Fishing subscription boxes are all the rage right now, offering a monthly shipment of tackle direct to your door.
But like everything else in the fishing world, you typically get what you pay for, and we have serious questions about whether you’re better off spending your hard-earned money on a mystery or just heading over to Bass Pro and buying a few lures.
I’ll bet you do, too!
Today, we’d like to answer that question, and we’re going to take a long, close look at the MonsterBass Box.
How much does this service cost? What do you get for that money? And most importantly, is it worth it?
Table of Contents (clickable)
MonsterBass Box Review
Imagine having a team of seasoned professionals choosing your bass lures for you, as well as teaching you how to fish them effectively.
That’s what MonsterBass Box promises. According to them, their “team is comprised of a 2-time Bassmaster Classic Champion, an FLW Forrest Wood Cup Champion, current elite tournament Pros, industry experts & some of your favorite YouTube fishing stars.”
These pros select lures based on the state in which you live as well as the time of year, using their experience and know-how to pick excellent regional and seasonal options.
Geared toward bass anglers, with a multi-species option thrown in for good measure, MonsterBass Box bills itself as the ultimate bass-focused fishing subscription box.
And MonsterBass Box guarantees that the lures they select aren’t just overstocks that have been dumped on them at a cut-rate price: they’re hand-selecting premium lures.
Pricing
The MonsterBass Box is offered at different price points and different subscription lengths.
At its most basic, you can purchase a single month at the Silver ($20), Gold ($28), Platinum ($38), or Multi-Species ($38) levels.
Each level includes carefully selected lures, instructional videos, and freebies like stickers, as well as a $10 gift card. But as you step up in price, you’ll add features like Livestream access and a Personal Best guarantee.
That guarantee applies to a yearly subscription to the Platinum level ($408), which is described this way: “Stick with us for 1 year and if you don’t catch your new PB… we’ll give you your money back.”
Longer subscription periods reduce monthly prices at each level, saving you money over the long term.
Contents
When I add-up the market price of these lures, I get a total of $58.50, matching MonsterBass Box’s promise to include more than $50 worth of tackle in a Platinum level box.
Let’s take a close look at the contents of this representative box.
- The Strike King Thunder Cricket is an outstanding swim jig that offers a winning combination of vibration paired with an enticing skirt. There’s simply no question that this is an excellent choice and a good buy.
- The Castaic crankbait is a pretty good lure, offering nice action, deep diving, and plenty of erratic darting action when bounced off sticks, stumps, or rocks. Quality control may be a tad lacking in this crankbait, and the bill isn’t as firmly attached as I’d like.
- MonsterBass Box’s own Incision 69 Lipless Crankbait is a pretty good option, too. It easily runs head-down, and when crashed into cover, darts like it should without getting hung up too often.
- Steelshad’s Blade Bait is also an effective crankbait that’s weighted for long casts and deep water. It’s probably not a lure I’d choose to buy, but then that’s just my opinion, and I’m sure plenty of anglers love them.
- The B8 Lab Ultimate Strike Shad strikes me as a shallower-running copy of the Strike King KVD 4.0 Squarebill.
Frankly, I’d rather be throwing the Strike King brand, but I don’t object to the B8.
Keep in mind that my views are just that – mine.
To help you decide for yourself, watch this unboxing of a “Lunkerhunt Takeover” version of January 2023’s box, check out this video:
Bang for your Buck?
These seem like pretty reasonable boxes to me, and for less experienced anglers unsure about which lures to choose, the MonsterBass Box makes a lot of sense.
And while most subscribers seem pretty happy with what they get, a few complain that name-brand products are less and less likely to arrive, being replaced with MonsterBass knock-offs and lures they feel are the overstock they were promised wouldn’t be shipped. That’s certainly not true of the name-brand takeovers, like this month’s Lunkerhunt, but it does seem to be at least somewhat true of the average monthly offerings.
Another problem that’s just inherent to the business is that exciting lures for newbies may be old hat to veterans. For instance, a variety of lipless crankbaits are going to really change fishing for someone just starting out, but an avid bass angler probably has a dozen or so in his tacklebox already.
Getting yet another crankbait or jig probably isn’t what seasoned anglers want or need.
That said, legions of subscribers are really happy with the boxes they get and the lures that are selected for them. Certainly, there’s enough variety that a year’s subscription will have you well-geared up for bass the following year.
The Verdict
So what can we say about a MonsterBass Box subscription?
The Good
- Excellent value for the money – While not every lure will be your cup of tea, you will get more bang for your buck than purchasing these items separately.
- Careful selection – If you’re new to angling, unsure about why you’re not catching fish, or confused by lure selection or technique, a subscription makes real sense. Not only will you be receiving effective lures on a monthly basis, you’ll have access to tutorial videos that really teach you how to use them.
- Customer service is good – If there’s something wrong with your order, they’ll make it right.
The Bad
- Better for beginners – I hate to say this, but the MonsterBass Box is probably better suited to less avid bass fishermen. Anglers who spent years chasing largemouths will already have a collection of crankbaits, soft plastics, topwater poppers, stickbaits, and hooks, and they’ll know how to rig a worm Carolina, Texas, Ned, Wacky, and any other way you can imagine.
There doesn’t seem to be any added value for the experienced angler. - Repetition and knock-offs – Let’s get real – MonsterBass Box is a business, and to make money, they need to take in more money than they spend. Lower-priced copies of name-brand lures are a temptation – no doubt – and there’s definitely some of that being delivered month to month. There’s also less variety than some might like, with crankbaits and spinners being the lion’s share of the items in each box (at least according to common complaints).
Is a MonsterBass Box right for you?
If you’re a relatively inexperienced angler with a modest tackle box, I’d say absolutely yes.
You get a lot of carefully selected, effective lures delivered to your door, and the seasonal variation goes a long way toward helping you make smart lure choices yourself as the year rolls on.
But if you’ve already got a solid selection of lures and soft plastics, know when to fish a Texas rig versus a Carolina rig, and can work a chatterbait like a pro, you’re probably better off selecting lures on your own.
Source: usangler.com