Learning to use the "bent minnow"

[big Neil]

During my recent visit to Sydney DerekD taught me the correct way to fish the topwater lure we know as the Bent Minnow. They have a fantastic action when used properly and under Dereks guidance I soon had the lure working like a wounded bait fish. HOWEVER, there were no fish around, even though we targeted an ideal area and tidal condition.

It's particularly interesting for me to see and use these different types of lures...the experience always has some value in another type of fishing.

Thanks Derek, I will look forward to having another crack with it next time I come up to the big smoke.

Cheers, Neil

[Pickles]

You’ll have to give it a try on the MurrayCod Neil - no reason why it shouldn’t work. Happy new year mate - keep well (enjoying using the mug and pray for you every cuppa).

[Green Hornet]

The Bent Minnow is one lure I should, but don’t spend enough time using. Only a couple of days ago a friend sent me a pic of a very nice size flathead caught on a Crossfire version wading the flats.

[Hugh]

Love the bent minnow, just be careful when the Tailor get a taste for it, not a cheap lure - then it becomes a race to retrieve…..

[frankS]

What is this Bent lure ? can you post a photo of it please. I have hundreds if not thousands of lures and would like to know what we are talking about before I make comments.

Frank

[Mike Sydney]

35 minutes ago, frankS said:

What is this Bent lure ? can you post a photo of it please. I have hundreds if not thousands of lures and would like to know what we are talking about before I make comments.

Frank

This is it @frankS : http://www.fish-tecsolutions.com/BentMinnow76.html

 

 

[R E G I C Y C L E]

2 hours ago, Hugh said:

Love the bent minnow, just be careful when the Tailor get a taste for it, not a cheap lure - then it becomes a race to retrieve…..

Berkleys Pro Tech Bender is about 1/2 the price of the OSP and does the same job. Probably just need to upgrade the trebles.

[frankS]

1 hour ago, Mike Sydney said:

This is it @frankS : http://www.fish-tecsolutions.com/BentMinnow76.html

 

 

OK so it's just another bit of plastic formed to look a bit like a fish to attract a fisherman.

Fair dinkum all you need to do to catch a fish is walk along the bank of a river etc pick up any old bit of a twig tie it onto a hook and cast it in the water and jiggle it a bit OR rip a strip of material from your Tshirt and tie that on, does the same job.

these things are made to make someone rich and it's us fishermen/fisherwomen that keep the lure industry afloat.

You may well ask if this is the cast and if I am so smart , Why then do I have hundreds of lures well that's simple I am a fisherman!!.

Frank

[Mike Sydney]

Haha @frankS it’s all about the branding….old sticks and t shirt strips doesn’t sound quite as enticing as the new Twiggy 65 with a LoweZ T-strip trail….

(Personally I prefer the Acacia colour)

[big Neil]

8 hours ago, Pickles said:

You’ll have to give it a try on the MurrayCod Neil - no reason why it shouldn’t work. Happy new year mate - keep well (enjoying using the mug and pray for you every cuppa).

Happy New Year Bob. I have plenty of Murray Cod lures that work, when the fish are feeding, and they will see me through to the end of my fishing career, I'm sure.

Thanks for the couple of days fishing, very enjoyable.

Neil

[big Neil]

2 hours ago, frankS said:

OK so it's just another bit of plastic formed to look a bit like a fish to attract a fisherman.

Fair dinkum all you need to do to catch a fish is walk along the bank of a river etc pick up any old bit of a twig tie it onto a hook and cast it in the water and jiggle it a bit OR rip a strip of material from your Tshirt and tie that on, does the same job.

these things are made to make someone rich and it's us fishermen/fisherwomen that keep the lure industry afloat.

You may well ask if this is the cast and if I am so smart , Why then do I have hundreds of lures well that's simple I am a fisherman!!.

Frank

Hi Frank and New Year greetings to you and Val. Trust you are still getting out into the bay now and then to keep your Flathead stocks up. $60/kg why wouldn't you?

As you say lures catch fishermen but they catch fish too, but only if the fish are there and feeding. We all like to buy new things, makes us feel good. Fishing gear is often a lot cheaper than buying golf gear (for instance). There's always a price to be paid to support our hobbies / pastimes, but hobbies are an essential part of our well-being. Helps to keep us sane.

The river here is starting to drop a lot and could be fishable sooner than expected. Doesn't look like we are going to get the Summer rains which the BOM forecast.

Cheers, Neil

[Pickles]

27 minutes ago, big Neil said:

Happy New Year Bob. I have plenty of Murray Cod lures that work, when the fish are feeding, and they will see me through to the end of my fishing career, I'm sure.

Thanks for the couple of days fishing, very enjoyable.

Neil

Always a pleasure my friend - you’re always welcome here.

[R E G I C Y C L E]

6 hours ago, frankS said:

Fair dinkum all you need to do to catch a fish is walk along the bank of a river etc pick up any old bit of a twig tie it onto a hook and cast it in the water and jiggle it a bit OR rip a strip of material from your Tshirt and tie that on, does the same job.

Agreed. Put the twig/t-shirt in some fancy packaging and send it to a few youtubers to make uninformative videos about. You'd have so many idiots lining up to buy them you'd run out of twigs and t-shirts...

 

... and I'd be at the front of the line 😆

[DerekD]

On 1/1/2023 at 10:07 AM, R E G I C Y C L E said:

Berkleys Pro Tech Bender is about 1/2 the price of the OSP and does the same job. Probably just need to upgrade the trebles.

Hi @R E G I C Y C L E,

Firstly, happy new year and I hope 2023 is an awesome one for you. Secondly, I've been enjoying the posts that you have been putting up recently and I'm looking forward to seeing more of these.

Yes you are right about the Berkley Bender being half the price of the OSP but I find the trebles of the OSP just a little bit finer and sharper and really sticky (if you rub up against them they want to stick to you). I own both but my go to are the OSP versions.

I was introduced to the OSP version a year or two back by another Fishraider and both of us feel the hang time of the OSP is just that little bit better. I think upgrading the trebles on the Bender is an option but I think you want finer sharper hooks so that swipe by the fish is likely to result up a hook up - problem is that the finer hooks are likely to be lighter impacting on the buoyancy and thus hang time of the lure. When using the super sharp hooks as come standard with the OSP bent minnow the ensuing fight often results in a secondary hook up somewhere else on the fishes body.

I'm prepared to spend the $33 on the OSP version if it gets me more hook ups. I've only lost 2 to tailor and essentially it was clip failure (which I do suggest upgrading). Half a clip came back on one of those occasions with the line still attached.

Just my thoughts.

Derek

PS. If you can get down to the inner west of Sydney in the coming months happy to take you out fishing topwater with these lures and other similar ones. Last few days I've caught several tailor, a legal whiting and a small bream. Prior to this the topwater action has been pretty quiet. We can also look into the Bender vs OSP question.

Edited January 3, 2023 by DerekD

[DerekD]

On 1/1/2023 at 11:28 AM, frankS said:

OK so it's just another bit of plastic formed to look a bit like a fish to attract a fisherman.

Fair dinkum all you need to do to catch a fish is walk along the bank of a river etc pick up any old bit of a twig tie it onto a hook and cast it in the water and jiggle it a bit OR rip a strip of material from your Tshirt and tie that on, does the same job.

Hi @frankS

Firstly, happy new year. Secondly, I hope 2023 is a good year from you.

I don't think your claim is a fair one and specifically when it comes to bream fishing in Sydney and the surrounds. In the far north of Australia where everything has teeth and it is a fish eat fish world then your statement could be substantiated but down here I think you would struggle. Historically there have been some simple but extremely effective lures (Halco twisty, halco smith jig or even something like the feather lures come to mind) but they are not designed for a niche market.

For the bream competitions the bent minnow and the cranka crab have been game changers. A number of competitions have been won by people using the cranka crab and more and more teams are keeping them in the tackle box. The bent minnow allows you to work both topwater and get down a foot or two when you work out how to fish these. I can include lots of links regarding the cranka crab but don't have the time to find the specific ones I want at the moment. I will include include this nice little video on the OSP

I mentor several people each year in light lure fishing and in the last few years I've added a topwater component to the lessons. Fishraider @Niall got me more seriously into this in a season when the kingfish were just a lot of work to catch with this excellent article:

Once they understand there can be degrees of being subtle with these lures I've managed to convert several people to the use of bent minnows. In one session one of the people hooked up something big on a bent minnow which unfortunately pulled the hook during the fight. Not long after he hooked and landed a 33cm bream. Looking at the comparable bends in the rod I would have called that first fish as a bream (it fought like a bream and not a tailor or whiting) in the high 30s or low 40s. He then bought a few and took them up to the central coast where in one session he hooked about 10 bream and most being legal. Yes you can do as well or better with beach worms or yabbies but the challenge is not the same as with lure fishing.

Still not convinced. Happy to meet up with you for a session in Sydney. I'll bring the bent minnow and you can bring as many sticks and t-shirts as you want and the loser buys lunch. If it goes a draw or you win then I'm buying lunch and putting an additional part to this post.

Regards,

Derek

PS. Off for a fish now that the tide is coming up. Will be using the bent minnow and some other topwater lures.

PPS. Had a couple of hits and lost a bream in the mid 30s at my feet on the topwater.

PPPS. Think I found the video I was looking for. The gentleman in this video also fishes comps and from memory he stayed away from the Cranka initially as he thought they were a bit of a gimmick until he realised how effective they were from the results of other teams. Due to the money involved in bream comps they are usually way ahead of the curve when working out what does and doesn't work.

 

 

Edited January 4, 2023 by DerekD

[R E G I C Y C L E]

1 hour ago, DerekD said:

Hi @R E G I C Y C L E,

Firstly, happy new year and I hope 2023 is an awesome one for you. Secondly, I've been enjoying the posts that you have been putting up recently and I'm looking forward to seeing more of these.

Thanks Derek,

Appreciate that, and a happy new year to you.

To be honest, I do agree that the OSP is the better of the 2 lures and personally I'm happy to pay the price to get the quality, plus I've become somewhat numb to the steep price of hardbody lures 😄. I think though, that the Bender is a good option for someone coming from plastics or bait who can't justify the price of the OSP.

Would be keen to catch up sometime. I'll dm you when I'm heading your way next.

Cheers

Regan

[DerekD]

2 hours ago, R E G I C Y C L E said:

 I think though, that the Bender is a good option for someone coming from plastics or bait who can't justify the price of the OSP.

Hi again. From that perspective I'm in complete agreement. Also if I'm at risk of hooking a salmon or king (happens on some of the sandflats I fish) then I'd rather have it happen on the Bender as the hooks look stronger.