Best Rapala Vmc Baits For Forward-Facing Sonar

To get the most out of forward-facing sonar, an angler needs to use a bait that’s best suited for this high-tech style of fishing. Here are things to think about when choosing a lure along with a list of top choices to tie on. 

Several different factors influence whether a bait is a good match for forward-facing sonar. Some of them include:

Strong screen presence — Part of forward-facing sonar’s potency is being able to see how fish react to your lure in real-time. As such, a top-notch bait for the technique needs to produce a strong sonar return and be easy to see on the graph’s display.

Responsive — Triggering a strike with forward-facing sonar techniques often requires quick adjustments to the presentation. The baits listed below are chosen, in part, because they give anglers excellent control over many critical factors (e.g., retrieve speed, fall rate and time in strike zone).

Excellent casting performance — Forward-facing sonar success hinges using a bait enabling swift, accurate casts. Being off by 15 feet can be a deal-breaker. 

Look the part —  The best forward-facing sonar baits look convincing. All of the following baits feature realistic characteristics, and are available in many colours to match local baitfish and other forage.

The PXR Mavrik is the best suspending jerkbait for forward-facing sonar fishing tactics. Its Long-Cast System ensures accurate, ultra-long casts, and its 4-3/8-inch profile shows up extremely well on sonar. 

A hard-cutting, semi-erratic action makes the PXR Mavrik an easy mark for smallmouth, walleye and other predators. Triggering strikes is straightforward. Short twitches produce a tantalizing side-to-side action, while a quick snap spins the PXR Mavrik 180 degrees in a brazen maneuver, taunting pursuing fish. Slam on the brakes and it suspends with a head-down like an injured baitfish.

The Jigging Rap Magnum was created for today’s modern, tech-savvy angler. True to its DNA, it embodies the proven effectiveness of the legendary Jigging Rap, but with additional features tailored to the specific needs of forward-facing sonar fishing techniques.

At 1-1/8 ounces, the size 7 Jigging Rap Magnum casts like a bullet, dropping fast and true once it hits the water. This characteristic makes it excellent for targeting individual fish (bass, walleye, lake trout, northern pike, etc.) with forward-facing sonar in open water.

A snapping retrieve produces an erratic, fleeing action. Factor in the infamous Jigging Rap gliding, wounded-baitfish descent, and it’s no surprise predators pummel the Jigging Rap Magnum.

The CountDown Elite is an outstanding forward-facing sonar presentation for bass, walleye, pike and trout, not to mention trophy yellow perch and crappie. A tungsten weight system ensures maximum casting distance and accuracy. The dense metal also causes the CountDown Elite to show up incredibly well on sonar. 

True to its heritage, the CountDown Elite enables the legendary controlled slow-sinking method of the original. Different with the Elite though is its slightly faster 1.5 foot-per-second fall rate, which is advantageous targeting individual and suspending fish with forward-facing sonar.

Not news for readers who follow professional bass tournaments, the CrushCity Freeloader is a must-have for forward-facing sonar fishing. Rapala pros Jacob Wheeler and Dustin Connell have racked up multiple event wins fishing the 4-1/4” Freeloader on a Hybrid Swimbait Jig, often in the 3/16 to 5/16 ounce range. The Neon Moon Eye Jig and Sleek Jig also get regular use.

A Freeloader on a jig casts extremely well. Accurately, too. Another advantage of this setup is the flexibility to change to a different jig weight to tweak the presentation sink rate to best match the conditions and mood of the fish.

The Freeloader’s decent body size and tail-kicking action make it perfect for catching bass, walleye, pike and other predators feeding on suspending baitfish. The sizeable profile of this jig-and-plastic combo displays well on a graph.

Wheeler and Connell also secured several of their wins using the soon-to-be-released CrushCity Mooch Minnow, a slightly smaller, more subtle bait than the Freeloader. Canadian anglers can expect the Mooch Minnow to be available by early 2025.

The ultra-durable Heavy Hitter on a Boxer Jig has quickly proven itself as a potent forward-facing sonar option for lake trout, northern pike, trophy walleye, and striped, largemouth and smallmouth bass. A broad profile, thumping paddletail and alluring belly roll are a few benefits of this meaty, 4-inch swimbait. This jig-and-plastic setup shares similar casting, sink-rate and other forward-facing sonar advantages as those described for the Freeloader.  

These two CrushCity offerings excel when smaller soft plastics are needed to get bites from bass and walleye, as well as when chasing big perch and crappie. The Jerk and The Suspect perform extremely well on a Ned Rig Jig or Neon Moon Eye Jig. 

Just as important for anglers, and a forward-facing sonar fishing technique not yet discussed, is how drop-shotting either of these baits will catch you a ton of fish. Be sure to use a Tungsten Tear Drop Weight to ensure the rig shows up well on a sonar’s display. Also improving the rig’s visibility in forward view is the fact that the bait and weight display as separate individual marks.

Another benefit of a drop-shot is being able to adjust the space between the weight and the hook to the feeding depth of bottom-oriented fish. And when fish are suspending high off bottom, slowly retrieving the rig over their heads (aka drop-swimming) is sure to get bites.

Forward-facing sonar fishing techniques are evolving fast. To stay at the forefront of this high-tech style of angling, you’ll want to gear up with the latest releases from Rapala and VMC recommended above. Do this and you’ll have a bulletproof, multi-species collection of hard- and soft-bait presentations perfect for catching Canada’s most popular freshwater fish when using this cutting-edge technology.