Does anyone know of any highly productive and well-designed bass fishing lures, particularly hard baits like crankbaits and swimbaits that are primarily available in Japan? I'm looking to have a friend of mine returning from the country soon to bring me some tackle that is hard to get here in the States and appreciate any information in regards to what lures have been very popular in the Japanese bass fishing circuits which are not easy to obtain here in the States. Any unique Japanese designs in terminal tackle, soft plastic baits, hooks, as well as reel suggestions are also very much appreciated. Thank you very much for all of your replies! Cheers!

Spy baits and spin baits are big there. They are becoming easier to find here though.

I think a lot of the swimbaits come from over there. The record bass that was caught over there was on a $450 one. Bet it’s only fraction that price over there.

The baits are not really any cheaper there. They just have a lot of JDM offerings that are harder to obtain in the US.

sent you a pm!

Pretty sure the record in Japan tied the world record bass. Pretty sure it was caught on a live blue gill at biwa

I heard swim bait. But maybe he was just promoting the swimbaits since he had a big following.

Barry @ oakridge has a huge assortment of JDM swimbaits.....Also Doyle at carolina fishing tackle is a beast with jdm that no one else has.

https://carolinafishingtackle.com/

The in-depth articles I read about that catch revealed that the angler regularly bought a live bait similar to our bluegill in order to feed the specific trophy bass he hoped to one day catch. He fed some large bass regularly over time, then added a hook to one of the baits donated to the conditioned bass. BTW, in Japan it is illegal to release a bass; all bass caught must be killed. This is because Japan would like to be rid of them as an invasive species. I believe that angler does also fish with large swimbaits, but that's not what he was using to catch that notable fish.

Yes live bluegill

See if he can get the Yellow Magic +1 in bone and some other good shad colors. Not many good ones on ebay any more. I would love to have a couple of the +1's in bone color.

THANKS for posting that!!!! I found several lures on their site that I will no longer have to order from Japan and ship!! That was getting really $$$$...

Two top water baits I would re-stock if they are still being made, are the Pop Fire and Samurai (small walking bait). They are made by a company named Buddha. I have a couple of each left and turned down $250 for the lot (saving for tournaments only) I've been told they are no longer any to be found in the U.S.

hook up tackle has a lot of jdm tackle

Megabass has a blades jig called a Robin Blade you definitely can’t get in the states. Wild Header is another one.