I’ve fished the dark sleeper multiple ways and it slays every time. It’s great as a swimbait. Dynamite as a jigging lure. The way I’ve had best success is sorta like a chatterbait. It won’t get snagged in grass but wood is not what I prefer to fish it near because the fin that protects the hook almost always gets snagged. Still a amazing lure
I love them. The wide, flat belly let's you work it over wood pretty good. The plastic does well in cold water too. It cast a mile, it skips good and I'm telling ya, you can burn these things over weedbeds and hold on tight. The sleeper gill has been my prespawn sleeper so far this year.
I picked one up last summer, not sure if your retrieval suggestion works- cast 1 a large mouth ate it on first fall, cast 2 a small mouth ate it , on cast 3 a rock got it. Stocked up for this season .
Great lure. I seem to catch more pickerel and pike on it than bass, and their teeth always leave them shredded up. But they're a great addition to the tackle box for sure!
There's a reason this lure is my favorite: It works very well and It's easy to fish, and it's versatile. You can bounce it off the bottom, you can work it as a swimbait, ect... I usually use the colors mutsugorou, hanahaze, or haze, and work it as a swim bait and I catch lots of fish. Even though it catches fish, there are a few drawbacks: It isn't 100% weedless, (which is fine because almost all lures aren't weedless), sometimes the paddletail gets caught in the hook, (which could happen to any other bait), and It's not very durable. After a couple of hits from a fish the eyes fall off and after a couple more hits, the color around the eyes start to peel off. Even without the eyes, it still catches fish though. It's also heavy enough to use with a baitcaster reel thanks to it's weight. I use a 7 foot medium heavy rod with 15lb braid and 2-3 feet of flourocarbon leader. Sometimes the flourocarbon knot gets weeds on it also, but it's easy to get off. When I feel a bite, I point my rod forwards while reeling down and I set the hook. The hookset is always on the roof of their mouth, which is nice. overall 8/10 would reccomend
Hey Randy thanks bud for all the tips and tricks over these past two years. Hey Randy I have a couple of the bluegill color of the dark sleeper. Not to talk about something different but randy some of these other u tube channels have been trying to convince me to to use braid on my spinning rod set ups I won't do it. Anyway I hope your family is healthy and happy and God bless you and your family always. Maybe one day I'll see you at Stockton lake I live about 8 miles away from the lake randy that place is beautiful. Ps tight lines bud .
I've used braid for years. It has advantages and disadvantages, just like everything else. I prefer it for its sensitivity, lack of memory, and strength. Unfortunately, it's not invisible, and it doesn't stretch. When I need stretch and invisibility, I'll put a leader on, but if you're not comfortable or confident in your line to leader knots, it might not be for you. Rods with a bit more flex also help with braid. It will take time to adjust to braid, and some people just don't want to do that. I have friends who have fished with mono their whole life and tried braid and just didn't want to get used to it and went back to mono. Use what you feel most comfortable using. Change is hard for some people, and it's not like braid is life changing or anything.
@@S2pidMedia I agree with you on all three of those things but what I don't like about it is it's arc's under the water and it doesn't lay flat on the bottom like floro I know they have braid out now that sinks. Plus I fish in clear water and you what the other thing I didn't like is I've never seemed to find a knot that didn't hit the guides grantit I've never had any of my leader knots break. You want to hear something I just found out that I was using way to short of a leader. I was using a four or five ft leader when I really should have been using a 20 ft leader. Hey bud have a great fishing season this year and God bless you and your family.
@@michaelloucks4448 yea, I usually fish shallow in cover. Lots of lily pads, lay downs and brush piles, and weed beds. If you don't get them out fast, you're most likely not getting them out at all. So the braid is a no brainer as far as power and sensitivity goes. I usually use about 12 feet of 20lb flouro leader, so shallow fish almost never see the braid, and if it's really thick or murky, I won't even use a leader. All leader knots hit guides to an extent. I use a surgeons knot, and I make sure the whole knot part is uniform, as it goes through the guides much smoother. Others use double uni, but they both work well. You as well! Hope you have a great year and God bless!
@@S2pidMedia I gotcha see in your situation you have to use braid with that much cover . Have a good fishing season this year and God bless you and your family.
@@michaelloucks4448 I could always go 25 or 30lb flouro, but at that point, it's so thick and stiff that I don't enjoy using it at all, and you can't frog with it, so I just stick with the braid. You as well, thank you!
I just bought a 3/8 weighted one. I feel like that's too heavy but it's all they had. Seems like they can't keep them stocked and they fly off the shelves. What weight do y'all typically use ?
I’ve fished the dark sleeper multiple ways and it slays every time. It’s great as a swimbait. Dynamite as a jigging lure. The way I’ve had best success is sorta like a chatterbait. It won’t get snagged in grass but wood is not what I prefer to fish it near because the fin that protects the hook almost always gets snagged. Still a amazing lure
It has become one of my winter go-to baits. Had success slow reeling it bouncing off rocks.
I love them. The wide, flat belly let's you work it over wood pretty good. The plastic does well in cold water too. It cast a mile, it skips good and I'm telling ya, you can burn these things over weedbeds and hold on tight. The sleeper gill has been my prespawn sleeper so far this year.
I picked one up last summer, not sure if your retrieval suggestion works- cast 1 a large mouth ate it on first fall, cast 2 a small mouth ate it , on cast 3 a rock got it. Stocked up for this season .
I’ve caught bass , Speckle trout , and redfish on em , it’s a work horse for me
I have also used it in weeds slow reeling it. Done pretty good doing that as well.
Great video as always. Can you do a similar video expounding on the Sleeper Gill? Thanks
Great lure. I seem to catch more pickerel and pike on it than bass, and their teeth always leave them shredded up. But they're a great addition to the tackle box for sure!
Thank you Randy.
Thanks for the tips. After the first video i bought 3 of them. Cant wait to try it.
There's a reason this lure is my favorite: It works very well and It's easy to fish, and it's versatile. You can bounce it off the bottom, you can work it as a swimbait, ect... I usually use the colors mutsugorou, hanahaze, or haze, and work it as a swim bait and I catch lots of fish. Even though it catches fish, there are a few drawbacks: It isn't 100% weedless, (which is fine because almost all lures aren't weedless), sometimes the paddletail gets caught in the hook, (which could happen to any other bait), and It's not very durable. After a couple of hits from a fish the eyes fall off and after a couple more hits, the color around the eyes start to peel off. Even without the eyes, it still catches fish though. It's also heavy enough to use with a baitcaster reel thanks to it's weight. I use a 7 foot medium heavy rod with 15lb braid and 2-3 feet of flourocarbon leader. Sometimes the flourocarbon knot gets weeds on it also, but it's easy to get off. When I feel a bite, I point my rod forwards while reeling down and I set the hook. The hookset is always on the roof of their mouth, which is nice. overall 8/10 would reccomend
I caught tons of crappie and pike on these guys. I get the most bites when I drag it on the bottom
When I first got one I would just swim it and I had so much success doing it that way it’s crazy.
Hey Randy thanks bud for all the tips and tricks over these past two years. Hey Randy I have a couple of the bluegill color of the dark sleeper. Not to talk about something different but randy some of these other u tube channels have been trying to convince me to to use braid on my spinning rod set ups I won't do it. Anyway I hope your family is healthy and happy and God bless you and your family always. Maybe one day I'll see you at Stockton lake I live about 8 miles away from the lake randy that place is beautiful. Ps tight lines bud .
I've used braid for years. It has advantages and disadvantages, just like everything else. I prefer it for its sensitivity, lack of memory, and strength.
Unfortunately, it's not invisible, and it doesn't stretch. When I need stretch and invisibility, I'll put a leader on, but if you're not comfortable or confident in your line to leader knots, it might not be for you.
Rods with a bit more flex also help with braid. It will take time to adjust to braid, and some people just don't want to do that.
I have friends who have fished with mono their whole life and tried braid and just didn't want to get used to it and went back to mono.
Use what you feel most comfortable using. Change is hard for some people, and it's not like braid is life changing or anything.
@@S2pidMedia I agree with you on all three of those things but what I don't like about it is it's arc's under the water and it doesn't lay flat on the bottom like floro I know they have braid out now that sinks. Plus I fish in clear water and you what the other thing I didn't like is I've never seemed to find a knot that didn't hit the guides grantit I've never had any of my leader knots break. You want to hear something I just found out that I was using way to short of a leader. I was using a four or five ft leader when I really should have been using a 20 ft leader. Hey bud have a great fishing season this year and God bless you and your family.
@@michaelloucks4448 yea, I usually fish shallow in cover. Lots of lily pads, lay downs and brush piles, and weed beds. If you don't get them out fast, you're most likely not getting them out at all. So the braid is a no brainer as far as power and sensitivity goes.
I usually use about 12 feet of 20lb flouro leader, so shallow fish almost never see the braid, and if it's really thick or murky, I won't even use a leader.
All leader knots hit guides to an extent. I use a surgeons knot, and I make sure the whole knot part is uniform, as it goes through the guides much smoother. Others use double uni, but they both work well.
You as well! Hope you have a great year and God bless!
@@S2pidMedia I gotcha see in your situation you have to use braid with that much cover . Have a good fishing season this year and God bless you and your family.
@@michaelloucks4448 I could always go 25 or 30lb flouro, but at that point, it's so thick and stiff that I don't enjoy using it at all, and you can't frog with it, so I just stick with the braid.
You as well, thank you!
Thanks, Randy, equipping my tool belt!
One of the best smallmouth lures on the planet.
I have caught largemouth on this lure. Thanks for sharing
Randy here's an idea for ya .show these new anglers some good knots to tie .I bet that would help some guys out .
Yeah I'm shocked he never talks much about actual rigging.
Do you put a split ring on these?
you can fish the DS all day all night far as saltwater in the westcoast, plus i can get the mold.
That's another bait that should be good for saltwater fish too. I bet it would catch flounder and trout at least.
Does this thing actually work let's be honest
It does work
Never, even under pretense of it being a jig.
I just bought a 3/8 weighted one. I feel like that's too heavy but it's all they had. Seems like they can't keep them stocked and they fly off the shelves. What weight do y'all typically use ?