Phenomenal Striper Catcher - The Magical Heddon Hellcat!

By Alfred Anuszewski

During the early 1970s, Heddon lures—the company behind classics like the Zara Spook, Torpedo, Crazy Crawler, and Cisco Kid—created a minnow plug that gained a quiet reputation with surfcasters as a phenomenal striped bass catcher.

The plastic Hellcat floating minnow swimmer came in a variety of sizes, but it was the two largest models, the 5½-inch and the 7-inch, that were coveted by surfcasters.

I learned of the Hellcat’s special fish-catching ability from two of my surf-fishing friends. Fishing on Cape Cod, they witnessed a surfcaster named Jerry Bernard out-fishing everyone in the surf by using Hellcats. It was not known as a mainstream striped bass lure. When most surfcasters spoke of swimming plugs, it was usually Red Fins, Rebels, Bombers, and Rapalas. These plugs, along with classic designs like needlefish, darters, and bottle plugs were responsible for big catches of striped bass. However, there were times when the striped bass would stop hitting all these traditional lures and the fishing would shut down. This is when the Hellcat would shine.

Properly fished, the 7-inch Hellcat swimmer is a flat-out striper killer. I’ve had some very interesting experiences fishing with the 7-inch Hellcat. Surfcasting at night on Montauk’s south side, my partner and I had blitz fishing on yellow darters and “chicken scratch” Red Fins for two nights. On the third night, the fishing shut off. We thought the blitz was over and the fish had moved out, so we were about to leave when my partner said, “One more cast.” He tried a 7-inch black-and-chrome Hellcat and was into a large striped bass on his first cast. The blitz continued for another night, and we caught a lot of stripers on the 7-inch Hellcat. The striped bass were still there, but stopped hitting the darters and Red Fins. The Hellcat was the only one they would hit, and we experienced this again and again in the Montauk surf.

The 7-inch Hellcat also proved itself surfcasting at night at Southwest Point Rock Bar on Block Island. My partner and I were fishing in a lineup of five other surfcasters and the fishing was very slow. We were all fishing needlefish, Red Fins, and eels, and no striped bass were taken. Remembering what happened on the south side of Montauk, I decided to try an all-black 7-inch Hellcat on the Southwest Point Rock Bar. After a couple of casts, I caught a striper over 40 pounds. My partner then put a Hellcat on his line and he also caught a striped bass over 40 pounds. My partner and I ended up catching five very large striped bass on 7-inch all-black Hellcats. The other surfcasters in the lineup did not catch one striped bass. Again, the striped bass did not want needlefish, eels, or Red Fins—they would only hit a 7-inch Hellcat.

I started to believe the 7-inch Hellcat had a magical quality to it. When all other lures failed, it produced. It even out-fished needlefish plugs, on occasion, on Block Island. Even the 5½-inch Hellcat has a special fish catching ability in back bays or quiet waters, when striped bass are feeding on small sand eels or spearing.

I believe Heddon Lure Company designed the Hellcat swimmer to catch big freshwater largemouth bass, so it had a little more finesse to it, with its very fine and skinny profile. It almost looks vulnerable as it sits in the water. I believe these features of the Hellcat are what make it produce when no other lure will. The striped bass see it as an easy meal.

Hellcats have a very versatile swimming action that is controlled by how high or low you hold your surf rod and by the speed of your retrieve, creating either a tight wiggle from the lure or a wide-rolling action. One night, my partner and I were both fishing the 7-inch Hellcat. My partner was into a striper on every cast, and I could not get one hit. The difference was my partner was holding his surf rod at a lower position than I was. When I lowered my surf rod, I caught stripers on every cast.

Hellcats have a fragile plastic lip and weak construction, which make them very vulnerable to rocky shorelines and big stripers. Before I fished a Hellcat, I would take out the plastic lip, which is held by weak factory glue, and re-glue it with Super Glue. This is especially important to do now because Hellcats are no longer in production. If you search online, you might be able to find one. I have carried a Hellcat in my surf bag at all times for many years, and the magical Hellcat has saved many a night for me.