ICAST is over, but anglers will be talking about and experimenting with the hot new products introduced at the show for the rest of 2026 and well into 2027. These are the baits that could be winning checks for tournament pros and helping more casual fishermen land personal bests.
Soft plastic baits—especially the exploding crop of urchin baits—garnered much of the attention at ICAST 2026, but manufacturers also introduced an intriguing selection of new and updated hard baits. What follows is Hook & Barrel’s look at nine that caught our eye.
This list does not include everything the lure companies brought to the show, but it offers a good starting point for some of the hard baits anglers will be casting, cranking and trolling over the next 12 months.
Strike King Hustlin’ Hog
Developed in collaboration with Matt McBee of Tater Hog Custom Lures, the Strike King Hustlin’ Hog brings the action of Tater Hog’s original Hustling Herring Mini Glide Bait to a wider audience.
The 5-inch glide bait weighs 7/8 ounce and can be fished with anything from a steady retrieve to sharp snaps of the reel handle. That versatility allows anglers to adjust its swimming action to match the mood of the fish.
Swiveling hook hangers and No. 4 treble hooks are designed to help keep fish pinned during the fight. Each package also includes an extra replacement tail.
Features:
- 5 inches long
- 7/8-ounce weight
- Steady or snapping retrieve options
- Swiveling hook hangers
- No. 4 treble hooks
- Extra replacement tail included
Rapala Snare 75
Following the introduction of the original Snare 50, Rapala has expanded the family with the larger Snare 75. The 3 1/2-inch, 3/4-ounce lipless crankbait gives anglers a larger profile for situations involving bigger forage, deeper water or the need to cover ground quickly.
The Snare’s belly-weighted construction gives it a different fall than many conventional lipless crankbaits. Rather than simply plunging toward the bottom, the bait remains belly-down and wobbles as it falls, potentially triggering strikes during pauses as well as on the retrieve.
The Snare 75 can be cast, ripped or jigged and is offered in 18 colors.
Features:
- 3 1/2-inch body
- 3/4-ounce weight
- Belly-weighted construction
- Controlled, wobbling fall
- Tight vibrating action
- Internal rattle
- VMC black-nickel round-bend hooks
- 18 color choices
RELATED: 10 New Soft Baits From ICAST 2026 Worth Watching
Northland Fishing Tackle Shiverin’ Shad
The Northland Fishing Tackle Shiverin’ Shad is a thin-profile blade bait designed to imitate a distressed baitfish while producing plenty of flash and vibration.
Its detailed resin body provides a realistic forage profile, while its tight vibrating action gives anglers noticeable feedback with every lift, pull or retrieve. Although designed with walleyes in mind, the Shiverin’ Shad can appeal to a variety of freshwater predators.
It is available in three sizes, allowing anglers to adjust the presentation for different depths, forage profiles and target species.
Features:
- Thin-profile blade-bait design
- Resin body with lifelike finish
- Tight vibrating action
- Available in 3/8-, 1/2- and 5/8-ounce sizes
Strike King Patroller
The Strike King Patroller is a plopping-style topwater bait designed to generate sound, surface disturbance and aggressive strikes around shallow cover.
Its buoyant body and rotating tail produce a noticeable commotion as the bait moves past laydowns, docks, vegetation and other likely ambush points. Anglers can alter retrieve speed and cadence to change the Patroller’s action according to the conditions and the aggressiveness of the fish.
The Patroller is available in four sizes, ranging from the compact 60 to the considerably larger 110.
Features:
- Tail-plopping topwater action
- Four available sizes
- Patroller 60: 60 mm, 1/4 ounce
- Patroller 75: 75 mm, 3/8 ounce
- Patroller 90: 90 mm, 1/2 ounce
- Patroller 110: 110 mm, 3/4 ounce
- Black-nickel round-bend treble hooks
Storm ThunderStick and Hot ’N Tot
Not every noteworthy ICAST introduction involves an entirely new lure. For 2027, Storm is adding four Great Lakes-inspired color patterns to several models in its long-running ThunderStick and Hot ’N Tot families.
The new colors are Leprechaun, Chrome Purple Wonderbread, Chrome Bloody Nose UV and Dreamsicle. Chrome Bloody Nose UV was developed specifically with Michigan steelhead fishing in mind, while the other patterns are intended for walleye and steelhead throughout the Great Lakes region.
The colors will be offered across the Original ThunderStick, ThunderStick Jr., Deep ThunderStick, Deep ThunderStick Jr., Original Hot ’N Tot and Deep Hot ’N Tot lineups. That allows anglers to pair the new finishes with different profiles, running depths and casting or trolling presentations.
Features:
- Four new Great Lakes-inspired colors
- Available across six ThunderStick and Hot ’N Tot models
- Shallow- and deep-running options
- Suitable for casting or trolling
- Developed primarily for walleye and steelhead
Rapala ClapTail 75 and 90
Rapala is expanding the ClapTail family with two smaller sizes: the ClapTail 75 and ClapTail 90. Both preserve the distinctive sound and surface action of the original ClapTail 110 while giving anglers more compact options for matching smaller forage or targeting pressured fish.
Developed with Major League Fishing pro Jacob Wheeler, the ClapTail produces its signature sound through a rotating stainless-steel tail blade that repeatedly strikes a second blade during the retrieve.
The resulting metal-on-metal clapping sound separates it from more conventional prop baits and helps call attention to the lure as it moves across the surface.
Features:
- New 75 mm and 90 mm sizes
- Developed with Jacob Wheeler
- Rotating stainless-steel tail blade
- Distinctive metal-on-metal sound
- Compact options for matching smaller forage
Strike King MachShad
The Strike King MachShad is a slow-sinking, multi-jointed swimbait designed to maintain its swimming action across a range of retrieve speeds.
Anglers can burn it immediately beneath the surface or slow-roll it above grass and other cover. An internal sound chamber adds a pronounced rattle during faster retrieves, combining visual action with additional sound and vibration.
The MachShad is available in 90 mm and 120 mm models. The smaller version carries No. 6 treble hooks, while the larger MachShad 120 uses heavier No. 4 hooks.
Features:
- Slow-sinking, multi-jointed body
- Available in 90 mm and 120 mm sizes
- Suitable for fast or slow retrieves
- Integrated internal sound chamber
- No. 6 hooks on the MachShad 90
- Heavy-duty No. 4 hooks on the MachShad 120
Northland Fishing Tackle Forage Fleck
Designed specifically for fishing through the ice, the Northland Fishing Tackle Forage Fleck combines a hard-bodied baitfish profile with the flash and vibration of a single rear blade.
The lure can be ripped aggressively to imitate fleeing forage or worked with subtle jigging movements when fish are less willing to chase. Its ABS-coated exterior provides a durable finish and realistic sheen in both clear and stained water.
The Forage Fleck is available in three sizes and 10 color patterns for targeting panfish and other predators beneath the ice.
Features:
- Single rear blade
- Suitable for aggressive ripping or finesse jigging
- ABS-coated exterior
- Available in 1/32-, 1/16- and 1/8-ounce sizes
- 10 color choices
Rapala X-Light Series
Rapala’s new X-Light Series is a family of five ultra-compact hard baits intended for trout, panfish, bass and the growing number of anglers using Bait Finesse System tackle.
The X-Light Pop 04 is a miniature topwater popper with a feathered rear treble hook. The Pencil 05 provides a compact walk-the-dog presentation, while the Shad 04 is a small diving crankbait with a responsive rolling action.
The Crank Shallow 03 has a more bulbous, squarebill-style profile that produces a harder wobble around shallow cover, rock and other hard structure. Completing the lineup is the slow-sinking Minnow 05, which can be retrieved steadily or worked with a jerkbait-style snap-and-pause cadence.
Each of the five profiles is offered in 10 colors.
Features:
- Five specialized hard-bait profiles
- Popper, walking bait, crankbait and minnow-bait options
- Designed for ultralight and BFS tackle
- Suitable for trout, panfish and bass
- 10 colors available for each profile
