Surprised by metal lures

[Gengar]

Firstly hats off to @DerekD for showing me the world of soft plastics and how they work together with sharing his tips and experience! In recent weeks I have applied that together and have caught less fish (in terms of number of fish) compared to bait but the ones I catch are considerably larger!

Actually i want to talk about metal lures. The reason is last couple of times my son came fishing he started using this metal lure (slim shiny profile about 10g which i bought off the net) he found in my kit that i had never used before and started flicking that around while i used plastics. By the end of that day he caught a bonito and a couple of taylors while I kept on getting my plastic's tails bitten off!! Last weekend we caught a trevally on a different metal lure!

Obviously this got me interested in metal lures but I am surprised there isn't much discussion on the forum (did a quick search for metal lures). I work it much like a soft plastics (eg jig it, flick and reel, fast reel, etc). Curious on other's experience with metal landbased such as what types work and how you work them. So much to learn!

[frankS]

Mate. Don't know how long you have been into fishing.
But let me tell you. 65 years ago I used cheese and bread as my main bait, 50 years ago I used metals of various types zinc being most popular, along with all sorts of meat baits, prawns, fish fillets etc., 40 years ago my fishing involved a lot of throwing wood lures around and later came plastic lures, then about 30 odd years ago people were telling me that this new plastics fad is the way to go, hell I had been using them already for the past 20 odd years on and off, then about 10 years ago some bright spark said you can't catch squid unless you buy all this new you beaut egi gear !! Egi gear  ? you mean light rods and tiny reels ??? well let me tell you I had them also 60 years ago.
My point is although things change and gear gets more sophisticated . Nothing really changes.
Metal lures have been around since Noah was a lad. The islanders used bone.
So yeah, grab yourself some metals of various sizes and styles and go and have some fun.

Frank

[Rob81]

Depends on the type of metal. You have ones for jigging and ones for just casting and straight retrieve. For the species you mentioned, they work well, but at the same time, those species tend to be seasonal.

Species I commonly get with metals: Tailors, Bonito, Watsons Leaping Bonito, Sergeant Bakers. Kingfish you get, but for me, personally I dont get commonly. So in saying that you can get kingfish with them.

One time, I somehow got a octopus as well, got me on the drop after casting, I thought I snagged on some floating weed.

Edited February 24, 2021 by Rob81

[Rebel]

Metals are great for beach fishing. Catch just about anything with them.

[kingie chaser]

1 hour ago, Gengar said:

Obviously this got me interested in metal lures but I am surprised there isn't much discussion on the forum (did a quick search for metal lures)

Huh 🤨

 

This is what I found in one quick search

 

[blaxland]

Hello I almost always have a halco twisty rigged and ready anything from 5gm to 40gm. If im sight casting a bust up some times I let it sink through they do get taken on the drop, sometimes big taylor swallow them whole and bite you off. If Im blind casting I fast retrieve. The best time is when you can see two or more fish competing for the lure barely breaking the surface. Its a split second thing but thrilling. 

[campr]

I've been using and loving high speed metals for over 50 years.  Great fun on small tunas, salmon etc.  Twisties probably my favourite small slice but caught countless kings and the odd logtail spinning from the stones with the old seascape reels and WK arrows.

Another great thing about them is their easy and fun to make yourself.   Cut hex rod, bars of different shapes,  handles cut from knives and spoons painted lead slugs etc nearly anything long and thin comes alive when cranked fast enough.  Good luck. Ron 

[SquibblyDibbly]

Hard to beat fishing with metals off the beach or rocks and on the days the fish aren't there and you catch nothing you don't go home stinking like bait. The mrs likes that the most.

They are cost effective as well if you are able to fish without loosing them.

Throw a few metal vibes in the tackle box and give them a go as well, its amazing what will bite on them.

[Oz98]

Is it worth using a metal lure in a harbour?

[Gengar]

5 hours ago, kingie chaser said:

Huh 🤨

 

This is what I found in one quick search

 

Sorry mate I forgot to limit my search to title only so got a lot of irrelevant results

[Gengar]

5 hours ago, blaxland said:

Hello I almost always have a halco twisty rigged and ready anything from 5gm to 40gm. If im sight casting a bust up some times I let it sink through they do get taken on the drop, sometimes big taylor swallow them whole and bite you off. If Im blind casting I fast retrieve. The best time is when you can see two or more fish competing for the lure barely breaking the surface. Its a split second thing but thrilling. 

I can't agree more! The thrill of casting into a bust up is exhilarating but I am surprised we got fish spinning metal even when there was no bust up. Also when u get a hit u u r likely to still get a hookup as the hooks r right at the end.

[Gengar]

2 hours ago, SquibblyDibbly said:

Hard to beat fishing with metals off the beach or rocks and on the days the fish aren't there and you catch nothing you don't go home stinking like bait. The mrs likes that the most.

They are cost effective as well if you are able to fish without loosing them.

Throw a few metal vibes in the tackle box and give them a go as well, its amazing what will bite on them.

Hey mate! Good to hear from you and thanks for sharing your experience. I also got myself a few vibes but not sure how they work yet. I might pm to learn more about spinning these metals!

[Gengar]

41 minutes ago, Oz98 said:

Is it worth using a metal lure in a harbour?

From my limited experience I think it's definitely worth it! Good luck!

[wazatherfisherman]

Hi Gengar when I was still in high school (45 years ago) a group of us used to fish all around the zoo to Balmoral area, often spinning metals for the whole day.

We used to mainly catch Tailor and Bonito and the "prize" Frigate Mackerel. Every so often someone would get a Kingfish, but most of the time these were lost as we all fished 6-10lb mono (mainly 6lb) and even less frequently a Mack Tuna, Salmon were probably the rarest capture (unlike these days) of all.

For the most part, we learned that you just couldn't wind too fast (reels were only around 4.5-1 retrieve speed) as so often a fish (or a few fish) would race in and eyeball the lure before either taking it or often veering off. Speed was key! Not saying winding slower won't catch you fish, but going flat out induced heaps more interest when using metals.

Best lure for that area was (by far) a Jensen Pirk in white in 7gm size- caught whatever fish were there. Other top producers were Jensen Pirken in chrome, Stingsilda in blue/chrome, ABU Krill in chrome- all 7gm size. Next best were Halco Twisty's in either silver or gold and Arrow's by WK. Halco Sparkler was also good but had a tendency to cause line twist more often.

Most of the time the fish in the Harbour were feeding on bait under 5cm long- Whitebait, Anchovy or Tiny Pilchards, so the 7-10gm size lures induced the most strikes.

If the prey was slightly larger it was usually Pilchards, Tiny Mackerel and now and again Garfish. Larger lures that worked well were Jensen Tobis, ABU Toby (great Tailor lure) Arrows, Wonder Pilchard and Wonder Wobbler. Not forgetting Twisty's and plain metal slices. Off the ocean front the old "half by quarter" lures and Arrows probably accounted for more fish than any other lures. Lead fish-shaped lures were also OK, but the above mentioned the best.

Most of the above lures have been obsolete for ages, but if you google them you'll get an idea of the shapes, colours and profiles.

Of today's lures, there are plenty of high quality small bait fish profiles such as Sea Rock that fit the bill.

[wazatherfisherman]

Just to add- when trying to match the dominant bait that is around, it's also a wise idea to take any silver trebles off your lures and replace them with bronze trebles. Reason for this is that at speed, the silver hooks add to the "length" of the lure profile.

For example: if you see bait fish in the area that are 4cm long and have some near identical 4cm long lures, the hook trailing adds to the lure some 1+cm in length. This might not seem to much different to you and I, but to fish that are "zoned in" on a particular sized prey, it often means the difference between a fish a cast or a fish every 20 casts. 

In the case of both Mack Tuna and even more so Frigate Mackerel, exact matching the prey is paramount.

Old hands that spin the rocks will also attest to changing over to bronze trebles for better hook-sets, as the fish are going for the lure rather than the "tail?" - being the moving silver hook.

Also want to mention that for Frigates in particular, a white painted barrel sinker slid on the line and a bronze treble tied on is also a top producer. Rough the sinker up, undercoat and then use oil-based white enamel- cheap and very effective lure for all the smaller Tuna's. No good for Tailor though as they'll often bite the treble off, losing the sinker in the process.

[PaddyT]

Sportfishing in this country started on the back of metal lures, Seascape reels and Butterworth rod blanks. I have spent an astonishing amount of my life hoiking lumps of metal to the horizon in pursuit of pelagics. The crunch on a rapidly retreived lure is something that never grows old. As Waza said its a worthy task. Ive caught everything from bonnies, tailor , salmon , spanish ,spotty, doggy macks, various trevally , samson, amberjack, kings ,every variety of tuna (except for a southern bluefin), dolphin fish even jewfish, flatties and bream on a rapidly retrieved metal. The key is match the hatch and know the lure and your target. Speed is often king especially with the tuna's,macks  and bonnies, other fish like kings, prefer a lure with a little "side to side" (eg a Raider). If chrome doesnt work try white (secret metal killer of macks and kings)-bonnies are suckers for 10 fast cranks and then a pause. A really good trick is for your first cast at a new spot throw out your lure with NO hook and count it down to the bottom- you will never get snagged after that. In my boat there is ALWAYS a rod with a a high speed reel and a metal sitting in a holder on board (because you never know what will pop up). Crank fast , go hard!

[PaddyT]

4 minutes ago, wazatherfisherman said:

Just to add- when trying to match the dominant bait that is around, it's also a wise idea to take any silver trebles off your lures and replace them with bronze trebles. Reason for this is that at speed, the silver hooks add to the "length" of the lure profile.

For example: if you see bait fish in the area that are 4cm long and have some near identical 4cm long lures, the hook trailing adds to the lure some 1+cm in length. This might not seem to much different to you and I, but to fish that are "zoned in" on a particular sized prey, it often means the difference between a fish a cast or a fish every 20 casts. 

In the case of both Mack Tuna and even more so Frigate Mackerel, exact matching the prey is paramount.

Old hands that spin the rocks will also attest to changing over to bronze trebles for better hook-sets, as the fish are going for the lure rather than the "tail?" - being the moving silver hook.

Also want to mention that for Frigates in particular, a white painted barrel sinker slid on the line and a bronze treble tied on is also a top producer. Rough the sinker up, undercoat and then use oil-based white enamel- cheap and very effective lure for all the smaller Tuna's. No good for Tailor though as they'll often bite the treble off, losing the sinker in the process.

Spot on-except the ultimate secret frigate lure at Terrigal Haven was a gold barrell sinker-the locals used to bust them off rather than let anyone see what they were using.

[Gengar]

37 minutes ago, wazatherfisherman said:

Just to add- when trying to match the dominant bait that is around, it's also a wise idea to take any silver trebles off your lures and replace them with bronze trebles. Reason for this is that at speed, the silver hooks add to the "length" of the lure profile.

For example: if you see bait fish in the area that are 4cm long and have some near identical 4cm long lures, the hook trailing adds to the lure some 1+cm in length. This might not seem to much different to you and I, but to fish that are "zoned in" on a particular sized prey, it often means the difference between a fish a cast or a fish every 20 casts. 

In the case of both Mack Tuna and even more so Frigate Mackerel, exact matching the prey is paramount.

Old hands that spin the rocks will also attest to changing over to bronze trebles for better hook-sets, as the fish are going for the lure rather than the "tail?" - being the moving silver hook.

Also want to mention that for Frigates in particular, a white painted barrel sinker slid on the line and a bronze treble tied on is also a top producer. Rough the sinker up, undercoat and then use oil-based white enamel- cheap and very effective lure for all the smaller Tuna's. No good for Tailor though as they'll often bite the treble off, losing the sinker in the process.

Mate I appreciate the detailed response. I am still overwhelmed overwhelmed bit by the various different shapes, colours and size available in a tackle shop but matching the hatch allows me to hone in to what I want which is what u are using ie 7 to 10g in white or silver. I lost my metal lures last week so need to get a couple this week! Thinking of the samaki torpedo

https://www.ottostackleworld.com.au/samaki-torpedo-v2-spinner

[wazatherfisherman]

3 minutes ago, Gengar said:

Mate I appreciate the detailed response. I am still overwhelmed overwhelmed bit by the various different shapes, colours and size available in a tackle shop but matching the hatch allows me to hone in to what I want which is what u are using ie 7 to 10g in white or silver. I lost my metal lures last week so need to get a couple this week! Thinking of the samaki torpedo

https://www.ottostackleworld.com.au/samaki-torpedo-v2-spinner

They look good- don't forget to get some dark trebles- black or bronze. The bronze rust easily, but worth the effort for reasons above.

Just wash them in warm water when you get home. Colouring in the trebles with a permanent marker helps against electrolysis and aids in keeping them sharp- when the marker is removed then you know you need to sharpen them!

[wazatherfisherman]

Sorry I meant oxidisation!

[PaddyT]

For the harbour-some Raiders in 20gm and 40Gm , HAlco twisties and slices, Sea rocks are good too, Owner trebles in black are excellent retrofit hooks-you dont need expensive-and nothing wrong with a barrel sinker and a treble

[kingie chaser]

7 hours ago, Gengar said:

Hey mate! Good to hear from you and thanks for sharing your experience. I also got myself a few vibes but not sure how they work yet. I might pm to learn more about spinning these metals!

No need to apologies, the search tab can be a bit tricky.

 

I find that it works better with one spcific word only most of the time for a more specific search.

 

Another example would be say putting in just Halco rather than Halco lures-

https://www.fishraider.com.au/search/?q=halco&quick=1

 

On hooks, I replace the trebles on most of my metal lures & replace with a good quality single hook.

 

Most of the time trying to get 2 or 3 barbs out of a fish's mouth take 2 or 3 times as long as the single while means you can be back fishing quicker rather than wasting time with pliers.

 

Some metals will come with one or 2 assist hooks so I leave those alone.

[savit]

For searching 'Halco lures' on forum may be try option 'Halco AND lures' that appears below the search field after first search results run.

For recent relevant search results on forum (e.g when not 100% sure of specific word usage in the topic) sometimes google search does a better and faster job - just include word 'fishraider' and whatever you are looking for.

Did you try to cut or flatten barbs on trebles instead of replacing for singles?

[Gengar]

14 hours ago, wazatherfisherman said:

They look good- don't forget to get some dark trebles- black or bronze. The bronze rust easily, but worth the effort for reasons above.

Just wash them in warm water when you get home. Colouring in the trebles with a permanent marker helps against electrolysis and aids in keeping them sharp- when the marker is removed then you know you need to sharpen them!

Got it! Will try to get the pearl white one and perhaps a blue one as well. I never thought about colouring in permanent markers thats a good idea!

[Gengar]

14 hours ago, PaddyT said:

For the harbour-some Raiders in 20gm and 40Gm , HAlco twisties and slices, Sea rocks are good too, Owner trebles in black are excellent retrofit hooks-you dont need expensive-and nothing wrong with a barrel sinker and a treble

I googled for raider lures but it comes up with Spanyid raiders. Is that the ones you are referring to? They look like the Halco Twisties but with lots of colour.

As for the Sea rocks lures they actually look very similar to the Samaki Torpedo i linked earlier so i might stick to that one cos the shop is much closer.