This store offers anglers high-quality, effective lures used by guides day-in and day-out in pursuit of white bass and hybrid stripers.
Introduced on Sep. 4, 2024, the newest bait in my lineup designed for white bass (a.k.a. sand bass), hybrids, and stripers is called THE WHITE TORNADO.
I endured a 7-week closure of my guide business during the summer of 2024 due to flooding but invested that time into this lure project which has been in the works since 2021.
The result is THE WHITE TORNADO blade bait which combines the long-casting and fast-sinking qualities of a slab with the fish-attracting qualities of an inline spinner. It gets deep quickly, and the blade spins easily.
The WHITE TORNADO is designed to be cast out horizontally and worked back to the boat with a “sawtooth” or lift-drop technique. It can also be retrieved straight back in.
After developing the MAL Lure, we found the MAL Dense (at 0.88 ounces) really is the greatest weight an inline spinner can carry while maintaining the length and profile of a threadfin shad. Any heavier and the rear end droops down on the retrieve, negatively impacting blade spin and appearance.
By putting the weight in front of the blade, extra weight can be added (up to 1 3/8 ounces) while keeping a natural appearance and excellent blade spin.
I’ve used this very concept on the Bladed Hazy Eye Slab for many years now. The WHITE TORNADO simply increases the blade size, and therefore the flash and vibration which the lure puts off, versus the Bladed Hazy Eye Slab.
The WHITE TORNADO is available now for ordering from my website at www.WhiteBassTools.com.
The WHITE TORNADO is available in 5/8, 3/4, 1 1/8, and 1 3/8 ounces, and in either white or chartreuse.
Quality components ensure long-life and easy blade spin.Mepps makes my tail segments with their angled clevis (not U-shaped!), unique bead arrangement, brass blades, and VMC Black Nickel hooks right here in the USA.A chartreuse tail bead and glow tubing over the hook provide a focal point to avoid blade strikes, just as with the MAL Lure.I personally hand-pour the lead slabs here in Texas and have them powdercoated (never painted!) for durability by a small veteran-owned business also based in Texas.
Replacement tail segments (including hook, bead, & spinner) are available. So, if you bend a shaft or break a hook, or you want to add flash and vibration to your own favorite slab, you can now do so without having to buy anything unnecessarily.
The blade of the WHITE TORNADO begins spinning very readily, so, if you are fishing with kids or rookies, or you’ve never quite gotten the hang of getting and keeping the MAL Lure’s blade spinning, this is a good option for you. The WHITE TORNADO can also be fished a bit more slowly than an MAL.
Bob Maindelle
store owner
Who I Am
My name is Bob Maindelle. I was born into a fishing family in 1969 while my dad was serving in Vietnam. My earliest childhood memories revolve around angling. Pop Pop Hamilton was a commercial fisherman on the Mississippi, mom and dad went fishing on Clarks Hill Reservoir near Augusta, Georgia, on cheap dates as newlyweds, and Uncle Glenn ran a saltwater charter boat out of Shark River, NJ. I'm now happily married, live in Salado, Texas, right at the eastern edge of the Texas Hill Country, and am carrying on the family tradition. I have fished all over our nation in fresh waters and salt, and with all manner of gear and tackle. In 1991, I graduated from West Point (U.S. Military Academy) with a Bachelor of Science degree in environmental engineering, and spent 8 years with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, followed by 9 years in industry as an environmental engineer. I retired in 2016 from full-time ministry as the Small Groups Pastor at a large church in central Texas. My business experience from my "previous life" and my flexible schedule allow me to operate "Holding The Line Guide Service" out of my home on the lakes of this region. I am physically fit, extremely well-organized, very methodical, self-disciplined and detail-oriented. I enjoy introducing beginners to the sport. I enjoy coaching those with a little experience. I enjoy fishing with great fishermen and picking up on tips and techniques from all over the country. I am not so prideful to think that I cannot still learn much from other further down the path than I.
Why I Fish
The pursuit of fish is, to me, an incomparable, lifelong challenge that tests the mind, the body, and even the will. The timeless variables of weather, wind, forage location, light, temperature and pressure prevent any one day's pursuit from being like the chase of any other day. Every sunrise holds new promise, every storm front brings change, every season nudges fish movements, and though the cycle has repeated since the beginning of time, I believe the code will never be fully deciphered. But there are some who understand parts of the code. I am one. And that understanding breeds a desire to preserve and to protect that same Creation that is pursued.
"Absolutely the consummate professional! He actually should start a school for want-to-be guides! I've been on at least 100 guided trips, NEVER had a guide in any field do the job Bob does!
D. Stone