All-time best "Gimmick" lures

[FryDog62]

Okay, I was inspired reading a similar topic on the rod/reel forum and thought there have been some excellent "Gimmick" lures over the years as well.  

So I couldn't resist sharing one of my all-time favorites - I have one of the original S.O.B. lures in its original packaging from the 1970's. Stands for "Self Orbiting Bait."  You can't make this stuff up ~

From the instruction guide:  Connect to your line. "Maneuver the SOB by simply moving your rod tip.  Guarantees you will catch more trophy fish because the SOB takes your bait out beyond your best cast.  Equipped with its own battery, propeller and rudder.  It more than triples your chances of catching more trophy fish.  Move your bait across the pond, lake, river or OCEAN in any direction you want.  The SOB allows you to fish the opposite shore line even when the land is posted."  And my favorite... "Ice fishermen can run the SOB around the hole."  (Hours of fun there - eh?)

God bless my grandmother - at the age of nearly 90, she bought this for my father for his birthday years ago as a serious gift for the fisherman who already has everything ~

Who else has some favorite gimmick lures??

 

[EricTheAngler]

The baitball series by live target. 

[tander]

That S.O.B. could be a collectors item. If I would had this, I wouldn't even need a boat.

[Big C]

Gotta be the Banjo Minnow, funny thing is almost everyone has tried one.

[Scott F]

16 minutes ago, Big C said:

Gotta be the Banjo Minnow, funny thing is almost everyone has tried one.

What is the gimmick with a nose hooked soft plastic which is what the Banjo Minnow is?

Now the Helicopter lure was a gimmick.

[lo n slo]

the flying lure

[Pondboss16]

Mighty bite lures

[gulfcaptain]

How about this one.......lol

[Big C]

22 minutes ago, Scott F said:

What is the gimmick with a nose hooked soft plastic which is what the Banjo Minnow is?

In itself nothing, it's the hyped up T.V. commercials that has turned it into a "gimmick".

But, for a truly amazing set-up, you guys should try a Helicopter Lure, being trolled by an SOB, tied on a Pocket fishermen.

[everythingthatswims]

1 hour ago, lo n slo said:

the flying lure

My dad has a tray of those hooks from who knows when sitting in our basement. I still haven't found a way to rig anything on them

[FryDog62]

"amazing set-up, you guys should try a Helicopter Lure, being trolled by an SOB, tied on a Pocket fishermen."

Now that would be an epic hour long info-mercial that would get watched.  Order by midnight and get a free set of Ginsu knives ...!

[scaleface]

I dont know the name of it but I have a topwater lure that acts like a wind up toy . It has a little plastic tail and when you jerk it a string gets pulled and the tail wiggles back and forth for a few seconds .  It should  work real well , it would imitate a cicada , I just think after a few fish the tail will break off .

[deaknh03]

20 minutes ago, scaleface said:

I dont know the name of it but I have a topwater lure that acts like a wind up toy . It has a little plastic tail and when you jerk it a string gets pulled and the tail wiggles back and forth for a few seconds .  It should  work real well , it would imitate a cicada , I just think after a few fish the tail will break off .

Chuck Woolery marketed those..I have a couple different designs.

[BaitMonkey1984]

2 hours ago, gulfcaptain said:

How about this one.......lol

I would bite that lure all day, every day. 

[Bluebasser86]

5 hours ago, EricTheAngler said:

The baitball series by live target. 

This guy is going to disagree with you on that I'm guessing.

http://www.flwfishing.com/news/2016-01-19-texas-angler-boats-state-record-spotted-bass

[imagine29028]

5 hours ago, lo n slo said:

the flying lure

it catches fish...have some. Its action is just as described. Bought some when I was a kid. 

[primetime]

The Doug Hannon Giant Snake Lures that I believe are still being pushed on his old website. I am quite sure Doug Hannon fished with Live Shiners most of the time and was more of a "study" guy, but I doubt he ever used one of those things. I know he used to preach the long Minnow shape being the most enticing to large bass, mainly the Rapala F-18, but Those things looked like toys.

Also the Guido Hebdon Wood Frog bait that had the diving lip, jointed body, two feet that were like that Swamp Donkey with metal blades attached....We have a few shops around here that end up with the oldest tackle after they buy out mom and pop shops, and some company had a hard plastic frog that had a string with an o ring for a line tie, and as you would cast it, the legs would start to kick and it was motorized...I actually purchased one just to see if it would catch fish in a local pond where they will hit anything, and as it sputtered and did circles, a small gator which I never saw coming crushed it and that was the end of that toy..I think it was  Renosky lure, they have had alot of gimmicks over the years, until the chatterbait changed their lives...

[smalljaw67]

If the Banjo Minnow would have been sold in 5 packs at Cabela's or Bass Pro Shops they would have been considered revolutionary. The only reason they were a gimmick was because they were sold on an infomercial, the thing works well and it is responsible for teaching a lot of anglers about nose hooking soft plastics. My friend is on the old infomercial, he was at the Eastern Outdoor Show when they shot it and he got a bunch of Banjo Minnows for letting them use his footage. I was also in a tournament when a guy won and that is what he was using but since then we learned that nose hooked flukes and other soft plastics are very effective when nose hooked.

[cddan]

The Gorilla killa. It was a monster jig from my recollection 

[Airman4754]

My grandpa ordered the Helicopter Lure when I was a kid. I fished it exclusively for an entire summer and caught..... Absolutely nothing. The only action I ever had was one missed it right at dark when I was using it like a buzz bait. 

My dad smoked, a lot. I have four crank baits that look like Joe Camel's head. I fished them quite a bit back in the 90's and...... Never caught anything.

One of my best friends bought the Flying Lure kit. He caught a 7 pounder in a weed line while I was making fun of him for fishing it. He still cruises eBay for them and snatches up all that he can and still fishes them religiously and has a lot of success. 

I'm not sure how the Banjo Minnow is a gimmick. It's a soft plastic minnow. If that's a gimmick then what would you call a spinnerbait? Witchcraft?

[scaleface]

I'll vouch for the Flying lure , at least the little ones .They work just like advertised .

[Bankbeater]

I have actually caught bass on the Heddon Big Bud.

[WIGuide]

Mann's has had a few over the years. The vampire spinnerbait with a tunable blade, they made some sort of weedless diving lipless crankbait I believe but I can't find any info on it. They also made an Undulator spinnerbait. Bass Pro had a two piece lure. The front part your line goes through and it floats, the back part is a slow sinking deal. It could work, but I've never thrown it. 

[the reel ess]

NM

 

[the reel ess]

On Thursday, January 21, 2016 at 8:26 PM, EricTheAngler said:

The baitball series by live target.

Exorbitantly overpriced gimmick at that.