Mackeral A-40

[surfstix1963]

This is the last one I finished before I got sick again,feeling a little better now maybe after the rib gets better I can get going again.:HappyWave:

[DarkSkies]

Looks like the perfect Rhody/Mass swimmer. :thumbsup:

[surfstix1963]

Thanks I never used a mack pattern here so who knows actually I never fished green other than chartreuse could work ya never know.

[speedy]

This is the last one I finished before I got sick again,feeling a little better now maybe after the rib gets better I can get going again.:HappyWave:nice bro...
your wife is going to send you to the store for a hour and i am going to take all your plugs lol!!!!

[surfstix1963]

OK but then your just going to have to make more w/o hook hangers.

[speedy]

lmao

[surfstix1963]

You know me with my A-40's I just have a liking for them next batch are going to be the other A-40 not too many people know about them their were 2 versions I don't think the other ever hit the market I still don't have the exact particulars but I will toy around to see what I get.

[plugaholic]

A little background on the A-40, surfstix, very clean work!



1948 saw the introduction of the plastic Atom 40”, and the
phase out of the wooden Atom plugs. By ‘49 the wooden Striper Atoms
were no more. Bob had switched completely to plastic. The transition
to plastic was initially met with resistance from surfcasters and
shop owners who preferred a wooden plug and thought the plastic
models were inferior.
The Atom had started to become a style of plug rather than a
brand identification. Other manufacturers such as Masterlure and
Russo out of New York were also marketing swimming plugs as Atoms or
Atomic swimmers. Bob wanted to do something to set his Atom apart
from the rest. Competition from the numerous other companies made
Bob realize he had to produce a quality lure and cut his costs if he
was going to stay afloat. Plastic retained it’s color season after
season, never absorbed water, each plug was exactly the same and it
was much less expensive to produce. Once he made his decision, he
never looked back.
The new plastic lure received a new name, “the Forty”. Bob
claimed it was designed for bass over 40 inches. Word about some
notable catches on his new plug soon got out and even hard core
wooden plug fisherman took notice.
Pond made many variations of the 40 over the years including
the “51” which was a 40 painted in several colors, the “52” also
referred to as the skunk which had a white belly section and various
colored back sections and one of my favorites the “Stinky Atom”
which had a removable plug in the belly allowing the angler to fill
the plug with liquid scent that would slowly leech out as it was
fished. A “Reverse” model and a popper were also built based on the
“40”.

[Monty]

Nice looking plug, great that you are starting to feel better. Rip-Plugger gave me a little history lesson on the A-40 a while ago. My memory retention is at an all time low (tiny bits remain).
+ I actually typed my response before plug's info on the atom (thanks)+

[porgy75]

You guys really know a lot about the history of plugs, what an education. Thanks for helping some of the rest of us who don't know. I wondered if I could ask a stupid question. When you are fishing those big metal lips surfstix, I know you are supposed to fish them slow. Is there ever a time when you want to fish them fast? How about fast water vs calmness, what do you do differently? or should you really fish them in fast water at all, thanks for the help.

[surfstix1963]

Great lesson on the A-40 plugaholic The kits that I am doing are the Danny Pichney version of the Atom 40.Porgy most metal lips are not great in fast water especially the top water plugs I prefer them off the beach not in a heave they are useless grab a bottle darter or bottle plug in that case I also like them in the pockets of an inlet especially at night but they will work during the day IMO darters are better suited for fast currents the issue with a metal lip is when the current is too fast they tend to stop their so called wag or wobble and roll out the lip simply can't hold the current and the plug just floats out and loses it's action.If you crank them a little faster off the beach they will dive a little depends on the plug and sometimes the fish want that for the most part it is the slow retrieve with the V-wake thats deadly as always in fishing whoever built the plug designed it to do different things different lips different weighting and wood (stripercoast did a good tutorial on metal lips)(he also makes some beautiful mahogany needlefish) if you bend the nose loop up they will swim deeper and bend it down to get it up higher I don't mess with the lips they are built to do a certain thing.They all should be tuned or adjusted because every piece of wood is different in density so they will all swim differently out of the box.Speedy or the(lipmaster) is knowedgeable about lips also especially lefty lips lmao Oh BTW the only stupid question is the one you don't ask.Rip plugger is the man you want to ask about metal lips in current thats his specialty he builds his plugs for that type of fishing.

[basshunter]

Very informative, it seems you have experience fishing different areas surfstix, thanks for the info.

[surfstix1963]

I've been around the block a few times I am no where near as serious as I used to be I just want to get back out there one thing for sure nobody knows everything and you can learn something new everytime you go out there.Things constantly change the fish need to adjust to these changes and so do you.I enjoy doing the plugs and BS'ing with Speedy trying different things and making the plugs do different things I never really put much thought into the hows and whys of plugs just learned how to fish them and used them it can be quite involved designing and building.

[speedy]

i've been around the block a few times( old ) i am no where near as serious as i used to be (very old)

aka... Mr...c.o.b... Lmao

[surfstix1963]

Yeah I got you young guys following me around to see where I :fishing::2flip::HappyWave:Old man you little whippersnapper:d Why I'll beat ya with my walking stick.At least you got Mr. COB right
[QUOTE=surfstix1963;51679]I've been around the block a few times( OLD ) I am no where near as serious as I used to be (VERY OLD)

AKA... MR...C.O.B... LMAO

[surfstix1963]

If you have questions regarding certain plugs and their uses just ask there are so many good fisherman on here that have knowledge in the older plugs and I'm sure they wouldn't mind sharing their thoughts and info.
You guys really know a lot about the history of plugs, what an education. Thanks for helping some of the rest of us who don't know. I wondered if I could ask a stupid question. When you are fishing those big metal lips surfstix, I know you are supposed to fish them slow. Is there ever a time when you want to fish them fast? How about fast water vs calmness, what do you do differently? or should you really fish them in fast water at all, thanks for the help.

[speedy]

if you have questions regarding certain plugs and their uses just ask there are so many good fisherman on here that have knowledge in the older plugs and i'm sure they wouldn't mind sharing their thoughts and info.
where do ya fish corncobs lmao

[DarkSkies]

^^How many guesses do I get, I think I know this one!!! :rolleyes:

- from the sedge banks?
- from the corn fields?
- from the mud flats where the CRABS are? :wheeeee:
- from the grouchyold waters that are old and wrinked? :laugh:

[strikezone31]

Nice work, are you selling them?

[speedy]

Nice work, are you selling them?
corncob sure lol

[surfstix1963]

I don't want to spot burn so lets just say the south shore of Long Island NY is where I fish from RM to Mtk.

[Rip-Plugger]

You guys really know a lot about the history of plugs, what an education. Thanks for helping some of the rest of us who don't know. I wondered if I could ask a stupid question. When you are fishing those big metal lips surfstix, I know you are supposed to fish them slow. Is there ever a time when you want to fish them fast? How about fast water vs calmness, what do you do differently? or should you really fish them in fast water at all, thanks for the help.

Hi Porgy75,

in calm water a swimmer is a good choice because it moves water,makes a wake and also noise.
I fish mostly rivers and there is lots of current during the moon and new moon.
the lures I make are suited to this and will perform in both situations,,mind you some I bulid don't do some things well.I have some that are great on top but,suck at subsurface.
then there are some that do both great and they can be used in either environment.
weighting is important too as half of what i have made so far don't have any weight at all then some do have weight.I simply use a 1/4 oz splitshot as weight and it has worked out great.
in some of the cases of my very large plugs[12 inchers] I have added 2 weights,one more near the front and one more towards the tail with both kinda in the center section of the plug if you divide it into 3 sections,the center section will have the weight roughly 3-4 inches apart so it gets a 50/50 amount of weight for the front and the back.

I don't pretend to be a professional at making lures but,my way has worked out very well for me and the guys that fish my lures.
so,I am doing it the way I like and coming up with some very original designs.
see?


R-P1545115452

[buckethead]

If you would have fished that plug today it would have ended up as a bloody toothpic surfstix. Nice work surfstix and ripplugger

[madcaster]

very nice ...I love the Mackeral pattern