11-19-2017, 07:07 PM
Always Replace The Stock Hooks & Split Rings On New Plugs!
This summer the company RIVER2SEA introduced this new lure the Whopper Plopper. It was meant for fresh water application but i think there's a market for salt water use as well. On my first outing i hit a 4-5lb Trevally Jack. The Trevally bent out 2 of the 3 treble hooks in the middle & got away at my foot. If i took the time to replace the stock hooks & split rings i would've landed that fish.
My general rule of thumb is to replace all stock hooks of any lure, but got this the day before i used it at 6am the next day so i went with it. My mistake. I do this for ALL my lures. The 130 size rattles due to internal BB's. The tail spins like a propeller on both sizes creating vibration, noise & throws water like a wounded fish. The wire is heavy duty & so far resisted salt water corrosion. The 130 is heavy enough to be casted using braid. The 90 unit is light & requires a weighted assist set-up like a lead egg or a Hammer Bomb (for this type of usage use the Flashbomb for night use, Regular for deeper depths & Unleaded for shallow areas).
Items Needed For Replacing Stock Items-
Split ring pliers.
Needle nose pliers.
Assorted split rings of high breaking strength.
High quality treble hooks like BKK.
Single trailer hook (best are Gamagatsu, Mustad & VMC).
Graph For Treble To Single Hook Conversion
Treble Size Converted Single Size
#6 #2
#4 #1
#2 #2/0
#1 #3/0
#1/0 #4/0
#2/0 #5/0
Why Use Single Trailer Hooks?
Less damage done to fish.
Accidents to the angler are less severe compared to trebles.
Other Tips-
Higher quality lures have good split rings, cheaper ones don't.
Always use larger sized rings if in doubt on the size. Easier to work with.
Get into the habit of replacing all hooks on new plugs.
If you want your surface lure pop heads-up, put the heaviest hook on the back end.
If you want your sub-surface lure to dive head first-put the heaviest hook near to the lure's head.
When using single hooks place the hook's gap (area between the shank & barb) upwards for shallow water usage (less chance of snagging the bottom).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTHYc-rEU9k
[signature]
This summer the company RIVER2SEA introduced this new lure the Whopper Plopper. It was meant for fresh water application but i think there's a market for salt water use as well. On my first outing i hit a 4-5lb Trevally Jack. The Trevally bent out 2 of the 3 treble hooks in the middle & got away at my foot. If i took the time to replace the stock hooks & split rings i would've landed that fish.
My general rule of thumb is to replace all stock hooks of any lure, but got this the day before i used it at 6am the next day so i went with it. My mistake. I do this for ALL my lures. The 130 size rattles due to internal BB's. The tail spins like a propeller on both sizes creating vibration, noise & throws water like a wounded fish. The wire is heavy duty & so far resisted salt water corrosion. The 130 is heavy enough to be casted using braid. The 90 unit is light & requires a weighted assist set-up like a lead egg or a Hammer Bomb (for this type of usage use the Flashbomb for night use, Regular for deeper depths & Unleaded for shallow areas).
Items Needed For Replacing Stock Items-
Split ring pliers.
Needle nose pliers.
Assorted split rings of high breaking strength.
High quality treble hooks like BKK.
Single trailer hook (best are Gamagatsu, Mustad & VMC).
Graph For Treble To Single Hook Conversion
Treble Size Converted Single Size
#6 #2
#4 #1
#2 #2/0
#1 #3/0
#1/0 #4/0
#2/0 #5/0
Why Use Single Trailer Hooks?
Less damage done to fish.
Accidents to the angler are less severe compared to trebles.
Other Tips-
Higher quality lures have good split rings, cheaper ones don't.
Always use larger sized rings if in doubt on the size. Easier to work with.
Get into the habit of replacing all hooks on new plugs.
If you want your surface lure pop heads-up, put the heaviest hook on the back end.
If you want your sub-surface lure to dive head first-put the heaviest hook near to the lure's head.
When using single hooks place the hook's gap (area between the shank & barb) upwards for shallow water usage (less chance of snagging the bottom).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTHYc-rEU9k
[signature]