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Archive - November 2007 Ready to Roumba!Posted Nov-17-07 10:22:36 PST Ready to Roumba!The first shipment of Ima Japan lures has finally arrived! The Rumba is a high tempo, fast-stepping and seductive dance, and that describes the overcharged action of the new Ima Roumba too. It cuts a rug across the top with a high energy, non-stop display of surface sidestepping intended to excite and arouse bass to dance with it.
There's really no need to give the Roumba any additional rod tip action. All the wild gyrations are built right into this new style wake bait designed for Ima by bass pro, Fred Roumbanis. The Roumba has more and faster side-to-side action, just reeling the Roumba steadily, than most other topwater lures. Although the built-in action causes the Roumba to move rapidly side-to-side, it does not need to be reeled and moved forward quickly. So it may be moved forward slowly - but with a fast side-to-side action - for raw reaction.
Serrated Blade SpinnerbaitsPosted Nov-16-07 09:11:01 PST Serrated Blade Spinnerbaits
New SpinnerbaitsPosted Nov-13-07 15:33:19 PST Updated Nov-14-07 08:49:33 PST All have .040 diameter twist-wrapped closed eyes, except the last item (3/8 Style R) has .035 diameter R-Bend Super Wire. Chartreuse White Laminated Blades. One side of each blade is painted white. The other side of each blade is painted chartreuse. The two different color sides blink on and off chartreuse-white-chartreuse-white as they rotate. This causes a lot of color flutter and color flicker not possible with a solid white or solid.chartreuse blade. Blades are nickel-plated brass beneath the paint.
Chartreuse white flash skirt has a hank of reflective silver hologram Mylar strands banded into the white belly.
Vintage Gibbs Needlefish ~ Rare Surf Fishing PlugPosted Nov-11-07 17:16:16 PST
As I am aware of it, this was one of the first mass-produced Gibbs needlefish. This early Gibbs needlefish model has heavy screw eyes. Within about the next season, Gibbs came out with a little wider body shape and a through-wired model, and these more slender screw eye models were discontinued then. The historical or collectible significance of the screw eye model is that this is one of the very first needlefish of any kind that many Rhode Island anglers could get their hands on, and they caught an awful lot of big bass on it. There really were no other brands or models out there around that time that I am aware of, just the original wood Super Strike needlefish (which had very limited access), plus the older, flimsy Boone and Classic screw eye models, which didn't hold together. The Gibbs screw eye model here was made of denser wood and far heavier screw eyes than the Boone or Classic. So when this screw eye Gibbs model hit the beaches, it was available in sufficient quantities to arm entire gangs and armies of Rhode Island surfcasters who were equipped with them. The Gibbs screw eye needles were light (3/4 oz) and also high-floaters. They were best to me for slack tides, light surf, and especially in cut-off kinds of tide pools up close to shore. For me, since I had other needlefish options, the screw eye Gibbs were a light tackle needlefish to use on the same relatively light spinning gear and same kind of spots as I'd use a 5-1/2" Red Fin in many cases. But for the Rhode Island surfcasters, it was one of the only and best-made needlefish available, so they used it under all conditions, and clobbered monster fish with it under any and all conditions. One of the most effective ways that some of the best Rhode Island super-sharpies used them was to cast straight out in front of you, and just keep the line taut as the needlefish swung in a semi-circle down tide. Often the hit would come when the bait was parallel to the bank directly downtide from you, only a second before the surf spit the plug out onto dry sand. You couldn't do this, get these close-in hits on a short cast. You had to let it swing down, which took patience. Most guys were too impatient to do it. Most guys never got out of the mode of cast, reel, cast, reel, cast again. Meanwhile, you would make one cast with the Gibbs needlefish - and just drift it, not even turning the reel handle. You couldn't do this in a line-up - or even with one other guy downtide from you. Your plug would be down past the next guy before it got into the thin band of the shoreline strike zone. Whether fish were leisurely following along behind the plug, and belting it only when it got too shallow for them to continue to follow it - or whether the plug only got into their range within inches from the shoreline? Who can say? But you couldn't do it on a short cast. You had to cast long, and let it swing down. Maybe your immediate presence on a short cast alarmed them - or maybe you just weren't getting it out far enough where they were - then they would tail behind it all the way to shore. The split-second before the plug popped out onto sand forced the bass to make a decision. Ka Boom! It may have something to do with the fish conserving its energy, tailing the plug and not wanting to expend a lot of energy to strike in open water where the plug (bait) had plenty of space to evade the attack. So the fish just follows the plug (bait) until it has no more room to maneuver or evade the bass - until the bass had it pinned against the shoreline. At the very last instant, the hit would come. At that point, you were practically standing on dry beach anyway, so you could simply walk down the beach, reeling in line as you go, and land your cow on a short line without much fanfare. As I say, some of the Rhode Island sharpies were lethal at this trick tactic, and it worked as well by day as by night. It seemed there'd always be one of these guys as the very last man on the end of a line-up, and he'd be using this tactic. But even when they had an entire spot all to themselves, this same tactic was every bit as effective. About the best at doing this was a Rhode Islander named Stormin' Norman De Lisle. Often, as the daybreak action ended and everyone else went back to their buggies to retire, that was the moment Stormin' Norman went into action. He'd go down to the spot as it emptied out of surfcasters and he'd start doing this trick with the Gibbs needlefish. You'd swear for sure that Stormin' Norman's lure had washed up and beached itself - until his rod doubled over - again and again and again! There wasn;t much fight involved, just running down rhe beach, reeling as you go, anf snub the fish out of the wash onto the sand. Stormin' Norman had this tactic down pat.
Right Side View: Left Side View: Bottom View: Front View: For more detailed information about this and many other surf plugs like it, please read the full story of: Surf Plugology ~ by Russ Bassdozer Thank you. Pro Tube JigsPosted Nov-11-07 14:21:09 PST Pro Tube Jigs
Pro Tube Jig. Living in the heart of tube bait country up north, master jig modeler Joe Rummelt. has crafted dozens of different tube jig head shapes, all designed for tube baits and all good. But these Pro Tube Jigs are the best. Joe really does not know why the Pro Tube Jig works so swell, but it does. Joe's customers who drag tubes on Lake Erie, the Great Lakes and all across northern states, they tell Joe they catch more bass on this Pro Tube Jig than any other. There's just something about the Pro Tube Jig that bass love best. Gamakatsu Hooks. Wide gap round bend hook. The hooks in these jigs are Gamakatsu #60414 4/0 in both the 1/4 oz and 3/8 oz sizes. This Gamakatsu hook goes well with tournament strength fishing rods, either spinning or baitcasting, and/or with braided line, mono or fluoro. These are not springy hooks and they're not the thin wire, light wire hooks often used in other tube jigs. These hooks are not ideally suited to light tackle. This hook is Gamakatsu's best and most dependable jig hook, and it's a must-have for medium to medium/heavy strength gear. Use it with 100% confidence it will not bend.
Two ways to rig are:
Pro Darter JigsPosted Nov-11-07 10:49:32 PST Updated Nov-11-07 14:25:26 PST Pro Darter JigsGamakatsu Hooks. Wide gap round bend hook. The hooks in these jigs are Gamakatsu #60414 4/0 in both the 1/4 oz and 60415 5/0 in the 3/8 oz size. This Gamakatsu hook goes well with tournament strength fishing rods, either spinning or baitcasting, and/or with braided line, mono or fluoro. These are not springy hooks and they're not the thin wire, light wire hooks often used in other darter jigs. These hooks are not ideally suited to light tackle. This hook is Gamakatsu's best and most dependable jig hook, and it's a must-have for medium to medium/heavy strength gear. Use it with 100% confidence it will not bend.
For additional information on these Pro Darter Jigs and tips how-to best fish them:
Whiptail Blade SpinnerbaitsPosted Nov-10-07 08:20:25 PST Updated Nov-16-07 09:10:04 PST Whiptail Blades. Brand new design for 2008. The Whiptail blade is scuplted with baitfish details, a scaled back, smooth belly, and engraved jawbone, eye, gill and fin. When used together in pairs, spaced wide apart, there's a swimming baitfish school resemblance. Due to the uniquely hooked blades as they rotate, it may appear at times as there's more than two baitfish (although what a fish sees is anyone's guess), but the rotation casts off a lot of images on both sides of the wire arm remindful of a movement of several baitfish in concert. Probably the most important aspect of the blade design is the vibration created by its aggressive tail cupping and unique curvature. The Whiptail has a tight rotation and a distinct thumping vibration. When the blades slow down, the curvature creates a left hook or kick out move to the side, and a singular thump can sometimes be felt in the rod tip when the spinnerbait is close enough to watch and feel that happen. Because one edge of the blade is scaled and the other edge is smooth, there is a dual visual dimension to the spinning blade flash. This dual dimension adds something that's just not possible with either an entirely smooth or an entirely scaled finish blade. Even using one smooth and one scaled finish blade wont achieve the same effect combined in the Whiptails. The asymmetrical curved or hooked tail creates the flickering illusion at times of a swimming, jumping or flexing baitfish movement that's just not possible with most other symmetrical straight blades like Willows, Indianas, etc.
These are not Whiptail blades, but hope you enjoy seeing it too:
Slow Willow Spinnerbait BladesPosted Nov-05-07 08:28:47 PST Slow Willow Spinnerbait BladesSlow Willow blades are the same length, width and exact oval shape as standard willow blades. All the dimensions of standard Willow and Slow Willow blades are identical - except the Slow Willow has much less concave/convex curvature or cup than the standard Willow. The Slow Willow has a shallow cup and looks flatter compared to the standard Willow.
This difference, the shallower degree of cup, makes the Slow Willow start spinning at slower speeds than a standard Willow. When you start to retrieve a standard Willow at a slow speed, you may have to jerk the bait and reel it faster at first in order to get the blade spinning. On the other hand, with the Slow Willow blade, there's not as much of a start-up problem at the beginning of the retrieve. You get smoother, easier, better starts with the Slow Willows during those first few important seconds of the retrieve when aggressive, active fish will rush over eager to strike if the spinnerbait looks appealing. Likewise at the end of a retrieve, as a slow-rolled spinnerbait gets closer to the boat, a standard Willow blade can stop turning during the last leg of the retrieve. If you are tuned in to the blade's vibration up the line, it's pretty apparent when you feel it just go dead and stop rotating as it nears the boat. Unfortunately that's a critical strike point since following fish often react right when a slow-rolled spinnerbait starts rising vertically toward the boat - but that's just when a standard Willow tends to stop turning too. The Slow Willow will continue to spin longer at the end of the retrieve and it starts turning earlier at the start of a retrieve. A few more seconds better performance may not seem like a lot, but those are two high percentage strike moments - the very beginning, and with slow-rolling the very end of a retrieve when the blades are hesitant and having trouble turning. So at the beginning and end of a retrieve, the Slow Willow spins a little better. During the middle of a retrieve, it can be fished a little slower than a standard Willow. The Slow Willow blade also spins at a greater degree of cant or skew from the wire arm axis. In other words, whereas the standard Willow spins quite tightly, the Slow Willow spins in a wider arc. This makes a Slow Willow appear a little bigger, more visible and flashier than a standard Willow. Also more torque and water drag result, which lets you fish the Slow Willow slower than a standard Willow. So that's why I say no two Willow blades work the same. We can see here where only one property - the degree of cup - is different, it causes a dramatic difference in how the Slow Willow fishes compared to the standard Willow. Here are a few (not all) tips for using Slow Willow blades:
Here is a comparison photo and size chart for Slow Willow blades compared to standard Willow blades :
Metallic Chartreuse Spinnerbait BladesPosted Nov-04-07 10:37:22 PST Metallic Chartreuse Spinnerbait BladesTranslucent Metallic Chartreuse Blades. Painted same see-through chartreuse color on both sides, over nickel-plated brass blades.
A few (not all) tips for trying different sizes of these metallic chartreuse blades are:
Chartreuse White Willow Spinnerbait BladesPosted Nov-04-07 10:36:11 PST Chartreuse White Willow Spinnerbait BladesTwo-tone chartreuse white spinnerbait skirts just can't be beat, and now Bassdozer's Store offers matching two-tone chartreuse white spinnerbait blades. Chartreuse White Laminated Blades. One side of each blade is painted white. The other side of each blade is painted chartreuse. The two different color sides blink on and off chartreuse-white-chartreuse-white as they rotate. This causes a lot of color flutter and color flicker not possible with a solid white or solid.chartreuse blade. Blades are nickel-plated brass beneath the paint.
Size #4 is white on the outside, chartreuse on the inside. Size #5 is chartreuse on the outside, white on the inside. These go great used in pairs with the #4 white chartreuse as the front blade and the #5 chartreuse white as back blade. The #4/#5 Willow combo is especially popular on spinnerbaits in the 1/2 up to 1 ounce range.
A Few New Spinnerbait StylesPosted Nov-03-07 12:18:28 PDT
Wrapped Skirts. Skirts similar to this are not new. Several other versions of "wrapped" or "rolled" skirts go back quite a way. But the particular version of wrapped skirt used here is new for 2007. The strands are supersoft and wiggle uncontrollably - far more wiggle and jiggle than most any other skirt material. Style A Spinnerbait Head. This is one of the best head shapes to use with the new wrapped skirts for two reasons:
Indiana/Willow Blades. The blades here are a streamlined pair - for relatively faster retrieve speeds than possible with most other blade pairs.
Style C Spinnerbait Head. This shape head is one of the most popular worldwide, and it is a standby of experienced anglers, including many of the world's top pros. The Style C head shape can be depended upon to do three things very well:
Super Wire Arm. Provides more strength, gets bent less, and emits more vibration than ordinary arms. Layered Skirt Look. The skirt strands do not all end uniformly as usual. The outer layer of strands end just past the hook bend, approximating the body of a baitfish. The inner layer of strands extend a little further, approximating a baitfish tail effect. Laminated Blades. One side of each blade is painted white. The other side of each blade is painted chartreuse. The two different color sides blink on and off chartreuse-white-chartreuse-white as they rotate.
Style R Hidden Head. The bright chartreuse head presents a solid baitfish-shaped strike target that's only half-hidden beneath the billowy see-through skirt. Super Wire Arm. Provides more strength, gets bent less, and emits more vibration than ordinary arms.
Not going to say much here, because if you like what you are looking at, the picture here says it all. Heavy duty twisted .040 wire arm and powerful Style T head. Translucent Metallic Chartreuse Blades. Painted same see-through color on both sides, over nickel-plated brass blades.
Most guys just won't have faith in a pink spinnerbait, but this particular skirt color (spot special) and blade pairing (Oklahoma/Willow) has gained a small cult following among tight-lipped tournament check-cashers across the south central states. We've bulked the winning package up here with the heavy duty twisted .040 wire arm and powerful Style T head. New Whiptail and Serrated Spinnerbait Blades for 2008Posted Nov-02-07 09:57:03 PDT Whiptail Spinnerbait BladesWhiptail Blades. Brand new design for 2008. The manufacturer describes the Whiptail as having baitfish details, and when used in tandem, as having a swimming baitfish school resemblance. Probably the most important aspect of the blade design is the vibration created by its aggressive tail cupping and unique curvature. The Whiptail has a tight rotation and a distinct thumping vibration says the manufacturer.
Serrated Spinnerbait BladesSerrated Blades. Brand new design for 2008. The manufacturer describes the Serrated blade as a Willow blade that they put a bit of a turbo charge in it. The manufacturer sculpted an aggressive notched outside edge to add more turbulence as it slices through the water. The cupping on the blade in conjunction with the notched edges gives the Serrated blade a very tight rotation and distinctive vibration as the blade cuts through the water says the manufacturer.
Eelskin Blue Swimming PlugsPosted Nov-01-07 20:48:04 PDT Updated Nov-02-07 09:23:00 PDT Eelskin Blue Swimming PlugsLength: 7". Weight: 1-3/8 oz . No hooks.
Here's a natural blue eelskin painted plug. It combines the best of both the dark and black from an eel's outside skin coloration with some of the desirable blue sheen on the inside of an eel's skin.. It's the next best thing to an eelskin, and you do not need to skin it nor keep it bottled in brine solution. Why mess with nasty eelskins when you can use a natural eelskin blue painted plugs like this instead. This is one of the secret color schemes of the old-time super-sharpies who haunted the Northeast striper coast. There are a lot more glamorous and fancy-painted plugs out there, but stripers often relish the non-descript and blotchy splashes of this eelskin blue plug better than the fancy jobs. Tough injection-molded hard plastic lure with loud fish-calling rattles inside. Effective for almost every kind of fresh and saltwater gamefish, including the toothiest critters. Injection-molded hard plastic body means this lure has none of the weaknesses of wood or soft plastic lures. Thanks to the tough plastic construction, toothy fish can't easily sink their teeth into it. Excellent producer of musky, pike, striped bass, bluefish, weakfish, monster brown trout, huge largemouth bass, giant walleye, snook, tarpon, sea bass, corvina, peacock bass and most any gamefish that prowls shallow water or the shoreline anywhere. Appealing baitfish shape, profile and colors mimic most baitfish species in lakes, rivers and oceans all across the world. Works excellent in all types of waters. Works equally well in flat calm water or moving water whether there's current, tide, waves or flat calm, this lure works. Many other lures are not effective at night. This lure is equally productive when fished slowly at night as it is during the day. Shallow swimmer dives 1 to 2 feet deep. Just reel in. Has its own built-in action with an awesome body-rolling, side to side tail-wiggling action that throws off lots of belly flashing and vibrations like a disoriented, distressed big baitfish. Has a slow rise when paused. It float at rest and is excellent to twitch on the surface for explosive strikes.
The plastic lip is part of the lure's one-piece molded construction which make the lip more durable and perfectly-aligned for proper swimming action every time. It has none of the weaknesses of lures where the lip is glued-in or screwed on as a separate part. These same lures are sold under different name brands worldwide, including several different musky/pike name brands and saltwater lure brands which regularly retail in the $7 to $9 dollars range. These are the same lures here, except they don't cost as much here. Plainly and simply, this is one of the best fresh and saltwater trophy fish lures on the planet today at one of the best prices for it. Note: This lure comes with no hooks. Best rigged with anywhere from 1/0 to 3/0 trebles. Length: 7". Weight: 1-3/8 oz . No hooks.
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