Product Review: Double Clutch 115SP v Steez Current Master 93SP-DR

Head-to-Head: Double Clutch 115SP v Steez Current Master 93SP-DR

By Simon Goldsmith

If you were creating a must-have list of lures for a barra angler a suspending jerkbait is a walk-up starter for sure. A lure that many anglers tie on whether they’re fishing a steamy North Queensland estuary, a run-off drain in the Top End or a weed point on a Central Queensland impoundment there aren’t too many clued in barra anglers that doesn’t have a collection of jerkbaits ready to go anytime they hitch up the boat for a barra session.

The Daiwa stable of lures has featured many suspending jerkbaits over the decades and none perhaps more famous than the trusty Double Clutch. While the original version, the 75SP, was designed as a bass and trout lure, the range has spread its wings over the years with new sizes added, and an ever-growing list of species lining up to eat one. The biggest and one of the most recent additions to the range, the 115SP, was slotted into the line-up in November 2020, and was designed and tuned with barra and Aussie barra anglers in mind.

Another suspending jerkbait soon followed with the release of the Steez Current Master in December 2021, to now offer barra anglers two suspending jerkbaits in the Daiwa stable of lures. Two lures in the same suspending jerkbait genre, the question of course is what sets them apart from each other and if they’re similar, how so.

This article will answer exactly that question. We’ll look at the design of each lure, the thought process behind their creation and form, and the how, the where, and the when of using them when it comes to chasing barra.

Dropping the Clutch

The Double Clutch family certainly has grown over the years with the 115SP the big brother of the jerkbait clan. While the idea of making a bigger version of the original 75 may seem simple, “just make it a bit bigger”, “how hard can it be”? The reality is it’s a bit more complex than that. Daiwa Australia’s Chief Product Planner Tom Slater explains.

“Upsizing an existing lure to making a bigger model is a tricking thing to do. Making it bigger all-round doesn’t result in a larger lure that swims and works the same the same as its smaller model. Length, weight, buoyancy, wall thickness, bib size and angle, hooks and rings and of course hydrodynamics are all things that need to be considered when designing a lure”.

When the idea of making a 115 Double Clutch came about the design and application objective was well defined, Tom explains.

“We wanted to give barra anglers up north the Double Clutch experience. A larger, upsized, barra focused and tuned Double Clutch that has the action and the performance of the Double Clutches that came before it”, explained Tom.

To handle barra a lure needs to be tough, and I mean super tough, and the 115 Double Clutch was certainly designed to be that and features through wire, increased bulk and buoyancy to handle heavier hardware, upgraded hardware, and like all Double Clutches the famous Silent Gravity Oscillating System (SGOS).

While the SGOS plays a pivotal role in the casting performance of the lure it’s the effect that that it has on the action of the Double Clutch that is its greatest achievement, with the erratic action of the lure a result of the varying and moving position of the sliding mechanism. It’s the Silent Gravity Oscillating System that gives the Double Clutch that famous Double Clutch action.

The SGOS also plays a part when it comes to sound and despite what some may believe a Double Clutch isn’t a silent lure. Sure, a Double Clutch might not sound like a baby rattle when you shake it, but it still makes a noise with the movement of the SGOS providing a distinct sound and gives the lure its distinct underwater acoustic fingerprint.

Barra as we known can be caught in impoundments and in the rivers and estuaries and while the 115 Double Clutch will catch fish in both, it’s perhaps more suited to those wild river and estuary fish. Tom explains.

“Sure the 115 is a crossover lure and will catch fish in both, however it’s running depth (3 feet on the twitch and 6 feet on the roll) and action are more suited to twitching around snags, rock bars, and in the rivers and estuaries. In many, many ways it’s a traditional rip and pause estuary barra jerkbait than an impoundment jerkbait”.

The Master Has Arrived

“We wanted to create a jerkbait that was more versatile than the 115 Double Clutch, was more than just a barra lure, and was dead silent.

Measuring 93mm in length and 12 grams in weight the Current Master is a lure that was designed to carry Australian level hardware (hooks and split rings) and handle Australian species. Featuring a bolder and stronger action the Current Master is a different beast than the Double Clutch. Tom explains why.

“The Current Master features a Mag Lock system while the Double Clutch has the Silent Gravity Oscillating System (SGOS). The Mag Lock is fixed at the front of the lure and makes the lure sit more nose down, makes the action of the lure more consistent, and it makes the lure silent”.

A classic all-round jerkbait the Steez Current Master hits six feet on the roll and three feet on a twitch and pause retrieve on a 30lb PE mainline/60lb leader setup. The optimum retrieve is a textbook jerkbait rip and pause approach. Cast the lure out, cranking the lure down with a few winds of the reel handle. Pause. Then follow up with a rip and pause cadence all the way back to the rod tip.

Emerging as a go-to jerkbait choice for Queensland impoundment barra anglers, the Current Master is equally finding a place in the tackle boxes of Gold Coast jack anglers and North Queensland estuary junkies. A lure that appeals to a variety of anglers and species the Steez Current Master is the great all-rounder of the Daiwa jerkbait range.

Horses For Courses

One lure to rule them all isn’t a reality when it comes to fishing and is especially true when it comes to jerkbaits. The 115 Double Clutch and Steez Current Master are two of the newest jerkbaits to be added to the Daiwa line-up, and while they have many similarities, they also have distinct differences in design, action, and application. Hopefully this article has helped provided some clarity on each lure, what it’s designed to do and which one to reach for on your next fishing trip.