Top 10 Inexpensive Fishing Lures

If you're anything like me, you don't want to spend a lot of money on lures. There are plenty of really good lures out there that are just simply out of my price range. I also have the uncanny ability to get my lures snagged and subsequently lose them. Because of this, I try only to buy inexpensive lures. For your consideration is a list of my top 10 favorite inexpensive lures. All my selections are available in most stores, but my pricing is from Bass Pro Shops. I generally get all my tackle from there.

Worden's Rooster Tail ($2.69-$3.79: Bass Pro Shops)
In my opinion, the single best inexpensive lure is the Worden's Rooster Tail. It comes in a wide array of sizes and colors and can entice strikes from panfish, bass, catfish and trout with relative ease. When nothing else works, I can rely on a Rooster Tail to get some action. I find the white, orange and chartreuse get the most action. The ladybug pattern is good too.

Johnson Original Beetle Spin ($0.94-$1.49: Bass Pro Shops)
An absolutely classic inexpensive lure. It consists of a spinner attached to a round jig and soft grub body. There are a ton of different grub bodies you can put on a Beetle Spin for just about any fish or water condition. For the price, there's no reason not to have a bunch of these.

Rebel Crawfish ($4.49: Bass Pro Shops)
This is a small hard body lure perfect for bass fishing. I find this lure works well in slightly murky water. A slow jigging retrieve combined with letting it float dead can get some violent hits.

Mepps Comet ($3.49-$5.29: Bass Pro Shops)
Available in a number of different sizes, the Comet is a soft rubber minnow on an inline spinner. On a correct retrieve, this lure mimics an injured/dying minnow spinning in the water. The spinner gives the bait extra flash.

Yum Flavor Enhanced Softbaits: Ribbontail ($3.99 for 15: Bass Pro Shops)
The Yum is basically a worm soft bait available in a number of colors. What sets it apart from other soft worms are two things. First, the ribbon tail adds a lot of action to the worm. Second, the Yum baits are flavored, which means the fish is less likely to spit the lure once it gets a taste of it. That extra second or two the flavor buys you helps you get more solid sets on the hook.

Strike King Mini Pro Buzz Buzzbait ($2.29: Bass Pro Shops)
Available in black, yellow and white, this 1/8 ounce lure makes a ton of noise on the top of the water. There's nothing truly outstanding about this lure; it's just a solid light buzzbait to pull in the surface feeding bass.

Booyah Baby Boo Jig ($1.99: Bass Pro Shops)
Available in six colors, this little jig can bring in some big fish. It's got a large silicon skirt to get attention and has a weed guard so you can fish some overgrown areas with reasonable assurance that you won't get snagged.

Uncle Buck's Mini Hopper ($2.29: Bass Pro Shops)
This is probably one of the most effective panfish hard baits I have in my tackle box. This small, yellow cricket drives bluegill and crappie berserk. I use the same technique as with the Rebel Crawfish. The strikes seem to come opposite, though. The cricket seems to get the hits when the lure goes dead; the crawfish gets more strikes when starting to move.

Storm Original Thunderstick ($3.99: Bass Pro Shops)
I just love Storm hardbaits to death. This lure is available in over two dozen patterns, though I generally go with shad or perch coloring. This lure is great to use with a twitchy retrieve. Give it a little reel, jig a couple of times, let it sit. Give it a solid retrieve and it will dive to about seven feet. The strikes are sure to come.

Rapala Freshwater Rattlin' Rapala ($3.49: Bass Pro Shops)
Any fisherman worth his salt is going to have a Rapala lure or fifty in his or her tackle box. The Rattlin' Rapala is a standard bass lure. It sets off a tremendous rattle on the retrieve that basically anger the bass into a strike. I generally go with the silver or copper shad pattern.

Sources
http://www.basspro.com/freshwaterfishing.html?CMID=MH_OS_FISHING