Z-Man Pop ShadZ Review [Top Pros, Cons & Rigging Tips]
- By: Tony Acevedo
- on
- Found In: Fishing Tips, Lure Reviews, Product Reviews, Retrieving Lures, Topwater Lures
The Z-Man Pop ShadZ is a soft plastic topwater lure that you can rig weedless.
The head is shaped like a traditional bass popper and the soft plastic body gives you action like a fluke.
This lure is a good choice when you are fishing around shallow water structure such as mangrove trees or oyster beds.
After using this lure consistently, I wanted to give you my full honest review of the Z-Man Pop Shadz.
In this article, I go over my top pros and cons for this lure and give you some tips for how to rig it in the video review at the bottom of the article.
Note: We are not affiliated with any fishing lure companies. Let us know if you’ve used this lure and what you thought of it in the comments section. Your honest feedback is always welcome on any products we review!
Z-Man Pop ShadZ Specs
The Z-Man Pop ShadZ packs come with three Pop ShadZ per pack.
They can be rigged weedless on a heavy wire 4/0 or 5/0 offset EWG style hook.
The lure comes in 4″ and 5″ sizes and there are eight different color variations for each size.
A Z-Man Pop ShadZ pack is $5.99 on the Z-Man website.
Learn more about the Insider Fishing Club
Z-Man Pop ShadZ Video Review
In this video, I go over my top pros and cons for the Z-Man Pop ShadZ. I also show you how to rig the lure and give you a demo of how it looks in the water.
Learn more about the Insider Fishing Club
Conclusion
This is a good lure choice when other topwater plugs may get hung up on structure.
I especially like fishing them around mangroves.
While it’s not the easiest to rig, it offers a solid choice for topwater action in weeds and structure.
Remember, we are not affiliated with any fishing lure companies. All our reviews are fair and unbiased.
If you have any questions about these lures or have a suggestion for what product we should review next, let us know in the comments.
Tight Lines!
Click Here To See More Topwater Lure Reviews
Related Posts:
1. Fish Grips vs. Landing Nets: “How To” And Pros & Cons [VIDEO]
2. Rapala X-Rap Twitchin’ Mullet vs. X-Rap Twitchin’ Minnow Review [VIDEO]
3. Berkley Gulp Peeler Crab Review [Top Pros, Cons, & Rigging Tips]
Then you’ve got to see this private fishing club! Here’s what you’ll receive today:Do You Want To Quickly Find New Fishing Spots In Your Area?
Click here to join today.
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).
Super glue some eyes on them they look awesome.
Great tip! I’ve also used a sharpie on soft plastics to add “eyes”.
Tony, how do you pinpoint the best areas when your in a target rich environment. I try current,structure,bait, but some just don’t produce. I fish an area where everything looks good.
If you are having trouble getting fish to bite, you may be in the right spot but at the wrong time. I would try a different tide, or time of day. Also keep in mind, not every area that looks good will produce fish. The area may have been hit already and the fish are pressured, or the fish just aren’t there.
Fish are there. They bite also. There’s just so much cover, bait, current. Some hold fish, just don’t bite. Thought there might be small defining points. I would be glad to send you an overhead of the area for dissection.
Another tip for everyone. I use Bait buttons alot for keeping plastics in place on the hook. As well as for trailer hooks. You can get them at Walmart. Here’s a video of some uses.
https://youtu.be/7lC-x9t6DJw
Super glue!
Great review Tony. Love the pop shadz. I regularly use a 5/0 hook and it floats it fine. It skips very well too..let it rest a few seconds before starting the retrieve. I get many bites on the original pause in deep cover. So soft that even as thick as it is there is no problem with hook set. They have a toad that is also great. Sometimes in open water I like to rig it with a small drop line tied to the bend of the hook and put a jerk shad behind it about 12 to 24 inches depending on water depth it the fish are short striking it.
Looking forward to more reviews. Thanks as always.
No problem Tom and thank you for the great feedback!
FYI, if you are not aware Ebay sells the twist pins with a center wire. Make any hook you want into a twist on hook. Thanks for all the work (fun) you guys put into this endeavor.
Thanks for the info Rick!
Well I have some news for you Tony I know you did a review on the live target hollow body mullet because I made a comment to it a little while ago but I found and have used another lure that’s also weedless and is a topwater and is alot less expensive then the live target its from savage gear lures and although I can’t remember the exact name it has 2 hooks rigged on each side of the lure almost like the weedless frogs snagproof makes and it also has a feather on the tail end and I have found it to be as weedless as the live target mullet is and its solid soft rubbery plastic so it doesn’t fill with water like the live target does a great lure and like I said about half the price of the live target also I have used a lure additive from do a lures called a chug head its a concave piece of plastic that fits on the head of just about any kind of soft plastic bait that turns it into a chug bait it comes in an array of colors about 6 bucks for a pack of about 4 heads anyways just saying thanks for what you do????
Good stuff Steven I’ll have to do some digging and see which lure you are referring to. Thanks!
Nice “grass walker” type lure. Reminds me a little bit of this unique soft plastic lure from “Trout Support” based out of Texas which’s is briefly reviewed here: https://www.texassaltwaterfishingmagazine.com/fishing/features/martin-strarup/there-s-a-new-fishing-lure-in-town
I’ll have to take a look at that, thanks Keith!
Nice video, Tony! I’m straining to see how you have your kayak stored on the side on a furniture dolly? I’d be interested in seeing some info on that!
Thanks Ray!
Haha yes thats a small dolly that I picked up at Harbor Freight. I screwed two 2×4’s on each side and zipped pool noodles to it and covered in utility carpet. It was originally meant for my kayak to rest on top of it flat, but I needed space in my garage to get my truck in so I just turned the kayak on its side and it worked perfectly. I just put some extra padding on it where the kayak rests to avoid any damage.
Thanks Tony! I’ve always found the z-man products frustrating to put on a spring lock hook. This tip made my day!
No problem Kevin!
Kevin, you can also take the hook and give the spring lock a starter hole that helps it go on easier.
Great review Tony and I agree with the pros and cons! I like the tip about the spring lock hooks and will try that for all of my Z-Man lures!!
I love the Pop Shadz and use them a lot. We don’t have mangroves up here in the Panhandle but I fish the flats and the trout and redfish (as well as the ladyfish and everything else that will hit a top water) love them. Many times I couldn’t get a fish to hit a hard top water plug but I would throw the Pop Shadz and would catch fish.
I am not a good tech guy but I have a fun little YouTube channel (average everyday fisherman show) that has a review as well as a video of me using it and nailing a limit of trout (not all of them shown) and a big old redfish. Since I am not fishing around structure much, I usually rig it with a treble hook. It can be thrown quite a distance for its weight so no worries about that. I love them!
Thanks for the great feedback Brent!