New collection of baits

Flat Crank, Crank SR, Crank MR, Crank DD

®

Spring 2023

page 28

“We didn’t just slip the discs into the bait and make the bait that we wanted,” he said. “It took over 20 prototypes with analysis of the bills, and every time, we had to change little things to get the action that we wanted. Building different sizes of the bait took more than just scaling a bait down to a smaller size and took the same amount of prototypes and testing to fix the little things like bill angles to get the perfect action.”

The result of all of the behind-the-scenes work was the Berkley Frittside, one of the hottest crankbaits of the past several years. It meets Fritts’ needs and can be burned, even at three- to four-MPH, without blowing out.

ENTER THE FRITTSIDE

Since the first version was released in 2019, the Berkley Frittside has become incredibly popular. It’s used by many professional anglers, even those not sponsored by Berkley, and has caught countless fish for recreational anglers worldwide. It’s a significant triumph for Berkley, with the added accolades for being the winning lure for Bobby Lane at the 2022 Major League Fishing REDCREST on Grand Lake in Oklahoma.

The family has grown, too, starting with the 5, 7, and 9 sizes and now including three sizes in the 5, the standard, Jr., and Biggun’. The original featured a silent sound and now has a version with a clicking sound, aptly called the Clickin’ Frittside.

“We wanted something with a little sound for fishing dirtier water,” he said. “Originally, we had stainless steel but settled on ceramic balls, which give the bait a unique clicking sound. It’s subtle and very natural sounding.”

Each year, fishing lure companies release countless new lure designs. Most end up fading into obscurity, either because they never caught on with the fishing community or didn’t work as intended. The Frittside is not one of those baits and has taken the bass fishing world by storm. It’s a success story that took years of time and research by the Berkley team with the input of one of the best crankbait fishermen of all time. •