Don't let the name of the Erie Darter fool you, they are the best kept secret in tournament fishing. The Poor Boy's Erie Darter has proven itself on the Great Lakes but will catch fish anywhere. With the invasion of gobies into the Great Lakes, predatory fish have been gorging themselves. The natural hues and coloration of the Erie Darter make this bait ideal for clear water situations. Drop Shot, Carolina or Texas rig the Erie Darter for best results.
The customer comments shown below were gathered using our previous feedback system. While these comments are not used in the calculation of the star rating for this product, they are displayed to help provide you with the most complete customer feedback available.
Comments: If the fish can tell some of the baits were badly poured, then I would agree with some of the negative reviews. Since the fish can't tell, I don't agree. These baits are rugged, durable, and have some good color options. When you're looking for a finesse presentation around gravel and rock on an open jig, this bait does very well. Those cold days when things are slow and I need to drag and pop real slow, this is my go to bait. Smallmouth love it!
From:Smallmouth Man: Great Lakes 4/11/21
Comments: I have to agree with the other reviews regarding quality. I pour my own baits, I would be ashamed to sell baits of this quality. I threw all six packages in the garbage. Every bait was severely over poured.
From:Stein3411: Bellingham, WA 1/27/19
Comments: Had a little problem with some color consistency from previous baits. I called Poor Boy's and told them about my issue, they corrected it promptly with replacements, plus extra's, and a really cool sticker. They were really apologetic, great guys in my book.
From:Dean: Grand Rapids 5/30/18
Comments: These used to be my favorite bait, until my recent purchase of these in my two favorite smallmouth colors. Well I'm here to tell you, Poor Boy should be ashamed of the inferior product they are turning out now compared to the older ones. I am in total agreement with the other negative reviews, now anyone just starting to use these baits would not know what quality control issues are occurring if you never fished the true erie darter. For starters the rib sections, most all of mine still had plastic fusing the sections together, along with them not being equal on the center of the body. And the colors, wow, almost like the mixture was not mixed, different colors on every bait. They are also not as soft, and some of the spade tails were deformed. Everything I loved about this bait is now gone.
From:Unknown Alpena, MI 3/11/18
Comments: Rock and Roll! Buddy of mine turned me on to these, will always be in my arsenal. Not sure what the other reviews are talking about quality and colors, as I have just started using them, but they WORK on Dale Hollow.
From: Tim - Nashville, TN 1/5/18
Comments: Not the same as the old ones, as others have said very poor quality control now. When the packaging changed so did the baits.
From:Unknown 11/25/17
Comments: Use to use these all the time for Michigan smallmouth until the new owners changed colors and plastic, are not as soft anymore and all the colors changed enough to where you cant recognize them anymore. Very disappointing.
From: Unknown 8/30/17
Comments: Absolutely terrible... baits are now VERY poor quality. Sticking together uneven pours and colors are off. Steiger ice and goby both arrived with clear/ blue bellies instead of cream. Save your money and look for a different goby bait.
From: Josh: Great Lakes 5/6/17
Comments: Hawg Largemouth love them too! PB a week ago, breaking my own record from just a month before that! Both on Erie Darters 4". 1st was Green Pumpkin Purple (drop shot) & newest was Golby (TX Rig with 1/8th oz. bullet.) The action is awesome & the reaction is undeniable. I recommend them. Whether it's the profile, softness, action... Or all 3... Bass really love them!
From: Davey: Detroit, MI 8/17/16
Comments: This is a fine bait to use for catching smallmouth at Lake Erie, and I presume other lakes where smallies exist. I use lighter colors when the water is clear or when the wind is calm, like cucumber or watermelon. As the water becomes more stained, I'll switch to the green pumpkin colors. Lastly, any bait with copper or gold flake appears to work after mayfly hateches better than other colors of flake.
From: Eric: Cincinnati, OH 1/27/15
Comments: John i fish on james all of the time and destroy the smallies. I caught a six pound bronzie with the green pumpkin 4 inch. best dropshot baits in the world.
From: Blake: Fort Wayne, IN
Comments: I absolutely love this bait. The tail twitches at the slightest tip movement and the fish really key in on the profile. Perfect soft plastic for sight fishing.
From: David: Plumas Lake, CA
Comments: These baits tear them up in the spring. When a lipless isn't doing the trick, I texas rig these with a light 1/8 ounce weight in the normal prespawn staging areas. The hogs love them! Only trouble is that they aren't very durable so you better buy up.
Previous Feedback
Comments: If the fish can tell some of the baits were badly poured, then I would agree with some of the negative reviews. Since the fish can't tell, I don't agree. These baits are rugged, durable, and have some good color options. When you're looking for a finesse presentation around gravel and rock on an open jig, this bait does very well. Those cold days when things are slow and I need to drag and pop real slow, this is my go to bait. Smallmouth love it!
From: Smallmouth Man: Great Lakes 4/11/21
Comments: I have to agree with the other reviews regarding quality. I pour my own baits, I would be ashamed to sell baits of this quality. I threw all six packages in the garbage. Every bait was severely over poured.
From: Stein3411: Bellingham, WA 1/27/19
Comments: Had a little problem with some color consistency from previous baits. I called Poor Boy's and told them about my issue, they corrected it promptly with replacements, plus extra's, and a really cool sticker. They were really apologetic, great guys in my book.
From: Dean: Grand Rapids 5/30/18
Comments: These used to be my favorite bait, until my recent purchase of these in my two favorite smallmouth colors. Well I'm here to tell you, Poor Boy should be ashamed of the inferior product they are turning out now compared to the older ones. I am in total agreement with the other negative reviews, now anyone just starting to use these baits would not know what quality control issues are occurring if you never fished the true erie darter. For starters the rib sections, most all of mine still had plastic fusing the sections together, along with them not being equal on the center of the body. And the colors, wow, almost like the mixture was not mixed, different colors on every bait. They are also not as soft, and some of the spade tails were deformed. Everything I loved about this bait is now gone.
From: Unknown Alpena, MI 3/11/18
Comments: Rock and Roll! Buddy of mine turned me on to these, will always be in my arsenal. Not sure what the other reviews are talking about quality and colors, as I have just started using them, but they WORK on Dale Hollow.
From: Tim - Nashville, TN 1/5/18
Comments: Not the same as the old ones, as others have said very poor quality control now. When the packaging changed so did the baits.
From: Unknown 11/25/17
Comments: Use to use these all the time for Michigan smallmouth until the new owners changed colors and plastic, are not as soft anymore and all the colors changed enough to where you cant recognize them anymore. Very disappointing.
From: Unknown 8/30/17
Comments: Absolutely terrible... baits are now VERY poor quality. Sticking together uneven pours and colors are off. Steiger ice and goby both arrived with clear/ blue bellies instead of cream. Save your money and look for a different goby bait.
From: Josh: Great Lakes 5/6/17
Comments: Hawg Largemouth love them too! PB a week ago, breaking my own record from just a month before that! Both on Erie Darters 4". 1st was Green Pumpkin Purple (drop shot) & newest was Golby (TX Rig with 1/8th oz. bullet.) The action is awesome & the reaction is undeniable. I recommend them. Whether it's the profile, softness, action... Or all 3... Bass really love them!
From: Davey: Detroit, MI 8/17/16
Comments: This is a fine bait to use for catching smallmouth at Lake Erie, and I presume other lakes where smallies exist. I use lighter colors when the water is clear or when the wind is calm, like cucumber or watermelon. As the water becomes more stained, I'll switch to the green pumpkin colors. Lastly, any bait with copper or gold flake appears to work after mayfly hateches better than other colors of flake.
From: Eric: Cincinnati, OH 1/27/15
Comments: John i fish on james all of the time and destroy the smallies. I caught a six pound bronzie with the green pumpkin 4 inch. best dropshot baits in the world.
From: Blake: Fort Wayne, IN
Comments: I absolutely love this bait. The tail twitches at the slightest tip movement and the fish really key in on the profile. Perfect soft plastic for sight fishing.
From: David: Plumas Lake, CA
Comments: These baits tear them up in the spring. When a lipless isn't doing the trick, I texas rig these with a light 1/8 ounce weight in the normal prespawn staging areas. The hogs love them! Only trouble is that they aren't very durable so you better buy up.
From: Greg: Syracuse, IN
Comments: Smallmouth killer
From: Mark: Huntington, IN
Comments: favorite drop shot bait
From: Joe: Markham, ON Canada