Monthly Archives: June 2026

New ChatterTail™ Reinvents A Classic Fish Catcher

New ChatterTail™ Reinvents A Classic Fish Catcher
June 1, 2026
By Bobby
Z-Man® Partners with ChatterBait® Inventor Ronny Davis to Put a Modern Spin on the Inline Spinner
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There’s something about an inline spinner that sticks with anglers forever. Maybe it is the first fish you caught in a farm pond, a mountain stream memory with your grandfather, or simply the confidence of tying one on knowing it will get bit.

For legendary lure designer and ChatterBait® inventor Ronny Davis, those memories inspired the newest innovation from Z-Man®: the all-new ChatterTail™. Blending the timeless profile of an inline spinner with the unmistakable vibration and hunting action only the mind behind the ChatterBait could create, the ChatterTail delivers a fresh, modern, and more effective take on one of fishing’s oldest and most trusted lure styles.

“This is an extension of the ChatterBait, which is one of the most successful lures in fishing,” Ronny said. “The idea of the ChatterTail came straight from it. I wanted to add a vibrating blade to an inline spinner. I was just playing around and putting blades on every category of bait. I showed it to Z-Man, and they tried it out. It lit a fire under them.”

That spark quickly turned into obsession, leading Davis and Z-Man into a five-year development process to refine the concept into a perfected, user-friendly design.

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The ChatterTail is a refined lure with superior fish-attracting power that excels at drawing in prize fish of many species, like this trophy smallmouth that nailed the 1/4 oz black ChatterTail.

Classic Profile, Enhanced Performance
The ChatterTail’s defining feature is its direct body-to-blade connection that produces an aggressive, unmistakable thump from the moment the retrieve begins. Unlike traditional inline spinners that can lose vibration or foul, the ChatterTail keeps working from start to finish.

“I think it works so well for a few reasons,” Ronny explained. “First, the vibrating blade lets you know it’s working throughout the retrieve, and it won’t foul up like most inline spinners. Also, you don’t have to worry one bit about line twist.”

Paired with a willow-leaf blade that thumps and flashes at any retrieve speed instead of simply spinning, the ChatterTail sends out strong lateral-line signals and moves with an erratic, injured baitfish-like wobble that traditional inline spinners cannot produce. Its precise blade orientation and hole placement also help the lure hold depth rather than rising toward the surface. Combined with a hand-tied marabou tail that undulates naturally, the ChatterTail blends old-school familiarity with modern fish-triggering performance. And according to Ronny’s son, lifelong multispecies angler Ron Davis, that combination flat-out catches everything that swims.

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Designed for anglers of all ages and skill levels, the easy‑to‑use ChatterTail proved its appeal again with Brooks Latimer landing this rainbow trout on the Firetiger pattern.

Built for All Species and All Anglers
From smallmouth rivers and high-country trout streams to neighborhood ponds and largemouth lakes, the ChatterTail excels whether burned, slow-rolled, or drifted through current seams. Its vibration, presence, and depth control give anglers something fish simply haven’t seen before.

“I fish for all species, all the time,” Ron said. “Ponds, rivers, streams. No matter the weather conditions. I fish ’em all and this ChatterTail catches all kinds of fish. If it swims, it will bite this lure.”

For Z-Man Director of Brand Strategy Ryan Harder, ChatterTail’s appeal goes beyond performance. It taps into the emotional connection generations of anglers have with inline spinners while delivering a completely modern feel.

“When the Davises brought this project to us, I was all about it,” Harder said. “It reminds me of fishing in the mountains with my grandfather. There is so much connection and nostalgia with this lure yet it also incorporates a new spin on a traditional lure profile. Every single place I’ve taken this lure, it has caught fish.”

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Available in three weights and eight time-tested color patterns, the ChatterTail gives anglers the versatility to target a wide range of species in a variety of fishing situations.

Approachable for beginners and kids yet refined enough for serious anglers, the ChatterTail injects fresh energy into a lure style trusted everywhere fish swim.

“It’s great for novice or expert anglers, to be honest,” Ronny said. “It doesn’t matter what body of water you’re fishing. Everyone knows how well an inline spinner works, so why not make it better?”

The ChatterTail will be available at tackle retailers nationwide this Fall in 1/16-, 1/8- and 1/4-ounce sizes and eight proven color patterns to cover a variety of fishing conditions. MSRP is $4.99 for the 1/16- and 1/8-ounce models and $5.49 for the 1/4-ounce version.

For more information, visit www.zmanfishing.com or see it in action at the 2026 ICAST Show, booth #4808.

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I did not catch these at Bartletts Ferry

These old memories often clue me in on what to try now. Maybe they can help you, even if it is to know what not to do!!

    Despite the heat and inconsiderate to dangerous boat drivers on the lake, nine members of the Spalding County Sportsman Club fished Bartletts Ferry from 6:00 AM to 2:00 PM the last Sunday in July a few years ago in our July tournament. 

    In the eight hours of casting we landed 17 12-inch keeper bass weighing about 19 pounds. One fisherman had a five bass limit and two did not catch a keeper fish. 

    Kwong Yu won with the only limit and his five weighed 5.52 pounds. Jay Gerson had three for 3.22 pounds for second and his 1.50-pound bass was big fish. Zane Fleck had three weighing 3.06 pounds for third and my two weighing 2.31 pounds barely beat out Wayne Teal’s two weighing 2.30 pounds for fourth.

    I camped at the Georgia Power campground Blanton Creek from Thursday to Monday.  Blanton Creek is a nice shady campground on the upper end of Bartletts Ferry and it has a great bath house with hot showers, a requirement for me this time of year after a hot sweaty day on the water. 

    I tend to sleep late on “practice days” before a tournament so I did not get on the water until about 9:00 AM Friday. Bartletts Ferry is on the Chattahoochee River and downstream of the campground the lake is like most of our lakes, with open water, deep points and banks lined with docks and houses.  There are also many creeks on the lower end, from short ones to some that run for miles.

    I decided to go up the river and scout around Friday. Near the campground the lake turns into a river channel with a few small creeks but mostly banks lined with trees and bushes.  Fishing can be very good up there, especially if the Corps of Engineers are generating power at the West Point dam 20 or so miles up the river.

    Current moving can make the fish bite better, up to a point.  A couple years ago I went up the river and the current was so strong I had a hard time fishing. At one point my boat drifting with the current with no motor running was moving 3.5 miles per hour on my GPS. A bait cast to a stump in the water would sweep by it way too fast to hit the bottom.

    Friday there was barely any current and the fish did not bite for me.  I hooked two small keeper bass that got off before I could land them. One wrapped me up in a limb and another jumped and came off. I did land one 13-inch keeper bass.

    Saturday I got on the water about 9:00 again and decided to go exploring.  The road going to the ramp crosses Mountain Oak Creek four times, the last one about five miles by water from the ramp. I like the way it looks, about 50 feet wide with trees and overhanging bushes.

    I idled for about 30 minutes, the water was only two to five feet deep in most areas, and started pitching a jig and pig to all the cover on the bank         on an outside bend in the creek. I was about a half mile above the bridge and the water was a little deeper, with a little current moving. I thought it would be great but I never got a bite.

When I gave up and idled back to the lake I stopped on a big mud flat where I had seen some brush in the water when the lake was low.  It is just a few hundred yards from the ramp we use and there is a danger marker on it since the water is only two feet deep.

I tried to fish a jig but it came back with black moss on it, so I picked up a spinnerbait. My first cast produced a solid thump and I worked the bass to the boat, trying to hide it from other fishermen. Doing that I let it get around the trolling motor and the four-pound bass broke my line. But it gave me hope.

I looked around the rest of the day but never got another bite.

When I got to the ramp Sunday morning there was another club putting in with us.  At takeoff I went to the flat and started casting, but when the other club took off at 6:15 about half the guys in the other club ran right by me, some within feet of the danger marker.  I don’t know if they didn’t know what they were doing, or if they didn’t care, but it ruined my fishing.

I finally caught a keeper spot on a bluff bank 30 feet deep on a jig at 9:00 then got my second keeper at 2:30 on a shaky head on a seawall by a dock in only a foot of water.

It was a frustrating day!