I got the KVD 8.0 Magnum in the “Natural Bream” color on September 16th, 2023.
This lure is SOLID! It is rock solid all around! The thick, beefy, heavy duty split rings are one of my key favorite features on this KVD 8.0 Magnum.
This lure is BIG for a crankbait and I LOVE IT! The split rings are BIG, THICK and Heavy Duty! You can easily haul in a BIG BASS, BIG Northern Pike, BIG Musky, BIG Walleye because of how thick, big, sturdy and robust this KVD 8.0 Magnum lure is built. This lure is built with one word in mind… HEAVY DUTY. Kevin Van Damn and Strike King designed and made a very good, heavy duty, good well built lure here. You won’t have any problems in the hardware hauling in THE BIG ONES!
This lure is hefty and heavy (a good heavy) which is GREAT for casting far! I can cast my KVD 8.0 Magnum about 40, 50, 60 yards… maybe more on my 9 foot rod with 30lb Sufix 832 Advanced Superline Braid. This big heavy KVD 8.0 Magnum will allow anyone who uses it to cast farther because of its heavier weight. -And it slowly rises to the top of the water and floats too.
If you’re looking for a very quick shallow crankbait to quickly cover water from shore (like I do) The KVD 8.0 Magnum (and KVD 4.0 Magnum) is not going to be as quick covering water from shore as the KVD 2.5 (and smaller) squarebill crankbaits. The KVD 2.5 (and smaller) squarebill crankbaits will allow you to cover shallow water from shore alot quicker than the KVD 8.0 (and 4.0) Magnums. You can still use the KVD 8.0 (and 4.0) Magnum in shallow water like 3 feet but you will be fishing it slower because they dive deeper (3-7 feet) compared to the KVD 2.5’s and smaller because they are smaller and run very good in 1-5 feet of water (I think that’s what the package said if I can remember correctly). The KVD 2.5’s and smaller have a tighter, quicker, flickering action and can be reeled in quicker and faster than the KVD 8.0 and 4.0 Magnums. The KVD 8.0 and 4.0 Magnums have a deeper dive to them on the pull, and a wide tight wobble. They vibrate SO HARD! I REALLY like the feel and far castability of the KVD 8.0 and 4.0 Magnums!
I have used my KVD 8.0 (and 4.0) Magnum’s VERY WELL and VERY EFFECTIVELY AND EFFICIENTLY in the 5-10 foot water range ESPECIALLY along those weedlines in the 5-10 foot range! Saturday September 16th, 2023 @ 4:01 PM I caught a nice, healthy 2.5lb - 3lb Largemouth Bass in about 5 feet of water on my KVD 8.0 Magnum. Monday September 18th, 2023 @ 4:50 PM I was throwing my KVD 8.0 Magnum at another lake along a weedline in about 8-10 feet of water and I caught about a 3.5lb to 4.5lb (18.5 inch) Largemouth Bass. Friday October 13th, 2023 @ 11:35 PM I caught a 18.25 inch Largemouth Bass (I need to get my scale and use it more). Good, well sized fish -AND BIG FISH bite this big KVD 8.0 Magnum Squarebill Crankbait! It floats too!
The KVD 4.0 and 8.0 Magnums have a heavier, slower, stronger vibrating wobble under the water. You REALY CAN FEEL THEIR STRONG WOBBLE under the water ESPECIALLY if you’re fishing & cranking with a fiberglass rod like I do.
The paint / finish LOOKS good… but… the paint and finish on ALL KVD squarebill crankbaits could be WAY better and MORE DURABLE. The points of the hooks knick into the lures when they hit the paint after continuous repeated casting and the hooks banging on them and nicking and hitting them. The paint just gets little nick marks on them all around where the hooks rotate on the KVD squarebill crankbait lures. The paint nicks off over usage from the hooks rotation circumference. The other parts of the lure paint are good though. It can withstand some toothy predators like Northern Pike, Walleye, and Musky.
If KVD and Strike King could make the paint / finish on the KVD squarebill crankbaits DURABLE like how they do on their KVD 10XD Deep Diving Crankbaits then I would give this lure 5 stars. So I would give this lure a 4.8 out of 5 stars exactly. And the front hook gets caught on top of the plastic square bill of the crankbait about 2 out of 10 times, so that can get annoying unhooking that. KVD and Strike King could make that front hook a little smaller, scoot it back some on the lure, or you can remove it, or put a smaller one on yourself. But it should come ready to fish efficiently right out of the package. That’s their job to make that happen.
Until that happens I am giving this lure a solid 4.8 stars out of 5 stars exactly. The KVD 8.0 Magnum is a VERY FUN lure to fish with! It is one of my favorite FUN lures to use when on deeper water in the 5 to 10 foot range -ESPECIALLY ALONG WEEDLINES! I really don’t want to take it off when I am fishing with it! It is a VERY FUN and good crankbait to use. I Love them. The paint just needs to be durable like on the KVD 10XD Deep Diving Crankbaits; and the front hook situation, then the KVD squarebill crankbaits would be PERFECT!
