It was hard deciding which lure to enter in this contest. Since it is a lure you made and/or painted I decided on this one.
A friend of mine could not find a large body swimbait that would get down and stay there without rising or falling fast. I told him I would try to come up with something, and here it is...
Measures 10 inches nose to tail. The body is one I cast from my Topwater/glide walking series. The tail is Medium body soft plastic that I made a mold for and cast myself. It dives and swims in a tight S pattern to 8-10 feet. It suspends completely level in 60+ degree water and rises very slow at about an inch every 4 seconds in 55 or lower water. The bill is hand cut and shaped from lexan and pinned in then glued and sealed. It weighs in at 5.25 ounces with hardware.
The sides are waterslide with blending to a 4 color scale pattern from the shoulders to the back and natural color blending for the belly to tail.
I do not know if this is the best looking of my baits, but this is one of my best works from start to finish especially since this is my first completed swimbait, it is one of my own engineering, design and craftsmanship, it does what it is actually designed to do and it is to be a gift for someone else for Christmas.
I hope all is well with everyone, the holidays find you warm and surrounded by laughter and love, and your lines stay tight in the upcoming season. b