10 DIY Swimbait Hacks

       The Lucky Craft "Bi-Gill" - To temporarily make an LC Real BG into a GlideBait, use clear packaging tape to close the tail joint. (Approx. 1"x 1" on both sides, shape tape to bait) Now it offers two types of swim signatures. (think big Giron) Now call it the "Bi-Gill" because it now swims both ways 

Now I know that tape sounds crude but it is a simple way to experiment how a jointed Swimbait might react without a joint or two. A drop or two of superglue will hold it together for a longer period, but it can still be separated if you don't use too much.

Bi-Gill

2) A simple way to enhance the Huddleston (or any Swimbait) by adding contrast and visual depth. Use a red "Dry-Erase" pen to suggest gills. (Don't use Sharpie) It (D-E) is not permanent unless you want it to be by coating with a Mend-it type of glue. (I prefer to reapply pen when needed) It doesn't interfere with the integrity of the bait. Oils from new baits may require pen drying time between attempts. (*Matt Allen, Mike Long)

Dry Erase Pen Gills

3) A black Sharpie CAN be used to make a "NightStalker". It colors the bait a dark purple. It WILL bleed onto other baits until it has fully saturated into the bait permanently. (This is the only time segregation is recommended and acceptable) I have also made a Hudd Sucker by drawing stripes down the sides and back. When the Long Nose Suckers are spawning they will flock to the creek inlets. (Late winter/Early Spring) look for ambush spots along the way. (*Ken Huddleston)

Hudd made from a mold and old Senkos 

 

Black Sharpie

4) Spro 6" (floater or slow sink) knocker mod. The 6" fast sink is the only Spro 6" that has a knocker in the tail. By drilling up to the hinge pin, with a slightly larger diam. bit, the pin slides out. If the pin has been bent, drill again from opposite side and push it out. A knocker tail can now be switched onto a knocker-less bait. Silicone calk can be used to patch the holes drilled or a permanent epoxy.  

The added weight of the knocker causes the floating version to swim slightly lower or just under the surface. Lighter wire split-rings or hook can counter this. 

Spro Floater w/ Tail knocker Mod.

More Spro 6" mods. If you have a old 6" floating model ready to be retired, try these hacks to make them into different baits. 

Remove the joint pin from tail joint and remove tail. Use wire cutters to remove the female sides of the joint and glue the tail and back sections together, making it a single joint bait. (the first or middle joint still remaining) 

5) Use dremol tool disk cutter to cut a slit under the head of the bait (inline with the eyes) up to the bottom jaw. This is where a lip will be inserted. (Note- the angle will determine the amount of dive) A guitar pick with its tip ground or cut squarely off, to fit into slot you cut under the head (cut or grind until the pick fills the entire slot) can now be glued into place.

This is a poor mans version of a 3:16 Wake Jr. - Keep in mind you want a blunt lip so the bait struggles near the surface, instead of diving down deep. (See wake Jr. angle) (*Mickey Ellis)

Weak Attempt. Lip angle caused it to dive.

6) Using the tail joint removal method can also make the Spro 6" into a single joint GlideBait, floating or sinking, though I haven't thoroughly tested the results as of yet. 

7) This method can also be used to add another section, making a larger bait. (*Joe Bruce)

8) Hudd 6" top hook mod. By using 2 oval split-rings you can connect a treble hook "Butch style" to the line tie. (hook line tie vertical) This was done to a top hook bait with hook damage. (* Butch)

6" BB w/ wire hook.

9) When a treble hook breaks during the "Butch Brown" method. I use wire (used to secure motorcycle grips to handlebars) twisted around the hook shaft, bent over and down, in between, the two remaining hook points. Continue the bend and secure wire with Super Glue. Then cut the wire to make the "hook" that secures it into the skin of the bait. This wire can now be inserted and pushed against the ballast, further bending the wire for a secure hold.

It holds the hook better on top of the bait because it can be bent after being inserted. It tears less when it's pulled out by a fish. Broken hooks are not wasted. And it's easier to break a hook than bend and cut it just right. (*Butch)

10) A line-thru SwimBait where the hook is positioned on the bottom of the bait easily hangs up. The line can be made to thread strait to the top of the bait with the use of a coffee stir straw. Cut the straw at an angle making the end sharp. Carefully insert the spit lubed straw up and out, to where you would like the hook to be attached on the top of the bait. Super Glue both protruding ends of the straw lightly and then slide the straw back and forth to spread glue into the bait on both ends. Cut straw flush on both ends once glue has dried. Because some baits insert directly into the weight, you may have to use the original line insert hole out the bottom. Use the straw again to easily re-direct the line back up to where you want to tie the treble on the top. The straw makes this easy to do on the fly. For a solid Swim-bait that requires a weighted swimbait hook, it can be made line-thru if desired. Use the straw method out the top of the bait, then add a tungsten nail weight into the bottom of the bait for the keel. Straw and keel weights must be centered perfectly to ensure the bait runs strait. (*Jason Borofka,  Mike Long)

Line redirected to top w/ coffee straw.

All of these crude hacks were derived from either, parts of ideas borrowed from others *, out of necessity, or wanting them to be made. More SB hacks to come.

"Evolve or Die!"

"Evolve or Die!"

     I've been haunting these waters for a long time. It's impossible for me to not come in with preconceived ideas. Memories dictate what I'm doing. Even what I remember others doing, plays its part. This can be described as "insight" or "baggage". As open minded as I would like to think I am, I usually go through the rolodex of past experiences, grabbing the same ol' things every time. This thinking can inevitably bring success at the lowest percentage possible. 

How the heck am I supposed to learn if I think I already know everything? This thought was brought on by the "AA" example of insanity, "doing the same things over and over, expecting different results".

Fly fishing taught me to get on the water, poke around a bit with a net and take samples, then try to "match the hatch". My OCD tendencies require me to be all set up and dialed in before leaving the house, when I know I'm "putting the horse before the cart".

Fishing has confirmed to me how "outta wack" this world of ours is spinning. Two past decades of ocean happenings tells me that this is a different world we're living in. Fish seem to be about as confused as I am regarding the whole reproduction process. Records are suddenly being broken daily regarding weather, animals, people. Serious changes are happening world wide, yet still I find myself digging deeper into my past experiences', only to be left feeling clueless. 

I've been fortunate enough to have fished quite a few private ponds in the past. Ones that have never been fished before and were stocked with hatchery fish. I remember how practically anything would work at first, so we would fish topwater. We'd be killin' it for a time but eventually the strikes would slow as they became conditioned to the bait and technique as something not to be eaten. When a popper stopped being effective, we'd have to then go to something like a floating Jerk bait, and so on. The lures would continue down in depth and speed, to a weightless rubber worm. Everything could still work in the right situation, optimum conditions and/or right presentation. But the bass definitely learned quickly that there's no more free meals. This seemed to be passed on to their offspring as well, because never again did these techniques work like they did the first time. 

So everything needs to be innovative or refined or in optimum conditions. And constantly adapting and evolving to the feedback we are receiving. 

Drop Shot, Wacked & Neko Rigs, Chatter Baits and big Swimbait's have also taught me about conditioning and that new approaches need to be applied. We have to remind ourselves that every year more and more people populate the world. More people are throwing at that fish before and after my presentation. The bass's own will to survive forces them to "evolve or die". The fish are still there but much like children today, they're maturing and getting smarter, faster, every year. Meanwhile, some of us are still trying to figure out how to use our darn cell phones. 

So we can't get locked into certain technique's that we favor. They need to be refined, applied in new ways, and ever changing. What has become "the new rage" will have an expiration date. It will work when the conditions are right but never again like it did the first time around. 

I remember this time when I took a free-spirited girlfriend along for a few casts. (She had never fished before) We were at the point where we needed some time apart and we were easily getting on each others nerves. We both had Senko set ups and she was chucking and winding away without a care in the world. She wasn't hurting anything and was content just being outdoors. Though I knew better, I suggested that she might want to try letting it sit on the bottom. She gave me the "you're such a jerk" look and said "you do it your way and I'm gonna do it my way". While there's no happy ending here, when I think about it, the fish determine what's right or wrong. Maybe they missed the Senko edition of MasterBaiter Magazine? And I can't really say I've ever even tried it.(her way)

So don't be afraid to try new things, even if they make you laugh.(A-rig) Don't dismiss anything as "not doing it right"(Wacky) and don't be afraid to combine aspects of any techniques' (DS) And when you figure out "the next new rage" don't be so quick to let it out of the bag. Because all things in this world will come to pass. 

Once you can free your mind, "why didn't I think of that?" might be replaced with, "why didn't I ever try that?" BTW, the Senko WAS intended to be a jerk bait.