water. Dumb question but how are you getting any distance on the cast with that light of a weight?
Also heard Tony mention Indian River. I’m near Ft Pierce so wondered if you’re fishing around here?
It’s really important to use the dart-cast method when casting all lures, but it’s especially effective when using 1/16th oz weights. You have to make sure you put that torque and leverage on the rod, otherwise you won’t go anywhere, but I find I can still cast REALLY far with those 1/16th oz twist locks (if I’m not casting directly into 20mph winds). To see an example of this, check out this module in the casting mastery course:
“Dart Cast” Tutorial
In Texas, we use 1/8 oz. and 1/4 oz. Johnson gold weedless spoons fished with a straight or slow roll retrieve. Slow roll lately seems to work best. By slow roll, you need to bring spoon in 3’ or so and stop your retrieve and lower your rod tip allowing the spoon to flutter to the sand or grass. The redfish usually pick the spoon up on the fall. Be certain to allow the spoon to fall at all sand pockets.
I actually will be having some tips coming soon featuring gold spoons! They’re a fantastic lure this time of year, especially when you get small shad and pinfish that have flooded the flats. I’ll be demonstrating retrieves, optimal times to use them, and even showing some drone footage of some recent catches with spoons!
How about using a black jitterbug around first light periods. It creates a good disturbance and you can keep it in the strike zone for quite a while.
The jitterbug can work! I do prefer spook style baits though… while I have not done any head to head testing with jitterbugs specifically, out of all the styles of topwaters I’ve tested, the spook style has always outperformed others by significant margins!
Was just in Apalachicola and the fishing was awful. Despite using many of the tactics you teach, a combination of a nonstop extreme wind blowing the opposite direction of the current, erratic current, 3’ of grass submerged in front of the visible tall grass, only on the last day did we run into a group of reds. After catching 4 slot size, a bull shark came for lunch and ate the next 8 catches. Easy catch easy go! Better luck next time.
Sorry to hear about the tough conditions but it’s good to hear you were able to produce some solid fish! Hopefully the sharks leave you alone next time!
Great segment guys! I’ve been having a tough time getting them to bite lately. I can usually find the reds in SE FL chasing large schools of mullet around so I’m typically fishing a paddletail trying to match the hatch but not having much luck. Maybe I’ll try the jerk shad with some scent next time with some different retrieve styles you mentioned and see if that gets me more strikes.
One trick I’ve found when fishing in the thick of the mullet schools (where there’s already a lot of flash and vibration from the mullet themselves) you need to fish under or to the sides of the mullet school with a spoon. The intense vibration and flashes really help fish pick it out of a couple hundred other options that are swimming around, but from everything I’ve been seeing lately, the reds hang under the mullet, or out to the sides, so adjusting your presentation to get in those strike zones tends to work best!
Ahh!! I’ve thought about this but never tried it. Thank you for the tip, Wyatt! I’ll definitely give it a go.