A lures true value!

[NAGG]

Hi All

To quote a few lines by Pete4 from another thread
****************************************


I got a 51cm barra on a SXR12 last time at Mondy.....

Also discovered that the arse had been ripped out of my white (glass ghost?) Xrap by a feisty 67cm fish....

They are certainly not robust lures

This is a common notion / fact about the Rapala X Rap range when it comes to our beloved barra ........
So with the knowledge that even a small fish can destroy a $25 lure , do you continue to buy them or do you stick with more robust options :huh:. or do you look for something else ?

......... I've heard the same thing said about hollowbellies - placcys that are destroyed easily and a relatively expensive!

So - what value/ criteria do you place on a barra lure

*is it cost
*is it longevity
*is it effectiveness
*is it a combination of all the above
*is it something else

[BR65]

effectiveness, pure and simple
durability and cost is secondary

[NAGG]

effectiveness, pure and simple
durability and cost is secondary

Would it surprise you that I've had fishoes tell me that they wont fork out $25 on a lure (I mentioned the X Rap ..... & how successful they were) -
both these guys were doing a 1400km haul .... to try to catch a barra!

Chris

[finga]

How common is the destruction of the lure??
If it was one lure every now again I'd chance it but if it was 1 lure in 2 then no.

[NAGG]

What other lures over $20 are consistent barra catchers

I know a few that have paid big bucks for lures like the ES drives & flats but have caught bugger all on them!

Two that I like are the Smiths Sauruna ( nice shallow water lure) but well over $30 ...... and the Ecogear barra twitch baits also around $30 but with the advantage of not requiring a hook upgrade:cool:

Chris

[NAGG]

How common is the destruction of the lure??
If it was one lure every now again I'd chance it but if it was 1 lure in 2 then no.

The XR/SXR 12s are often destroyed by any 90cm + fish
During the ABT awoonga evening championship 3 were destroyed on our boat in a short time frame.


Chris

[Peter4]

Would it surprise you that I've had fishoes tell me that they wont fork out $25 on a lure

I agree with Brian, Chris - effectiveness is the most important criteria. All else is secondary. These lures do catch barra...

As for durability, well if I get two barra out of the one lure without having to make some running repairs then that is a great outcome. Remember they still require upgrading and tuning before they are effective and this adds another $5 to the cost of each lure...

We think very little about all the money we spend chasing barra as it is a life passion....

Anyway, you source your Xraps from the US for $11 - $12 each don't you? That is less than half the Aussie price! Recently BCF had a 15% off Rapala sale and I restocked my Xraps for $18.66 each.

How did you go in your communication with Rapala in regards to 'toughening up' these lures for the Australian market?

Pete

[snodger 08]

I also agree with Brian, The whole idea of fishing is to catch one after all.
When you add up all the costs of heading up to Mondy to catch maybe 1 fish it could be up to $700 for a weekend if you stay in the cabins. I would rather get a few xraps smashed than have no hook ups at all. $25 in the scheme of things is bugger all, although it would be nice if rapala made them a bit more sturdy. Personaly I think after 3 donuts at Mondy before I got my first Barra this year, I would have spent 5 or 6 hundred on different lures/plastics etc. This is before I knew about the xraps. Maybe if I had used them on the donut trips I would have converted for $25 instead of $600...
Cheers
Steve

[finga]

The XR/SXR 12s are often destroyed by any 90cm + fish
During the ABT awoonga evening championship 3 were destroyed on our boat in a short time frame.


Chris
In my books the $25 would be worth it just for the fight of a lifetime even if it was only for a little while.
I would not care if the fish was boated or not (well it's going to go back anyway and this way there less chance of me stuffing up the release somehow).
And I'd have something else to blame other then my knots for losing a fish :smiley:

[2manylures]

Is it that the lures are poorly made or could it be they're being used in a manner they weren't designed for?

[NAGG]

Is it that the lures are poorly made or could it be they're being used in a manner they weren't designed for?

Clearly the lure is not designed to take the punishment of a barra

Then having said that - Rapala are marketing the floating version as designed for Australia ....... So :undecided:

Chris

btw ...... It's lack of structural integrity wont stop me from using them on barra - Its my go to HB

[leelee]

After you weigh up the cost of actually getting to chase barra, think rods + reels+ braid+petrol+accommodation+boat and then weigh up the cost of a $25 I think it’s a pretty easy decision to make considering what you have already spent to get to the dam and the fact that a $25 lure might be the one lure that actually makes the trip a success.

$25 puts me in with a great chance to catch a fish of a life time so whilst I am not happy about the lures robust form, I have caught a few on the one lure and its still going strong, whilst some are well and truly dead.

I guess you need to ask yourself this question after you have a caught a 130cm fish to see if the outlay was worth the result you have laying on the brag mat.

Now an easy way to make the lure more cost effective to is buy 1 every fortnight before your trip and even when you are not planning to head north for barra. That way when you get up there the expense is not such a big shock.

Also I have pulled apart a broken version and the wire goes all the way through the lure.

Also the floating Aus versions require a heap more mods (read more weight) to get them to suspend I have found.

Cheers

Lee

[BR65]

Is it that the lures are poorly made or could it be they're being used in a manner they weren't designed for?


I think they are being used in the manner they were designed for ( suspending), but we are using them on fish they were never designed to handle.
I keep tossing up the Richos, aussie made, timber lure, tuff as teak, will suspend, no rattle, best fish a 120 on one to date.

I was looking at those Evergreen ES Flats, over 40 US a pop, I drew the line there. Plenty of cheaper options that will work just as good I reckon.

[NAGG]

I was looking at those Evergreen ES Flats, over 40 US a pop, I drew the line there. Plenty of cheaper options that will work just as good I reckon.

I've spoken to 3 or 4 that have bought those ES lures ........ & I can only recall 1 barra caught mentioned :sad:
So based on that ..... I wouldn't bother paying the big $ for one>

I'd go as far as saying that those style of swimbaits have a relatively poor record on barra! - It it because an erratic action has a greater effect on a barras instinct than a slow side to side one :undecided:

Chris

[BR65]

Ive looked at that style of jointed swim bait a bit, when you start googling, theres a heap of vids out there, yank stuff for the main.
Once you sort out the manufacturers hype, they do offer some interesting traits.


Float, slow sink or quick sink
Will turn on their axis allmost on a sharp rip
Huge side to side action on a roll retreive
Awesome finish, esp the Evergreens etc etc.Downsides I can see are the usual lack of decent hardware, un-certain durability with large cranky barra, excessive purchase cost on some models.

Ive got a couple of Spro BBZ-1 in slow sink, the 4" not the trout look a like, havent swum them yet, will prob wait till it warms up a bit, and throw them at night when you can them there barra boofing over the banjos, they may go all right sub surface?

[Pete62]

The main issue I have found with US HB's is the wire attach loop is so bloody small you cant put a decent ring on them and still get full swing.

Pete.

[Obi _ Wan]

Yeah i'm guilty, i have 4 of those evergreens in my tacklebox, 3 ES Drives and 1 ES Flat. Two of the flats came by way of the internet so i can't remember how much they were, the other ES Flat i bought here was $75 and the ES Drive was $65.

To much/ you betcha, not again, i got them for a comp at Proserpine a couple of years ago (2008), only had one follow and the fishing was very very poor.
After that i was interoduced to barra plastics by the Doctor at Awoonga and did not use any other style of lure. The begining of last Spring saw me out of action for six months, back to it early February this year with Nagg and the 4 fish i landed and the one i lost were all on plastics.

When i first started on barra, 7 or 8 years ago the B52'S were getting the hits but there were busted, the tail broken off with busted B52'S on everyones wall, i refused to buy them for that reason.

I and everyone else had a very good run with the Halco scorpions, the way to go, then we changed to barra classics, wow what a lure a real fish killer, and of course all along the Lively Lures Afura Barra was and still is responsible for a lot of fish. And all these lures will continue to catch fish.

Now these Rapala XRaps are brilliant, certainly catch fish, no doubt about that, but IMHO are too easy to break, seems to be nearly always at the tail end with some of the plastic split/broken, internal wire ripped out, half way up the belly of the lure. In the the minor breakages it will let water into the body of the lure making it sink, i have seen people plug them up with silicone. Barra and Mangrove Jack break these lures, a jack my son caught snapped one clean in half.

But we keep on using them because they catch fish and they are not that expensive overall. Those big jointed XRaps catch fish too, ask the Vet what he caught his 130 odd fish on.

I will always have half a dozen in my tackle box come hell or high water.

A couple of days ago i was talking to the rep from Freetime who distribute the XRaps about their easy to break problems, he was aware of a problem that they had with the bibs on the XRaps and they were addressing that problem but he was not aware about the arse end problems.

To me its the plastic they use to mould, it seems too brittle, i can remember some rebel lures i used over thirty years ago, made with a plastic that you could not break with a hammer, those big yellow fin loved them.

Oh sh###e, there you go i've said too much.

Cheers,
John.

[BR65]

Interesting John about how the trends change with lures, even in a small cross section of anglers as contribute here.
I started on the Classics, only lure I ever needed at the time, then B52, then Arafuras, then the placs, now theres all sorts in the bag, split up into suspending, shallow, mid, squidgeys and misc, hollow bellies and misc, surface.

very very rarely tie on a Classic any more.

[Obi _ Wan]

Interesting John about how the trends change with lures, even in a small cross section of anglers as contribute here.
I started on the Classics, only lure I ever needed at the time, then B52, then Arafuras, then the placs, now theres all sorts in the bag, split up into suspending, shallow, mid, squidgeys and misc, hollow bellies and misc, surface.

very very rarely tie on a Classic any more.


You shouls use the classics again Brian, a couple of years ago at Faust thats all i could get barra on, they would not touch the XRaps

John.

[BR65]

yeah, I know mate.
A lot of it comes down to self confidence in what you tie on I spose.

Raps are a heap easier on the wrists at the end of the day compared to Classics though.

[Obi _ Wan]

I almost forgot, the rep showed me a lure that he says are catching barra, where i don't know.

These are the Rapala Gliding Rap, and from the Bass Pro site, made of super tough Abashi Wood, stainless steel through wire.

Runs 2 to 5 feet deep, is 4 3/4 inches long and selling for $10.49 USA. Prob. about $25 here.

These lures look a bit jackal like and are approx the shape of a bony bream.

Anybody else know anything about these lures??

Cheers,
John.

[NAGG]

Yeah i'm guilty, i have 4 of those evergreens in my tacklebox, 3 ES Drives and 1 ES Flat. Two of the flats came by way of the internet so i can't remember how much they were, the other ES Flat i bought here was $75 and the ES Drive was $65.

To much/ you betcha, not again, i got them for a comp at Proserpine a couple of years ago (2008), only had one follow and the fishing was very very poor.
After that i was interoduced to barra plastics by the Doctor at Awoonga and did not use any other style of lure. The begining of last Spring saw me out of action for six months, back to it early February this year with Nagg and the 4 fish i landed and the one i lost were all on plastics.

When i first started on barra, 7 or 8 years ago the B52'S were getting the hits but there were busted, the tail broken off with busted B52'S on everyones wall, i refused to buy them for that reason.

I and everyone else had a very good run with the Halco scorpions, the way to go, then we changed to barra classics, wow what a lure a real fish killer, and of course all along the Lively Lures Afura Barra was and still is responsible for a lot of fish. And all these lures will continue to catch fish.

Now these Rapala XRaps are brilliant, certainly catch fish, no doubt about that, but IMHO are too easy to break, seems to be nearly always at the tail end with some of the plastic split/broken, internal wire ripped out, half way up the belly of the lure. In the the minor breakages it will let water into the body of the lure making it sink, i have seen people plug them up with silicone. Barra and Mangrove Jack break these lures, a jack my son caught snapped one clean in half.

But we keep on using them because they catch fish and they are not that expensive overall. Those big jointed XRaps catch fish too, ask the Vet what he caught his 130 odd fish on.

I will always have half a dozen in my tackle box come hell or high water.

A couple of days ago i was talking to the rep from Freetime who distribute the XRaps about their easy to break problems, he was aware of a problem that they had with the bibs on the XRaps and they were addressing that problem but he was not aware about the arse end problems.

To me its the plastic they use to mould, it seems too brittle, i can remember some rebel lures i used over thirty years ago, made with a plastic that you could not break with a hammer, those big yellow fin loved them.

Oh sh###e, there you go i've said too much.

Cheers,
John.

Great read there John ...... I always enjoy your input !
There is no doubt that we have trends when it comes to fishing ....... with lures its clearly a case of what it working at the time:smiley: We all know that bombers still work along with B52s and a multitude of other lures........ I would go as far as saying that most lures will catch a barra at some stage.

The X Rap just seems to have the right balance of side to side motion / glide / working depth / rattle & generally cast long & straight - then rigged well - suspends wonderfully . There are not too many HBs that have all these attributes:smiley:
As for the polymer used ...... its fine! - the problem lies in that it has a 2 piece body with a parting line that runs down the middle ------ but worst still is that the tail section is so thin which means that the wire can be pulled through the parting line ( weakest point) - If the tail section was solid , there would be no tail end destruction.
Confidence certainly plays a big part

Chris

[2manylures]

I almost forgot, the rep showed me a lure that he says are catching barra, where i don't know.

These are the Rapala Gliding Rap, and from the Bass Pro site, made of super tough Abashi Wood, stainless steel through wire.

Runs 2 to 5 feet deep, is 4 3/4 inches long and selling for $10.49 USA. Prob. about $25 here.

These lures look a bit jackal like and are approx the shape of a bony bream.

Anybody else know anything about these lures??

Cheers,
John.

John,

These are one of the latest lures from the Rapala stable which is most likely why the rep was pushing them.

They are a slow sinking walker[walk-the-dog] that can be steadilly retrieved as well as twitched. Come in two sizes, 4-3/4" ~1-1/3oz & 6"~2-1/2oz,

Rapala have used Abachi in a number of lures over the years.

[NAGG]

I almost forgot, the rep showed me a lure that he says are catching barra, where i don't know.

These are the Rapala Gliding Rap, and from the Bass Pro site, made of super tough Abashi Wood, stainless steel through wire.

Runs 2 to 5 feet deep, is 4 3/4 inches long and selling for $10.49 USA. Prob. about $25 here.

These lures look a bit jackal like and are approx the shape of a bony bream.

Anybody else know anything about these lures??

Cheers,
John.


If the hooks & splits are upgraded - they sink rapidly!

Chris

[Steve B]

John, you made mention of a very under-rated lure from the rapala stable, the jointed X rap. I have been using them over the years with plenty of success..(like the vet..but no where near as many fish). They are a barra magnet like their wreckable mate!! Much heavier, cast further which is a bonus I spose. They can be worked very very slow too, slower than X12's whilst keeping action. They suspend pretty well with minimal adjustments (just trebbles)....one downside I have found, they leak in water after some punishment...but that has happened only twice on lures that have seen plenty of fish on the deck for me thus owe me nothing!!!

B52?? still a great lure...ask Kyle!

Old lures will work still. I doubt anyone doubts that! Another old favorite imported lure, the stiffy lookalike, but jointed in 3 places.....sebile magic swimmer. I havent used it enough lately, but it will get a run over the next few months in the shallows. similar atributes to the stiffy, but can be worked successfully with a few more retrieves...ie slow steady, and fast steady...where stiffs are not really effective as such.

Just a couple more options to think about.

Steve

[Awoonga]

I think they are being used in the manner they were designed for ( suspending), but we are using them on fish they were never designed to handle.
I keep tossing up the Richos, aussie made, timber lure, tuff as teak, will suspend, no rattle, best fish a 120 on one to date.

I was looking at those Evergreen ES Flats, over 40 US a pop, I drew the line there. Plenty of cheaper options that will work just as good I reckon.

Brian,
Talking about Richos l took the great man out to Mondy the other week. His extractor lure caught the fish where my XRap caught nothing. When l told him that these XRaps where the "gun" lure at Mondy .He just laughed. He is a top bloke and a very good fisherman.A legend in the lure making industry as well

[NAGG]

Just on Australian made timber lures - & there are some great ones :cool: from what I have seen and used...... most seem to be deeper diving ones! :huh:

Does anyone know , some shallower running timber lures (2-4ft)

much appreciated

Chris

[BR65]

Trev, you know the story mate: todays silver bullet is tomorrows blank cartridge.

Chris, the extractors come in a shallow version. I was throwing a banana yellow version around at the tail end of muster last year for a couple of fish at "North B". Pic here some whee.
I havent seen them around for sale for near 12 months now, but a litle bird mentioned to me that Foxie may have them, though colours are limited.
They are buoyant, so upping the ante with split and hook up-grades will still see the need for additional weight, though this doesnt seem to affect the action on a "stalled" lure retrieve for lack of a better word.
I also have had some joy with the chrome version, but took the texta to it to create some contrast stripes.

Catties dont mind em either!!

[NAGG]

Trev, you know the story mate: todays silver bullet is tomorrows blank cartridge.

Chris, the extractors come in a shallow version. I was throwing a banana yellow version around at the tail end of muster last year for a couple of fish at "North B". Pic here some whee.
I havent seen them around for sale for near 12 months now, but a litle bird mentioned to me that Foxie may have them, though colours are limited.
They are buoyant, so upping the ante with split and hook up-grades will still see the need for additional weight, though this doesnt seem to affect the action on a "stalled" lure retrieve for lack of a better word.
I also have had some joy with the chrome version, but took the texta to it to create some contrast stripes.

Catties dont mind em either!!

The bib still looks like it would dig in ....... or is that not the case
what I've found with timber lures is that they are more often than not - ultra buoyant & so need some serious upgrading with much bigger splits / owners and the application of sticky weight - - - - -- - - -- often the action was killed :sad:

I'll see if I can find the shallower extractor ( I've never seen one)

Thanks

Chris

[BR65]

The chrome one pictured is the 3 meter model Chris, which on cast/retrieve gets down about 4 - 5 foot. Ive hung them up in the timber, and allways been able to get them back with my lure prodder, and its about 5 foot long.
I drive it down hard on splash down, then just pulse it back very gently.

[BR65]

Steve, I'd like to hear more about the Boney Bream Stiffy mate.
Ive got a couple of these, have thrown them around a bit.
They give a great flash, but Im yet to raise a looker, let alone a scale.
What am I doing wong here?
Do you use them in shallow water only, whats the action?
If I dont get a fish on one soon, do you want to buy some second hand ones, low Klms, only driven by a little old barra fisho on his way to church Sundays :wink:

[NAGG]

The chrome one pictured is the 3 meter model Chris, which on cast/retrieve gets down about 4 - 5 foot. Ive hung them up in the timber, and allways been able to get them back with my lure prodder, and its about 5 foot long.
I drive it down hard on splash down, then just pulse it back very gently.

I'm looking for a timber lure that will track shallow on landing - like a bomber / B52 ........ fished with a bang bang bang - stop retrieve ( & be sitting at 2-4 ft)

As for the Stiffy BB - Brian
You need to fish it with a constant snap retrieve to get the best out of it.
So your braid is tight & snaps on the water surface when twitched ........ so its a constant hard downward snap which gets the roll & side to side motion (rather than a straight glide) - You also stall the lure as well - Certainly a great lure over the shallows

Chris

[Steve B]

Brian, Chris pretty much summed it up. There is no 'set in stone' retrieve, like all lures..but what Chris said pretty much is the way I work them. I sometimes let them suspend for a pause, or just twitch to the boat. Like most lures, time and place are required.....from now on in the winter fringes is perfect really...bright sunny days, fish in semi shallows holding on submerged timber etc.

Cheers Steve

[Peter4]

I'm looking for a timber lure that will track shallow on landing - like a bomber / B52 ........ fished with a bang bang bang - stop retrieve ( & be sitting at 2-4 ft)

The lure you need Chris is the Ridgeback Torpedo. A very tough 12cm narrow profile timber lure (Aussie made) that dives to 1m maximum. I have 6 or 7 of them..

Unfortunately Ridgeback lures went out of business two years ago...

The bonus in that was I picked up most of mine for $5 each from BCF clearance bins!:smiley:

Regs

Pete

[BR65]

Sounds like how and where Ive been throwng them Steve.
Prob a confidence thing again, I havent scored a fish on one, so confidence with them is low.

[NAGG]

Brian, Chris pretty much summed it up. There is no 'set in stone' retrieve, like all lures..but what Chris said pretty much is the way I work them. I sometimes let them suspend for a pause, or just twitch to the boat. Like most lures, time and place are required.....from now on in the winter fringes is perfect really...bright sunny days, fish in semi shallows holding on submerged timber etc.

Cheers Steve

Sorry Steve ...... didn't know you were on line

I actually think that the BB is a difficult lure to learn how to fish - I was fortunate enough to spend a fair bit of time with Matt ( Barraboss) who is a master of using the BB - His style was not to different to mine but had much more wrist snap which gave the lure that fantastic action. ......

Chris

[BR65]

Im guessing a very fast tapered stick to get the most from that snap snap action?
He cetainly was nailing some big Tinaroo barra on them.

[BR65]

Nice looking shallow diver Pete, hows the success rate to date?

[NAGG]

Im guessing a very fast tapered stick to get the most from that snap snap action?
He cetainly was nailing some big Tinaroo barra on them.

You certainly need a stiff rod - I reckon you could easily snap a rod on the cast.
Certainly a shorter rod is best - I was using a Millerod TEBB & now I'm using the Pflueger 15kg impoundment barra!
Yeh Matt & Steve were both doing well - along with Jason Wilhelm !

I tell you what though - I wouldn't want to fish a whole session with one - Phew talk about tiring

Chris

[Peter4]

Haven't used them much in the last year or so but they were barra magnets in 2007/08. Lost a few to monsters and successfully landed barra to 97cm on them.

Sometimes you can still find them. I picked one up at Capalaba BCF in November for $5. Rainbow colour - caught a big cattie!

I think they will be perfect lures for shallow winter fishing. My entire collection will be coming to the Committee Meeting!:wink:

[warrior]

pete the ridgeback 120mm in silver and black back is my go to lure at lenthalls swims to around 1.5mtrs and has accounted many a fish,cost of lures dont mean much to me anymore , i pick one up every now and then to hide the pain of the prices,i used to bitch and moan at the prices but now its the sheer enjoyment of hooking into these great fish that keepme buying them ,the x12s have been good to me but i havnt tangled with a big big girl yet ,used them yesterday and today on 800mm models and encounted 16 with the same lure and its still intact ,love the things and look forward to having one torn apart by an unstoppable:smiley:

[Awoonga]

Have a look at these

[Peter4]

pete the ridgeback 120mm in silver and black back is my go to lure at lenthalls swims to around 1.5mtrs and has accounted many a fish,cost of lures dont mean much to me anymore , i pick one up every now and then to hide the pain of the prices,i used to bitch and moan at the prices but now its the sheer enjoyment of hooking into these great fish that keepme buying them ,the x12s have been good to me but i havnt tangled with a big big girl yet ,used them yesterday and today on 800mm models and encounted 16 with the same lure and its still intact ,love the things and look forward to having one torn apart by an unstoppable:smiley:

There's two kinds of Ridgebacks Al - the Torpedo that dives to 1m and the Scud which dives to 2m. Both are equally effective...

Funny when you look into your tacklebox and your 'go to' lure of a year or two ago now rarely gets a swim.

To me the most important qualities of a lure besides its effectiveness is the 'feel' it gives you and the level of confidence you have with it. Comfort is probably the best word...

Regs

Pete

[warrior]

definatly a confidence thing with me ,i only have to get a good whack or hookup with a certain lure and it makes a hell of a difference with my fishing mood.i was a bit sceptical with the x12s till they proved themselves in front of me,i new they worked but using them for yourself and getting results means heaps to my fishing confidence

[PaulMark]

definatly a confidence thing with me ,i only have to get a good whack or hookup with a certain lure and it makes a hell of a difference with my fishing mood.i was a bit sceptical with the x12s till they proved themselves in front of me,i new they worked but using them for yourself and getting results means heaps to my fishing confidence
Confidence has to be a factor in working out a lures value.I seem to be more relaxed when I use a lure that has worked for me in the past,and that has to transmit to the fishing effort as a whole.I had problems with the Hollowbellies when I first used them but when I whacked on a Dropbear intensity levels dropped off and started to enjoy the time.:cool:You soon pick up confidence,Hollowbellies are fine now.:wink: I think paying out big dollars for a lure always weighs on some of our minds,especially in the Timber.Theres a few xraps in the tacklebox.Just need to stop working so much:angry: and get out and use them.
Paulo

[NAGG]

So what gives you confidence in a lure ?

Why did you buy a lure in the first place ?

Do you buy a lure / placcy on recommendations like reading a thread like this ?

How much of it is a spur of the moment thing ....... a Daryl purchase :cheesy:


Chris

[Peter4]

So what gives you confidence in a lure ?

Why did you buy a lure in the first place ?

Do you buy a lure / placcy on recommendations like reading a thread like this ?

How much of it is a spur of the moment thing ....... a Daryl purchase :cheesy:


Chris

All good questions Chris...

These days I either buy a lure for a particular application (and search high & wide until I find the right one) or I am replacing lost stock...

I think confidence comes with success. I used to hate bombers but since September 2009 Kyle has converted me! Still cannot get comfortable with B52s.

Spur of the moment purchases still occur though, especially when some new bling hits the shelves! Obviously these type of threads have some input but I use them more for 'lure tuning' ideas than the selection of lures themselves...

Regs

Pete

[Tropicaltrout]

Hey guys I have only read the first page but just want to say this...

The rapala is a lure that is a xr12 so its must be for big fish know one would sit down and design a lure more then 10 cm that would be put on the world market and not make it to suit fishing not just for barra but most fish across the board, Its simply poor design and if ya watch the rapala movie with the premotion of catching world monsters it simply does not stand up!

Another idea is that they are a cheap lure in the US and that you get what ya pay for but I realy dont think that's it.

Pesonally they are the best barra lure off the shelf and the soft design wont stop me buying them. I landed that 119cm fish last trip hooked on the front trebble (standard trebble) and I have ripped the bum out of one on a 66cm fish. Both fish landed so it payed for itself and to me thats the bottom line....

Cheers Nath

[NAGG]

All good questions Chris...

These days I either buy a lure for a particular application (and search high & wide until I find the right one) or I am replacing lost stock...

I think confidence comes with success. I used to hate bombers but since September 2009 Kyle has converted me! Still cannot get comfortable with B52s.

Spur of the moment purchases still occur though, especially when some new bling hits the shelves! Obviously these type of threads have some input but I use them more for 'lure tuning' ideas than the selection of lures themselves...

Regs

Pete

Some might see this as a pretty basic & simple topic ....... way down on the list of barra fishing priorities - and maybe it is ...... however without the right lure & technique you probably wont get the results that you are looking for .

The amount of lures that I culled from my tackle boxes had me shaking my head - I would have easily bought another top of the line barra outfit & had change for another quality rod with the money saved!
There were lures bought through inexperience & ones bought through recommendations ........ most now sit idle.
I reckon with a range of 10 lures / plastics my bases would be covered at most impoundments ( how much money could be saved:tongue:)

I now have a tackle box for my X Raps :rolleyes:

This thread is based around the X Rap - even with the design faults , is it the best impoundment barra HB on the market :huh:

Chris

[NAGG]

Hey guys I have only read the first page but just want to say this...

The rapala is a lure that is a xr12 so its must be for big fish know one would sit down and design a lure more then 10 cm that would be put on the world market and not make it to suit fishing not just for barra but most fish across the board, Its simply poor design and if ya watch the rapala movie with the premotion of catching world monsters it simply does not stand up!

Another idea is that they are a cheap lure in the US and that you get what ya pay for but I realy dont think that's it.

Pesonally they are the best barra lure off the shelf and the soft design wont stop me buying them. I landed that 119cm fish last trip hooked on the front trebble (standard trebble) and I have ripped the bum out of one on a 66cm fish. Both fish landed so it payed for itself and to me thats the bottom line....

Cheers Nath

Hi Nath ...... glad you joined in :cool:

Actually the Rapala X Raps would be considered as middle + end bass lures (above the likes of Heddon , Bomber , Norman , Rebel , Storm , Cotton Cordell) but behind the Japanese offerings from companies like Lucky Craft , Strike king , Jackall Bros , Evergreen etc.
They are designed for the US bass (largemouth , smallmouth , striped etc) which just dont have jaw pressure (opening) of our barra .......... If we didn't upgrade the hooks to super strong owners - I doubt we would be having the same issues ........ our trebles would just get straightened :cry: So in essence - we have created the problem with our upgrades!


Chris

[Tropicaltrout]

Hi Nath ...... glad you joined in :cool:

Actually the Rapala X Raps would be considered as middle + end bass lures (above the likes of Heddon , Bomber , Norman , Rebel , Storm , Cotton Cordell) but behind the Japanese offerings from companies like Lucky Craft , Strike king , Jackall Bros , Evergreen etc.
They are designed for the US bass (largemouth , smallmouth , striped etc) which just dont have jaw pressure (opening) of our barra .......... If we didn't upgrade the hooks to super strong owners - I doubt we would be having the same issues ........ our trebles would just get straightened :cry: So in essence - we have created the problem with our upgrades!


Chris

Yeah I hear ya mate but as I said they do premote the rapala lure as a world wide product and in there video its premoted as catching massive nile perch, which in my regard must too have that pressure so to me its simply a design floor.

I would rather see on the packet a symbol if what you say is right. "Designed For USA Standards"

Hooks well my rap got busterd on the 66 cm fish and it was standard go figure:undecided: so in that case I reckon its just simply poor design:wink: If you look at the profile against most lures it tapers off at the rear to almost nothing creating very little strenth or resistance in turn they rip....

The end result a fish that cost 20 bucks for a life time of memories pff 20 bucks WTFC go get one and land a dream I say, and put the ripped up lure on the shelf as a display they look great and a good talking point for the visitors:tongue:

[NAGG]

Yeah I hear ya mate but as I said they do premote the rapala lure as a world wide product and in there video its premoted as catching massive nile perch, which in my regard must too have that pressure so to me its simply a design floor.

I would rather see on the packet a symbol if what you say is right. "Designed For USA Standards"

Hooks well my rap got busterd on the 66 cm fish and it was standard go figure:undecided: so in that case I reckon its just simply poor design:wink: If you look at the profile against most lures it tapers off at the rear to almost nothing creating very little strenth or resistance in turn they rip....

The end result a fish that cost 20 bucks for a life time of memories pff 20 bucks WTFC go get one and land a dream I say, and put the ripped up lure on the shelf as a display they look great and a good talking point for the visitors:tongue:

I agree with you on the design fault ....... Its something that stood out the minute I destroyed my first one
All the adds & the original promo video I saw - referred to bass ...... so its interesting about the nile perch ........ ( have seen other rapalas adds targeting the Tiger fish etc - but they were not X Raps.
Regardless its a design fault ..... but like you , yep the value is there

chris

[BR65]

So what gives you confidence in a lure ?

Why did you buy a lure in the first place ?

Do you buy a lure / placcy on recommendations like reading a thread like this ?

How much of it is a spur of the moment thing ....... a Daryl purchase :cheesy:


Chris

What gives confidence? Success by my self, or a mate , throwing that offering. Word of mouth between mates is a powerfull tool when it comes to thumbs up or thumbs down with a lure. Theres no B.S on whether it works or not, and the camp fire show and tell usually has a fair showing of critics to offer an opinion, or relate an experience.

Why did I buy the lure in the first place. Now days its to try and fill a void in my tackle box that may have been exposed by fishing differant conditions, weather or situations. Perfect exanple was the effectiveness of fizzers compared to poppers one day during the rise in water levels. I didnt have a fizzer in the boat then, only poppers. I now have a couple of fizzers.


Do you buy a lure on recommendations on a thread like this. Yes, I would. Here there is no goobldy gook, mis leading or fanciful utterings. Its what works in the real world for the average fisho, and what can be done to improve whats out there, based on whats been used/discarded by the average fisho. Its impossable to try every lure or plac out there in the limited time you get to spend on a barra dam when based in Brisbane, so honest help in sorting the wheat from the chaff is very usefull. Mags are another source of "good oil", just sort the advertising hype out from the reality first. Tournies like ABT, with a large group of good fishos angling competively, are also a good way to see whats new in the game.

How much of it is a spur of the moment thing? Every now and then the tackle rat in me twitches his whiskers, and I just have to buy something, regardless. Also, if it looks the goods, and I havent seen it before, it mite get tossed in the shopping basket. Picked up a big R2S surface walker/popper thingy a couple of weeks ago like that.

[BR65]

All good questions Chris...

These days I either buy a lure for a particular application (and search high & wide until I find the right one) or I am replacing lost stock...

I think confidence comes with success. I used to hate bombers but since September 2009 Kyle has converted me! Still cannot get comfortable with B52s.

Spur of the moment purchases still occur though, especially when some new bling hits the shelves! Obviously these type of threads have some input but I use them more for 'lure tuning' ideas than the selection of lures themselves...

Regs

Pete

Funny world. B52 is one of my go to lures, and I struggle with Bombers, they run to shallow for me. Same as the Ecogears.
Remember talking with you about the purple or blue Gaddens Classic that Kyle used to tie on when things were tuff, and I hated that colour and never used it?

[NAGG]

What gives confidence? Success by my self, or a mate , throwing that offering. Word of mouth between mates is a powerfull tool when it comes to thumbs up or thumbs down with a lure. Theres no B.S on whether it works or not, and the camp fire show and tell usually has a fair showing of critics to offer an opinion, or relate an experience.

Why did I buy the lure in the first place. Now days its to try and fill a void in my tackle box that may have been exposed by fishing differant conditions, weather or situations. Perfect exanple was the effectiveness of fizzers compared to poppers one day during the rise in water levels. I didnt have a fizzer in the boat then, only poppers. I now have a couple of fizzers.


Do you buy a lure on recommendations on a thread like this. Yes, I would. Here there is no goobldy gook, mis leading or fanciful utterings. Its what works in the real world for the average fisho, and what can be done to improve whats out there, based on whats been used/discarded by the average fisho. Its impossable to try every lure or plac out there in the limited time you get to spend on a barra dam when based in Brisbane, so honest help in sorting the wheat from the chaff is very usefull. Mags are another source of "good oil", just sort the advertising hype out from the reality first. Tournies like ABT, with a large group of good fishos angling competively, are also a good way to see whats new in the game.

How much of it is a spur of the moment thing? Every now and then the tackle rat in me twitches his whiskers, and I just have to buy something, regardless. Also, if it looks the goods, and I havent seen it before, it mite get tossed in the shopping basket. Picked up a big R2S surface walker/popper thingy a couple of weeks ago like that.

Nice ...... :cool:

Those camp fire tackletours are well worth the price of admission - lots of great real time information is shared about lures , rigging , upgrades & just as importantly techniques used. ......... part of having a good network!

There is no doubt that at times a certain lure or technique - will fire head & shoulders above anything else .......... but should one carry a lure for every contingency :undecided: ....... probably yes if you have the means & room > but only if you have presence of mind to use them :wink:

Chris

[warrior]

the fireside talks are one thing i am looking forward to in june seeing and hearing about all the mods that people try and have success with .and a few brewskies:tongue: :tongue:

[vet]

Hi Nagg, A good shallow running wooden lure is made by Leeds, unfortunately the tail section pulls out of these as well, the good thing though is they can't fill up with water. If I have time I will dig one out and take a photo of it for you. cheers scott.

[Si]

Hi Nagg, A good shallow running wooden lure is made by Leeds, unfortunately the tail section pulls out of these as well, the good thing though is they can't fill up with water. If I have time I will dig one out and take a photo of it for you. cheers scott.


Leads lures are no longer made. Great lures though with awesome wobble/action. First lure i ever bought was leads lure and i couodlt stop catching bass (it was red shallow diver plug) on it. Dont know if they would be as durable as hard plastic lure for barra though. they are becoming a bit of a collectors item with some lures seen on ebay going for around $35-40 for a twenty year old lure.

i like RMG lures for barra cos they are tough, good action and not as expensive as some others. agree confidence is a big factor and yes i have bought lures that i have used just once if at all. I have bought lures on reccomendations from here before but mostly from expert advice in the right tackle store and particuler experts/fishing writers that ihave confidence in. i like to buy lures that are functional more than looks, will achieve the desired depth im after, how does it swim, is it going to withstand the fight. but yes, sometimes the lures have hooked me rather than fish though. i think we can all be guilty of that at some stage. :smiley:

[matt fraser]

Great thread Chris and everyone! Getting back to the original question I'd pay $30 for a barra lure that catches fish consitantly and holds up to barra abuse.

ATM it seems the XRap SXR 12 is the most consistant lure. But doesn't hold up to the abuse, but they still sell like hotcakes, and at least the wire holds up well enough to land the barra - unlike Bomber 15As

I've just spent about four hours modifying and playing with X Raps and Bombers and have come up with a few things.

XRAPs

Although I've only landed one barra on an X Rap, I've seen and heard enough evidence to know how well they work!!! Like Chris, I'm now on my way to having a dedicated XRap tray.

Loving the SXR 12s - very easy to modify to suspend (unlike the SX12s)- just change front trebles to Owner ST66 #2 and the rears to #4 and it suspends beautifully!

One question to the XRap gurus - are the standard rings ok? they look strong, but do I need to upgrade them? and if so are the #5 60lb Hyperwire rings sufficient?

Reading one of Nathan's posts from Feb, http://www.ausfish.com.au/vforum/showthread.php?t=161395

Anthony 72 came up with this in regards to pulling rear wires out of X Raps:

I just rig differently to get the pressure off the rear tow point, that way the hook doesn't pull lure apart, or crack and fill with water, so a slight modification means they last a long time. Have used on big mack, tuna and of course awoonga barra hasn't disappointed yet.

I run stinger wire or 80lb to a small wire that hold hook in place as normal until that breaks away when fish strike, all pressure on where you attach the line.

So, I had a bit of a think about it, using this as the basis, and came up with running a wire trace from the centre hook eyelet to the rear treble hook, the treble is attached to the rear eyelet using a light (sacrificial) ring, that will open up easily and allow the treble to come away from the rear eyelet.

See pics for explanation,

http://www.ausfish.com.au/vforum/attachment.php?attachmentid=58480&stc=1&d=1273664964

http://www.ausfish.com.au/vforum/attachment.php?attachmentid=58481&stc=1&d=1273664964

Wire is 135lb uncoated, hopefully the crimps will hold up!? Will it work? has anyone tried something like this? is it worth worrying about?

It doesn't look great, but I don't think it will put the barra off? the hooks didn't get hung up on the wire in the half dozen casts I did in the pool. I reckon it should work ok. your thoughts?


Bombers

After discussions with Peter and Kyle about losing several big fish to the rear hook eyelets being pulled out, I thought I'd see if I could come up with a solution for them.

First attempt was to run a wire trace from the front hook eyelet through the middle split ring to the rear ring. If the rear hook eyelet is pulled out, the wire should secure the hook and keep the angler attached to the barra!?

http://www.ausfish.com.au/vforum/attachment.php?attachmentid=58482&stc=1&d=1273665422

http://www.ausfish.com.au/vforum/attachment.php?attachmentid=58483&stc=1&d=1273665605

This set up swam well, suspended (with lots of head weight) and looks fine.

But I wanted to try something different. So I pulled out the rear eyelet, drilled it out and twisted up a decent rear wire. Look at the size of the original figure 8 - you can see why barra treat them with distain!
http://www.ausfish.com.au/vforum/attachment.php?attachmentid=58484&stc=1&d=1273665740
I glued this in with araldite and it was ok, but was rear end heavy.

After a fair bit of trial and error with two bombers, I ended up drilling a hole in the top of the head and adding a brass weight into the head, as well as sticky weight or lead glued on. And removed the centre treble and changed the front to a #2 ST66 (rear #4)

Now they swim nice, suspend nice, and should be able to handle barra ok. But sheeez there was a bit of work involved there. It will be easier now I know what I'm doing.

http://www.ausfish.com.au/vforum/attachment.php?attachmentid=58485&stc=1&d=1273666056

http://www.ausfish.com.au/vforum/attachment.php?attachmentid=58486&stc=1&d=1273666075

The bombers did loose a bit of paint here and there, but they look better than having a wire run along outside of the body.

Hopefully the barra will still like them! and not destroy them as easily? Only time on a barra lake will tell......and I'm hanging out for some of that!

Cheers,

Matt

[Roo]

Nice bit of modding matt.

As for X raps...Jury still out for me. I've hardy thrown them and so far not had a looker. They certainly look the business. but so do many in my tackle box that don't see much airtime anymore.

My goto hard bod has been the R2Sea Triho 120s. cheap, cheerfull and it works for me(suitably modded of course)
Next trip i'll be trying out some new things, giving the old F18 classics another run and dusting off a few oldies that I've recently been gifted. looking forward to some catchup around the fire.

Cheers, Roo.

[leelee]

Nice work Matt.

I think that would actually work to stop the back cracking but I still tink that a barra will and can destroy the xrap by basically being able to break the lure within its mouth.

Also I upgrade the rings on the xraps just to be safe.

Cheers

Lee

[Awoonga]

Just on Australian made timber lures - & there are some great ones :cool: from what I have seen and used...... most seem to be deeper diving ones! :huh:

Does anyone know , some shallower running timber lures (2-4ft)

much appreciated

Chris Chris l might have the answer... Now l said might ! The testing shall be done by the Mondy crew. There are limted numbers. And its based on a lure that ... say no more you get the picture. Its a wooden lure. Dives to 2-4 ft Not on the market . You will have to ajust the buoyancy to suit how you want it to float, rise, fall Whatever .And l really do appreciate the lure craftmans efforts in designing this lure

[Pete62]

Chris l might have the answer... Now l said might ! The testing shall be done by the Mondy crew. There are limted numbers. And its based on a lure that ... say no more you get the picture. Its a wooden lure. Dives to 2-4 ft Not on the market . You will have to ajust the buoyancy to suit how you want it to float, rise, fall Whatever .And l really do appreciate the lure craftmans efforts in designing this lure


Interesting................. a dozen or so set of ears just pricked all over Sth East QLD

Good onya Trev.

Pete

[Peter4]

You're not wrong Pete....

[DEANO68]

YEP, interesting..

will make a good fire side chat topic...

[Peter4]

Nice bit of modding matt.

As for X raps...Jury still out for me. I've hardy thrown them and so far not had a looker. They certainly look the business. but so do many in my tackle box that don't see much airtime anymore.

My goto hard bod has been the R2Sea Triho 120s. cheap, cheerfull and it works for me(suitably modded of course)
Next trip i'll be trying out some new things, giving the old F18 classics another run and dusting off a few oldies that I've recently been gifted. looking forward to some catchup around the fire.

Cheers, Roo.

Agree with Roo, Matt some great work there...

Roo, both Kyle & I have caught barra on the R2S triho but have now abandoned this lure for bombers. While the triho works well all of ours died after they caught a single barra or just died in the middle of a session.

They are a 'cheap' lure that have some design faults as they crack very easily and fill up with water as a result. We will not use them again!

Now that Matt has some mods for bombers, we are confident that Kyle will hang onto some more barra! He has now lost 3 tournament barra and four lures to the failure of the rear eyelet.

The never ending search for the perfect barra lure continues...

Regs

Pete

[matt fraser]

Nice work Matt.

I think that would actually work to stop the back cracking but I still tink that a barra will and can destroy the xrap by basically being able to break the lure within its mouth.

Also I upgrade the rings on the xraps just to be safe.

Cheers

Lee

Lee, which rings #5 (60lb) or #6 (70lb) or different?

It will be interesting to see if it works,

Cheers,

Matt

[leelee]

Lee, which rings #5 (60lb) or #6 (70lb) or different?

It will be interesting to see if it works,

Cheers,

Matt

Matt I have 60lb and 70lb owners and have Decoy 60lb and 75lb.

The reason I have 2 different brands is that they have a differing size and differing weight which helps get the lures suspending or slow rising or slow sinking. Helps me fine tune so to speak as each time i visit the dam the lures need to be retuned to get them to do exactly what i want.

I think from memory that last trip they ran a owner ST66#4 with owner 60lb split ring on the rear and then an owner ST66#2 with a decoy 75lb split on the front. I was also put onto the Storm Suspending weights so I always use them to help get the desired result I am after.

Cheers

Lee

[BR65]

Ditto to that Matt. There is some good oil in barraboss's stuff.

[vet]

Nice efforts there Matt. Now you have an excuse to come up here and test them out. I'd personally wait for another month or so till it cools off properly, I always find it difficult fishing during the months while it is cooling but once it's consistently cold the fishing gets easier.

To answer the first question of whether it's worth the money I'd say a definite yes, and the 3 tackle boxes full of xraps attest to this. Unlike the rest of you I haven't ever had a 12 break, but I've only landed 50 or so fish on this lure as I use the jointed or the 14 predominantly and haven't ever had them fail. Maybe it's my softly softly approach that does it?
Another wooden shallow lure is the rapala long cast. I don't personally use it but a friend of mine who like fishing shallow water always tries to steal it.
cheers scott.

[BR65]

Scott, I'd be happy with half a dozen fish off one Rap! Doesnt seem to matter, hard or soft, 117 or 60+, that tail section is an issue for me.
Thank heavans Im sponsored by Etche Hairdressing. Wonder when Debs will figure that out??

[darylive]

So what gives you confidence in a lure ?

Why did you buy a lure in the first place ?

Do you buy a lure / placcy on recommendations like reading a thread like this ?

How much of it is a spur of the moment thing ....... a Daryl purchase :cheesy:


Chris

What are you insinuating? :undecided: I resemble that remark :rolleyes:

i haven't bought a lure for about ten minutes :wink:

Rob Gadens New Warlocks :smiley: Well I needed some! :huh:
I didn't have any :tongue:

[2manylures]

I'm very surprised you blokes don't use J-13's.

Magnum style body, Timber lure, tough as nails & come in an array of pretty colours with a brilliant action across the board from dead slow to super fast & vibrating. Gets down to around 4ft depending on gear etc and I'm sure you fellas could get it to suspend.

[Peter4]

Scott, I'd be happy with half a dozen fish off one Rap! Doesnt seem to matter, hard or soft, 117 or 60+, that tail section is an issue for me.
Thank heavans Im sponsored by Etche Hairdressing. Wonder when Debs will figure that out??

What a sponsor! Must be a top woman to put up with your fishing absences...

[Peter4]

I'm very surprised you blokes don't use J-13's.

Magnum style body, Timber lure, tough as nails & come in an array of pretty colours with a brilliant action across the board from dead slow to super fast & vibrating. Gets down to around 4ft depending on gear etc and I'm sure you fellas could get it to suspend.


Never heard of them until now. Will look for them next time I'm at church...

[2manylures]

Never heard of them until now. Will look for them next time I'm at church...

My apologies:smiley:

I took it for granted that others would know them.

They're floating jointed Rapalas, 13cm long, weighing 16grs dive to around 4ft.

Doubt whether you'll find them in church though:grin::cheesy::grin:

[Peter4]

My apologies:smiley:

I took it for granted that others would know them.

They're floating jointed Rapalas, 13cm long, weighing 16grs dive to around 4ft.

Doubt whether you'll find them in church though:grin::cheesy::grin:

Sorry 2ML,

'Church' refers to the Tackle Warehouse in Coorparoo (Brisbane).

We go there at least once a week to worship...

Pete

[vet]

Hi Brian, I also failed to mention that I use a jigging type assist hook on the front split ring with a long piece of dacron, maybe this allows the mouth of the barra to open up further before placing undue stress on the rear hook. Cheers scott.

[matt fraser]

Nice efforts there Matt. Now you have an excuse to come up here and test them out. I'd personally wait for another month or so till it cools off properly, I always find it difficult fishing during the months while it is cooling but once it's consistently cold the fishing gets easier.

To answer the first question of whether it's worth the money I'd say a definite yes, and the 3 tackle boxes full of xraps attest to this. Unlike the rest of you I haven't ever had a 12 break, but I've only landed 50 or so fish on this lure as I use the jointed or the 14 predominantly and haven't ever had them fail. Maybe it's my softly softly approach that does it?
Another wooden shallow lure is the rapala long cast. I don't personally use it but a friend of mine who like fishing shallow water always tries to steal it.
cheers scott.

Thanks Scott, I'm just working on barra lures as an excuse to get away and get my IBD fix. How nice it would be to duck out to the dam for a few hours after work.......

I can't believe you've never split an X Rap 12! obviously your assist rig works, and chance of a photo?

Cheers,

Matt

[2manylures]

Sorry 2ML,

'Church' refers to the Tackle Warehouse in Coorparoo (Brisbane).

We go there at least once a week to worship...

Pete

No worries Pete,

Please excuse the southern ignorance, I had no idea :grin: plus I'm a heathen when it comes to tackle shops due to isolation :shocked:

From what I understand from mates around the country, I don't believe a lot of tackle shops actually stock much in the way of Rapala and a few other proven old derelict US brands these days due to the Jap influence over the past 5-6years & moreso the super cheap Chinese influence {garbage imo} in more recent times.

[Peter4]

No dramas 2ML. You're probably right in your assessment anyway.

Sometimes I wish I was more isolated - would save me many $...

Regs

Pete

[2manylures]

No dramas 2ML. You're probably right in your assessment anyway.

Sometimes I wish I was more isolated - would save me many $...

Regs

Pete

"www" put paid to isolation pretty much full bloody stop unfortunately

As for saving a couple of bucks, don't fool yaself:grin: isolation doesn't discriminate between the poor & the poorer:cheesy:

[vet]

Hi Matt, I have the photo you wanted, also took the opportunity to show a far superior lure than the 12, these lures have caught a couple of fish, I hope the teeth marks show up. Since I don't post much I thought I'd slip in a photo of a rather unhappy camper, if only your backbone jigs would stick into barra as easily as they stuck into Trev. Not a casting error but the result of a barra throwing the hooks near the boat on the strike.
Cheers scott.

[Roo]

Agree with Roo, Matt some great work there...

Roo, both Kyle & I have caught barra on the R2S triho but have now abandoned this lure for bombers. While the triho works well all of ours died after they caught a single barra or just died in the middle of a session.

They are a 'cheap' lure that have some design faults as they crack very easily and fill up with water as a result. We will not use them again!

Now that Matt has some mods for bombers, we are confident that Kyle will hang onto some more barra! He has now lost 3 tournament barra and four lures to the failure of the rear eyelet.

The never ending search for the perfect barra lure continues...

Regs

Pete

Pete, you and Kyle have had a bad run of breakages....the only lures I've broken were soft plastics :grin:

[Awoonga]

Hi Matt, I have the photo you wanted, also took the opportunity to show a far superior lure than the 12, these lures have caught a couple of fish, I hope the teeth marks show up. Since I don't post much I thought I'd slip in a photo of a rather unhappy camper, if only your backbone jigs would stick into barra as easily as they stuck into Trev. Not a casting error but the result of a barra throwing the hooks near the boat on the strike.
Cheers scott. Gabe did a fantastic job. It didnt hurt a bit . The part that hurt was losing the custom rod and reel. You see l felt this sting in my arm so l put the rod down to see what had got me ! As we where inspecting the damage the rod and reel just slipped over the side.

[Steve B]

Hi Matt, I have the photo you wanted, also took the opportunity to show a far superior lure than the 12, these lures have caught a couple of fish, I hope the teeth marks show up. Since I don't post much I thought I'd slip in a photo of a rather unhappy camper, if only your backbone jigs would stick into barra as easily as they stuck into Trev. Not a casting error but the result of a barra throwing the hooks near the boat on the strike.
Cheers scott.

Scotty, them is some pretty loved jointeds mate!! I have a few with no where near as many scars, but have been more effective than the 12's....actually, I will goout on a limb and say I am not a fan of the 12's for casting at all!!!....I cant get a really good action slow rolling...they deffinately need some pace...compared to a B52 or jointed Xrap for example.....Trolling, I love them though. What I define as slow rolling maybe different to others...but its slow...not pausing to create slow.

Steve

2many lures, I have 1 of them, as you said, most tackleshops wont stock them, I got mine OS on the WWW too. To be honest, I have been lacking in my use of the lure...you have spurred me to give it more of a run this year. cheers mate

[NAGG]

Hi All

I Finally get a chance to get back on line (Sydney office) - talk about withdrawrals:wreck:

Great to see the thread progressing with some good info & ideas!

Matts modifications to the X Rap are similar to what I tried on my last Mondy trip with just a couple of variations
1 - my wire (coated) runs through the sacrificial split at the rear anchor point. A flemmish eye is used at the treble before the wire is crimped - the treble extends around 1cm further behind the rear of the lure
2 - I used a tiny elastic band at the rear of the lure to keep the wire close to the lures body to reduce foul ups of the treble in the wire!

This set up worked - with no noticeable effect on the lures action - ( the lure still suspended with the lighter coated wire)
3 fish were hooked - 1 landed & 2 lost (bricked & gill raked) - but the hooks held :smiley:
A little bit more work will go into it - but its certainly worth working on

Chris

[NAGG]

What are you insinuating? :undecided: I resemble that remark :rolleyes:

i haven't bought a lure for about ten minutes :wink:

Rob Gadens New Warlocks :smiley: Well I needed some! :huh:
I didn't have any :tongue:

How could you take any offence when you openly show everyone the gazillion unopened lures in your boat .......... gotta be known as a Daryl purchase :wink:

Chris

[NAGG]

Nice efforts there Matt. Now you have an excuse to come up here and test them out. I'd personally wait for another month or so till it cools off properly, I always find it difficult fishing during the months while it is cooling but once it's consistently cold the fishing gets easier.

To answer the first question of whether it's worth the money I'd say a definite yes, and the 3 tackle boxes full of xraps attest to this. Unlike the rest of you I haven't ever had a 12 break, but I've only landed 50 or so fish on this lure as I use the jointed or the 14 predominantly and haven't ever had them fail. Maybe it's my softly softly approach that does it?
Another wooden shallow lure is the rapala long cast. I don't personally use it but a friend of mine who like fishing shallow water always tries to steal it.
cheers scott.

Hey Scotty

you must be one hell of a lucky bloke to have not destroyed a XR12 - :smiley: & I certainly dont think that the softly softly has anything to do with it ...... like you mention in another post - its the jaw opening pressure that does the big damage ( top & bottom jaw hook up or gill rakers & jaw ) - just so much pressure when they open their mouth

Chris

[matt fraser]

Hi Matt, I have the photo you wanted, also took the opportunity to show a far superior lure than the 12, these lures have caught a couple of fish, I hope the teeth marks show up. Since I don't post much I thought I'd slip in a photo of a rather unhappy camper, if only your backbone jigs would stick into barra as easily as they stuck into Trev. Not a casting error but the result of a barra throwing the hooks near the boat on the strike.
Cheers scott.

Thanks for sharing that tip on rigging the 12s Scott, and those jointed are seriously battle scarred! Awesome!

Geez the other pic is a bit of a gut turner, I heard Gabe got the job done with the knife, as her husband couldn't handle the (human) blood..... Not a pretty picture.

Cheers,

matt

[matt fraser]

Hi All

I Finally get a chance to get back on line (Sydney office) - talk about withdrawrals:wreck:

Great to see the thread progressing with some good info & ideas!

Matts modifications to the X Rap are similar to what I tried on my last Mondy trip with just a couple of variations
1 - my wire (coated) runs through the sacrificial split at the rear anchor point. A flemmish eye is used at the treble before the wire is crimped - the treble extends around 1cm further behind the rear of the lure
2 - I used a tiny elastic band at the rear of the lure to keep the wire close to the lures body to reduce foul ups of the treble in the wire!

This set up worked - with no noticeable effect on the lures action - ( the lure still suspended with the lighter coated wire)
3 fish were hooked - 1 landed & 2 lost (bricked & gill raked) - but the hooks held :smiley:
A little bit more work will go into it - but its certainly worth working on

Chris

Good to hear they still work modded like this, pity to have to do it, But it should save having to retire a lure after a fish.

Got a pic of your set up?

Matt

[NAGG]

Good to hear they still work modded like this, pity to have to do it, But it should save having to retire a lure after a fish.

Got a pic of your set up?

Matt

Yeh Matt - They worked

wont be able to put up a photo till I get back to Brissy in two & a half weeks .... but will

chris

[darylive]

How could you take any offence when you openly show everyone the gazillion unopened lures in your boat .......... gotta be known as a Daryl purchase :wink:

Chris

No offence taken mate, :wink:

I had to chuckle having just put in an order for more barra tackle and as you say most of them are unused. :tongue:

It is a bit like the old All Bran! You don't have to need more lures to buy more lures because if you buy more lures you will never need them :rolleyes:

[NAGG]

When it comes to barra lures - Is it a case of size matters ?

I know I have a preference for 100 - 120mm placcies & HBs but have had at times instant success when changing up ( super size me) ...... Maybe its a case of when the fish are not active & something larger (worth the energy expended) passes by - a barra will have a go at it! (XR14s & 6" Storm Suspending shads come to mind for this winter ........ lures that can be worked slowly & subtly)

Just a thought :rolleyes:

Chris

[BR65]

When times are tuff I tend to down size, working on the "jelly bean" theory?

[NAGG]

When times are tuff I tend to down size, working on the "jelly bean" theory?

I've had success with the downsizing approach too - but a more noticeable result with the supersized approach! particularly at Mondy & Faust .

Chris

[nipsta]

Wow this is a great thread keep it gong im enjoying all the rigging ideas and lures chioces .
I must say i have 2 of my favorite hard bodys are the arafura (naths got me onto them) Great action . Not much needed to be done to get them to suspend .
Killalure barra baits i have had great succes on them over the years so i alway keep using them .

I just wonder how many have every tried a cotton cordell super spot 4 inch model they where one of the best lures for barrra up north years and years ago .
Im like darryl if there something out there thats new i got to have it bad or good idea not to sure hurts the bank balance . BUt i still use what has always worked other then the plastic side of things im just starting to use them alot more when ig et to do a trip but that last trip hooking 3 and landing one has made me lead towars them a bit more . But what from i gather the fish slow down in the cooler months so the lures with a rattle may be the go to bring them out off the woods works to get a strike .


Has anyone try the stiffy divers 130 range i have been keen to try them and see how they go i have used the boney and hooked up to then loose the beast beside the boat but i see they have a diver lure and looks really good

[NAGG]

Wow this is a great thread keep it gong im enjoying all the rigging ideas and lures chioces .
I must say i have 2 of my favorite hard bodys are the arafura (naths got me onto them) Great action . Not much needed to be done to get them to suspend .
Killalure barra baits i have had great succes on them over the years so i alway keep using them .

I just wonder how many have every tried a cotton cordell super spot 4 inch model they where one of the best lures for barrra up north years and years ago .
Im like darryl if there something out there thats new i got to have it bad or good idea not to sure hurts the bank balance . BUt i still use what has always worked other then the plastic side of things im just starting to use them alot more when ig et to do a trip but that last trip hooking 3 and landing one has made me lead towars them a bit more . But what from i gather the fish slow down in the cooler months so the lures with a rattle may be the go to bring them out off the woods works to get a strike .


Has anyone try the stiffy divers 130 range i have been keen to try them and see how they go i have used the boney and hooked up to then loose the beast beside the boat but i see they have a diver lure and looks really good

Hi Simon

I like the Stiffy divers - with a little work , you can get then to suspend nicely.
What I like about them is that they can be cranked down quickly - but their profile gives them that nice erratic action when twitched ....... also its not a chore to use (little resistance) - A great place to use them is on the edge of creek beds or deep weed edges when casting parallel ..... During last winter I would always have a rod rigged with one for fishing the deeper protected bays :smiley:

I could only imagine how many barra have been caught on barra baits & Arafuras - they certainly were a staple over many years - along with the Classic 120 & Viper ........ & probably still are ! - Personally I feel that these lures were primarily designed for trolling & dont have the action when fished with the current casting techniques used ( twitch & pause - suspend) ...... not saying that they dont catch fish - but compare the trolling results to casting & you'll see where I'm coming from:huh:

Chris

[warrior]

I did what brian does,and downsized the other day up the river,after having the 2 good sessions and arriving to see a little bit of flow still there, i thru in the usual x12s,arafuras,slickies in 100 and 110mm for 45 minutes with no success i downsized to a tn60 jackall to see if any bass were there ,first cast into same area hook up to a 790mm barra.i must have put the other lures past it 20 times but the barra lolly was all it needed .a bit hairy though with those tiny trebles on it:smiley:

[BR65]

Feed back from Saturdays trip.
Tied off, I threw a suspending X Rap for maybe 1/2 an hour for zilch, changed to a suspending B52 that sat higher in the water colum, and also has a more eratic action (I tend to work it harder on the twitch, more of a rip I spose). 3rd cast and its hammered by a very big fish, burnt in the memory bank, only saw the shoulders of that one.
Bit later on, change of color from natural (Bunker) to fluro flash (Hot Steel) saw a fish in 2 casts, after maybe 30 casts prev with the natural. No change in location, technique, retrieve speed or lure type, just colour.

[warrior]

brian when changing to different colored lures is it a light thing or water clarity or do you just try them till one works in those hard sessions ,i find it difficult some times to work out when to do this

[Peter4]

Me too Al...

When I do change colour I tend to be radical. For example with Xraps I will change from a natural colour like silver, olive or gold to a loud colour such as orange/yellow (hothead) or bright green (clown)....

Seems to work on occasion...

[BR65]

Al, I dunno mate. Like most, in dirty water I go fluro, clear water I go natural.
The Hot Steel is a compromise between the two I spose. It has that gold side, dark top, flash of orange fluro under.
That fish really got Noel and I talking. Was it siting there all along and not interested till the colour change, was it sitting there all along and finally I annoyed it enough to trigger a response, was it just passing thru????????
It was deep mouth hooked, lure going down head first, so it commited to the lure.
Anyways, I now have a definate opinion on whether colour makes a difference.

[BR65]

Old pic, but dont see to many bait fish on the water with that colouring.
That pig 119 Nath got a couple of weeks ago was on fluro (Clown I thunk) in clean water.
I do so love it when they go down head first.

[nipsta]

I did what brian does,and downsized the other day up the river,after having the 2 good sessions and arriving to see a little bit of flow still there, i thru in the usual x12s,arafuras,slickies in 100 and 110mm for 45 minutes with no success i downsized to a tn60 jackall to see if any bass were there ,first cast into same area hook up to a 790mm barra.i must have put the other lures past it 20 times but the barra lolly was all it needed .a bit hairy though with those tiny trebles on it:smiley:


dont worry i have beefed the cotton cordells hooks up size 1 treble on the rear and size 2 on the front :grin:

[Peter4]

I do so love it when they go down head first.

Except getting them out!:angry::wink:

[BR65]

dont worry i have beefed the cotton cordells hooks up size 1 treble on the rear and size 2 on the front :grin:

Nippa, I remember reading about the Cordells smacking fish in the NT years ago. Dont hear about them in the ponds, least I havent, some one else may have, why not give em a go.
Ive got a couple along those lines, Rapala Rattlin Clack or something, as well as some over sized Megabass lipless cranks, that I want to try jigging thru bottom hugging fish next time I see them on the sounder.

[BR65]

9" pointy nose pliers Pete, and the only time I use lip grippers now days, hold the mouth open and keep my fingers clear

[darylive]

I do so love it when they go down head first.

Well who doesn't :tongue: : and the same can be said for lures :wink:

[nipsta]

I will bring some up with me that i have for sale on ebay and also to anyone who wants to purchase them also have some blade lures from cotton cordell but thats a hole other story so bring ya wallets lol
Sorrry to hijack chris just wanted to get it out there

[Obi _ Wan]

Well who doesn't :tongue: : and the same can be said for lures :wink:
Love yah work Dazz lol

[NAGG]

Feed back from Saturdays trip.
Tied off, I threw a suspending X Rap for maybe 1/2 an hour for zilch, changed to a suspending B52 that sat higher in the water colum, and also has a more eratic action (I tend to work it harder on the twitch, more of a rip I spose). 3rd cast and its hammered by a very big fish, burnt in the memory bank, only saw the shoulders of that one.
Bit later on, change of color from natural (Bunker) to fluro flash (Hot Steel) saw a fish in 2 casts, after maybe 30 casts prev with the natural. No change in location, technique, retrieve speed or lure type, just colour.

So an X Rap does it again :tongue:

So tell me , Is the X Rap the best HB barra lure on the market :huh: - IMO It is!

Chris

[NAGG]

Me too Al...

When I do change colour I tend to be radical. For example with Xraps I will change from a natural colour like silver, olive or gold to a loud colour such as orange/yellow (hothead) or bright green (clown)....

Seems to work on occasion...

Its interesting Pete ...... both Brian & yourself use the louder colours and get results - I dont seem to get results other than on Golds , silvers , hot steel & my favorite Olive - admittedly by the time I've gone through this rotation I've usually had some interest.
I might have to give the garish ones a go - next time :tongue: gotta love this freshwater chat!

Chris

[Peter4]

Its interesting Pete ...... both Brian & yourself use the louder colours and get results - I dont seem to get results other than on Golds , silvers , hot steel & my favorite Olive - admittedly by the time I've gone through this rotation I've usually had some interest.
I might have to give the garish ones a go - next time :tongue: gotta love this freshwater chat!

Chris

Yeah Chris - last trip I rotated all of the 'natural' colours over 2 hours in the one spot for 1 cattie on a silver Xrap. Tied on the hot head (orange/yellow) threw it in, twitched it once and was monstered. Unfortunately the braid snapped on the strike and my only Xrap in this colour was goooonne...

Regs

Pete

[NAGG]

Yeah Chris - last trip I rotated all of the 'natural' colours over 2 hours in the one spot for 1 cattie on a silver Xrap. Tied on the hot head (orange/yellow) threw it in, twitched it once and was monstered. Unfortunately the braid snapped on the strike and my only Xrap in this colour was goooonne...

Regs

Pete


Yeh see - thats why! - I rotate through various lure styles before I go down the path of colour changes .
So I might fish a point that has depth of 1 - 4 M & rotate through an X Rap , slick rig , hollowbelly , Storm Suspending shad & possibly a frog (depending on topography) - I then may throw a B52 / Stiffy twitch bait / or storm swim shad .... before I do a colour change on the X Rap :smiley: probably because I feel confident whenever I throw those natural X Raps !

It actually makes for an interesting topic on what , how & why people select lures or fish a certain way

Chris

[Peter4]

Chris - this was on day 2 of a spot that gave us 15 hook-ups and 7 fish the day before.

We were 'conditioned' by this stage and as a result we were:

1. Reluctant to move and;
2. Unwilling to change the style of lures that worked the previous day.

I stuck to Xraps and just changed colours. My colour selection was limited as I had lost 4 Xraps already! Kyle stuck to his bombers (confidence).

I did not throw a plastic or surface presentation for the whole day and a half!

Maybe I shouda!

Regs

Pete

[NAGG]

Chris - this was on day 2 of a spot that gave us 15 hook-ups and 7 fish the day before.

We were 'conditioned' by this stage and as a result we were:

1. Reluctant to move and;
2. Unwilling to change the style of lures that worked the previous day.

I stuck to Xraps and just changed colours. My colour selection was limited as I had lost 4 Xraps already! Kyle stuck to his bombers (confidence).

I did not throw a plastic or surface presentation for the whole day and a half!

Maybe I shouda!

Regs

Pete


Interesting ........
i've had trips where a certain lure / placcy was working ..... and probably shouldn't have changed - but did & the results improved considerably.
I certainly like to keep my options open

Chris

[warrior]

nipsta mentioned he uses the cotton cordells ,i have been switch hitting with those for years,after flogging an area with the usual hard bodies and softies i would change to my 75mm cordells with unbeleivable results at times ,awoonga is one dam that fires big time on these lures (TREV KNOWS ABOUT THEM )they are the ones that arent made any more with one bearing in them ,they handle the big girls well too biggest being 114cm,was devastated last week found my favourate blown up due to heat.

[Steve B]

Al,

I got a older style rapala lipless crank that has got me a few fish up at awoonga. I used to cast it to the weed bed, let it sink than twitch it back out....had some good results a few years back in an ABT prefish...and on another occassion after that.

Foxie has some cheapo trollcraft ones that I have been toying with too....booored a hole in one, bit of glue to kill the rattles...its caught Mondy fish. Works better than the rattling one exactly the same.

Cheers steve

[warrior]

steve i have got a couple of the newer rattlin spots that had heaps of bearings in them ,i drilled out 2 areas to remove all the bearings then put 1big one in each hole it made a great difference to the sound ,yet to use them ,really keen to see how they will go up at mondy and awoonga soon ,the pic shows the end result, you can see the filled holes in the side covered with reflective tape i hope it doesnt show up too much in the water to effect the color ,it shouldnt i would think

[nipsta]

wow warrior great shots . Yeah i got a few beefed up for this journey i rekon that maybe rather then quiet in winter the rattle may lure hahaha them to teh super spots \. Well thats my theory i hope it works and i have a box full of them so i wont run out in a while

[matt fraser]

Feed back from Saturdays trip.
Tied off, I threw a suspending X Rap for maybe 1/2 an hour for zilch, changed to a suspending B52 that sat higher in the water colum, and also has a more eratic action (I tend to work it harder on the twitch, more of a rip I spose). 3rd cast and its hammered by a very big fish, burnt in the memory bank, only saw the shoulders of that one.
Bit later on, change of color from natural (Bunker) to fluro flash (Hot Steel) saw a fish in 2 casts, after maybe 30 casts prev with the natural. No change in location, technique, retrieve speed or lure type, just colour.

Nice colour, check out this for a trashed Hot Steel!

Cheers,

Matt

[BR65]

Nice Matt, how big was the culprit??

[BR65]

So an X Rap does it again :tongue:

So tell me , Is the X Rap the best HB barra lure on the market :huh: - IMO It is!

Chris

Jury is still out for me mate.
They certainly have a very valuable place in the tackle box, but truth be known, the ol trusty gold B52 sees plenty of fish as well.
It sits higher in the water (a bonus when targetting a fish with up-ward looking eyes), can be rigged to suspend, casts like a bullet, doesnt break easilly, and is a reasonable cost.
Every situation is asessed on what is in front of you at the time (Im thinking your jigged fish off the bottom and the fizzer fishoff the surface in the same few days in the same locale at back of Jacks), so the raps arent the absolute silver bullet, but a pretty damn handy cartridge to have in the magazine.
I dunno, just keep on casting I reckon, something will eat it sooner or later!

[NAGG]

Jury is still out for me mate.
They certainly have a very valuable place in the tackle box, but truth be known, the ol trusty gold B52 sees plenty of fish as well.
It sits higher in the water (a bonus when targetting a fish with up-ward looking eyes), can be rigged to suspend, casts like a bullet, doesnt break easilly, and is a reasonable cost.
Every situation is asessed on what is in front of you at the time (Im thinking your jigged fish off the bottom and the fizzer fishoff the surface in the same few days in the same locale at back of Jacks), so the raps arent the absolute silver bullet, but a pretty damn handy cartridge to have in the magazine.
I dunno, just keep on casting I reckon, something will eat it sooner or later!


Thanks Brian

& your absolutely right ..... the X Rap isn't a silver bullet bacause it cannot cover every situation .... like you mentioned the deep jigged fish or surface barra rolling in flotsom + other situations! - So I wont be claiming a silver bullet either.
What I do like about them - against other gar profile lures is as opposed to your train of thought of sitting higher in the water column - is the fact that the max operating depth is deeper ( 6 ish feet) - I find that this attribute allows me to follow the contour of shallow bays & points better than a lure that tracks level ( bomber & B52). Considering that I more often than not fish that 1 - 4 M depth I feel I'm in the strike zone longer.
Then you have to love the flash of an X Rap + add to that , good sonics , cast quite well & have a very good side to side action ....... that pushes it to the top for me as a barra catching lure. The fact that they often get ripped apart becomes irrelevant when you are looking at a lump of chrome on the brag mat.

I was a bit hesitant to give the Rap the big thumbs up - however the continued success achieved by other anglers is certainly noted ......... but I dont think that its a case of everyone ditching their bombers , B52s , Ecogears etc either.

Chris

[matt fraser]

Thanks Brian

& your absolutely right ..... the X Rap isn't a silver bullet bacause it cannot cover every situation .... like you mentioned the deep jigged fish or surface barra rolling in flotsom + other situations! - So I wont be claiming a silver bullet either.
What I do like about them - against other gar profile lures is as opposed to your train of thought of sitting higher in the water column - is the fact that the max operating depth is deeper ( 6 ish feet) - I find that this attribute allows me to follow the contour of shallow bays & points better than a lure that tracks level ( bomber & B52). Considering that I more often than not fish that 1 - 4 M depth I feel I'm in the strike zone longer.
Then you have to love the flash of an X Rap + add to that , good sonics , cast quite well & have a very good side to side action ....... that pushes it to the top for me as a barra catching lure. The fact that they often get ripped apart becomes irrelevant when you are looking at a lump of chrome on the brag mat.

I was a bit hesitant to give the Rap the big thumbs up - however the continued success achieved by other anglers is certainly noted ......... but I dont think that its a case of everyone ditching their bombers , B52s , Ecogears etc either.

Chris

My thought - XRap Depth & Sonics

I agree with you chris on the depth, on my last Mondy trip, the water was very clear, and when retrieving bombers, sarunas and B52s I could see them all the way to the boat, which just didn't give me confidence. The XRap was running that bit deeper putting it out of sight. That said, both hits I got were nearly at the boat, as the XRap was coming up, I saw both fish materialise behind the lure and eat it! pretty special!

Sonics, I believe that 12s are relatively silent unless you really work them really hard. I've done an autopsy on a destroyed SXR 12 there are two big ball bearings with a plastic keeper and pin that drops into a recess at either end, to stop them from rolling from one end of the chamber to the other easily. The weight (two big ball bearings) are designed to slide to the end on the cast for improved casting distance. You then need to wack the lure hard to get the balls to move forward into the front chamber - which is also necessary to balance the lure.

So when you work them hard with a double twitch/wack the lure will make two or three loud clunks unlike a bomber/B52 which is a heap of smaller balls rattling around inside a hollow body chamber.

If you work them with smaller twitches, I don't think there will be much noise at all in an X Rap, but the bomber/B52 balls will still rattle around.

So Chris, I'm with you in thinking that key elements in the X Raps elevated success rate is their running depth and sonics, their action and flash are also great!

Great thread, but Geez I gotta get to Mondy soon!

BTW Brian the destoyed lure pic was 'borrowed' from a mate, I believe it was a 105cm

Cheers,

Matt

[NAGG]

My thought - XRap Depth & Sonics

I agree with you chris on the depth, on my last Mondy trip, the water was very clear, and when retrieving bombers, sarunas and B52s I could see them all the way to the boat, which just didn't give me confidence. The XRap was running that bit deeper putting it out of sight. That said, both hits I got were nearly at the boat, as the XRap was coming up, I saw both fish materialise behind the lure and eat it! pretty special!

Sonics, I believe that 12s are relatively silent unless you really work them really hard. I've done an autopsy on a destroyed SXR 12 there are two big ball bearings with a plastic keeper and pin that drops into a recess at either end, to stop them from rolling from one end of the chamber to the other easily. The weight (two big ball bearings) are designed to slide to the end on the cast for improved casting distance. You then need to wack the lure hard to get the balls to move forward into the front chamber - which is also necessary to balance the lure.

So when you work them hard with a double twitch/wack the lure will make two or three loud clunks unlike a bomber/B52 which is a heap of smaller balls rattling around inside a hollow body chamber.

If you work them with smaller twitches, I don't think there will be much noise at all in an X Rap, but the bomber/B52 balls will still rattle around.

So Chris, I'm with you in thinking that key elements in the X Raps elevated success rate is their running depth and sonics, their action and flash are also great!

Great thread, but Geez I gotta get to Mondy soon!

BTW Brian the destoyed lure pic was 'borrowed' from a mate, I believe it was a 105cm

Cheers,

Matt

Thanks Matt

I did my autopsy too ........ and as you mention - the bearings are for flight stabilisation rather than a rattle ! ( they tick rather than rattle during a twitch ) -
They are quite intricate inside & it also explains why they fail ( utrasonically welded 2 piece body). ....... interesting stuff

Chris

PS .... Are you coming to the CM ??

[NAGG]

My thought - XRap Depth & Sonics

I agree with you chris on the depth, on my last Mondy trip, the water was very clear, and when retrieving bombers, sarunas and B52s I could see them all the way to the boat, which just didn't give me confidence. The XRap was running that bit deeper putting it out of sight. That said, both hits I got were nearly at the boat, as the XRap was coming up, I saw both fish materialise behind the lure and eat it! pretty special!



Cheers,

Matt

Hi Matt

With all the barra that I have caught on an X Rap - I would say 90% would have come in the first 10-15% of the retrieve distance - with the remainder coming within the first 50% - I certainly haven't had a hit anywhere near the boat ........ unlike plastics :huh: So i'm wondering if I should be working the X Rap all the way - all the time ........ where as I probably often burn & end the retrieve too early atm.
Something to think about right there !

Chris

[matt fraser]

Those two hits were the first two I've ever seen whilst impoundment barra fishing. Like you, most hits are usually in the first 10 - 30 % of the retrieve.

I definitely burn the plastics back in from half way back. Not so much with HBs...?

I'm very shakey for the CM unfortunately!

Cheers,

Matt

[BR65]

Chris, Noel was patiently working a Rap back, when 2 eyes materialized out of no where at his feet, then disapeared, no swirl or indication the fish had followed the lure, just the eyes being seen.

Lately Ive developed a habit of burning that last few meters, but stopping and stalling for a few seconds right at my feet, try and con those late followers who boil at the back of the boat

[NAGG]

Chris, Noel was patiently working a Rap back, when 2 eyes materialized out of no where at his feet, then disapeared, no swirl or indication the fish had followed the lure, just the eyes being seen.

Lately Ive developed a habit of burning that last few meters, but stopping and stalling for a few seconds right at my feet, try and con those late followers who boil at the back of the boat

That's the thing with barra fishing hey - you more often than not have no idea that you've had a follower - till bang ! ...... I've had some awesome short lead takes ( last trip with the stalker was a prime example)

Chris

[BR65]

The stalker. We came across her twin sister on what used to be Bent Tree on Sat arvo, very entertaining, nearly drove Noel nuts.
Front sounder was pinging away, makes ya wonder......

[NAGG]

The stalker. We came across her twin sister on what used to be Bent Tree on Sat arvo, very entertaining, nearly drove Noel nuts.
Front sounder was pinging away, makes ya wonder......

Same area brother - within 200M

Yep - 2 sounders pinging away ......... was the barra attracted to it ? - Maybe , specially when she often rolled right at the bow mount :huh:

Certainly had us scratching our head and goes against certain popular train of thought .

Chris

[NAGG]

So its become quite clear that many see value of a $25 HB lure that is a consistent producer of barra - despite the fragility ........ aka X Rap!

So moving over to the flip side

How do people value their soft plastics
I've heard plenty of people whine about the cost of the hollow type swim baits. Ive even seen someone go into print complaining about the cost of a well known variant ! ......... $8 each from memory :rolleyes:

Now ..... the reality is that these types of plastics work , they are proven but are also often a 1 fish lure ( sometimes they can be fixed) - Unfortunately the local catfish are also keen and often ruin these offerings.

With winter barra fishing - the soft plastics swim baits are often ignored in favor of our favorite suspending hardbodies - well I saw enough last winter to make sure that those hollow swimbaits are given a run this winter (particularly on those warmer afternoons) ....... $5 is money well spent

Chris

[davez104]

I don't really have anything valuable to add to the discussion, but I'll buy in anyway. I find it funny with the amount of money we spend on boats, rods, reels, braided line etc, along with travel costs and accomodation, only to baulk at the price tag of a lure that's a bit higher than the norm. The lure is the only bit the fish cares about, the only thing the fish sees, the rest of the expense is purely to deliver that lure to a waiting fish. It strikes me as odd that we put all our money into stuff that the fish couldn't give a rats about, (hey, I'm as guilty of this as anyone else, just seems to be the way we are wired), not to say that there is no advantage in all the better, more expensive gear, but why compromise the money we have already spent by not putting the best possible offering on the end of it? If an x-rap has the qualities that allow it to be fished in the right zone, at the right speed, with the right action to entice a barra to eat, then it's gotta be worth the purchase price. What value do you put on a 70-80cm barra when the fishing is tough? Certainly more than the cost of a couple of x-raps.

I'm only just getting back into the impoundment barra scene, so am a bit lost at the moment. Winter fishing never used to get a mention. The best we could hope for was some early spring fish up in the shallow gullys on bombers and B52's. Used to catch our fair share too. Maybe those tactics will still work when the warmer weather rolls around, but at the moment, I'm struggling. Nothing a bit of time on the water shouldn't fix though.

I've been watching this thread and enjoying the conversation for a while now, thanks for all the valuable info.

Cheers,
Dave.

[2manylures]

So its become quite clear that many see value of a $25 HB lure that is a consistent producer of barra - despite the fragility ........

Chris

Chris,

I have several hundred timber lures made specifically for Murray Cod that cost me less than 1/2 what you blokes are paying for X-raps. Very few of these hand made lures are worth what I paid for them and don't go the distance. I don't believe the luremakers who made them have used their own products very much as they are absolute rubbish. Now I have seen some of these lures in shops for over $30 a pop.

I'm pissed at having useless sticks in my possession at a fraction of what others can & do pay for as retail propositions.

For me, if a particular item is designed to do something then it bloody well should.

Obviously if things are being modified & used in excess of their breaking point then that's another issue. Having said that & being a big Rapala fan I would think with a reputation as big as Rapala has on a world-wide scale that the products they're selling should go the distance.

I will say though that I'm not a fan of their "glass' lures {their term for plastic} & never have been.

[2manylures]

I don't really have anything valuable to add to the discussion, but I'll buy in anyway. I find it funny with the amount of money we spend on boats, rods, reels, braided line etc, along with travel costs and accomodation, only to baulk at the price tag of a lure that's a bit higher than the norm. The lure is the only bit the fish cares about, the only thing the fish sees, the rest of the expense is purely to deliver that lure to a waiting fish. It strikes me as odd that we put all our money into stuff that the fish couldn't give a rats about, (hey, I'm as guilty of this as anyone else, just seems to be the way we are wired), not to say that there is no advantage in all the better, more expensive gear, but why compromise the money we have already spent by not putting the best possible offering on the end of it?



I've been watching this thread and enjoying the conversation for a while now, thanks for all the valuable info.

Cheers,
Dave.

Dave, bearing in mind I'm a huge Rapala fan, I feel the X-rap is a compromise, it is the weak link under the circumstances.

It doesn't matter what species of fish we target, we all check & double check leaders, knots, drags, rods, reels everything to make sure they're up to the task yet some are prepared to accept a lure that's not up to scratch.

It doesn't make a lot of sense.

[NAGG]

I don't really have anything valuable to add to the discussion, but I'll buy in anyway. I find it funny with the amount of money we spend on boats, rods, reels, braided line etc, along with travel costs and accomodation, only to baulk at the price tag of a lure that's a bit higher than the norm. The lure is the only bit the fish cares about, the only thing the fish sees, the rest of the expense is purely to deliver that lure to a waiting fish. It strikes me as odd that we put all our money into stuff that the fish couldn't give a rats about, (hey, I'm as guilty of this as anyone else, just seems to be the way we are wired), not to say that there is no advantage in all the better, more expensive gear, but why compromise the money we have already spent by not putting the best possible offering on the end of it? If an x-rap has the qualities that allow it to be fished in the right zone, at the right speed, with the right action to entice a barra to eat, then it's gotta be worth the purchase price. What value do you put on a 70-80cm barra when the fishing is tough? Certainly more than the cost of a couple of x-raps.

I'm only just getting back into the impoundment barra scene, so am a bit lost at the moment. Winter fishing never used to get a mention. The best we could hope for was some early spring fish up in the shallow gullys on bombers and B52's. Used to catch our fair share too. Maybe those tactics will still work when the warmer weather rolls around, but at the moment, I'm struggling. Nothing a bit of time on the water shouldn't fix though.

I've been watching this thread and enjoying the conversation for a while now, thanks for all the valuable info.

Cheers,
Dave.

Dave

mate , you've just made your contribution ....... & spot on with the intent of this thread :cool: A Lures true value
That little piece of plastic or wood ..... in combination with our instinct and technique is what will bring us success or failure.

Chris

[NAGG]

Chris,

I have several hundred timber lures made specifically for Murray Cod that cost me less than 1/2 what you blokes are paying for X-raps. Very few of these hand made lures are worth what I paid for them and don't go the distance. I don't believe the luremakers who made them have used their own products very much as they are absolute rubbish. Now I have seen some of these lures in shops for over $30 a pop.

I'm pissed at having useless sticks in my possession at a fraction of what others can & do pay for as retail propositions.

For me, if a particular item is designed to do something then it bloody well should.

Obviously if things are being modified & used in excess of their breaking point then that's another issue. Having said that & being a big Rapala fan I would think with a reputation as big as Rapala has on a world-wide scale that the products they're selling should go the distance.

I will say though that I'm not a fan of their "glass' lures {their term for plastic} & never have been.


Just a clarification Dave
We actually dont loose fish because of the failures - The failures come on the back of solidly hooked fish .
I did mention before - our hook upgrades play a major part in the failures - there is little or no give in our STN66s and so the ass end gets pulled out .

Chris

[2manylures]

Chris, I was aware of that mate.

Part of where I'm coming from is the fact that many lure manufacturers fit cheap substandard hardware to lures.

SXR is the saltwater version which are also dying in the rear along with the jointed lures splitting and leaking or merely failing for whatever reason.

We all know the salt has a lot of tougher, toothier fish that the fresh and in most cases the saltwater gear used is much heavier. Having said that I would feel comfortable that the upgrades being done would still fall in line with the lures capability to be used in much harsher conditions being the salt.

Unfortunately in many cases the only difference between a saltwater & freshwater lures is simply the hooks used.

Here's an example showing a couple of 14cm Husky Jerks the green mullet being a SW series whilst the glass minnow is a FW version. Only difference is hooks. Bomber do the same.

[brisbane_boy]

how much better do these rapalas work than the hollowbellys everyone raved about late last year?

[DEANO68]

how much better do these rapalas work than the hollowbellys everyone raved about late last year?

the x- raps willl work all year round, you have the option to vary your retrieve alot more with them...come winter when slow is the go , you can pause them for ever...where the hollows are more a constant wind......
dont get me wrong, i hooked fish on slow retrieved hollows last winter, and will throw them again this winter.

so this time of year yep, any suspending hb, especially the x - rap, are a go too..

deano..:cool:

[NAGG]

how much better do these rapalas work than the hollowbellys everyone raved about late last year?

There is the trouble BB - Both work extremely well & I would not like to say which worked better over the last 12 months
So much so - that I would have 1 rod rigged with each + another rigged with a slick rig

On last years ABT tour (prefish & comp) ..... plastics caught all my fish at Teemburra
only 1 fish was landed on an X Rap at Faust
My split was 50/50 at Awoonga
100% (4) fish were landed on X Raps at Mondy.

Chris

[Steve B]

how much better do these rapalas work than the hollowbellys everyone raved about late last year?


:grin::grin::grin: I like this one!!.....it cracks me each year theres new talk on different lures. Its a good thing, but I see the funny side of this. If the only lure thrown is an Xrap...what will the fish get caught on???

A BIG thing missed right from the start. Pete and Kyle fishing. Pete Xrap, Kyle B52.....who got the most fish, same area??? (sorry Pete!!)....point is, under same time same spot same conditions another lure outfished an Xrap.

I like Xraps about the same as hollowbellies. I will throw them on occassions. but they are far from a go to lure for me.

Whats the value in the lure??? about the same as the others that get rarely used, thus I only have 2 Xraps, X12's that is.

I am not digging at anything, I just think they are being 'overhyped' at the moment.

Steve

[NAGG]

:grin::grin::grin: I like this one!!.....it cracks me each year theres new talk on different lures. Its a good thing, but I see the funny side of this. If the only lure thrown is an Xrap...what will the fish get caught on???

A BIG thing missed right from the start. Pete and Kyle fishing. Pete Xrap, Kyle B52.....who got the most fish, same area??? (sorry Pete!!)....point is, under same time same spot same conditions another lure outfished an Xrap.

I like Xraps about the same as hollowbellies. I will throw them on occassions. but they are far from a go to lure for me.

Whats the value in the lure??? about the same as the others that get rarely used, thus I only have 2 Xraps, X12's that is.

I am not digging at anything, I just think they are being 'overhyped' at the moment.

Steve

Overhyped ?? ....... interesting Steve

maybe similar to a Mask Vibe on a bass , Evergreen little max on bass , nuc chicken on a snapper or SX40 on bream.

Yes there are now more people throwing raps at barra than there was 6 months ago ........ but thats only because those guys that thew the raps over the past 2 years were quietly catching fish ......... those that used the raps consistently caught fish on a regular basis ......... & the word got out ! -

Yes every now & then a lure is introduced that works that little bit better than the next lure!


Chris

[Peter4]

A BIG thing missed right from the start. Pete and Kyle fishing. Pete Xrap, Kyle B52.....who got the most fish, same area??? (sorry Pete!!)....point is, under same time same spot same conditions another lure outfished an Xrap.

Ahhhh but who got the most hook-ups Steve? I got 9 to Kyle's 8!:smiley:

In all seriousness though you are spot on...we were using Xraps as a trolling lure back in 2007 during another hot session. But we caught most of our fish on barra classics 3+ and predatek sandvipers!

Since then we have progressed (or regressed) through a huge range of hardbodies and plastics to end up throwing the same lure as three years ago. In fact 2 of the lost Xraps were over three years old!

Kyle has settled pretty much on bombers in shallow conditions while I like bombers, ridgeback torpedos and sarunas. In slightly deeper water I love Xraps and Richos extractors while Kyle still likes deeper barra classics or plastics.

When we fish for barra in June (for the first time) we will probably find something 'new' all over again. For me, it still comes back to confidence...

Regs

Pete

[Steve B]

Overhyped ?? ....... interesting Steve

maybe similar to a Mask Vibe on a bass , Evergreen little max on bass , nuc chicken on a snapper or SX40 on bream.

Yes there are now more people throwing raps at barra than there was 6 months ago ........ but thats only because those guys that thew the raps over the past 2 years were quietly catching fish ......... those that used the raps consistently caught fish on a regular basis ......... & the word got out ! -

Yes every now & then a lure is introduced that works that little bit better than the next lure!


Chris

Chris, Yes yes and yes on the bass and bream stuff. Regardless of lure, species or whatever....if the greatest percentage of lures chucked, the greater the numbers of fish caught on these lures. Just my thoughts.

Petes last line was the clincher 'for me it still comes back to confidence'

Give a man confidence in any lure...and he will catch fish. Well thats pretty bold assumption..but I believe it.

Steve

PS: I love trolling the X12's.....love them....nearly as much as a Viper!!:lipsrsealed::grin:

[NAGG]

Chris, Yes yes and yes on the bass and bream stuff. Regardless of lure, species or whatever....if the greatest percentage of lures chucked, the greater the numbers of fish caught on these lures. Just my thoughts.

Petes last line was the clincher 'for me it still comes back to confidence'

Give a man confidence in any lure...and he will catch fish. Well thats pretty bold assumption..but I believe it.

Steve

PS: I love trolling the X12's.....love them....nearly as much as a Viper!!:lipsrsealed::grin:

How often does one continue to cast a lure that they have no confidence in - serious question :huh:
I've even seen old mate throw his favorite slick rig & after a few casts cut it off , rummage through my tackle bag and choose another :rolleyes:

Without a doubt confidence is ultra important to all of us ...... otherwise we just wont throw it ( vipers with me)
Where does that confidence come from ? - my bet is that the lure / colour has caught you a fish. -

so where does perseverance come into it ? - My first 2 impoundment barra trips saw a lot of vipers cast for not a touch ...... it cast like a dog & was hard to work ....... then I caught a barra on a bobby dazzler classic & another on a gold river rat - all the sudden guess what is my confidence colour & lures :rolleyes: - Old mate bought himself a gold river rat for his first Mondy trip - bingo ! & that is his confidence barra HB ......... even though every other barra that he has caught since has been mostly on slick rigs.

Still on the perseverance thing - Storm suspending shads fell into that category for me. After seeing them used at Tinaroo in May 2008 ( Barraboss) and hearing how effective and popular they were up north
....... I grabbed some! Fortunately I got almost instant attention - though no hookups . This continued with about 10 missed fish over quite a few trips before I finally landed one after changing the hook configuration - my confidence was there , along with perseverance:smiley: Nowdays they are thrown on a regular basis.
Back to the X Rap thing ........ Since I constantly rotate through my lures / plastics (having 5 or even 6 rigged rods on hand) - success shines above confidence :tongue:

Chris

[NAGG]

BTW - A lure is only as good as the technique used! :wink:

Chris

[davez104]

BTW - A lure is only as good as the technique used! :wink:

Chris

And that comes into the confidence thing too Chris. Sometimes when you are throwing a lure that "supposedly" works, but you're not confident in, you go into a sort of autopilot mode when retrieving. You definitely won't put the most into it after the first few casts. Just think about the amount of effort you put into that first retrieve after a visible follow or missed strike, that's what we should be doing every cast.

Dave.

[NAGG]

And that comes into the confidence thing too Chris. Sometimes when you are throwing a lure that "supposedly" works, but you're not confident in, you go into a sort of autopilot mode when retrieving. You definitely won't put the most into it after the first few casts. Just think about the amount of effort you put into that first retrieve after a visible follow or missed strike, that's what we should be doing every cast.

Dave.

hi Dave

If I throw a lure & if it doesn't look , swim or feel right after a few casts - I cut it off & replace it ........ If its a new lure , I play around with the retrieve to see if I can get a better action - If I dont like what I see - its gone.
with hardbodies - I find it easier to maintain focus & intensity ...... but slow rolling a placcy and you certainly go into that autopilot mode ( thats why I started to introduce little rips & jiggles into my plastic retrieve)

Chris

[Steve B]

And that comes into the confidence thing too Chris. Sometimes when you are throwing a lure that "supposedly" works, but you're not confident in, you go into a sort of autopilot mode when retrieving. You definitely won't put the most into it after the first few casts. Just think about the amount of effort you put into that first retrieve after a visible follow or missed strike, that's what we should be doing every cast.

Dave.


Dave I totally agree with you on this. If your not confident, of have not had the success others have your effort and concentration will be down...when really it should be the other way round hey.

Another thing thats difficult, actually impossible to compare is people. Everyones action is different even when trying to mimick one and other. So I guess, some lures are suited to certain actions by certain folk..ie Kyle the barra slayer and his bombers, whitey and his unmodified slickies, sneaky brian and anything he throws...some lethal combinations!!!!:smiley:

I have found with the Xraps I cant get an action out of them at the slooow roll that I want from them...I cant feel the action at that pace...B52 and jointed Xraps I can, thus its confidence. Storm Susp shads, I have had good success with, but like Chris said, If it doesn't feel/swim right first few casts (and you can tell really easilly too) then its chopped off until I find one thats right....I have done this with Slickies, HB's, B52's need certain mods to get good action and suspension etc.... heaps of lures, actually most.....I dare say everyone does it these days.

Its where the fine tuning thing comes into..thus all the great tips here from the modificationists on here are great.

[Peter4]

Bloody hell this has turned out to be a great thread!

We spent a couple of hours modding all of our bombers with Matt Fraser on Wednesday night to eliminate the problem we had with losing fish due to rear eyelet failure.

It will now be very interesting to see how the modded bombers swim and any further fine tuning that will be required so Kyle gets the same level of confidence with them. I reckon one fish will make all the difference!

Fine tuning has become an art form in itself. Brass weights, sticky weight, different hooks/trebles, split rings, trimming weight, adding buoyancy, stinger hooks, boiling plastics etc etc. Some garages (like mine) are now looking like tackle workshops!

Love it all though!

Regs

Pete & Kyle

[NAGG]

Yeh Pete .... It is a good thread:cool:

What Steve has said about individual techniques is spot on - As Johnny Mitchell has said "lures have their optimum action" & we as anglers need to work that out!
Another less considered point is that the rod has a lot to do with the action - with a tip section that folds allowing greater side action & less of a straight pull through the water....... My Samurai 451 is the rod in my collection that works the X Rap best so its the one I always have an X Rap handing off - Yet a lure like a stiffy bony bream needs a stiff rod to give the best action .

So rod selection for particular lures is important too

Chris

[Peter4]

Very good point Chris - hardbodies with a very subtle vibration work better on a rod with a more flexible/softer tip.

Lures like barra classics that have a very pronounced action can be used on stiffer tipped rods. Like you I have particular rods for particular lures.

A good exercise is to try a lure on different rods to see what gives you the best result....

[2manylures]

Rob Gadens New Warlocks :smiley: Well I needed some! :huh:
I didn't have any :tongue:

Nice lures the Warlocks.

Some of Robbies other new creations aren't too bad either.

[BobbyJ123]

Odd innit??

When I lived in Kununurra, WA, I used to buy a dozen ABU 'killer' lures at a time for $20 and 10 Nilsies for $ 22. The 'killers' caught barra at the rate of about 6 to 1.
But that was 40 years ago and the barra were not 'switched on' to the nuances of lures:thumbsup:

[Whitto]

Odd innit??

When I lived in Kununurra, WA, I used to buy a dozen ABU 'killer' lures at a time for $20 and 10 Nilsies for $ 22. The 'killers' caught barra at the rate of about 6 to 1.
But that was 40 years ago and the barra were not 'switched on' to the nuances of lures:thumbsup:

There use to be an old saying 40yrs ago Bobby......If you cast an ABU "killer" for 20mins and not hook a Barra, they arn't there......I wish I could get my hands on a couple in the Black and Gold color......an excellent lure.

[NAGG]

Nice lures the Warlocks.

Some of Robbies other new creations aren't too bad either.

looks like a nice Salty barra lure that Warlock

Chris

[Pete62]

25% off Rapala lures @ B*F this week...............

[Pete62]

Ahhh, just went out to get some of these.

I saw the ad once on the telly last night but they were not on special at the store, dude told me they put the wrong ad up.

Sorry

Pete

[NAGG]

Ahhh, just went out to get some of these.

I saw the ad once on the telly last night but they were not on special at the store, dude told me they put the wrong ad up.

Sorry

Pete

Bugger Pete ......... lucky I landed some more after my last trip ( 2 lost to fish & 1 to a snag - ouch!)

Chris

[NAGG]

Speaking of those X Raps

Here is my modification using a break away system 59060

The wire is 21kg SURFLON MICRO ULTRA knottable stainless steel nylon coated (40lb Jinkai crimps) & small sacrificial split is used at the rear.

Hooks are #4 & #2 Owner STN66 - with original splits.

Its early days yet ..... but its held on a couple of meter fish (landed) & during fights with a couple of others - Time will tell

Chris

[snodger 08]

There use to be an old saying 40yrs ago Bobby......If you cast an ABU "killer" for 20mins and not hook a Barra, they arn't there......I wish I could get my hands on a couple in the Black and Gold color......an excellent lure.

Not black and gold but they look in good knick.

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/NICE-VINTAGE-PAIR-ABU-SWEDEN-KILLER-FISHING-LURES-/120581244206?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_SportingGoods_FishingAcces_RL&hash=item1c1333c52e

Steve

[BR65]

Just re read the whole thing, some good stuff in there, thanks to all who contributed

[Whitto]

Not black and gold but they look in good knick.

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/NICE-VINTAGE-PAIR-ABU-SWEDEN-KILLER-FISHING-LURES-/120581244206?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_SportingGoods_FishingAcces_RL&hash=item1c1333c52e

Steve

Thanks for that Steve........it's been a long time no see.......They were definitely the lure of yesteryear and certainly would still account for Barra today......I'll keep an eye on that link to see what they bring at auction.....Certainly classed as a collectors item these days.

[snodger 08]

Speaking of those X Raps

Here is my modification using a break away system 59060

The wire is 21kg SURFLON MICRO ULTRA knottable stainless steel nylon coated (40lb Jinkai crimps) & small sacrificial split is used at the rear.

Hooks are #4 & #2 Owner STN66 - with original splits.

Its early days yet ..... but its held on a couple of meter fish (landed) & during fights with a couple of others - Time will tell

Chris

Hmmm thinking the way the rear trebble is set up could help with short striking as well. Dunno... just a thought.
Steve

[NAGG]

Hmmm thinking the way the rear trebble is set up could help with short striking as well. Dunno... just a thought.
Steve

Steve - I deliberately went longer for that reason + that it allows twist - the lack of torque should stop hooks opening up too

Chris

PS ..... I'm going to dress the rear treble with white feathers - I reckon that could be a clincher for a suspending lure

[snodger 08]

Yeah was thinking the same with the feathers. I looked at the originals and thought what a waste "L"

[snodger 08]

Chris,
Just used the original feathers, red cotton and nail polish. Not like factory but look alright hey.

[Pete62]

X-Raps ARE on sale at B*F 25% off, only till tomorrow.

[NAGG]

X-Raps ARE on sale at B*F 25% off, only till tomorrow.

heard that before ;)

[Pete62]

heard that before ;)

Trust me, I just bought 3 SXR-12's @ $16.50 each

[Whitto]

Trust me, I just bought 3 SXR-12's @ $16.50 each

Ya done well Pete at that store......Not the case at mine:'(

[snodger 08]

X-Raps ARE on sale at B*F 25% off, only till tomorrow.

Same in Toowoomba Pete. Just rang them up. She said that still on special tomorrow. There goes the lure budget ::);D;D;D;D
Thanks for the tip hey8-)

[NAGG]

Here is a little bit of fun from the 1st Mondy Muster ......... The IBD anthem ;D

Sing it all! :vrolijk_26: :guitarist: :vrolijk_26:

I've got every lure man ... I've got every lure man ... I've got every lure man - - Cause I've got every lure!

I've got a deep driver , slow riser , fast sinker , suss- pender , blade fizzer , shallow runner , surface popper , hyper viper , crazy deep , mask vibe ,jap crap from megabass , mad mullet , mundi magic , Lucky craft Arra barra bought from coolangatta ....... stick to Aussie lures

cause I got every lure man ,,, i've got every lure man ! Hope they fit in the van man - - cause I've got every lure! http://www.ausfish.com.au/vforum/../yabbfiles/Templates/Forum/default/Original%20Smilies/tongue.gif :laola:

Yeh, but listen here mate? ...... you needa Bony bream , big sammy , Bills Bug ,Manta ray , Classic pro , 120 , river rat , green bomber , Tilsan barra , barra bait , Goulburn Jack , X Rap , Jointed Shad , Tango dancer ,sub walk , stump jumper to catch a thumper ........ All with owner upgrades!

cause I've got every lure man ,,, I've got every lure man ! thrown at every snag man - - cause I've got every lure! http://www.ausfish.com.au/vforum/../yabbfiles/Templates/Forum/default/Original%20Smilies/tongue.gif
:laola:

Now what colours mate? ........ You need Ayu , Bunker , fluoro , Red gill , Elton John , bleeding mullet ,Chartreuse , guns & roses , gold ones , green ones , brown ones , blue ones , silver ones .....which can be fun!. Just dont forget a black .... ........ After that , get some .... Baby bass ,Glass ghost , lemon lime , evil minnow , Silver flash , red head , fire tiger , sunset shiner , bobby dazzler, spotted dog , parakeet , hot pink .... & whatchya think of ........ Techni colour yawn ?

But I'll tell you what you haven't got .......... FOXIES FLAPS , SLICK RIGS ,BOZO'S , RIPPIN MINNOWS , SWIM SHADS - OTHER PLASTICS - THAT'S FANTASTIC & BETTER REMEMBER FROGS!

http://www.ausfish.com.au/vforum/images/buttons/post_thanks.gif (http://www.ausfish.com.au/vforum/post_thanks.php?do=post_thanks_add&p=880812) http://www.ausfish.com.au/vforum/images/misc/progress.gif