Australian lures

[jonister]

Okay so my recent obsession has been Australian timber lures for murray cod. My question is, is there anything special about them? there seems to be a popular "banana" style crankbait over there that supposedly works through wood and brush quite well. Any thoughts on this? Why dont we see this style in the states? Also how could i go about making one? Ill probably order a few this spring when i have a little more time and money. 

[JD_mudbug]

I am guessing you don’t hear more about the banana style lures is that they don’t sell well in the US. Those baits look a bit funky and ‘old-fashioned’. They typically don’t have the better paint jobs that other baits have.

I still use the Heddon Magnum Tadpolly and Clatter Tad (rattling model). They have a very strong thumping action, great for murky water. It comes through cover well because the belly hook is shielded by the curve of the lure. It backs out of most snags because the rear is bulbous and the whole back (top-side) of the lure has a smooth curve to it. The lip is part of the body which also reduces the chance of snagging.  Once stopped, the bait floats up slightly away from the caster freeing itself. Unfortunately, it was discontinued.

There are some banana style baits around like the Lindy River Rocker, Rapala Tail Dancer, Reef Runner, and Flatfish.

I think the key to making one would be to weight the lure so it floats rear-end up at around a 45 degree angle. With the smooth slope of the back and weighted properly, it should back out of many snags.

[mark poulson]

I still have two 40+ year old flatfishes in a tackle box somewhere in the garage.  One is orange with spots, and the other is green with spots, if memory serves, but it's been a long time since I've actually seen them.

They did have a great wiggle.

[Anglinarcher]

It would be useful to have a link to the specific lure you are talking about.  I did a search and failed to find something that I was sure was it.

Nevertheless, JD is correct.  I still have several of the "Banana style" lures in my boxes, and I like them.  And, as indicated, they will back out of most snags and the body does protect the hooks some.  

I find the flatfish is NOT one of those.  I love them, and have several of the original ones by Helen as well as the newer ones by Yakima Baits and the Kwikfish styles.  They like to swing the hooks right into snags, and roll out on a fast retrieve or too much current, but, I am sure many will be passed down to my grandkids.

Mark, tht orange with black spots was hot for trout.  The green with spots was there early "frog" pattern if it is a Helen.  Some years it was awesome.  Wow, that brings back memories.

[gliders]

Seemingly many of the Aussie style lures are designed for trolling very deep in snaggy  water .  Murray cod  seem to like lures with a big strong thumping action . As jd says ,they are also designed to back up and away from snags  when tension  released. The shape lends itself  to these requirements, it has to be very deep diving yet very bohyant. The big bib and broad shape can also make the lure wobble when rising . The Aussies make some fantastic looking lures with superb painting and finishing.....glider

[jonister]

thanks guys for getting on this so fast. It's finals week so I haven't been on. So a great example of the lure style I'm thinking of are called "Stumpjumper big cod". They come in a three pack. Google "Murray cod lures" and there is some awesome handmade businesses out there as well. Most of these appear to be marketed as trolling baits, so I wonder how deep they go as well. 

[jonister]

Could anyone help me out here? I'm really curious if they utilize ballast in the bait style, or if the hook and bill screw weight manage that? I feel like if I add ballast it will weight the design down too much. Thoughts?

 

[gliders]

Jonister , hopefully hazmail pete will drop by and give you better info on this style. For sure a lot of that style lure have no additional ballast and some do . They tend to have heavy duty hardware and hooks which act as ballast, also they are often made with slightly harder and more dense timber ....

[hazmail]

Hey Jonister, Just a warning--watch out for the cheap copies of ''Stump Jumpers'', OR ''Down Under - Boomerangs''

some made in China @ about $10.

I have  a couple here (plastic), if you want a wooden original  "S/Jumper" /  '' Boomerangs'' etc, they sell in the 100's even 1000 of $'s.

BUT there are plenty of other brand named or hobby makers here who make so called ''Cod Lures''-

Most are horizontally very wide, and shallow in depth which gives them stability and a very wide action, all seem to have to have a very large lip, preferably made of aluminum, not so much poly carbonate, and most are deep divers, from about 15' to 30' (claimed) --

Here are some  examples of 'Power Lures", very nice lures and very fish-able/ collectable today, some @ about 6"-8" total length.

http://www.lurelovers.com/forum/power-lures_topic6261.html

Here is a great site with just about all Australian lures ever made (historical and modern day) including current "Power Lures",  just scroll down, it's alphabetical.    https://www.lurehuboz.com/aus-o---q.php

AND  the whole story of ''Stump Jumper" for you  -  https://www.lurehuboz.com/jjs.php

 

Pete

Edited December 18, 2017 by hazmail
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[mark poulson]

Pete, those are all great links!

Thanks.

[jonister]

Wow thank you so much! Very informative articles and exactly the lures I'm referring too. I couldn't find nearly that much info. It probably helps that your in an AU web browser as well. I think for now I'm going to try to make a few. Maybe aluminum and polycarbonate lips. I would love to create a reasonable sized bait that could hit the 30' mark 

[Hillbilly voodoo]

When it comes to fishing lures there are tons of options that are effective. Also a ton of lures that are dubbed as a lure meant for 1 species but are amazing if crossed over to other species 

 

The funny thing I have noticed over the years is it changes from region to region on what lures are to be used lol

 

fishermen need to be more open minded 

[woodieb8]

old flatfish company was 5 miles from my home. the kwikfish was 1 mile away. as for the aussies,they make some tru beautys.Hazmail,has shown some true creations and how to build threads over the years. always enjoyed and read his posts. a tru builder and tinkerer,if that's a real word.

[hazmail]

Yeah still at it Woodie, always ''tinkering'', ---------sometimes it drives me crazy when something doesn't work-- I finally built a copy lathe to save some time ,  it's only taken me 2 years so far !!!!!! Still ''Tweaking ''  it  .

Pete

[gliders]

Think of the time you saved though  pete. ...

[jonister]

yes flat fish, quik fish, Mag lips, etc. All popular "salmon" lures and let me tell Ya..  they would never catch bass!. .  the only downfall is they only dive like 6 feet and don't cast the greatest. Those Aussie trolling baits look capable of diving quite deeper. I'm hoping to get to the 25' depth. 

 

Hazmail, we all know it's not about the time spent!  I would like to one day tackle a copy carver project. Hats off to you! I would love to see it in action. 

[mark poulson]

On 12/22/2017 at 11:10 PM, hazmail said:

Yeah still at it Woodie, always ''tinkering'', ---------sometimes it drives me crazy when something doesn't work-- I finally built a copy lathe to save some time ,  it's only taken me 2 years so far !!!!!! Still ''Tweaking ''  it  .

Pete

Did you ever get that whole upside down thing figured out?  And the driving on the wrong side of the road?

[hazmail]

Q----'' Did you ever get that whole upside down thing figured out?  And the driving on the wrong side of the road? ''

 

Funny thing is Mark, we seem to have gotten used to it .

But when I have hired a car over there or in Sweden, I have had a few problems with direction and which side is up (North) etc  - It doesn't take long to get used to it though   ---BUT then we come home and have to go through re-calibrating the compass all over again  .

Have a great Xmas/ New Year all

Pete