Custom Wooden Plugs Review and What's New

[plugaholic]

I want to learn as much as I can about these awesome wooden plugs made by dedicated surf guys. My knowledge is limited. I would appreciate anyone who has experience using these custom plugs to put up their reviews, if you can. thanks.

[mick2360]

I've developed an interest in After Hours plugs. A bit pricey @ around $24 or so a plug but his swimmer's are catchers. No to say they are better than others, they may or may not be but they are well made and they catch. What else is there?

Also, gotta put in a plug for SuperStrike darters. Yellow is a killer. Just two of the maker's I use. I try to stay with a maker I know from past experience. I'm no one's experts, so take it with a grain of salt.

[Rip-Plugger]

I have been slinging wood since 1978,it started with
L.Coopers Goo-Goo eyes swimmers,gibbs dannys,casting swimmers and their trolling plug,atom jr's.

I,we[the fishing crew I was part of then,mostly neighborhood kids] did amazingly well with them and there were some one offs that floated in with the tide.

that was in my youth,now,there are many makers out there.
some make a very purrdy plug,some make a standard plug and still some make an artful plug thats well built that catches fishermen.

I watched,saw,looked and wondered why almost all guys basically said ya had to have a certain plug to catch or this plug is better than this guys.

I knew different and was amazed at these ideas being tossed around AND the new guys are eating it up!

I have some beautiful swimmers[not mine] that make ya want to eat them yourself BUT,the fish don't like them.they only catch once in a while.

I wanted a plug that was diff,not run of the mill but never could find one I realy liked.

I decided to try making my own,I didn't have a lathe or anything but,knowing myself and my sharp eye along with a hand thats as still as a deadmans hand I knew I could do it.

So,I tried it with 4 plugs,it went very well and once they were done,it was pedal to the floor,doing my own thing.
after a short while,a friend asked to buy one,I sold it to him.
the next time I saw him[about 3 weeks later],he gave it back and said "I love ths plug,make me a few",,I did and when he runs out,he'll be back.

for another fishermans stories,just ask Monty,he will share the truth with all of us about is major transformation and also share his stories of the big plug builders success he had with their wood.

I have created my own designs,blended others styles and have had great catching,it's really not hard at all,I would love to see you guys doing it yourself as well,my tech is unorthodox but it works well for me and if it works,don't fix it!

Now for those of you that don't know,I don't use a lathe,I use a standing beltsander.
recently I shaped 5 blanks with a handheld air-powered sander with an 80 grit disc!

I take a 2X2 piece of wood,knock off the 4 corners with a bandsaw then use the air sander to taper the tail and shape the rest of the body,I just get the basic shape I want then hand sand it with 80,120,180 grit DA-paper,even
I was amazed at how nice the blanks came out,the dimensions are 95% perfect!
I will have shots when they are done.

pretty plugs catch people before they catch a fish!
top price ain't the top performer!


R-P

[Monty]

There are a lot of plugs out there that look incredible, the paint jobs are a work of art.
But what catches fish is a plug with good action and a surfcaster that provides a great presentation in an area with fish.
I fished metal lips made by the popular plug builders that cost 20-30 per plug with virtually no fish caught. As a mater of fact the hooks on a few of them would grt wrapped on the leader at time. I had no confidence in them.

I started using Double H Lures (Rip-Pluggers) and first time out with them I found an area that looked fishy, made the cast and landed a Striper.
Confidence, no foul hook-ups. I fished his plugs the rest of the year, had my best year by a long shot, caught fish way more often than not. My level in confidence went way up and improved all areas of my fishing as I spent more time in areas that had fish around, paid more attention to presentation, learned a lot about fishing different conditions with different plugs, metals and teasers.
Success builds confidence, confidence leads to success. It snow balls.
Its not how pretty or expensive a plug looks, its the confidence you have in your approach to catching fish.
Spending $20-$40 for a plug does nothing to enhance the chances of catching fish, there are many plugs that can be purchased for $10-$15, or bucktails/shads/metals/teasers for $5 that will out fish the expensive "custom" plugs.
Just my opinion, based on my experience.

[Rip-Plugger]

Hello all,

first,I want to say,My friend Monty mentioned his success with my work,it is in no way an advertisement for ANYONE to buy my lures!
he is only relaying the point that plugs outside of the ordinary styles we all see out there work very well.
some are afraid to try making something diff or just don't see outside the box what have you.
you all see the pix of my work,it's not what you'd see anywhere else.

I am not trying to sell anything to anyone here or anywhere else.I AM showing all here what something diff looks like,newer fresher designs and such.
Heck,I'd much rather see you guys here make your own and then we can trade from each other.

do I sell any?,,yes I do but mostly to local guys I know and to Monty.
I can count the guys I sell to on 1 hand.

my being a plug maker,I have never made money on a single one,it does pay for the items needed to create the plug but,I don't make 10 bucks on a plug,I really do it because I like making things diff from all those others out there.
I sell one for 15 bucks and hand it over to my friend that owns a B&T for a box of VMC's or a gross of split rings a spool of line or some ball bearing barrels.

SO,you and I know the game,we want to be players in it so,why complain,just go do it!

Have FUN!


NOW,about capt bills wood.
many of you may have heard all this chinese bashing because of chinese companies building plugs for cheap and trying to sell them here in the USA,some say it's stealin',some say they are junk and still some say it ain't right.
the fact is that anyone can and should be able to make a plug,money is the actual root of all this bashing and it really needs to stop.
I don't beleve any plug builder makes any money at all,in fact they probably lose money,not on the actual parts of the lure but their time,which is more valuable than money.

I tried the capt bills pro series last fall[atom's the year before] and did ok with it,lots of choppers and some bass,it didn't split,crack or suck up water,it worked well and performed as any plug should.nice waggle with no complaints from me at all.

I would recommend them to anyone that wants a plug thats low cost and if lost,just go buy 2 more,@ 9 bucks each who cares if it glances off bridge abutments or rocks,just shut up and fish!

Cheers
R-P

[Monty]

R-P,
Just off the top of my head I have Tusamis, Hahns, Domssons, Super Strike, Capt. Bills, Bombers, Tony Spinas amongst others whos plugs catch fish.
All of these cost no more that $15 (most of those for around 10).
I was caught up in that phase paying 20-30 bucks per plug.....at one time.
Some day will make my own.
And for those who want the plugs that cost 2x these, I think thats fine(not that it matters what I think), but the point I was trying to make is the confidence in the plug improves the aproach in locating fish and the presentation. When you believe you will catch fish, the odds are much better you will.
Example, Out of 100 casts with an RM Smith I catch nothing, out of 100 casts with your rip splitter I catch 2 fish. What do I have cofidence in, what do I fish better with. I just do not have a feel for an RM Smith, others probably clobber fish with them.
Others fish Bucktails ALL the time and catch 10x the fish I do.

[jimmy z]

The bass doesn't care if the plug cost 35.00 bucks. At least I don't think they do.

[DarkSkies]

^ Great point Jimmy, the bass don't care, Ha, I remember that Charlie Tuna commercial from the 70's - Starkist doesn't want tuna with good taste, it wants tuna that taste good!

Bass respond to something that swims like something they are eating, matching the hatch, or similar. A plug that swims right, or one that you are able to give it good action to mimic tha bait profile, is one that's gonna catch fish, whether it's wood or cheap plastic.

[7deadlyplugs]

Pretty plugs catch fishermen, not the fish. But I sure do like looking at them.

[Monty]

Heres a few plugs that cost between $8 and $14, The Super Strike was the highest priced plug of this group.

[DarkSkies]

Ace Baits

Last but not least, one of the best quality plug makers out there. He uses a special finish for his plugs, hardened epoxy makes them almost bullet proof.

The owner, Phil, is a great guy, I've met him a few times. He loves to talk about his factory and the process they have perfected over the years. They are well-known in Europe and Canada for trophy musky and pike fishing.

One reservation some guys have about buying them is they're not through wired. However, muskie fishermen swear by them and their toughness. Their plugs and the special finish will stand up to those toothy critters, so why not trophy bass and bluefish?

Phil couldn't make it this year, MRBigfish is running the booth for him. MBF is a behind the scenes fisherman, doesn't like to brag, but this kid knows fish, and muskies. Ask him how these plugs hold up, and you won't need further convincing.

I managed to avoid spending $$, because I don't have too much right now. My budget was $20, I got one thing at the RBAC show, and a pink spook here to replace one I lost to a big bass on the rocks.

Crazy Alberto is a good customer of his too, and cleaned Phil out of certain plugs at a show last year. I will personally attest that the Ace baits spook is my goto plug. I have caught more fish on that thing in warmer water. I almost wish I was rich enough to buy them all from Phil so no one else could, I love those spooks.

The famous spook, only $15:

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[DarkSkies]

Here ya go!



jointed swimmers

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[DarkSkies]

Bunker!
These are my other go to plugs from Ace baits, fish get angry when you swim these, best for warm water, mid spring.

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[DarkSkies]

Had a chance to meet Ed G from Mt Holly. SeaHunt custom plugs. This guy really knows his stuff, he's got a wide selection from surface swimmers to plugs that will dive 8-9' perfect for deep current. Had a decent conversation about how fishermen are "lured" by a nice paint job when it's the action that matters most of all. I fish yellow, white, black, unless I'm fishin under the lights somewhere it doesn't matter. The action of the plug determines the hits. We're all sucked in by nice paint, though.

It was also cool hearing his perspective on different guys having unique building styles. We agreed every builder wants his plug to resemble a baitfish as closely as possible, so there are bound to be imitations and similarities, going all the way back to the mid 1900's. The man knows his plug styles, I was honored to meet him and get an education on the history of plug building.


Ed builds to put his plugs in the hands of fishermen to catch fish, not to sit the plugs on a shelf. It was great meetin ya, Ed, hope to fish some of your stuff in the future.

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[DarkSkies]

SeaHunt plugs. Just want to talk about this one last plug for a bit, the one with the scale pattern.

Ed makes it on the lathe, but it's offset, so he has to finish it by hand. I work with my hands for a living, so I appreciate seeng the talent that guys have to create custom wood. Nice work, man.

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[DarkSkies]

Met a new plug builder today. His name is Russ, he's out of Piscataway. Somehow I always screw up the plugbuilder shots because I'm in too much of a hurry.

A little background on Russ: He's only been doing this awhile, but he learned from one of the best in the business! He told me Tony Spina took him under his wing, and taught him a lot of what he knows.

Every show I go to, I meet more and more people who know or have a debt of gratitude to Tony Spina. One of these days I'm gonna run into Tony himself!

In the meantime, I don't know anything about Lures4you, how they swim, or if they catch fish.

But I did see a bunch of nice pics Russ had and was proudly displaying, of all the fish that were caught on his plugs. He says they go over great down South, where they are used offshore for more aggressive fish, and they are just starting to catch on here in the Northeast.

They look like decent plugs, some come dressed with bucktail, and he's selling them for a decent price, around $16, which seems very reasonable for a custom plug.

He won't be at the Asbury show, and doesn't have a website yet. But he will be at some more area shows. If you wanna find out more about his plugs, how they swim, if they can take a beating on the rocks, just ask him.

He seems like a pretty personable guy, and I got the sense that he takes great pride in his work.

Some pics:

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fish caught on his plugs
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[DarkSkies]

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Met Armand and his son Marcel from RIP, Rhode Island poppers. Sometimes at the hyped up shows, it's difficult to talk to the plugmakers. I like the shows like JSS put on because you get a chance to talk to the guy when he's not rushed, and can have some decent conversations.

Rhode Island poppers has been in business since 1998, and have slowly grown to be one of the better regarded builders out there. Armand stands by his reputation and is proud of his work.

Beyond that, he told me the pride he feels when someone comes up to him and tells him a story how they nailed a nice fish on his plug.

It doesn't have to be a record. He related a story about how last year he and his son were fishing in the back of the bay, and they had 32-34" bass on almost every cast. Father and son fishing, these are the experiences that bring lifetime memories.

It was nice meetin you and your son again, Armand, and thanks for being so helpful about the Rhode Island info. I'm dyin to fish that place.

[DarkSkies]

Met Greg Myhre, owner of Loki Lures.



Some nice bunker and mullet profile swimmers

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He won't be at the Asbury show this year, so you should look for him at the one or 2 more shows he may be at if you want one of his plugs. Guy has an amazing talent with the airbrush.

[DarkSkies]

Loki



some poppers
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show recession specials, only $12!
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He was written up in the Asbury Park Press, Hook Line and Sinker column, I think Sept 28, 2008?
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[DarkSkies]

Big Ed! Another guy who's been doing it for a number of years, he'll be at Asbury. Good meetin you guys again.

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