When Hunter Cole, marketing director at Mann's Bait Co., called the new C-4 crankbait a crashbait, we said, "What?"
We'd never heard that specific term before.
After we got the chance to fish the new lure, we understood the explanation. The technique of power-fishing in heavy cover is what it's all about, and the new C-4 is a solid tool for that job.
Mann's is a well-known plastics company, but don't forget its name was once almost synonymous with cranking. There was the Depth-Plus series, and of course the 20-Plus that grew out of Elias' kneel-and-reel technique.
Later, the company went to the other extreme with the Baby 1-Minus (now available in an "Elite" finish).
A natural extension of the 1-Minus tradition is the C-4.
The essence of the C-4's style is that you can crash it into timber, laydowns and brush, and it'll avoid hang-ups more often than not. We threw it in the heaviest timber we could find and it came through. It's an advanced tool, yes, but first-time wood-crashers will enjoy fishing it too.
Notable, as well, is that right now is one of the prime times to fish this technique. The bass in many places are staging on shallow cover, so the timing of our test was perfect.
Our Tests
As soon as you throw the C-4, you notice the wide wobble – a key springtime action. We found that it runs straight, right out of the package, and creates that all-important "thump" in the rodtip.
You can really feel it working, and since heavy cover cranking is all about feel, that's a big plus. We were easily able to slow the lure down to walk it through the cover, and we could feel nearly every limb and branch.
We also liked the color patterns. Sure, a bone finish, or plain white with some gray or black, catches fish. So does pure chartreuse with a splash of blue. But a lot of anglers have more confidence in the newer, flashier color styles that utilize color blending and reflective material.
Color's always a matter of personal preference, but the finishes on the C-4 look outstanding. It's available in eight different colors, and we used winter craw and ghost minnow.
The ghost minnow finish was tough – it stood up well to the tests. The winter craw was a matte finish, which we preferred (some of us here at BassFan still fade our cranks in the sun). There was some paint chipping on the matte finish, but it occurred just behind the lip and really wasn't a big deal.
Overall, the lure performed as promised – it came through heavy cover, and caught a heck of a lot of bass.
Notable
> The baits retail for about $5.00 each, which is a real bargain in today's market.
> For more information about the C-4, (click here to visit the Mann's website. The bait can be ordered there, or at the BassFan Store (click here for the order page).
