Homemade fishing lures
Fishing on a budget can be almost as important as learning about the latest techniques for landing trophy fish. Fishing can be an expensive hobby. Rods, reels, boat upkeep all add up. Homemade lures can help keep the costs of your favorite sport in check. With a little skill and a few everyday household items you can create a supply of lures with little or no out-of-pocket expense. Here are a few ways to make it happen.
You can be creative; there are plenty of directions online. Here are some tips and ideas to get you started.
What Looks Like Trash To You, Could Look Like Dinner To A Fish
Fish like flashy things; things that catch their eyes. Anything that catches the light is a good bet. Bottle caps, can tabs, and old spoons can all work well and are usually readily available. You can always purchase blank spinners and flashers online if you don’t want to be totally self-sufficient. Add some color! Beads, nail polish, reflective tape, or feathers will brighten a lure up.
Types of Homemade Fishing Lures
- Spoon lures resemble the inside of a table spoon. They flash in the light while wobbling or darting due to their shape, and attract fish. Check out how-to video here.
- Surface lures, also called top water lures, poppers and stickbaits, float and resemble prey on top of the water. Here are some tips.
- Plugs are also known as crankbaits. They have a fishlike shape and they are run through the water producing a variety of different movements caused by a bib under the head.
- Artificial flies are designed to resemble all manner of fish prey and are used with a fly rod and reel in fly fishing.
-
Jigs are weighted hooks with lead heads opposite the barb. They can be used with a minnow, crawfish or plastic worm to get the fish’s attention.
- Soft plastic baits/lures are made of plastic or rubber, and are designed to look like fish, worms, crabs, frogs, leeches, squid, lizards, and other creatures.
- Spinnerbait are pieces of wire bent at about a 60 degree angle with a flashy spinner at the top and a hook on the lower end.
.
.
Getting Started Making Homemade Lures
Most importantly – have fun and be creative! It’s a great feeling to catch a fish on a lure that you made yourself. You never know what a fish might strike.
.
Image Credits (from top to bottom): stripersonline.com, sloshspot.com, worldfishingnetwork.com