In this video we make my version of a wooden surfcasting plug. I make a long casting needlefish and a slow sinking needlefish plug and do a bit of in-water testing.
As always my intention in these videos is to help with lure building techniques and give a little insight on the physics behind lure behavior. I do not pretend to be an expert at fishing with all the types of lures that I make. So please feel free to add any insight or experiences you have had with these lures...love to learn from fellow anglers.
All my old needle fish lures have a small prop both forward and aft. This really creates a turbulence around the bait as it is ripped is short / medium pulls of the rod. The effect is that of a dying bait fish in its last throughs of its life. My Grandfather’s rule #7 for fishing: “You don’t have to out think the fish you are trying to catch... Just duplicate the actions of the stupidest bait it likes to eat... The fish will do the rest.”
Franco- you ought to do a show on the absolute 'worst' fishin lures ever to hit the market- if you want I can send you one of my Roland Martin world famous Helicopter Lures to Kick it off- thats my #1 for the worst lure! Lol I bet theres a whole lot of other Suckers out there that bought a set of those too!
So you obviously know what you’re doing but could I suggest leaving the block ends on to lay out the weight, eyes, and hanger holes. It makes things much easier.
Your math seemed overly complicated on this one. You have the weight of the lure displacement in water in the cup for a bait to be neutrally buoyant. Adding 10% to that number would be your goal. Subtracting the weight of the existing lure gives you the amount of weight needed to achieve your buoyancy goal. Cup of displaced water + difference needed - weight of bait = the additional weight needed to achieve goal.
I’m just going to go simple on this….then creates an absolutely gorgeous mullet pattern. I love how you blend art, science, and your passion for fishing!
Love the effect of the interference blue in the lure. I don't make many hard baits as I can't paint to save my life - but love to use interference colors in soft plastics.
Do you sell product? I am wanting chrome blanks but not sure I want to get that involved with the 2 part solution. I have just been trying different chrome spray paints with little success. I have not tried looking glass or spaztec yet.
Common misconception about needlefish is that they move in a straight line. The movement in the water (waves, current, sweep) push the body of the lure in one direction, and the tension on the line pulls the body back towards center. So with minimal reeling (just staying tight to the plug) the lure has a very natural, subtle wiggle as it moves with the water. Much like a baitfish adjusting itself to maintain stability against the current. Sometimes less is more and the needlefish plug is a perfect example of that, as it’s a tried and true big fish slayer
I would love seeing a realistic fish of your choice. You got some cool talent with a air brush. I like seeing the different ways others tackle a look. I really liked that pike looking one. But that action was off. Maybe try one or the other that way you get a good idea what changes do what. Another good video would be painting blanks before and after paint. Then see what the average weight is added so new people can have a better judgement verses winging it with a wild guess. Your the only person actually trying to bring math together to find averages and known targets. I feel it helps if you actually get into making lures. It's like baking you can fallow instructions of known things to a point you dont need too but to help others it's nice to tell them a exact amount. Thank you for taking the longer route.
Hey nice video. What are the dimensions of your needlefish? What do you spin the tail down to and what do you spin the nose down to? And it seems from your drawing the thickest part is 7/8 correct? Thanks @Engineered Angler Lures
The nose comes down to about 1/4 inch and is then rounded. the tail i try to make a semicircle about 5/8 diameter. The other dimensions in the video are pretty accurate.
These videos are causing me to rethink my “I only fly fish, and only with flies I tied” philosophy. Really informative, very creative, I’m going to make a few!
Franco….North East Stripers will definitely eat those. That was some good innovation on the nose section. I had a couple of these in my arsenal back in my surf fishing days. They work well.
from my experience using needlefish plugs for striped bass ( i admit its somewhat limited). its really a straight retrieve at a pretty slow pace. Also i only ever had fish on them at night. The current in the water helps provide a slow back and forth wandering action to the lure. Most lures give a startled or injured presentation but the needlefish is a little more subtle, like a slow fish just swimming in the dark unaware that a 'predator' is around. To look at most you'd think, "I don't get it, its just a stick" but they work
When I do those weight holes I lay them out with a pair of dividers; saves some fiddling and they are abosultely equally spaced. I enjoy your videos very much!
I really like the saltwater builds. The needlefish is responsible for catching some big stripers off the beaches of Massachusetts. We crawl them in soooo slooow!
Question about Needle fish. Is this same species of fish as found in the St. John’s River an Rodman Pond? If so those needle are very long skinny fish, correct??
Excellent video as always! You're gonna have to add "artist" to your opening credentials cause your lures, and paint job, are works of art! I really would like to see you try some of your lures from a pier that's up out of the water some 14',, get your take on how to build a lure that works well from that height, or slightly higher! Also,, I know it's not much, but when you drill holes in the lure to add lead you're losing some of the weight from the lure at the same time,, doesn't that affect your overall floatations/sink rate?
You're right, there is some lose in wood weight and when I refill and seal the hole there are changes there too. luckily these are small enough that I can work around them with a simple factor.
Hi Franko, I really enjoy your videos and appreciate you bringing an engineers perspective to lure making, it has helped me to think about my lure design with more clarity. I wanted to share the method I use for finding the volume and therefore goal weight for a lure; I weigh my lure and hardware first while it is dry, then place a water filled vessel onto the scales, tare the scales and then suspend the lure blank fully submerged in the water, I use stiff wire. The weight (g) registered on the scale is the weight of the displaced water and is therefore equal to the volume in ml. I will then calculate my goal weight based off the density of salt water. Perhaps you already are aware of this method, I use it as it only requires scales.
I'm enjoying your salt water builds. Needle eels are one of my all time favorite plugs. They can be fished in any sort of surf conditions, and produce! Calm conditions we go lite, rough, we go heavy. I'm curious, traditional plug building usually has the maker through drill the plug, adding swivels in the belly holes to hold the trebles. Is there a reason, other than simplify the process, that you choose to cut the wire in? Seems to me it would create more opportunity for water intrusion, as well as weaken the overall plug. Am I wrong?
I have to disagree, l think through drilling is more likely to allow water in, especially the belly hook hole. The lure body really doesn't need to take much of a tension load and the crushing loads will do what they do. I personally just don't like the look of drilled through wire setups but, that's just me.
@@EngineeredAngler that's why I asked. Wanted your professional/engineering opinion. And you're right, the belly hole is always an issue for water intrusion. Thank you for the input!
