Lure Trailers.

When you're talking lures, a trailer is a bait (usually plastic or pork) hooked or threaded onto a lure to alter the lure's shape, size, color profile, or action. Commonly used with weedless spoons, jigs, and spinnerbaits, a trailer quickly changes a lure's presentation, and can bring strikes to a lure that was previously ignored.

The traditional pork frog, or "jig" is the best-known example. This is a small chunk of pork rind with two or more flaps vaguely suggesting frog legs. But it isn't used by itself. Rather, its purpose is to add a forked, fluttering profile to ordinary jigs (the "jig-n-pig", weedless spoons, and spinnerbaits. A jig-n-pig has a bigger profile, and a more pronounced crawdad action than a plain skirted jig by itself.

   While pork frogs have been in use for decades, just about any plastic or pork bait - worm, eel, grub, crawdad, etc. can be used as a trailer.  In selecting one, consider the profile and action you want to add to your lure (e.g., thin? bushy? one tail? many?). Color?
s another aspect - you can match some or all of the lure's color (example, silver spoon with a clear glitter grub) for a natural-looking combination. Or you can create a sharp color contrast with the lure (black jig with chartreuse worm) for a highly visible presentation. Size is another issue, since you want the trailer's action to complement the lure, not overwhelm it. A final consideration is buoyancy adding a trailer will tend to slow a lure's sinking and swimming action.

Adding a trailer doesn't always make a lure more effective. But it will make the lure appear different, and help you create a presentation that even big, well-educated bass may not have seen before. And that can make all the difference.