Paddle tail lure

A paddle tail lure is a fish-shaped soft lure with a stiff, heel-shaped paddle at the end of the tail. The paddle sits across the flow, and it is what gives the whole body its rhythmic vibration.

A paddle instead of a curl

Unlike the curl of a curly tail grub, the paddle does not curl but sways side to side together with the rear part of the body. The movement is sharper and wider, and the vibration it creates travels farther — this is what fish pick up with the lateral line.

The speed below which it stays silent

For the paddle to start working, the flow has to be strong enough to deflect it. On too slow a retrieve a paddle tail lure does not work at all — it just gets pulled along behind the line, and this is not obvious from the outside: the lure looks perfectly fine.

This is checked by the shore: the lure is worked in clear water at the same speed as at the fishing spot, watching whether the paddle actually switches on. It is the only way to know for certain instead of guessing.

The body plays a part too

The body of a paddle tail lure is made tall and flattened at the sides — a shape that carries the paddle's beat through the whole lure more effectively. Ribbing on the sides increases the surface area, and a slot along the back marks where the point of an offset hook exits. The back and belly are often made different thicknesses, and this decides which way the lure tips over during a pause.

The size of the paddle itself also changes the behaviour: a wide one gives a wider, slower swing, a narrow one starts at a lower speed but beats more weakly. This is already visible in a retrieve by the shore and needs no measuring at all.

Rigging decides whether there will be any action

The body has to sit exactly on the axis: any tilt makes the lure spin around itself, and instead of vibration it just twists the line. The sign is noticeable in the hand — on a steady retrieve the characteristic rhythmic tapping into the rod blank disappears.

How it differs from a hardbait

On a hardbait the action comes from the lip at the front, and the same lip keeps it running at a set depth: the lure holds its own depth range by itself. On a paddle tail lure the working part is at the back, and it does not hold a depth range at all — the rig's weight is what decides how deep it runs.

Hence the difference in how they are used: a hardbait is worked along a set depth, a paddle tail lure with a hop-and-drop retrieve from the bottom, and the fall between hops often works just as well as the retrieve itself.

Where it loses to the curly tail grub

In cold water and on the slowest retrieves, when there simply is not enough speed for the paddle to work. In that situation a curly-tailed lure stays alive, while a paddle tail lure does not.