How To Identify Brand On Old Crankbaits

[5/0]

Have several old crankbaits that have no brand on them. Is there a way to determine who the manufacturer was?

This would help me to find weight and diving depth for these baits.

 

Joe

[Harold Scoggins]

1 hour ago, 5/0 said:

Have several old crankbaits that have no brand on them. Is there a way to determine who the manufacturer was?

This would help me to find weight and diving depth for these baits.

 

Joe

Can you post some pictures?

[WRB]

Go to a library or online and look at Fishing Lure Collectibles and The Fishing Lure Collectors Bible and do your homework.

Tom

[5/0]

53 minutes ago, Harold Scoggins said:

Can you post some pictures?

Okay, will do.

 

34 minutes ago, WRB said:

Go to a library or online and look at Fishing Lure Collectibles and The Fishing Lure Collectors Bible and do your homework.

Tom

Will baits 10-15 years old be considered collectibles?

[WRB]

6 minutes ago, 5/0 said:

Okay, will do.

 

Will baits 10-15 years old be considered collectibles?

No! They are considered current production lures. You should be able to find out by contacting the manufacturer.

Tom

[5/0]

Not able to post a pic until I can resize, but I did go through several manufacturers on TW.

I believe most of them are Bombers if the eye patterns are manufacture specific and remain the same over the years.

[mcipinkie]

I can't resist this !! Is this what fishermen have become?

 

If you're not looking for collectibles, I'd go out to the lake, tie them on, cast them out, see how they cast, and how deep they run.  If they need new hooks, put some on. 

 

Any information that you might glean off the internet, or some catalog, is worthless if you are planning on fishing with them.

[Big Rick]

4 hours ago, 5/0 said:

Have several old crankbaits that have no brand on them. Is there a way to determine who the manufacturer was?

This would help me to find weight and diving depth for these baits.

 

Joe

 

1 hour ago, WRB said:

No! They are considered current production lures. You should be able to find out by contacting the manufacturer.

Tom

Huh??

[WRB]

58 minutes ago, Big Rick said:

 

Huh??

You omitted the part they are post 2000 vintage lures the OP thinks are Bomber lures.

Tom

[J Francho]

I have so many crankbaits.... most are Lucky Craft, which are marked, but there's probably 50 or so that are various brands.  Here's how I can tell running depth and weight, as much as I need to anyway.  Tie the bait on and cast it out.  If it feels too heavy or light for the rod, then I tie it to a different rod.  If it hits bottom on the retrieve, then I know it will run at least that deep.  That's really about as I need to know when I'm fishing.

[5/0]

Here are some of the cranks I was referring to earlier. Any ideas on brand?

 

Joe

[12poundbass]

5 hours ago, J Francho said:

I have so many crankbaits.... most are Lucky Craft, which are marked, but there's probably 50 or so that are various brands.  Here's how I can tell running depth and weight, as much as I need to anyway.  Tie the bait on and cast it out.  If it feels too heavy or light for the rod, then I tie it to a different rod.  If it hits bottom on the retrieve, then I know it will run at least that deep.  That's really about as I need to know when I'm fishing.

I take a sharpie and write the max depth or depth range on the belly and bill of the crankbait and freshen it up when needed. 

 

I cant tell you which brand or model my crankbaits are but I can tell you the depth range each one is capable of. 

[detroit1]

No "collectors" there, those should be fished with. I can't enlarge pic but left column looks liks bomber, 2 bigs on the right norman.

[Harold Scoggins]

4 hours ago, 5/0 said:

Here are some of the cranks I was referring to earlier. Any ideas on brand?

 

Joe

Those on the left look like Bombers, but Bombers have usually marked their cranks since the late 80s, early 90s. Should you discover the depths later, mark the bills or bellies with sharpie so you'll remember. The angle and length of the bills can give you a hint as to it's depth too. That crank on the upper left is definitely a shallow runner, 0-4 maybe. The bottom two on the left look like mid-runners, 6-8, and the two on the right are deep runners, 9-10+?

[5/0]

Thanks for the tips, been marking on bill and body. Weight and depth where I can find them.

One other question if I may?

Since I have limited space I can’t carry but 2-3 for each depth range. My question has to do with Shad patterns. Can a Threadfin color work equally well imitating a Gizzard Shad? One a greenish back, the other more of a black back.

 

[Deleted account]

On 10/14/2019 at 10:18 PM, mcipinkie said:

I can't resist this !! Is this what fishermen have become?

 

If you're not looking for collectibles, I'd go out to the lake, tie them on, cast them out, see how they cast, and how deep they run.  If they need new hooks, put some on. 

 

Any information that you might glean off the internet, or some catalog, is worthless if you are planning on fishing with them.

Oh yeah, and it's not a bass thing, or even a fishing thing. The InterWeb consensus vs life experience thing is everywhere. Now I gotta go lauder my flannel, wax my mustache, and meet the gang for expensive coffee and free wifi...

[WRB]

21 hours ago, 5/0 said:

Here are some of the cranks I was referring to earlier. Any ideas on brand?

 

Joe

What to look for;

bill shape and length

profile, shape

eyes, locatin and color

Lure color pattern

Bagley have eyes located very close to the front/ top, almost touching each other. Bomber more tradional eyes, Norman somewhere inbetween Bagley and Bomber.

Bill shape, all have oval forward clear bills typical of deeper diving lures.

My guess do to photo quality is:

Upper left Bagley B, runs about 5''

Upper right Norman DD 22, runs about 15'

Middle left Bomber 5A, runs about 6'

Middle right Norman DD 14, runs about 12'

Lower left Bomber 6A, runs about 8'

All good lures, use them.

Tom