Back to Basics – Why Balsa Wood Crankbaits Are Worth the Price

If you have spent any time bass fishing in the South, you have almost certainly thrown a crankbait. Especially when there’s baitfish around. Crankbaits mimic the erratic movement of baitfish perfectly. Their diving and wobbling motion are hard to beat when it comes to action. But not all crankbaits are created equal. Walk into any tackle shop and you will find plastic crankbaits at every price point. So why would any angler pay three times the price for a bait built from balsa wood? That question took me down the Pearl River Navigation Canal on a breezy day in May. Alongside some balsa wood crankbaits and one of the most knowledgeable anglers I know, Jason Pittman of Covington, Louisiana.

Poole’s Bluff

We were fishing a place called Poole’s Bluff which is above one of three locks on the Pearl River navigational Canal.  The 20-mile canal  was authorized by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 1935 to create a navigation channel from Bogalusa to the mouth of the West Pearl River.  It was 85 degrees in May, “windy and beautiful.” As Pittman put it, “Today, we’re playing the cards that are dealt with us.”

Old School Balsa 

Pittman had tied on a Black Label Wreck, a square-bill crankbait made by tournament pro Cliff Pace out of Pedal, Mississippi. He picked it up and did not waste any time. “Phenomenal bait,” he said. “Balsa wood. Just old school balsa.”

“Balsa wood is significantly lighter than hard plastic,” Pittman said, “The lower density gives balsa baits a buoyancy plastic cannot replicate.” On the pause, a balsa crankbait floats up faster and more naturally. That moment of rising, hovering, and then diving again is often what seals the deal on a following fish. The wobble is subtler and more erratic, closer to a real baitfish.

Pittman recommends pairing a balsa crankbait with a lower gear ratio reel. He was using a KastKing Mega Jaws reel with a 5.5:1 ratio. “It might have looked like I was burning it really fast,” he said, “but it’s a low gear ratio. Five-five-to one.” The slower retrieve that let Pittman keep the bait in the strike zone letting the balsa lure’s natural action do the work.

Why Balsa Costs More

A quality balsa crankbait from a boutique builder can cost two to three times what a mass-produced plastic bait runs. A standard plastic squarebill typically retails between six and ten dollars while the Black Label Wreck that Pittman was throwing retails for $17.99. While it may seem high, it’s actually considered a fair price in the handmade balsa world. Some custom builders charge even more, and hard-to-find classics like the original WEC E-1 that the Wreck was designed to replicate now fetch serious money on the secondary market.

Pittman said the reason for the price comes down to the process. Each Black Label crankbait is hand-sealed and hand-painted.  Each blank is cut and sanded by hand. The bill must be seated precisely. Hardware must be sized carefully so the bait wobbles rather than rolls. Then comes multiple coats of sealer and paint to weatherproof the wood.

So basically, you’re are not paying for a piece of wood. You are paying for decades of tuning knowledge in a small, hand-shaped package.

Wobble, Wobble, Wobble, Gone

We worked laydowns all day, targeting isolated timber along the bank. Pittman was methodical. “He was right where he was supposed to be,” he said after one cast produced a bite on an isolated piece of cover. The bass came at a steady pace but we had to weed through a handful of small ones that Pittman laughed off. “We’d have to have two of these to make a sandwich,” he said. He gave one tiny fish the “Rudy Rutiger award” and sent it back.

The best description of the day came from Pittman himself after a fish crushed the bait on a straight retrieve: “That bait was just wobbled, wobbled, wobbled, wobbled and it was gone,” he said. “The action on this thing is phenomenal.” The balsa crankabit did exactly what it is built to do.

But the highlight of the trip came off a laydown. Pittman crawled the bait across the structure and let it flutter off the edge. “It kinda floated a little bit and then he splashed at it,” he said. Pittman swung and missed on what was probably the biggest bass of the day. “I’m happy for him,” Pittman joked sarcastically. “He almost got a meal and I almost got to fight him.”

The Bottom Line

They say with age comes wisdom and after this trip I feel I am a little bit more wise when it comes to crank baits. On the trip Pittman didn’t  show up with a bag full of options. He had the right bait, the right reel, and a plan. Every fish that day came on the Black Label Wreck. His final word on balsa says it all: “Not much else I can say about it. It’s old school balsa. Phenomenal.”

If you have never fished a balsa crankbait, the price can feel like a hard sell. But after watching Pittman work the Pearl River Navigation Canal with one all day, the real question is not whether you can afford to fish one. It is whether you can afford not to.

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