Afraid to use....

[Oregon Native]

Guess I'm getting bored....road to slick to pull boat out of drive way....my wife just looks at me and shakes her head and says I knowwwwww.  I've read a book and a half in the last day and a half...will finish another today.  So....while I'm sitting here feeling sorry for myself I was thinking on for a long time I wouldn't use special lures as I was afraid of loosing them...especially when I only had one left.  Now that I'm a little older I'm getting them out to see if they still work....anyone else not want to put that ol friend back in the boat or tackle box?  I was given a Megabass 110 jerk a couple years ago....not an old bait and it caught fish....afraid to loose it now...to many toothy fish around...but...think it's time has come to hit the water again!!

[Catt]

I have a Huddleston prototype that has never been wet.

 

I also have a first production run Mattlures male bluegill that'll never get wet.

 

I have a Bagley Small Fry Bream that was carved by Jim Bagley, won a tournament with it.

 

I have a Stanley Vibra Shaft made by Lonnie Stanley for me, won a tournament with it to.

 

I have a Pop-R modified by Zell Roland that will never get wet again.

 

I have River Runts, Skipjacks, & flies that were my dad's

[N Florida Mike]

I have some Mann's jelly worms left over from the late 70s - early 80s. They are mostly all black with a few 6 inch grape ones mixed in. I have been slowly using them but I will stop when I get down to the last few.Also have some culprits from the 80s that I occasionally use.

It's fun to use them because it is a way to re-live the past , it just is a connection to those good ol days as a teen when I fished nearly every day, and with some of the worms from the very same packs I had then.

I need to come up with some kind of display case or maybe a board to retire some of them for good.

[Bluebasser86]

I have a bunch of pre Rapala Wiggle Warts I only fish in the Ozark lakes, only during tournaments, and I'm still nervous every time they hang up.

 

Then there's this thing.

I fish it, but I'm nervous the whole time. 

[deaknh03]

9 minutes ago, Bluebasser86 said:

I have a bunch of pre Rapala Wiggle Warts I only fish in the Ozark lakes, only during tournaments, and I'm still nervous every time they hang up.

 

Then there's this thing.

I fish it, but I'm nervous the whole time. 

Phoney frog?

[KDW96]

Ive collected all of Bagley Fat Cats, Mama Cats over the  years some still in original packaging. Also Rapala Floaters,Jelly worms. Ive even managed to keep the older Culprit worm that had the velcro on them. 

 

[DINK WHISPERER]

You gotta pay to play, right! I use to be like that. But I throw everything now. Been lucky and never lost an expensive swimbait....yet. 

[ww2farmer]

Any hard bait that costs more than $10.

 

Way too many toothy critters here to be whipping around Lucky Craft, and Megabass stuff on my salary.

 

Good thing for me I catch plenty of bass on sub $10 baits. But even a day of losing a half dozen SK crankbaits hurts the pocket book pretty hard.

[QUAKEnSHAKE]

I have a limited amount left of the discontinued Watermelon/Chartreuse Palm Trees that I ration myself to 4 packs per year. I will use mend-it on them over and over again to prolong life.

  I have one other lure a RES that caught my PB Crappie and pretty much no longer use. I bought quite a number of RES that washout at faster speeds so switched to other brands. 

  I went to Silent running Rapala RippinRaps had a Blue/Chrome that was an excellent fish catcher. Was lax on getting extra and sure enough they discontinued those. Then out at "home' lake a toothy critter took my last one from me.

[Bluebasser86]

36 minutes ago, deaknh03 said:

Phoney frog?

Yes, custom painted to look like a black crappie. 

[BassNJake]

We had a big rain one spring and I was fishing where 2 creeks intersect.

I throw a Sammy and after a couple of twitches get a huge blowup and as soon as I set the hook, I broke off.

Lost 3 Sammys that day and 2 Pointers but did land about half a dozen stripers(Rock fish is what they call them here)

in the 15-20 lb range.

 

Expensive but definitely a good time!!

[DINK WHISPERER]

10 minutes ago, Bluebasser86 said:

Yes, custom painted to look like a black crappie. 

Looks sweet! I have one of the golden shiner patterns, beautiful baits. 

[Jelvas]

1 hour ago, Bluebasser86 said:

I have a bunch of pre Rapala Wiggle Warts I only fish in the Ozark lakes, only during tournaments, and I'm still nervous every time they hang up.

 

 

At some given point i had 10 of this bad boys:

 

 

Now i´m down to my last two...   i have retired them from waters that have pikes and wells catfish and fish them only on bass lakes but even that way i allways feel butterflies in my stomach everytime i use one...

 

[Mike L]

It's not a bait but I have one of the original Johnson Century 100 reels. 

It was only produced for 1 yr (1958 I think) before the drag was redesigned and designated 100A. 

 

When I started teaching my first grandson how to fish he came across it in the blue velvet bag from a bottle of Crown Royal I keep it in. 

He opened it and said "what's this one Papa"?

I said "don't worry about it. You'll end up getting it eventually"

 

Even now at 24 he still asks about it. 

 

 

 

Mike

[68camaro]

I hate losing baits but I use what I buy. I have a huddleston 8" trout that I would hate losing but I still throw it. I do keep good plug knocker aboard and it has saved me many times. I am sure it will get lost at some point but hopefully after I caught a 10lb'er on it:)

 

 

[d-camarena]

I throw everything i own. Ive lost a hinkle, countless hudds, just lost a mattlures last week. If i buy a bait better believe im gonna throw it

[Scarborough817]

8 minutes ago, d-camarena said:

I throw everything i own. Ive lost a hinkle, countless hudds, just lost a mattlures last week. If i buy a bait better believe im gonna throw it

that's why we buy them, but there is always that little voice that says what if you lose it.

 

[the reel ess]

3 hours ago, N Florida Mike said:

I have some Mann's jelly worms left over from the late 70s - early 80s. They are mostly all black with a few 6 inch grape ones mixed in.

There was a period of 5 or so years that Mann's Jelly Worm was the only bait my dad would use. When we discovered purple, he didn't buy another color.

As for the topic, I don't have any baits I'd be afraid to use. It's only $$$, right?

[gilkeybr]

I was nervous to use the Vision 110s that are in my tackle box.  Now I use them and will even let other people use them (and other "expensive" stuff like Duos, LC, etc) as long as they let me tie their knots!  If i'm really nervous about it i'll fish them on straight braid, at least 30lb test.  When I do have a leader it'll usually be way overkill for what i'm fishing for (17-20lb).

 

I know its ironic:  Fish an expensive "ultra realistic" bait and then tie it straight to braided line...we all have our rules and quirks I guess.  

 

I also avoid brush piles and stumps like the plague while fishing expensive baits (further irony).  If I get hung up once, i'm likely to change to a lure I love less just to be safe.  And if I ever lose a lure in less than 15ft of water, you best believe i'm going in after it!

 

[Sam]

4 hours ago, Oregon Native said:

Guess I'm getting bored....road to slick to pull boat out of drive way....my wife just looks at me and shakes her head and says I knowwwwww.  I've read a book and a half in the last day and a half...will finish another today.  So....while I'm sitting here feeling sorry for myself I was thinking on for a long time I wouldn't use special lures as I was afraid of loosing them...especially when I only had one left.  Now that I'm a little older I'm getting them out to see if they still work....anyone else not want to put that ol friend back in the boat or tackle box?  I was given a Megabass 110 jerk a couple years ago....not an old bait and it caught fish....afraid to loose it now...to many toothy fish around...but...think it's time has come to hit the water again!!

Nope. I keep them. I know, they are worthless if they are not in the water. But I just don't want to chance losing them.

 

I lost two Whooper Ploppers on the Chickahominy River last year, two days in a row.

 

So if I can lose two Whooper Ploppers I will probably snag the old baits.

 

And it is fun to take them out and look at them from time to time.

[ratherbfishin1]

10 minutes ago, gilkeybr said:

And if I ever lose a lure in less than 15ft of water, you best believe i'm going in after it!

that is so me with swimbaits

[Mr. Aquarium]

4 hours ago, Catt said:

I have a Huddleston prototype that has never been wet.

 

I also have a first production run Mattlures male bluegill that'll never get wet.

 

I have a Bagley Small Fry Bream that was carved by Jim Bagley, won a tournament with it.

 

I have a Stanley Vibra Shaft made by Lonnie Stanley for me, won a tournament with it to.

 

I have a Pop-R modified by Zell Roland that will never get wet again.

 

I have River Runts, Skipjacks, & flies that were my dad's

i love swimbaits!  care to share a picture of the hudd and matts. 

only baits i have i dont fish are the really old antique plugs from the 50s, 2 boxes full.  all my baits i fish! got an OG  Woodtail! awesome bait, 05 slammer that gets chewed!  only bait im not sure i would fish would be an 1990s slammer. that bait is to beautiful and rare! 

[Bluebasser86]

1 hour ago, senile1 said:

 

"That thing" is pretty cool.  I would think that would pull in some big ones in our mid-western waters. 

I've had some big ones come out from under docks and check it out. It'll happen this spring when the crappie are up spawning I have a feeling. 

[WRB]

Collecting lures or saving them because of nostalgic reasons may only be important to you. I have saved several tackle boxes full of lures and reels that I've used or collected and have taken the time to leave notes in the boxes identifying what they are and why I kept them. Your stuff may end up on eBay or a garage sale if your family doesn't know why you saved them.

Tom

[Catt]

1 hour ago, Mr. Aquarium said:

i love swimbaits!  care to share a picture of the hudd and matts. 
 

Would love to but I'm currently having major back issues & digging those tackle boxes out aint happening!