Lure of the Month: 6th Sense Fishing Clobber Minnow
by Terry Madewell
One key to catching crappie, or any game fish, with artificial lures is fishing a lure with a realistic profile of that species’ favored forage. For crappie, that is usually minnows, and shad are one of the more universal minnow forage species.
It is no surprise that as technology advances, these profiles are becoming increasingly realistic, and 6th Sense Fishing has introduced a shad profile in a 2-inch size that passes the fisherman’s ‘match the hatch’ eye test, but also passes that test for slab crappies as well.
The 6th Sense Fishing Clobber Minnow is the October 2025 CrappieNOW Lure of the Month, and anglers throughout the range of this species are raving about the lure.
The lure is relatively new to the market, but results have been exceptional. 6th Sense Fishing Pro-Staff member and professional guide, Kyle Miers, from Malakoff, Texas, said the lure is excellent for year-round fishing, but seems to be ideal for fall fishing when young-of-the-year shad are a favored forage for crappie.
“It instantly became my favorite fall crappie fishing lure,” Miers said. “I guide around 250 days a year, primarily on nearby Cedar Creek Reservoir. Although I just started fishing with this lure in April 2024, it was good in the spring. However, during the fall of 2024, it became so productive for me that it’s now my go-to lure on my guide trips for the fall months. And this lure puts limits in the boat even for novice anglers.”
Miers said the profile of the Clobber Minnow is one of the keys because it so accurately imitates the profile of shad.
“In addition to the shape of the lure, the thin belly section of the lure is designed to collapse easily when a crappie bites, improving hook penetration to ensure a high ratio of hookups,” he said. “The lure’s design also enhances the return of forward-facing sonar units, which is a key to my style of fishing. Finally, the fluke-style tail creates a fluttering action with just a minimum of movement, so even trying to hold it still, when presented vertically at a crappie’s eyeball level, for example, it’s going to have lifelike movement.”
Miers said the Clobber Minnow is highly versatile and is readily eaten by any species that forages on shad, not just crappie.
The Clobber Minnow is available in packs of 12 and in a variety of colors to suit different fishing conditions and angler preferences during the year. Miers said his favored fall colors are Monkey Milk and Threadfin Shad patterns.
“I’ve found it’s effective anyway I’ve fished it,” Miers said. “One of my favorites is to look for big roaming crappie, targeting individual fish with it.
“It works well on various-sized jigheads, depending on depth fished, but I’ll often pair it on a cast and retrieve to roaming fish using the 6th Sense Pecos Underspin head,” he said. “This makes a deadly duo for fall fishing.”
Miers said cast and retrieve, vertical fishing, and shooting docks are all favored techniques for him during the fall.
My experience with this lure got off to a fast start, and while targeting crappie on a short trip the first day I used them, I caught crappie, but also largemouth bass, big white perch, and hooked a brute of something, likely a big striper, that wasted little time breaking my line. But the claimed versatility of the lure rang true for me that morning, and I found it does clobber crappie, too.
Terry Madewell of Ridgeway, S.C., has been an outdoor communicator for nearly 50 years. He holds a degree in Wildlife and Fisheries Management and has a long career as a professional wildlife biologist/natural resources manager. He’s passionate about sharing outdoor adventures with others.
