The Found Lures Thread

[AlabamaSpothunter]

1 hour ago, Bluebasser86 said:

Nothing real exciting this weekend. All the leaves fell at once so anything floating along the shoreline is hard to spot currently. Pretty much find them in the trees or not at all.

 

Lol, I have the fat squarebill in threadfin.

 

What swimbait is that, looks really nice?  I'm glad I don't have many in my waters because I doubt I'd fish for anything but lures if so ?

[Bluebasser86]

11 minutes ago, AlabamaSpothunter said:

Lol, I have the fat squarebill in threadfin.

 

What swimbait is that, looks really nice?  I'm glad I don't have many in my waters because I doubt I'd fish for anything but lures if so ?

It's just a cheap Academy H2O swimbait. I gave it to my oldest son to put in his box because he liked it. I added the 1.0 squarebill and Rapala UL crankbaits because they're in perfect condition and they work.

[WaterOtter]

Something about fall seems to have people casting higher.  The weekend before last I actually had to get out my 24' window washing pole to get down 3 lures, and I haven't used that since January.  And then this weekend I found 3 more up that high but I didn't have the pole with me.  I think they'll still be up there when I come back around.  Being on the lake has been so wonderful - thick white fog in the mornings, sunny afternoons.

 

[AlabamaSpothunter]

22 minutes ago, WaterOtter said:

Something about fall seems to have people casting higher.  The weekend before last I actually had to get out my 24' window washing pole to get down 3 lures, and I haven't used that since January.  And then this weekend I found 3 more up that high but I didn't have the pole with me.  I think they'll still be up there when I come back around.  Being on the lake has been so wonderful - thick white fog in the mornings, sunny afternoons.

 

LOLOLOL......what a haul.

 

You guys would be elite tour level at finding baits?

 

eta:  You found arguably my favorite bait....the flashback mini.   Absolutely incredible bait.   Put 3" Armor Shads on it.   

 

[WaterOtter]

On a sunny day look on the lake bottom.  That's where I found the two in the lower left corner, about 15' out and 20" down.  Just sitting there ... who'd a thunk it! ?

[AlabamaSpothunter]

You've got the eye for finding these things clearly.

 

The best hunters I know all share the same thing in common, they have the ability to detect the most subtle of movements at long distances.     They have good eyes, but equally important they know what to look for.   

[WaterOtter]

2 minutes ago, AlabamaSpothunter said:

You've got the eye for finding these things clearly.

 

The best hunters I know all share the same thing in common, they have the ability to detect the most subtle of movements at long distances.     They have good eyes, but equally important they know what to look for.   

You know, the hunter comparison is funny ...  before I even get the boat in the water I find myself assessing conditions like sun, wind, currents, location of the weed mat, is the water high with turbidity or low and clear, the amount of wild grape vine in the trees, nearby trees and how flexible their branches are, what are the natural colors and leaf shapes I see around me vs unnatural colors, which overhanging bushes must draw the casts ... I'm like most of you when you fish, only I'm looking in a different direction!  It blows my mind to read about the level of detail and amount of conditions y'all assess to find and get the fish, which I can't do worth a darn, but when I look for lures I swear I see in more than 3 dimensions! 

[AlabamaSpothunter]

3 minutes ago, WaterOtter said:

You know, the hunter comparison is funny ...  before I even get the boat in the water I find myself assessing conditions like sun, wind, currents, location of the weed mat, is the water high with turbidity or low and clear, the amount of wild grape vine in the trees, nearby trees and how flexible their branches are, what are the natural colors and leaf shapes I see around me vs unnatural colors, which overhanging bushes must draw the casts ... I'm like most of you when you fish, only I'm looking in a different direction!  It blows my mind to read about the level of detail and amount of conditions y'all assess to find and get the fish, which I can't do worth a darn, but when I look for lures I swear I see in more than 3 dimensions! 

The Rain Man of lure hunting ?

[Bluebasser86]

3 hours ago, WaterOtter said:

You know, the hunter comparison is funny ...  before I even get the boat in the water I find myself assessing conditions like sun, wind, currents, location of the weed mat, is the water high with turbidity or low and clear, the amount of wild grape vine in the trees, nearby trees and how flexible their branches are, what are the natural colors and leaf shapes I see around me vs unnatural colors, which overhanging bushes must draw the casts ... I'm like most of you when you fish, only I'm looking in a different direction!  It blows my mind to read about the level of detail and amount of conditions y'all assess to find and get the fish, which I can't do worth a darn, but when I look for lures I swear I see in more than 3 dimensions! 

I'm always trying to estimate approximately where a lure would drift from popular shore fishing areas. I figure those people are less likely to be able to retrieve a snagged lure, and many are probably not snagged badly, just not in a way that can be dislodged from shore. So they're broke off, and then float up after being snagged for a bit and float to the shoreline on the waves. Some of my best banks reload just like a good fishing spot ?

[WaterOtter]

8 hours ago, AlabamaSpothunter said:

The Rain Man of lure hunting 

I preferred your hunter analogy or my fisherman analogy, but this fits too!  ??

[AlabamaSpothunter]

9 hours ago, Bluebasser86 said:

I'm always trying to estimate approximately where a lure would drift from popular shore fishing areas. I figure those people are less likely to be able to retrieve a snagged lure, and many are probably not snagged badly, just not in a way that can be dislodged from shore. So they're broke off, and then float up after being snagged for a bit and float to the shoreline on the waves. Some of my best banks reload just like a good fishing spot ?

You two are the Tom Brady and Mike Jordan of lure hunting ?

[TheSwearingAngler]

Pulled this out of a tree this morning, lotta extra weight on the nose. It was one branch under my own chatterbait I was retrieving from a Monday morning mistake. 

[WaterOtter]

Karma is smiling on me today? ... I had to go to Ohio this week on business, but my local rental car place gave me a free upgrade to a minivan, so of course I brought a bike, and during an awesome ride this evening I found ...

And it's because I build up good karma by picking up trash in my kayak.  ?

[WaterOtter]

On 6/8/2020 at 12:41 PM, looking45 said:

I have a tree in the front yard. Everything that I've recovered while fishing, from lures to anchors, marker buoys, rods/reels, is hung from the tree

I'm reading through classic posts on the found lure thread and I came across this one from @looking45 in 2020.  I would love to see a picture of that tree!!!

[AlabamaSpothunter]

9 minutes ago, WaterOtter said:

I'm reading through classic posts on the found lure thread and I came across this one from @looking45 in 2020.  I would love to see a picture of that tree!!!

Yeah you guys that find a ton of them should build a shrine to the Saint of Lost Lures ?

 

That or make a special XMAS tree this year with just found lures on them lol.

[Swamp Girl]

This is a cool thread. The only lure I found this year was a small Jitterbug. I'll likely never use it, but I was glad to remove it from the bush. 

[WaterOtter]

This struck me as very funny when I saw it earlier today ... membership in Karl's includes lost lure insurance!

 

 

There are terms and conditions of course to keep it real, but basically they'll replace a new lure within 90 days of purchase (hard lures only with value up to $20, with a new order of stuff and up to 4 per year etc. etc.).

 

Pretty cool way to get over the loss of a lure that you lose while it's still brand new!  ?

[Bluebasser86]

Found a few more today.

 

[AlabamaSpothunter]

3 minutes ago, Bluebasser86 said:

Found a few more today.

 

Is that a little Mike Bucca Shad swimbait, I saw them at Academy along with my high end store locally, eventually I'll buy one or two of those.....the Hula Popper is hilarious ?

[WaterOtter]

1 hour ago, Bluebasser86 said:

Found a few more today.

Hot diggity!  I wish I still had that much action! 

When I was out paddling yesterday (27 degrees, gray and very windy) the water at the edge of the lake is getting slushy where the mung protects it from waves, so it won't be long before it's frozen.   

Here's what I found the last two weekends ...  The jointed crankbait is the first H20 express I've ever found in Michigan (we are about 5 hours from the closest Academy store) and bottom right is my first Jenko

[Bluebasser86]

3 hours ago, AlabamaSpothunter said:

Is that a little Mike Bucca Shad swimbait, I saw them at Academy along with my high end store locally, eventually I'll buy one or two of those.....the Hula Popper is hilarious ?

Yes it is, was pretty surprised to find that one way up in a tree. 

 

I find quite a few hula poppers, some are really old ones which are always cool finds.

1 hour ago, WaterOtter said:

Hot diggity!  I wish I still had that much action! 

When I was out paddling yesterday (27 degrees, gray and very windy) the water at the edge of the lake is getting slushy where the mung protects it from waves, so it won't be long before it's frozen.   

Here's what I found the last two weekends ...  The jointed crankbait is the first H20 express I've ever found in Michigan (we are about 5 hours from the closest Academy store) and bottom right is my first Jenko

I found one of those jointed H2O baits last week, didn't know they made one like that. I find tons of Academy baits with having them all over around here. 2 of the baits I found today were Academy baits.

[AlabamaSpothunter]

Academy is what walmart was like during the 90s 

 

Cheapest and most abundant ammo in town 

 

Cheapest and most abundant non gucci tackle in town 

 

I'm shocked to see the high end brands at Academy though like those Mini Bucca Shads, Jack Hammers, 6th Sense stuff, a little bit of MegaBass.     I love Academy, been going to them for over a decade at least.   

[WaterOtter]

8 hours ago, Bluebasser86 said:

I find quite a few hula poppers, some are really old ones which are always cool finds.

I'm a huge fan of hula poppers and jitterbugs, and it always makes my day when I find one.  If you find any with a white wax on them, you know they're very old.   I've found just a couple that way and I didn't know what it was or why it was on there and I couldn't get it off, and then one night I opened my father's tacklebox for the first time in years and I found his covered in it, so I did some research online and found out it's wax they used to put in the plastic to help with manufacturing, and it exudes over time, without affecting the paint.  My father's tacklebox had a hula popper box in it with a leaflet of their 1951 offerings, so that's the time period I'm talking about (he was 12yo in 1951).  The wax doesn't hurt anything and it wipes off with some light help from a heat gun.

 

Here are my 2022's ...

9 hours ago, AlabamaSpothunter said:

Academy, been going to them for over a decade at least.   

Academy's fishing department rocked where I lived in Bama and I wish they were up here too.  They always kept it clean, well stocked, and very smartly organized.  Man, the time (and money) I spent there!  So it was a thrill to find one of their crankbaits in the wilds of Michigan.

[jimanchower]

11 hours ago, AlabamaSpothunter said:

Academy is what walmart was like during the 90s 

 

Cheapest and most abundant ammo in town 

 

Cheapest and most abundant non gucci tackle in town 

 

I'm shocked to see the high end brands at Academy though like those Mini Bucca Shads, Jack Hammers, 6th Sense stuff, a little bit of MegaBass.     I love Academy, been going to them for over a decade at least.   

 

I had a "$20 off $100 purchase" coupon several months ago so I set out to restock on $100 worth of staples. Unfortunately, that effective 20% discount is negated by their higher prices compared to TW and other online retailers. I know they'll price match, but I don't want to spend 15 minutes at the customer service counter just to get the same deal I could get every day online.

 

I do like Academy for their selection of non-gucci tackle, as you say, and they do have some sales here and there, but I'm not the type to drop by every week just to browse which is what you need to do to take advantage.

 

edit: sorry, didn't mean to detract from the purpose of this thread

[WaterOtter]

On 11/20/2022 at 11:20 AM, jimanchower said:

sorry, didn't mean to detract from the purpose of this thread

no problem, we were gushing, so it was valid to bring up a counterpoint.  ?

 

Back on topic, I found these today ....

 

I took a 1/2 day vac to paddle, so this morning I loaded up the kayak all excited, and boy was I shocked when I rolled up to the lakes and they were frozen solid!  ?  Saturday they were fine, but cold, and today they were frozen ... five weeks earlier than last year!  So, I went to a stretch of river that wasn't frozen, and which I hadn't been to all year, and I cleared out a lot of old fishing line and I pulled down the ones on the left.  Then I went to 3 spots that were frozen and I got the ones on the right from shore.