diemai

@ bmaher287 Welcome to TU ! I see , that you've been around for a couple of weeks already , have you utilized the search function and browsed through the threads ? I'm very sure , that most of your questions will be answered in there , you only need to look around ,..........any upcoming specialized questions would surely be answered by some members later . You might probably understand , that it would be impossible to write long instructional texts for every newbie coming in , .....all the info is there , take up the challenge to find them and benefit from it . Have a look in the "tutorials" section ,..... one more option , that just comes to my mind , is the thread "looks that simple the Finnish way" , ..... type this this title into the "search forums" bar top right and you'll get there , .......check the video ! Also type in certain keywords like "crankbait making" , "diving lip" , "throughwire harness" , "topcoating" , etc. , etc. , ....all you can think of , .......you will definately find a lot of info ! good luck , diemai:yay:

@ paintsniffer All inlines do cause line twist more or less , only a swivel ahead of the lure does'nt eliminate , but only minors the problem ,......here are a few different options to overcome the troubles : - switch a clear plastic anti-kink-vane between toothproof leader and mainline , for smaller lures 1" X 1 1/2" should be enough , increase dimensions for bigger spinners ,........but keep as small as possible , hence this device always minors the casting distance a bit . - bend the spinners tow eye a bit offset to the center wire shank , ........either the eye only on small bladed lures or also a portion of the shank under the eye as well on bigger bladed ones(more circular force generated by the blade) . - if tying spinners straigt onto mainline without any leader , leave a tag end of approx. 1" to 2" on the knot and crimb a lead shot of sufficient size onto that piece of line , that one should also hinder the entire inline to spin ,.........make sure , that the rig is long enough to work out , but also short enough not to hinder the blade from spinning . - for greater depths use(or build) weight-forward spinners with a sufficiently offset and balanced weight matching the blade size and it's circular force , ....not all commercial ones do assure that(best one IMO is the Swedish "M

@ psilvers There are so-called "open shank" or "open eye" doubles and trebles available(shank is not soldered) , most likely in smaller to medium sizes ,..... these can be directly slid over any sufficiently sized attachment eye , ........I know one German supplier , that sells tinned open shank VMC trebles , most likely these are supposed to be used on "Cicada" type blade baits . There are also short shanked single hooks available in the US and Canada ,......these have an open eye , that is supossed to be bent close when rigging the hook onto the lure . They are called "Siwash" hooks(open eye version) . Check Welcome to Moore's Lures , they are listed somewhere there in the PDF catalog , but only sizes 3/0 to 6/0 , other suppliers would surely carry them , too ,....... also in smaller sizes . good luck , diemai:yay:

@ RiverMan No problem , that's what such site is for , ..........forgot to say , that it is much safer to file the point of the nail round before bending the wire forms around it ,.... sometimes the pliers slide off the tag ends whilst bending the closure coil(especially when working thicker and more rigid wire) , and nobody likes some unwanted piercings on hand and wrist;) ! good luck , diemai:yay:

@ hazmail Bought one a few years ago , ..........they were put out on the market over here as well ,.......but I guess , I'm too dump for it:huh: ,........broke two of it's bibs whilst switching them ,........not a foolproof system in my point of view ! The tolerances between lip slot and bib are just to small , so one has to use quite a force to pull it out or push in , if not keeping body and lip perfectly aligned at that stage , the lip might(in my case it did)break:( . The lip material should be made more resistant against breakage(though it seems to be already , but yet not 100%) . greetz , diemai:yay:

@ RiverMan Made some bends on a short term(aluminium welding wire)for display , ......I utilize slim pliers(NOT the round type)and a nail fixed vertically on the outer edge of a vise . Follow step by step fom the left side , leave the tag end to be wound around shank longer as shown in last step to have a better grip on it with the pliers . To achieve the final windings around the shank you need to flip over the eye on the nail every half turn to get around it with your pliers . Finally snip off tag end with sidecutters , I usually grind the remaining tag off flush to the closure coil and break the edges with a small file , so no wire would produde anymore . good luck , diemai:yay:

@ hazmail High tech for fishing , ........wow:wink: ! But 25 bucks for a tiny spoon is quite a lot ! greetz , diemai:yay:

@ KcDano Very interesting report and experiment , indeed , ...thanks for posting:) . Those closing times during spawning season and lake sections being prohibited for any fishing , that are mentioned at the end of the essay , are most common over here in Germany . greetz , diemai:yay:

@ Vodkaman Made such cotton wool-reinforced dough as well , it really works ! But it is a nasty problem about having the dough eaten off the hook by small fish without noticing it ! To overcome this , I'd utilize subtle float set-ups with slender , sensitive floats , balance these with lead shot on mainline and leader in a way , that the float's longer antennas would just stick out a bit more than it is supposed to . With a dough ball of approx. 1" dia. on the hook the float should either sink or hang visibly deeper . It is essential to determine the exact depth , so that the float's antenna would still be sufficiently visible.... this method assures the bait to always lay at bottom and enables the angler to figure out about whether it is still sticking on the hook , .....since if it gets eaten away by small fish or softens to fall off , the set-up releases the weight of the dough bait and the float would rise up a little . If a carp picks up the bait , the float would either vanish in a split second or pop up to lay flat on the surface , ........be fast to set the hook now;) ! Needless to say , that dough-baiting is only for shorter distances and "lazy" casts , powerful casts would let it fall off instantly . greetz:yay: , Dieter

@ spoopa You can use homemade dough of old bread and flour to stick , scent it with curry , sugar , Asian fish sauce , crunched catfood , etc. (anything might work , as long as it makes up for a firm , lasting dough) ....... , before the Boilie craze came up , the people over here used nightcrawler worms ,and half boiled smaller potatoes , soft enough for the hook to break through , when hauling back for hookset(rig these with a baiting needle) . Also a dough of ground trout pellets might work(the kind they use in hatcheries to feed them). Also fine is dogfood , the kind ringed like a donut , you can make a hair-rig and tie them onto the hook with some thread . Some do float , try finding sinking one (might require some days of chumming the spot prior to fishing). Or grind it to powder and make a dough out of it . To let dough last longer on the hook , take a small coil spring from a ballpen and stick it over hookbend and shank . greetz , Dieter:yay:

@ spoopa Some weeks ago there was a little disscussion about carp on the Australian site http://www.lureandmore.com , obviously the Aussies are having the same problem with carp like you in the US seem to have ,...............brought there as alien species and disturbing the local ones ! During that discussion one member there assured me , that the carp down under can be targeted with small crankbaits , which I could not believe ! Probably they got too plenty , so that the forage is not enough ???? In Europe , you hardly accidentally catch carp , tench , bream , etc. on (smallest) lures , highest chances are during the time of year , when freshly hatched fry is moving around , but nobody fishes for them with lures , its just accidental ! Carp are not native here in central Europe as well , they were brought here from the Far East centuries ago , at first bred in monastry hatcheries to act as a non-meat food source during the catholic feasting time . OK , we do not have too many natural trout waters anymore , but nobody blames it on the carp but on human made problems like pollution or turning any wild creeks and rivers to canals . And carp have never turned to a pest in our waters over here , probably because they usually do not spawn too often , since usually it doesn't get warm enough for it frequently here up north , second because many of them end up in kitchen . Guess , that you don't wanna become an European style carp crack , fishing boilies on knotless hair rigs and/or helicopter rigs with backleads attached and utilizing electric wireless bite alarms , sleeping in a brolly camp at night:lol: ! I think , that you won't need it , anyway , as the carp seem to be so plenty ! When surface bait does not work (seldom on warm days over here , anyway) , carp are bottom located(not neccessarely the deepest spots , though) , so you need your bait on bottom , either by a sinker(with chumming baskets or without) or float set-up . Make sure to activate freespool function , leave some slack in the line of a float set-up or just be on alert all of the time , if you don't wanna lose your rod , sometimes they are very enthusiastic ! But most likely they are quite cautious in taking the bait , so you often need to set the hook fast , they won't give a second chance ! Probably different in your place , as they don't seem to be as pressured as over here ? This is why , the guys over here use self-hooksetting rigs , so the can even sleep in their tents at night ,... the carp hooks itself and the strike alarm wakes the angler up to play the fish to land it . Also swingtip , -quivertip , and feeder rods are a dead sure weapon for successful bottom fishing(doesn't work from a boat) , but require permanent attention , setting the hook with these has something of a revolver quick draw ! Greetz , Dieter:yay:

@ kelly Once a Finnish friend told me , that in some remote places of the country people go hunt for surface pike with shotguns ,..........if you'd go there fishing for the pike , they'd also point their barrels at you to get you off their fishing grounds:( ! Not very friendly , I'd say ,...... both not to the pike nor the anglers:angry: ! greetz , diemai:yay:

@ spoopa What you have described is strictly illegal in Europe ! If you see them on surface , you can try some fresh white bread on a short shanked strong walleye hook(guess you don't have easy access to special carp hooks over there) , leave the outer crust on it , since it holds better on the hook . Also chum those bread crumbs to attract them . As a casting weight use a bubble float , best is a transparent one not to spook the carp , the leader below the float should be minimum 5 feet long for the bread bait to float a bit away from the bubble . Don't cast directly at the located fish , but a few yards further and carefully reel your bait in to approach the carp . You need to observe your bread bait well to see some big lips engulfing it ,..... as it vanishes , set the hook instantly , before the carp feels the steel and possibly spits out again ! I do not recommend braid for carp fishing(unless for snagging 'em:lol:) , since they are very powerful , the hooks are easy to tear out of their mouths , if barely hooked ,....you really need to play them until they get tired , forcing them in often leads to loss . Mono line is far more flexible for that purpose . For the small local springtime carp I use 8 pound test mono , but for the real big ones(up to 50 lbs caught in Germany) the local cracks take 14 to 16 lbs test , I suppose ,.... but also depends on local water conditions . If interested in carp fishing ,try and google for some European sites , you'll be surprised and call these guys nuts:lol: , I guess ,....... they're making a big science out of it , would be hard to believe for American lure casters:lol:! good luck , Dieter