Product F.A.Q.
Wood or Plastic?
Fishing lures have been made of wood for a very long time. It has been used
because it has natural buoyancy, good strength along with being easy to work
with.
Plastics are the materials of choice for many producers. Reasons? Well, first
it is relatively cheap and second it does not need such skilled workers to
produce them. However, some baits do benefit from being made from plastics
such as our Devon Minnows. Most plastics have a disadvantage in that they do
not float, those that do are difficult to paint needing special primers. In
order to make it float, a hollow air chamber is created inside the plastic
lures. If you crack a plastic surface lure, you now have a sinking lure which
may or may not be a bad thing. The positioning of the air chamber in a plastic
bait means that its buoyancy is in one section of the lure, this can make it
hard to impart the proper action. A wood lure is buoyant throughout, shaping
the lure does not take that away giving a natural action that is easy to work.
Most woods a low in density and the sounds given off from wooden lures are
low frequency, it has been said this makes it more attractive to fish. The
hardware on a wood lure can be changed relatively easily without damaging the
lure. In the end a wood lure is more difficult to make, requires more looking
after but the end result is often more effective.
Blades: Which style?
Blades come in different sizes and patterns each having it’s own characteristics.
Wider more rounded blades spin at around 50 degrees to the shaft wire, they
produce the most lift and can be used quite slowly an example would be the
Colorado blade. Teardrop shaped blades spin at around 45 degrees, the amount
of lift to the speed of retrieve is around mid way, examples are French,
Fluted and Indiana blades. Then there are the narrow, long blades, these
produce the least lift and spin close to the shaft wire at around 27 degrees.
They have to be retrieved more quickly to give the most effect. Examples
are Willow and Swing blades. All of these blades are connected to the shaft
wire by a clevis but not all need one. The Inline or Sonic blade works directly
on the shaft wire, they produce lift, spin’s at slow or fast speeds
and creates more “wobble” in the bait. Other examples of blades
that work directly on the shaft wire are Manta blades, Buzz blades and Propeller
blades.
Titanium or Stainless Steel Leaders?
For many years Stainless Steel leaders have been used for fishing for toothy
fish. There are many types of stainless steel leader, solid wire, 7-strand,
17-strand, 49-strand. In deed we offer high quality Japanese manufactured leaders
that I feel are very good value for money. As with many other products the
quality varies some very good some terrible but with almost all stainless steel
they will eventually kink. Now, with the introduction of Titanium leaders the
rulebook is re-written. Though Titanium leaders appear expensive they do last
a lot longer than stainless steel, certainly the ones we offer are made from
the very highest, medical grade Titanium that have proved themselves throughout
the world where they get used time and again. Titanium leaders may not do a
better job than stainless steel but you will no have to change leader as often
and in the long run they work out cheaper.