Stinger Hooks

[Little_Flatty]

Fishing has been really slow for me of late, so I've been getting creative rigging up lures. Amongst other things, I got my hands on a couple of cool @wazatherfisherman lures which I was at a loss how to present. Also, I have been struggling with failing to connect with fish that hit my lures as the weather has gotten colder.

I had an epiphany when I realised I could measure out light wire much more accurately than I could fluro/mono, then realised I could position hooks using lure springs and the rest was history. Importantly, I also got some inspiration from the rigging of the Mylurebox Soft Glides, for which there were some really good videos put up going into minute detail on how the rigging kits are prepared, including the products used.

So a pair of crimping pliers was procured, along with some wire and crimps and I got rigging.

The first of these was Waza's garfish. Too narrow to rig with a jighead, too long to rig without stingers, there was a period when neither of us what to do with them. But we knew they would catch fish! So this was what I came up with:

Swam tested it on the weekend and it was good. It 'glides' over the flats nicely when unweighted. I think I won't have to work too hard in summer to find a flatty that will want it. I can cast it with quite light gear as well, so that is a bonus.

Next up was a 7 inch Bait Junkie Jerk Shad. Haven't swum tested it yet, but it seems to be free enough with the wire.

Next, I have a Storm Joker Shad that I pulled out of a big box of disused lures. These will be my next victims after I lost my last Diezel Minnows:

Finally, Waza thought that his 'Kingie Bringies' which @Larkin used to good effect could also work on larger flathead on the flats. This thing is the best part of nine inches long! So now I present you all with the 'Flathead Stingie', rigged with two size 2 trebles. I need to swim test it to see if it could take another treble in the tail:

Amazingly, I needed to get a new rod to be able to cast this thing! It's 40-something grams unweighted!

So, now I have all these rigged up, guess what my next session is going to be targeting...

...yep, I'm going to target bream!🤣

So these babies are going to need to wait 😎

[Larkin]

Hey Mike, I wouldn’t put a treble in the tail - you’d loose the wonderful action it has. Besides most fish will hit up the front. Maybe add in an eye to encourage this - been thinking abalone shell would look great.

[Yowie]

Good bit of experimentation there Mike.

 

[XD351]

Hey Mike , are you still locked away at home ? I think madness has finally set in 🤣🤣🤣 -JK!

Have you tried an assist hook for this ? I was thinking that the tiny assist hook and Dacron would affect the lure balance a bit less- might be worth a try if you find they swim funny. What’s the bet that tailor will still nip the tails off just behind the rear hook? - they have an annoying ability to miss the hook every time 🤣🤣

At least there is one angler we know of that is thinking outside the square ! Great work mate !

[Little_Flatty]

11 hours ago, Larkin said:

Hey Mike, I wouldn’t put a treble in the tail - you’d loose the wonderful action it has. Besides most fish will hit up the front. Maybe add in an eye to encourage this - been thinking abalone shell would look great.

Thanks for the suggestion Chris. I have had the same observation with my lure fishing as well; fish often go for the head of a lure. I will look for some eyes!

2 hours ago, XD351 said:

Hey Mike , are you still locked away at home ? I think madness has finally set in 🤣🤣🤣 -JK!

Have you tried an assist hook for this ? I was thinking that the tiny assist hook and Dacron would affect the lure balance a bit less- might be worth a try if you find they swim funny. What’s the bet that tailor will still nip the tails off just behind the rear hook? - they have an annoying ability to miss the hook every time 🤣🤣

At least there is one angler we know of that is thinking outside the square ! Great work mate !

Nah, I've fully recovered from the flu now. It's just that the fishing is very slow! Given time constraints and other commitments, I don't have very much choice of spots to fish. If I did, I'd head down river.

I did think about assist hooks, but the 15lb wire is surprisingly supple and along with the split rings and swivels, allows enough movement of the lure. The main reason I like the wire is that I can manage the length of the wire with crimps much more accurately than material that I would need to knot.

 

[Green Hornet]

Always good to experiment Mike, but keep an eye on those trebles. If they drag through the sand or silt, they’ll go blunt quite quickly.

In my experience using large plastics for big flatties, they really inhale them and a stinger isn’t necessary. I have more trouble getting the hooks out of big fish than in.

Edited June 13, 2023 by Green Hornet

[Rebel]

Go beach fishing.

It is a lot more fun & you can use metal lures. 

Don't forget the Scent.

Cheers

[Little_Flatty]

11 hours ago, Green Hornet said:

Always good to experiment Mike, but keep an eye on those trebles. If they drag through the sand or silt, they’ll go blunt quite quickly.

In my experience using large plastics for big flatties, they really inhale them and a stinger isn’t necessary. I have more trouble getting the hooks out of big fish than in.

Thanks Pete, good to know. I'm obsessive about my hook sharpness anyway, so I will keep an eye on them and touch them up if they fail the fingernail test.

10 hours ago, Rebel said:

Go beach fishing.

It is a lot more fun & you can use metal lures. 

Don't forget the Scent.

Cheers

Yes I love my beach fishing too. Alas, it's so far away for me! Funny, I've never done the lure casting thing on the beach. If I have a kid-free weekend sometime this winter, I'll give it a try.