Water Wire

Z-Man Fishing Products Launches 3-Inch PrawnstarZ LB Loose Body Shrimp Imitation

LADSON, S.C. – From Texas through the Carolinas, shrimp are the currency of inshore fishing. Everything eats them, everywhere, all year. That simple truth puts a shrimp imitation in every inshore angler's lineup. What makes the Z-Man® PrawnstarZ™ the go-to is how convincingly it delivers one: hand-painted realism, legs and tail that come alive on the fall, and 10X Tough durability that holds up fish after fish.

Since debuting in 2024, the PrawnstarZ family has grown from the original rigged 3.5- and 5-inch models to include compact 2.5- and 3-inch versions, plus the 3.5-inch PrawnstarZ LB (Loose Body), the Best in Category winner for Saltwater Soft Lures at ICAST 2025. Anglers took to the LB format for its customizable rigging versatility. Then they asked for a smaller one.

Now they have it. The new 3-inch PrawnstarZ LB matches the shrimp inshore predators encounter most, in a loose body format anglers can rig however the situation dictates.

Staple Size, Endless Setups

Three inches is a workhorse size in inshore fishing: small enough to mirror everyday shrimp forage, subtle enough to land softly when targeting wary fish, and substantial enough to draw quality bites. And because the loose body arrives unrigged, anglers can match the presentation to depth, current, and cover. It pairs cleanly with a Trout Eye™ Jighead for open water applications, rigs weedless on a 2/0 ChinlockZ™ SWS when working through grass and oysters, and comes into its own on a Texas Eye® Finesse Jighead when a snag-resistant, free-swinging presentation is the right call. A nose hook channel and belly and dorsal hook pockets make precise alignment and weedless rigging quick and intuitive.

"I've had this bait tied on every trip for the last few months here around Charleston," says Z-Man Media Manager Christian Conley. "When I'm fishing deeper docks and creek bends, I'm rigging the 3″ PrawnstarZ LB on a jighead. When I'm fishing around oyster beds and grass I rig it weedless. I'm able to fish the same bait all day. The shrimp popping around me have all been the exact size of this bait, and everything from reds to tripletail have been eating the new 3″ LB. That's not a coincidence."

Real Shrimp, Real Tough

The 3-inch LB carries the same true-to-life shrimp anatomy that defines the PrawnstarZ family. Deep abdominal segmentation lets the body and upturned tail flex naturally, while swimming legs and a broad tail fan pulse and flutter as the bait falls, swims or hops along the bottom. A streamlined nose slips through seagrass without fouling.

Built from 10X Tough ElaZtech® superplastic, the PrawnstarZ LB backs that lifelike movement with the durability inshore fishing demands. It shrugs off the nicks and tears that come with oyster shell, barnacled pilings, and pesky pinfish, holding its shape and action through countless catches. The material's natural buoyancy enhances the bait's realistic posture and affords precise depth control throughout the water column.

Another StarZ Takes the Stage

Whether sight-casting shallow flats, working grass edges, or probing oyster bars, dock pilings and deeper drops, the 3-inch PrawnstarZ LB puts the perfect profile in front of redfish, seatrout, flounder, snook, tripletail and juvenile tarpon.

Available now in 12 hand-painted, shrimp-matching colors at a $9.99 MSRP per 3-pack, the 3-inch PrawnstarZ LB delivers exactly what inshore anglers need: proven PrawnstarZ realism and rigging freedom, in the size fish eat most.

About Z-Man Fishing Products

A dynamic Charleston, South Carolina based company, Z-Man Fishing Products has melded leading edge fishing tackle with technology for nearly three decades. Z-Man has long been among the industry's largest suppliers of silicone skirt material used in jigs, spinnerbaits and other lures. Creator of the Original ChatterBait®, Z-Man is also the renowned innovators of 10X Tough ElaZtech softbaits, fast becoming the most coveted baits in fresh- and saltwater. Z-Man is one of the fastest-growing lure brands worldwide.