The Bare Essentials
Lure Fishing On A Budget
It is easy to get carried away with spending a lot of money on tackle and lures, with some plugs costing over �15, and rods over �100. Not everyone can afford such extravagances, so here is a guide to low cost lure fishing.
There are limits to what can be done on a small budget, but if you adopt a flexible approach, there is plenty of sport to be had within these limits.
You may be able to use tackle that you have previously used for other methods, if you have a suitable rod and reel you have already avoided two major expenses
General Tackle
Rods
So, starting with the rod, what do you need. This depends to an extent on where you are fishing and what you expect to catch. If you are planning to fish for perch, pike and chub on a small river or canal your requirements will be different to someone hoping to catch pike from a big river or stillwater.
For small waters and mixed-species fishing, which can provide fascinating sport, you will not be using large lures so you will not need a powerful rod. You could use a light carp stalking rod, or even a heavy legering rod (without a quivertip), but there are plenty of inexpensive spinning rods available from many manufacturers. You will need a rod that will cast up to about 1.25oz (35g), and between 7 and 9ft long. A look in your local tackle shop should find a suitable rod for less than �50, or you may find one second-hand, either much cheaper, or a better quality one for a similar price.
For bigger waters and mostly for pike you should look for a rod that will cast up to 2oz (56g), and between 8 and 11 ft long (although 9 to 10 ft is ideal). There are plenty of cheap carp rods that will suffice, though you do not want too long a butt, it only needs to reach to just behind your elbow when held normally. Again you might find a good quality second-hand rod.
Examine the rod carefully, is the joint sound, and a nice fit? Are the rings of good quality, and if second-hand not worn or damaged? Rings can be replaced, but they are expensive. Always take a reel with you when you buy a rod, thread it up and get the seller to hold the line while you bend the rod, give it a thorough bending, a good pike will! Look at the action, you need a medium action with plenty of power in the butt, with a middle that will absorb the lunges of a pike at close range, and a flexible tip so that smaller lures can be cast easily. Next tie a lead, of the same weight as the heaviest lure you that want to cast, onto the end of the line and lift it. Does the rod feel comfortable lifting that weight? Would you be happy to cast it with all your strength? You cannot always rely on the information given by suppliers so these little tests can save you from disappointment.
Reels
I cannot honestly recommend a cheap reel, in lure angling it is in continual use, quality counts, and quality does not come cheap, but you only have to buy a good one once. Many reels will be suitable for mixed species fishing.
Your reel must:
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be able to deal with braided lines from 20lb-50lb b.s.,
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have a reliable, smooth drag,
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have a no-fail bail arm spring
Make sure that the reel is not too heavy or big for the rod, it should be obvious immediately so don't buy a reel without trying it on the rod you plan to use. You will be surprised how quickly a reel will wear out when it is used for lure fishing, so buy the best you can afford. Shimano, for instance, make budget reels that are durable, or again, you may be able to find one second-hand. In any case take the trouble to clean and lubricate it regularly, this will significantly extend its life. Try and get a spare spool so you can have a choice of line strengths.
Line
Braided line is expensive compared to monofilament, but it will repay its purchase cost several times over by its longevity and lure-saving strength.
You may read of anglers using "ultra-lite" tactics for pike and recommending very fine braided lines. For pike fishing you must think very seriously before you chose this option. Fine lines and leaders are very prone to abrasion and damage that can catastrophically weaken them, this will result in lures left in pike and other fish from time to time, this is totally unacceptable. You must practice the highest standards of tackle maintenance with fine lines to prevent line breakage. It is not a game for beginners.
A simple tip with your line is to partly fill your spool with cheaper line as a backing, so that you have room for just a hundred metres of good line on top. Then when it is time to change your line you only replace the worn line, you will probably lose a few yards through the season on snags, you can simply retie to the end of the backing and know you have plenty of line loaded.
Wire Leaders
You will, of course, make your own wire traces. You should use a 7-strand wire of between 15 and 40lb b.s. and aim for a finished length of no less than 15". I recommend that you twist, rather than crimp, your traces to attach the swivel at one end and a simple clip at the other. There are many different trace wires available, none are particularly expensive. Do not worry about the thickness of the wire, the fish won't, make sure it is durable enough to withstand hard use. Swivels and clips can be expensive in this country, shop around and buy in large quantities to make savings. It may be worth looking at supliers in the USA and buying in quantity if you are expecting to do a lot of fishing, if you have friends who lure fish you might put a joint order together and take advantage of bulk prices. The clips should be either Duo-Locks or Cross locks, be very careful to buy good quality locks, it is extremely annoying to lose a lure because the clip opens in use.
Landing Net
You will need a landing net big enough to land large pike, remember that any water can turn up a "twenty" from time to time. You will get comments from passers-by about the size of the net - "no shark in here, mate", and other such witticisms, it is surprising how small the net looks when a big double gets near it. I would be unhappy with a triangular net with less than 42" arms. Micro-mesh nets get badly damaged by the treble hooks on lures, and it can take ages to get your lure out, buy a mesh with large-diameter holes to save time and temper.
Unhooking Tools
To unhook your fish you will need a choice of tools, strong forceps are fine for removing small trebles, but you will need long-nosed pliers for bigger hooks. Try a "Baker Hook-Out", this is good for all but the biggest trebles. Good quality bolt-croppers are essential for cutting hooks free that are inaccessible with the pliers.
Lures
I am going to confine this choice of lures to those costing not much more than �5, and describe many that will cost little more than half that. I will include a basic description of each type.
Note: This list was compiled in 1999 and is partly obsolete, to be updated soon.
Categories:
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Spinners
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Spoons
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Spinnerbaits
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Plugs
There are other types of lure but they are not necessary in a basic collection.
Spinners
The basic spinner consists of a central wire shaft with a weight, a blade on a clevis at the trace attachment end, and a treble hook at the back. When you retrieve it the blade revolves around the shaft. Usually the shaft revolves as well which can cause problems with line twist. The performance of a spinner is determined by two factors, the weight of the body and the size and shape of the blade. Obviously a spinner with a heavier body will run deeper in the water than one with a light body. The blade shape is very important: a wider, rounder blade will provide more lift than a long thin blade, and a large blade provides more lift than a small blade. You should choose your spinners according to the depth of water you want to fish in. Note that when retrieving a spinner against the current it will run shallower than when it is retrieved with the current.
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Mepps Aglia, available in many sizes and colours
(Mepps spinners available from Harris Angling, see
Links page)
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Spinners come in a range of sizes suitable for all freshwater predators, quite small spinners sometimes catch large pike but it is usually better to increase the size of the spinner in line with the size of the target fish.
Some have bucktail or feathers tied to the treble, increasing the size of the spinner and attracting more pike. Silver is the most frequently used blade colour, but gold, copper, black, and flourescent colours are all available.
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Kilty Buck, a bucktailed spinner from Kilty Lures
(Kilty lures available online see Manufacturers' Links page)
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The brand of spinner you will most frequently see in tackle shops is "Mepps", these are fine, as are many other brands. The smallest plain spinners cost less than �2, and some large bucktails are well outside our budget. It is extremely easy to make your own spinners, you can buy kits from various suppliers or get the components separately. The price per home made spinner is usually less than �1. Try adding a rubber trailer grub to the treble for extra attraction, that really can make a huge difference for all species.
Spoons
The simplest lure, a metal plate bent slightly to give it one concave and one convex face, with a hole drilled either end, one for trace attachment and one for a splitring and hook. The weight of the spoon and its shape determine the depth at which it will run. Narrower spoons run deeper than wide spoons. They are usually fished with a gentle "sink and draw" action.
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Kilty Spoons, a variety of sizes, shapes and colours for many different conditions and all species
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(Kilty lures available online see Manufacturers' Links page)
Pike are the species most likely to take spoons, but other fish will be caught as well. Spoons are available in sizes up to over 6" long. Silver and brass are the most frequently used colours but there are many other patterns.
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Lucky Strike Lizard spoons have built a big reputation for catching pike
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Kuusamo Professors are also great pike catchers
(Lucky Strike and Kuusamo spoons both available from Harris Angling, see
Links page)
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Prices range up to about �5, and there are many different manufacturers. The Kuusamo Professor, Abu Toby and Lucky Strike Lizard are three types that are proven fish catchers. You will often have to change the hooks on spoons so that is an additional cost. Spoons are very easy to make from copper sheet, or even old cutlery! The cost of home made spoons is very low, the hook(s) and splitrings are the only real expense.
Spinnerbaits
A V-shaped wire frame with a blade or blades on one arm and a single hook mounted in a lead head on the other. The weight of the lead head combined with the size and shape of the blade(s) dictate the running depth just like a spinner.
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Northland Reed Runner spinnerbaits, a typical small spinnerbait.
(Available from Harris Angling, see
Links page)
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Do not be put off by the strange appearance, they catch plenty of pike and occasional perch, zander, and chub. Fished with either a straight or "sink and draw" retrieve. The single hook means that it can be fished through light weed and snaggy swims, although the lead head will get caught between rocks. Sometimes the single hook is supplemented by a "stinger" hook, this is a single or treble hook attached to the existing hook with a piece of silicon tubing over the eye of the stinger to secure it. The stinger can make a big difference to the number of pike landed.
Prices for spinnerbaits vary from around �3 to way over our budget. You can make rough spinnerbaits, that will work, easily enough with leger weights or do a proper job by obtaining a mould. Skirt-making kits are available as well. You could buy all the spinnerbait making gear for about �80, with enough skirt material, wire and hooks to make a hundred or so. It is interesting to experiment with spinnerbait design, just about anything with a weighted hook on one arm, and a blade on the other, will catch pike. Many anglers attach a rubber grub to the hook for extra attraction.
Plugs
Plugs are wooden or plastic bodied lures. The vast range of plugs available is too complicated to describe without splitting it into further different categories:
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Topwaters: designed to work on the surface, of many different types, some with wings or propellors to cause more disturbance.
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Floater Divers: floating plug with either a diving lip or shaped face that dives and wobbles when it is retrieved.
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Countdowns: sinking plug that is counted down to the desired depth before the retrieve begins.
There are many other categories, subcategories and hybrids that would take pages to list and describe. These three broad groups cover the requirements
of this article.
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Mean Stickleback, a surface plug with a metal propellor at each end that churns the water
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Mean Popalot, a surface plug with a concave face, fished with short twitches that make distinctive "pops".
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Topwater plugs are used for pike and chub in the summer and autumn.
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Mean Hunter, a floater diver. The big diving lip gets this plug down to 12ft
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Floater divers are used all year round for all species, the depth that they work at is determined by the shape, size and angle of the diving lip, combined with the buoyancy of the plug and the trace attachment point. It is therefore difficult to predict a plug's diving performance, some will dive no more than 1ft below the surface, others are claimed to reach 30ft.
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Mean Shadalacs, shallow (top) and deep. Showing the different lip sizes, angles and trace attachment points used to achieve different diving performances.
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Shakespeare Temptress, the lip angle is adjustable to give a choice of working depths
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Countdown plugs are used less often than floater divers, they are more useful in the winter when weed has died.
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Shakespeare Kraken, a sinking plug.
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There are plugs for every occasion, in every colour and pattern imaginable, and in sizes from 1" up to over 12" long. They tend to be expensive, but there are reasonably priced, effective plugs to fill up your lure box. As with spoons, you will have to change the hooks and splitrings on some plugs, often they are either thick enough for shark or so weedy that they open up on the first pike they hook. If you happen to find some bargain plugs remember to check the hanger and trace attachment eyes, if you do not trust the strength of the fittings then do not buy the plug, believe me, it is very galling to leave a plug, half a plug or a treble in a pike.
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Shakespeare Big S, a small plug but a fine pike catcher.
(Mean and Shakespeare plugs available from Harris Angling, see
Links page)
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Have a look at the Shakespeare range of plugs, the Big S has a great pike- catching history, and is one of the few small plugs that regularly take good pike. Harris Angling also do the Mean range of economy-priced plugs.
It is important to have a range of plugs of different sizes and colours that have different working depths. It is tempting to use only the plugs with the most violent actions, but most times the quieter actions are more successful for pike. If you decide, at first, to stick to one water it is easier to make a selection for that water knowing the sort of depths you are going to fish.
You can also make your own plugs which cost very little, but do take up time that you might prefer to use fishing, or earning money to buy lures!
Shopping List And Approximate Prices
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Rod - �50
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Reel - �50
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Landing net - �40
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Line - �15
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Trace wire, swivels, clips - �15
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Baker Hook-Out - �6
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Spinners x 5 - �12
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Spoons x 5 - �18
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Spinnerbaits x 5 - �18
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Plugs x 10 - �40
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Replacement hooks and splitrings - �15
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Hook Sharpener - �5
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Cutters for big hooks - �10 upwards
Other stuff you will need, that you should either have already or can get very cheaply include: a container for your lures, polarising sunglasses, a peaked or brimmed hat, scissors for line, long-nosed pliers for trace making and removing larger hooks, splitring pliers (optional).
So starting from scratch you could get away with a lot less than �300 if you skimp on lures, and a lot less than that if you already have a rod, reel or net that you can use.
You might want to weigh and photograph your fish, most of us do, but it isn't compulsory! I have always been a little annoyed that the exact weight of a fish should be such an important part of the pleasure we gain from catching it. It is the way of the world, but a hard-battling "nineteen" is far more exciting to catch than a "twenty" that comes in like a wet sack, until it hits the weighsling and the heavier fish gets promoted.
Enjoy your lure fishing whatever the size of the fish you are catching.
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