Mastering Flathead with the New Live Ops Series

Flathead are one of Australia's most beloved species – aggressive, ambush-driven predators found across estuaries, sandflats, and drop-offs. Chasing them is all about presentation, precision, and picking the right lure. Enter the next generation of soft plastics: Nomad Design’s Switcher Shrimp, Spectre Minnow, and Fallout Minnow, a trio of advanced soft plastics built for finesse, versatility, and real reaction strikes.

In this guide, we’ll break down how these three new lures can dramatically boost your hookup rate, no matter the conditions.

The Switcher Shrimp is the ultimate imitation prawn designed to mimic a shrimp’s true movement under stress. The unique ability to reverse rig these lures and its lifelike movement make it deadly around drop-offs, current seams, sandflats and shallow drains which are perfect flathead ambush zones. For flathead anglers, this lure unlocks multiple strategies.

How to Fish It for Flathead:

Reverse Rigged on a Jighead For Drop & Flick Presentations The ideal zones for this are sandy drop-offs, ledges, channel edges, deep gutters, and transition zones between sand and mud. Flathead often lie facing into current or adjacent to structure, ready to ambush prey. Rigging the Switcher Shrimp tail-first leverages its reverse flick action, mimicking a shrimp darting away in distress which is a powerful bite trigger.

Setup & Technique: Use a jighead between 1/8oz to 3/8oz, depending on depth and flow. Thread the hook through the rear slot, exiting through the designated forward eyelet (no trimming required). Cast up-current and let the lure sink on a semi-slack line and watch for taps on the drop. Use a double-hop retrieve with 1–2 second pauses in between. The shrimp will flick up and back, then flutter naturally as it falls. Maintain contact with the bottom while avoiding slack line on descent to feel subtle flathead pickups.

Forward Rigged For Horizontal Glide & Slow-Roll Retrieves Wide open flats, sand bars, and current flats with scattered bait are the ideal zones for this technique. Rigging the Switcher forward gives it a balanced, level swimming posture, allowing you to present it like a cruising prawn or shrimp at rest which is what you want when flathead are actively foraging across the bottom.

Setup & Technique: Use a lighter jighead (1/12oz to 1/6oz) to maintain a slow sink and natural horizontal glide. Insert the hook through the nose slot using the front rigging channel, locking into the ShrimpLock system. Perform a slow-roll retrieve with intermittent rod twitches. Add slight pauses every few cranks to simulate a shrimp pausing or pulsing in the current. Best fished on finesse spin gear (3–8lb braid, 6–10lb leader) to allow subtle movements and long casts. Ideal in clear water or pressured environments where subtlety wins.

Weedless Rig For Structure-Oriented Ambush Points For fishing around mangrove edges, shallow drains, submerged weedbeds, or rocky estuary points. Weedless rigging keeps the Switcher free from snagging while still retaining natural shrimp action. Perfect for targeting flathead that lie in cover or shallow ambush zones during high tide or early morning pushes.

Setup & Technique: Use a weedless EWG worm hook, either weighted belly-style (1/16–1/8oz) or unweighted in shallow water. Thread hook through the designated entry slot (belly or nose), aligning the point flush with the top of the body for a snag-less profile. Work the lure with a twitch-pause method along the bottom or through cover, allowing the bait to flutter down between hops. Pair with a slow-sinking fluorocarbon leader (10–12lb) for abrasion resistance and more natural fall. This technique is excellent for shallow skimming casts under mangrove shadows or drifting over thick weed zones where flathead sit hidden.

The Spectre Minnow is a flashy finesse baitfish designed to shine when flathead are picky or cautious. It combines subtle action with built-in flash via the Mirage X foil system, making it perfect for pressured fish or low visibility situations. Its slimline body and ultra-soft tail respond to the lightest rod movement, mimicking estuary baitfish like mullet, whitebait, and anchovies. Whether you're drifting shallow sand flats or probing channel edges, the Spectre’s natural swimming action and reflective flash make it a deadly tool for targeting reactive flathead strikes.

How to Fish It for Flathead:

Light Jighead Rig For Slow Swim & Drift Ideal areas for this technique are sandflats, channel edges, tidal drains, and estuary mouths with moderate current. Flathead often suspend near the bottom along drop-offs and current seams, where bait is funnelled past. Rigging the Spectre Minnow with a light jighead gives it a slow, horizontal swim on the retrieve, while the foil belly flashes like a baitfish struggling in the current.

Setup & Technique: Use a 1/16oz to 1/8oz jighead to maintain a subtle sink rate and allow long casts. Insert the hook through the built-in hook slot and align perfectly for horizontal posture. Cast slightly across or up-current, allow the bait to sink, then begin a slow roll with short pauses. On the pause, the soft tail continues to flutter and the Mirage X foil pulses, often triggering bites. Excellent with light spin tackle (4–8lb braid, 6–10lb leader) for better sensitivity and casting distance.

Weedless Rig For Skinny Water and Heavy Structure Perfect for mangrove-lined creeks, seagrass beds, and undercut banks. Rigged weedless, the Spectre Minnow becomes a shallow-water sniper that can be skipped under overhanging mangroves or dragged through weed-choked gutters where flathead hide in ambush.

Setup & Technique: Use a light belly-weighted EWG hook (eg.1/16oz) or unweighted worm hook for skinny water. Thread through the body’s hook slot for streamlined weedless rigging. Retrieve with short hops and long pauses, allowing the bait to flutter naturally between movements. Combine with fluorocarbon leader (8–12lb) for abrasion resistance and stealth.

The Fallout Minnow is a precision controlled soft plastic that excels when flathead are keyed in on bait descending into their zone. A more technical lure than the previous two designed with the Adjusta-Ball tungsten weight system, you can control whether it glides, nose-dives, or flutters tail-down, matching the feeding mood of the fish. Its compact baitfish profile, subtle tail flick, and sonar visibility make it one of the most advanced soft plastics for technical inshore flathead work.

How to Fish It for Flathead:

Level Glide Setup For Natural Drop-Off Presentations Ideal for channel walls, drop-offs, and edge contours with light to moderate current. When flathead are watching from the bottom, a level-sinking bait mimics injured baitfish descending slowly which equates to an easy meal for an ambush predator.

Setup & Technique: Position the Adjusta-Ball forward to create a balanced, level sink. Use a finesse-style jighead (1/8–1/4oz) or rig weedless with a weighted worm hook. Cast across or slightly upstream and allow the bait to sink naturally and use a hop-twitch-pause retrieve to trigger strikes as the bait flutters back down. Works well with braid (6–10lb) and fluorocarbon leader (10–14lb) to feel subtle pickups.

Tail-Down Flutter For Reaction Bites in Vertical Structure For around drains, tidal walls, steep drop-offs, and bridge pylons. Adjusting the ball weight toward the rear allows the bait to sink tail-first with a fluttering action, which mimics a wounded baitfish spiraling down.

Setup & Technique: Shift the Adjusta-Ball to the back of the chamber and cast close to structure and allow it to flutter freely down. Use vertical lifts and drops, keeping slack minimal to detect bites. This method is deadly when fishing from a boat or kayak, and when tight to vertical features.

Nose-Dive Action For Aggressive Bottom-Hopping For hopping mudflats, shell beds, and pressure points where baitfish crash into cover. Setting the tungsten ball forward turns the Fallout Minnow into a darting bait that mimics a fish diving to the bottom which is perfect for provoking flathead holding tight to the bottom.

Setup & Technique: Position the Adjusta-Ball to the front for sharp nose-down drops. Use short, sharp hops followed by long pauses and then on pause, the bait sits head-down with tail flicking subtly to entice a bite. You have options to rig with weedless or regular jighead depending on terrain. With its customizable sink angle and sonar-friendly design the Fallout Minnow lets you fish with absolute precision especially when flathead are tuned-in on fall speed and posture.

Catching flathead isn’t about luck, it’s about putting the right lure in the right place, with the right action. Flathead usually won’t give you second chances so it’s the little things like how a lure flicks, pauses, and sinks that make all the difference. The Switcher Shrimp, Spectre Minnow, and Fallout Minnow are made to look, move, and react like real bait under distress or pressure with every detail from the body shape to how they fall in the water has been designed to fool even the spookiest fish. At the end of the day, it’s your connection to the water, to the moment, and to the gear that makes it count. So, if you're chasing your next PB, it might be time to switch it up and fish smarter with the Live Ops range.