JDM - The Last Split Ring Tool

[bulldog1935]

Been shopping in Japan 20 years, since you had to use a broker for the language barrier and their banking laws.  

Easier to shop there now - best place for reel parts and of course JDM tackle.  Compared to the broker days, English is better, payment is better. 

I always check closeouts, lures, and tools for an idea that may click.  

My last order included these Smith split ring tweezers - $6.73  SMITH SPLITRING PINCETTE PLIERS

 

The Texas Tackle Factory pliers will let me work #4 and larger split rings.  

The jeweler's set in the middle added #3 and #2.  

The Smith tweezers for the first time let me work #1 and #0 split rings, but they work beautifully across the board for every size split ring, from tiny to offshore.  

 

Showing my favorite Megabass Dog-X, great size comparison, can't remember the color, but to me it's Major Mullet, and sporting swapped-in VMC salt trebles - the TTF pliers worked great for that, but so will the Smith.   

Except the size 8 trebles on the bottom 3/16-oz Pins minnow, all the finesse plugs had tiny trebles size 14 to size 18 - too small for my use - I swapped for (salt) plug singles, size 8 to size 4.  Threw in the range of spoons because they're pretty.  

The 38-mm plugs have #0 split rings, and had pointless size 18 trebles.  

 

But if you're already shopping in Japan, will ever be removing or swapping split rings, I'd recommend checking tools for the Smith Splitring Pincette Pliers.  

[bulldog1935]

Adding some more tackle tinkering to this post - we've been rained-in for 2 solid weeks here.  

 

A few years ago, picked up some Flash-J plastic bodies from Japan closeout, and chased down a few more colors from a US vendor.  

These are pretty neat, that the metalized mylar film inside reflects colors - silver, gold, green, blue - 

and transmits pink light through the mylar film (back-lit by a bike light in a milk jug). 

In the salt, have fished these as a tandem with a Double Trap stinger hook on titanium wire added to the back lure, and caught doubles with seatrout, snook, redfish, and ladyfish.  

 

 

One of my recent close-out finds was a buzzbait safety pin made for these lures (or any jighead) - tossed in the cart for $3

 

Took one of the #0 split rings I removed from a lure eye, spread and twisted it over the safety-pin wire.  Clinched a piece of leftover 20-lb braid, and snelled a double-trap stinger hook.  

(super glue on the braid wraps for final tightening)

looks like a pretty good finesse buzzbait, especially for the deep clear no-motors reservoir we kayak locally.  

[fishwizzard]

Those tweezer-style split ring tools look amazing, even more so that they are small and light enough to toss in my tackle sling and carry around.  I don't often need to fuss with a split ring in the field, but when it do it's super annoying to not have a tool handy.  

[bulldog1935]

@fishwizzard

There's even a hole in it so you can keep it on a tether, and while it's easy to lose, the rubber tip cover keeps it from getting tangled in other stuff.  

Mine is going to travel in my rigging tackle box.