The latest creation by Great Lakes smallmouth guru Joe Balog may be his best yet. Balog, creator of the first-ever goby imitating lure, the original Drop Shot Goby, has created the most realistic goby bait ever, Joe Balog’s Goby Replica, and initial tests have proven incredible.
Over seven years in the making, Balog has taken the goby lure into the swimbait realm. “For years, I’ve recognized the need to have an ultra-realistic goby lure for use on Great Lake’s smallmouth and walleye. Gobies are the preferred food source of trophy fish in this area, and there just wasn’t a perfect lure out there” Balog comments. “I designed the Goby Replica to be a heavy-handed technique to catch the giants of the species.”
Joe Balog’s Goby Replica weighs in at over one ounce, and is intended to be used on stout tackle, in water depths ranging from a foot to over forty feet deep. Each lure is hand molded by one of America’s premier swimbait manufacturers. The lure is available in five colors to match gobies throughout the Great Lakes system. Even a sight-fishing color is available, and has proven very effective on spawning fish.
Tests throughout 2011 have shown the effectiveness of the Replica all across the native range of Round Gobies. Balog’s largest smallmouth on Lake St. Clair this season, a 6-12 brute, was taken on the Goby Replica.
Currently, Joe Balog’s Goby Replica is only available at www.gobyreplica.com. Watch videos of the lure in action by clicking HERE.
