a more modern tackle box?

[07Rapala]

I got back into fishing last year after about 25 years of not doing much of it. I am still using my ~35 year old Plano 8606 tackle box that I dug out of the back of my dad's shed last year. It has been getting the job done so far, but it's filling up. I'd like to start my tackle box moderinzation project with a new storage method for my soft plastics. What do you-all use?

 

[MN Fisher]

Plano boxes in a carry satchel when I'm not in the boat.

 

BPS Extreme Qualifier bag - will hold 6-3700 boxes, more if you use 3701 boxes. Side pockets for loose items like pliers, scale, towels, gloves, buffs, etc. Bags of plastics can also be put into the pockets or into a 3707-10 open compartment box.

 

Note: I also had a Plano 8606 that I gave to another member here as I had no use for it.

[J._Bricker]

23 minutes ago, 07Rapala said:

I got back into fishing last year after about 25 years of not doing much of it. I am still using my ~35 year old Plano 8606 tackle box that I dug out of the back of my dad's shed last year. It has been getting the job done so far, but it's filling up. I'd like to start my tackle box moderinzation project with a new storage method for my soft plastics. What do you-all use?

 

My answer to your question @07Rapala is a boat. In lieu of that option, I’d go with @MN Fisher’s suggestion of 3700 boxes which will help you organize and store your ever increasing arsenal of lures and tackle. For plastics, I use 1 gallon ziplock bags in their original packaging. Good luck and good fishing 

[Captain Phil]

I have tried every type of tackle box from Giant Possum Belly boxes to loose leaf bag holders to soft suitcases. (see below)  First, there is no reason to carry all that with you.  Cut down your soft plastics into no more than 6-8 bags. Zoom makes everything you need. The best way to store soft plastics is in the bags they come in.   Everything I will ever fish with will fit in a shoe box and most of that will never see the light of day.  The best tackle boxes are the ones with small plastic storage boxes inside and one large open section.  You need the plastic storage boxes for hooks weights, swivels and small stuff.   Plugs, frogs and cranks can go in another small box.  Throw the plastic bags in the open section.  Less is better.  I have more than one tackle box. When I was fishing tournaments, I had a special box just for those lures.  I had another for small lakes.  Salt water lures were a third and so on. Stop carrying all that stuff around or you are going to get a hernia. ?

 

[casts_by_fly]

It depends on how much you have and how you want to keep them.  I have two ways of working- hard boxes and soft bags.  For my paddle tails, I have them in a 3600 sized plano.  I have 3-4 sizes of keitechs plus some others I use as trailers in that box, as well as a range of jigheads and hooks.  I have the 3700 worm organizer which is a 1.5 thickness box split into 2 sides and 2 sections per side.  I don't love it, but since I have it I use it for neds and finesse plastics.  I don't carry them all of the time, so that box comes and goes to make room for another 3700 in my tackle bag.

 

For my other trailers (swimjig and vibrating jig) they are in their original packaging in a side pocket of my tackle bag.  I can fit about 15 bags in there and I never leave them home.  My other plastics (assorted worms and texas rig plastics) are in the KVD tackle organizer bag that may or may not come on each trip.  I think I have 25 bags squeezed into it.  It says 20 capacity and that's probably better.  If I was carrying a lot of plastics, that's what I'd use and organize them by type.  They are $10 each so super cheap, but they are waterproof bags (maybe not the zippers).

5 minutes ago, Captain Phil said:

I have tried every type of tackle box from Giant Possum Belly boxes to loose leaf bag holders to soft suitcases. (see below)  First, there is no reason to carry all that with you.  Cut down your soft plastics into no more than 6-8 bags. Zoom makes everything you need. The best way to store soft plastics is in the bags they come in.   Everything I will ever fish with will fit in a shoe box and most of that will never see the light of day.  The best tackle boxes are the ones with small plastic storage boxes inside and one large open section.  You need the plastic storage boxes for hooks weights, swivels and small stuff.   Plugs, frogs and cranks can go in another small box.  Throw the plastic bags in the open section.  Less is better.  I have more than one tackle box. When I was fishing tournaments, I had a special box just for those lures.  I had another for small lakes.  Salt water lures were a third and so on. Stop carrying all that stuff around or you are going to get a hernia. ?

 

 

What are all of those big billed deep divers for?  Florida is only 8' deep...

[Jar11591]

By storage for soft plastics do you mean storing them while you’re fishing, or storing them off the water? For on the water, I use a worm binder. It’s a 3 ring binder with ziplock bags that hold packages of soft plastics.

 

For off the water, I store them in stackable plastic storage bins, in their original packaging. I always keep my soft plastics in the package they come in. 

[Captain Phil]

13 minutes ago, casts_by_fly said:

What are all of those big billed deep divers for?  Florida is only 8' deep...

 

In all the years I have been fishing I have collected a lot of stuff.  The lures in the photo were lures I had in a box in my garage for years.  Some were from fishing in other states.  Some were lures I only used once or twice.  Others are old standbys.  I threw away three garbage cans full of old soft plastics a few years ago.  Some of the deep diving plugs I use for trolling.   There is a 30 foot ditch in Big Lake Harris with a hard clay bottom.  In the summer, you catch some big bass by pulling those big cranks along the bottom.  I don't fish tournaments any more, so trolling is allowed in my boat.

9 minutes ago, Jar11591 said:

For off the water, I store them in stackable plastic storage bins, in their original packaging. I always keep my soft plastics in the package they come in. 

 

I believe it is best to leave soft plastics in their original package.   There was a time when we bought soft plastics in bulk.  Something seemed to be lost when we did that.   Probably the oil, salt or whatever they use to pack them in?

[king fisher]

Hard baits go in the milk crate, soft baits remain in the packages they come in, and the bags for the day are put in the soft bag.  Spinnerbaits get their own spinnerbait box.  Some days everything I need goes in the soft bag, but most days I have room for everything in the picture.

[WIGuide]

There's a lot of bags on the market and the way they're built now allow for more of a modular system. How you organize them, is as unique as your personality. Personally group baits together by the type, for example I have 2 square bill boxes, one for normal sized and one for oversized, another one for crankbaits that run from 5-10', another for 10+, and another for flat sided crankbaits.  My plastics are usually grouped together in original packaging and put into a larger ziplock bag. If I fish in someone else's boat I have a few extra empty trays where I'll pick and choose what hard baits I want to take and then pack individual packages of soft baits. I can fill up my tackle bag that way and I'm good to go. When I fish in my boat, that serves as my more modern tackle box and I'll have a lot more options. Keeping it modular though I can still take out what I know I won't use. 

[MAN]

Like captain phil said above I have also learned that everything I truly need will fit into something the size of a shoebox.  Basically, that shoebox for me is just 1 of several small soft sided tackle boxes I have lying around like this one. 

 

[gim]

I would highly recommend keeping plastics in their original packaging.  Some of them fade, warp, and even melt when you remove them from their original packaging; most notably zman elaztech.

[MN Fisher]

6 minutes ago, gimruis said:

I would highly recommend keeping plastics in their original packaging.  Some of them fade, warp, and even melt when you remove them from their original packaging; most notably zman elaztech.

Seconded - some plastics don't play well together, and Z-Man Elaztech is the worst of the bunch. No matter where you store your plastics, keep them in the original packaging.

 

If that becomes damaged, don't use regular Ziplocs - get these.

https://baitplastics.com/product/bait-bags/

These are the same type of laminated plastic the bait companies use.

[Big Hands]

I had several different hip boxes like the one in the OP, but they just didn't work for me.

 

I have a tackle satchel that I take on the boat that holds five 3700 boxes. If I can't fit it in there, it's riding the bench at home most days. I have a tote bag that holds whatever boxes don't make the starting lineup for that day so I keep them organized at home. Usually it's three or four of the same 3700 boxes that I always take, and I may rotate the other one or two depending on what I want to throw. Any more than that just isn't needed on most trips, especially once I get dialed in on a pattern or two. I don't like stumbling around in a cluttered boat dodging gear.

 

Just what I need, and not a bunch of stuff I don't need. The tackle satchel, four rods, some water (maybe in a small cooler), and a net.

[padlin]

For plastics I have a couple of these Soft bait bag, I leave the baits in their original bags and store a number of bags in them, I use 2 but only take whichever is appropriate for the day.

[Fishin Dad]

1 hour ago, gimruis said:

I would highly recommend keeping plastics in their original packaging.  Some of them fade, warp, and even melt when you remove them from their original packaging; most notably zman elaztech.

I totally agree!   I do the same for the most part.   Have you seen any of Zona’s shows?   He puts hundreds in big bags and just lumps them all together.  I know a lot of them are the same baits and may play well together, but it looks crazy!   It also helps to get baits for free!! ?

[GRiver]

I use a Plano guide series tackle bag and for soft plastics. I use a Plano speed bag and leave th plastics in they’re original packaging. 

[gim]

12 minutes ago, Fishin Dad said:

Have you seen any of Zona’s shows?   He puts hundreds in big bags and just lumps them all together.

Ya that’s a giant mess that could be avoided. My Father is notorious for doing this too and many of his lighter colored ones are now extremely faded.

[Bird]

My tackle bag would get denied on the scales of an airport.

If you're getting back into fishing, go big now vs later.

If your hiking in or just a short bank trip, you can have bare essentials in a smaller bag but with so many effective techniques today, it requires space.

 

 

[txchaser]

Mostly keep the soft plastics in their original bag, and keep those bags in a double-deep open 3700. I've tried the other approaches, like the speedbags, and they just didn't work for me because I need to stay portable. Someone posted a pic around here somewhere, I got the idea from BR. 

 

Plano edge for swimbaits, taken out of the plastic because otherwise they are too bulky.

 

For the bag itself, surprisingly, cabelas advanced angler II bags are better than others by a lot. Heavy fabric, good zippers, built in rain cover. Outside pockets fit 3600's perfectly. Lots of great little details. And not very expensive either. Whoever designed them actually fishes. Oh buy your own boxes to go in it. 

 

 

[E-H]

For a smaller bag that fits quite a bit I just got the kastking bait boss.  It fits 2 3600 and has tons of pockets and an outside pocket for the pliers.  I like it.  Fits all I need for a day trip and is super light.

 

Also has a front pocket for my soft plastics and ned stuff.  Up to 5 or 6 bags.  Even a drink holder....

Has a handle, shoulder strap....It was exactly what I was looking for.  Easy to grab and go with essentials.  Zippers are solid.  Only $30 or so.  I had previous purchased a plano speedbag for softs.  I keep my extra stuff in that to replenish this kastking.

 

 

 

 

 

[gim]

10 minutes ago, E-H said:

For a smaller bag that fits quite a bit I just got the kastking bait boss.

I use something similar. I think it’s a Plano weekender bag. It’s gray in color and holds three Plano 3700s, plus a front zippered area for soft plastics.

 

If I remember correctly, they were half price ($19) at Midway USA, so I bought one for my Father for Xmas and put some lures inside as a gift. It was such a good deal, I bought one for myself too. Normally I fish out of my own boat so I have most of my tackle in the boat. But every once in a while I go in someone else’s boat and this soft sided bag works pretty well.

 

https://www.basspro.com/shop/en/plano-weekend-series-3700-softsider-tackle-bag

[Fishin Dad]

1 hour ago, gimruis said:

Ya that’s a giant mess that could be avoided. My Father is notorious for doing this too and many of his lighter colored ones are now extremely faded.

Often times the colors bleed into each other too.   

[imarazorbackfan]

As a co angler/non boat owner I use a Plano 2.0 backpack, with a handheld bag for clamshell plastics. The backpack, one hand with the clamshell bag, other with all my rod and reels, makes me very mobile,

[FishTank]

1 hour ago, txchaser said:

Mostly keep the soft plastics in their original bag, and keep those bags in a double-deep open 3700. I've tried the other approaches, like the speedbags, and they just didn't work for me because I need to stay portable. Someone posted a pic around here somewhere, I got the idea from BR. 

 

Plano edge for swimbaits, taken out of the plastic because otherwise they are too bulky.

 

For the bag itself, surprisingly, cabelas advanced angler II bags are better than others by a lot. Heavy fabric, good zippers, built in rain cover. Outside pockets fit 3600's perfectly. Lots of great little details. And not very expensive either. Whoever designed them actually fishes. Oh buy your own boxes to go in it. 

 

 

 

I have two of these now. I like the design and they hold a ton of stuff. 

 

[Ski]