Home Gear Fishing Gear & Accessories Bait That Comes Alive

Bait That Comes Alive

Walk down the aisle of any tackle store and you’ll be mesmerized by flashy plugs, squiggly plastics and voluptuous jigs designed to catch the eye of finicky fish and fickle fishermen. To design lures with lifelike features and realistic action, tackle manufacturers are using innovative technology that match the hatch like never before.

High-Tech Hard Baits

Modern technology has allowed tackle manufacturers to speed up the design process to quickly react to trends in the market and advances in lure design. Tom Chopin of Live Target Lures (www.livetargetlures.com) uses three-dimensional tooling to cut the development process down from three weeks to one. A laser scans a real fish then a tool cuts the lure to perfectly match the target species’ profile. Next, Chopin adds up to 10 layers of paint to highlight contours and features. “The intricate painting process creates different flash points along the sides of the lure,” says Chopin, “which catches and reflects light like a real fish.” Even the eyes on Chopin’s lures are designed to mimic the real thing. “We make sure the eye has the right shape and color, even the tear drop is pointing in the right direction for each species.”

Carbon Copy Critter

It’s not easy to be a frog in a pond full of hungry bass. A frog lure that makes a big splash and loud noise will get the attention of aggressive bass, but finicky fish need a more subtle temptation. David MacDonald at Lunkerhunt Lures (www.lunkerhunt.com) has designed his Pocket Frog to imitate a sneaky amphibian. “Even without moving the lure through the water, the legs will hang down and slowly pulse like a real frog suspended on the surface,” he explains. Not only does this draw strikes, it puts the hooks in a vertical position that increases hook-ups.

On top of that, the Pocket Frog’s offset hooks lean closer to its body while the frog’s wide shoulders make the lure virtually snag-proof. MacDonald even added plastic belly weights to increase casting distance and accuracy without reducing flotation.

Nature’s Own

Sometimes the best technology already exists in nature. Heath Hipple of Buggs Fishing Lures (www.buggs-fishing-lures.com) uses natural furs and feathers to make a jig that imitates a small crab or shrimp.

“Rabbit fur moves in the water even when the lure is sitting still,” says Hipple, “and the jighead is designed to kick up a puff of sand as it bounces across the bottom.” The natural hair also floats, which keeps the lure sitting upright. “When it comes to imitating nature,” Hipple says, “sometimes you can’t beat the real thing.”