Tuning - Doctoring - Modifying - Maintenance - PART 1
by Chuck Bailey
INTRODUCTION:
There are a variety of “personality types” that love fishing, but among them are those individuals who can never be satisfied with the status quo, the ordinary, the “tried and true”. Something pushes them always to find an edge over their fellow anglers. They modify, tweak, or doctor a crankbait to intentionally change and hopefully improve its appearance or action in the water. If you are one of those people, then the following sections are for you.
Now, before we get started, let’s state clearly that this is but a hodgepodge of crankbait modifications collected over the years from fishing magazines, TV shows, and word of mouth. The names of most of the authors, seminar speakers, or fellow fishermen who first offered these resources and tips have been long forgotten, and credit is unable to be given where credit is due. Nor do we in any way promise greater success as a result of modifying your baits according to these instructions.
It is our hope that these tips stimulate those adventurous innovators among you to experiment with some of these ideas, and decide for yourself if your crankbaits work better than before. The originators of these modifications strongly believed in them. Did the altered crankbait actually catch more fish on its own? …or did the perceived “confidence” the angler acquired by throwing something “different” make them work harder and longer with the bait – stimulating more strikes? Hey, who are we to judge! If it works – it works!
Explore and decide for yourself – and if you see something that looks intriguing, try it! The real judges are the fish; and they will tell you what they think when you get your modified crankbait to their lake and try it out.
Our goal is to start at the front of a crankbait and work our way to the tail section. If you have any additions, corrections, or new modifications – contact us and we will add it to our evolving list.
TUNING A BAIT TO RUN RIGHT, STRAIGHT, OR LEFT
Straight: Understandably, the vast majority of fishermen want their crankbaits to run straight and true. Most crankbaits today, run straight right out of the package. But after fighting a big fish, or getting snagged in heavy cover, there are times when the line tie eyelet gets bent and the bait won’t track true. Don’t throw it away – tune it.
Let’s say you are retrieving your crankbait and you notice the bait is running to the right, your right. First thing; STOP thinking about “right” or “left”! …and instead picture the running direction in relationship to the lure. “The Rapala is tracking that way!” Why forget right or left? I cannot tell you how many fishermen get the lure back to the boat and start wondering “Let’s see, the lure was running to the right, so I should bend it to the left? But which left– the lure’s left? Or my left? Should the bait be pointed towards me? Or away from me?” STOP! Look at the bait! Which way was it running? (Doesn’t matter how you are holding the bait, towards you or away from you!) If it was running “that’a way” – bend the eye “this’a way”; that is, in the opposite direction.
Don’t use your teeth – a pair of needle-nose pliers is the only way to go. And when you bend the eye, just barely move it. Cast it out and test it – then adjust accordingly. Don’t over do it the first time – take small steps. And make sure that when you are tuning the bait to be careful you don’t “turn” the eye so it’s not pointing forward. Just bend the eyelet along the axis that runs through the center of the bait from the head to the tail.
Tuning Intentionally to the Right or Left: Why would you want to intentionally make a crankbait run to one side or another? Remember that time you wished you could fish a crankbait inside that undercut bank, or under that long dock? But you had to settle for fishing that crankbait outside (because no one has yet figured how to skip a crankbait under objects). Sometimes the fish are less active, their strike zone is small, and they won’t travel to come out to strike your crankbait.
So… the very technique used to tune a crankbait to go straight can also be used to cause it to run to the right or left. You will sacrifice a bit of depth but that is a small price to pay to get your crankbait back in the shadows of the dock or undercut bank. Bend the eyelet in the direction you want the crank to run. Again, you will want to experiment until it runs as intended.
You will want to mark the crank with a permanent black marker, (perhaps making an x or arrow on the bill or belly), indicating which direction it has been tuned to run. A crankbait with a wide or square bill will help the crank get around pilings without hanging up.
INCREASED WOBBLE ON A HUSKY JERK
Husky Jerks, (and other minnow-type jerkbaits), are great baits right out of the box. But Midwest anglers who fish at night for bass and walleye know that when the sun goes down, extra wobble can be a true plus – helping the fish to locate the bait because of the extra water displacement.
The modification these anglers make, begins with taking pliers and pinching the round eyelet until it is elongated, (flatter but not closed), and then they bend the eyelet so it points down. The correct angle roughly parallels the bill angle. Removing the split ring, they fish it by attaching a small snap. The contact point of the snap and eyelet is now below the centerline axis that runs from the nose to the tail of the crankbait. This creates more wobble, more disturbance in the water, and increases the chance your favorite fish will locate and smash the Husky Jerk or minnow bait you are using in low light conditions.
TOPWATER EYELET MODIFICATIONS:
Many beginning anglers tie directly to the eyelet, and while this works, many feel it stifles the action of many topwaters. The first suggestion is to simply tie a different knot that doesn’t tighten up on the eyelet itself. There are several “loop knots” that can be used, freeing the topwater to slip back, or slide to the right or left after it has been popped or jerked. Other anglers prefer to add a split ring, or use a small snap. These are small modifications that can make some surprising changes in the action of topwaters.
Note: If you do tie directly to the crankbait, you may be unaware that where the line makes contact with the eyelet affects the chugging affects of topwaters. After tying the knot, slide the knot so it is pointing down. It actually changes the action of the bait when you work it.
FISH A MINNOWBAIT BACKWARDS:
Some creative angler discovered you can turn a minnow lure around and fish it backwards by taking off the back hook and attaching it to the eyelet on the crankbait’s nose. Anglers who use this backward lure, claim it has a unique wiggling motion, yet still retains the long, thin profile that draws strikes from big bass.
MODIFY THE ANGLE OF THE BILL/LIP:
Sometimes a fisherman would give anything to get their favorite crankbait to dive deeper or shallower. And since it is the angle of the bill or lip that primarily determines depth – the ability to change the slant or slope of this diving surface would be beneficial.
If you have the ability to boil water, you can modify the angle of a crankbait’s bill right in your kitchen. Don’t submerge the bill, just hold it over the steam until it become pliable. Don’t twist the lip, or the crankbait will run crooked or in circles when retrieved; just move the soft lip up or down. (“Up” if you want to go deeper, “Down” if you want to go shallower.)
Some anglers have tried to speed this process up by just using an open flame. Good luck. For every time you get it to work, there will be another in which you scorch the clear plastic, making it more yellowish or opaque. Go slow, use steamed heat, it’s worth the extra effort. Just be careful to not over-exaggerate the angle as it might ruin the action of the bait and end up being trash. There is always a risk in modifying baits!
SHARPENING THE EDGES OF THE BILL/LIP:
Obviously, if you change the shape of a bill, you change its action (vibration, wiggle, etc..). Some anglers intentionally remove the corners of some bills making it narrower in order to give the fish a different vibration and tighter wiggle. Just remember - whatever you remove with a file or Dremel tool is permanent, and can’t be reversed. You may end up with a one of a kind “fish catchin’ machine”, or a pile of junk – so count the cost and practice on some old lures before you try to modify your favorite new crankbait.
But there is a modification that can be made that doesn’t change the shape of the bill, just the thickness of its edge. Doug Hannon (“The Bass Professor”) once did a video in which he showed how to sharpen the bill with a file. According to Doug, this “sharpening” decreases the water resistance because the lip slips easier from side to side through the water, speeding it up and creating a tighter wiggle. He insists a sharpened bill 1) allows more action on slower retrieves, 2) lets the bill go deeper, and 3) makes it wiggle more.
MORE NOISE FROM PROPBAITS:
When fishing topwater prop-baits, experiment by bending the blades until they deliver maximum forward movement. You’ll create less water commotion during the retrieve if you turn the propellers towards the lure body while creating more water upheaval by turning the props in the opposite direction. There are times when a really noisy lure excels; like during night time fishing during the summer.
MAKE A WALKING PROPBAIT:
As the story is told, Russ lane, (Bass Professional), loved topwaters that “walk the dog”, and propbaits that churn the water – but bemoaned the fact that no one makes a walk-the-dog propbait. So he makes them himself by modifying a Heddon Tiny Torpedo. He starts by removing the screw tie from the nose, and also the screw, prop and hook from the tail end. He then reinserts them in the opposite ends from which they came, but not before adding a little super glue on the screw threads. This leaves the line tie eyelet in the skinny end of the bait, and the screw, prop and hook into the fat end. Because the bait now sits nose up in the water, it'll walk like a cigar-shaped bait but spit a little water in the back like a propbait.
THE EYES HAVE IT:
Anglers debate whether the eyes on a crankbait are important or not in attracting fish. But those who believe eyes matter, will often increase the size and shape of the eyes on their crankbaits. Colored eyes can be purchased in most tackle stores or craft stores. Some colors stand out, others blend in, but remember that the rounded plastic eyes that protrude will gently change the action of the lure.
Some anglers glue eyes to the bait in locations where no eyes normally appear on natural forage. Some anglers figure that if two eyes are good, then four eyes are better and place them at both ends. Only through experimentation can you begin to discover if the claim is true; that “brighter, bigger eyes attract a lot more strikes”. The nice thing about this modification is that stick-on eyes can always be removed with minimum damage to the original crankbait.
SPLIT-RINGS (O-RING’S)
Crankbaits often come with a split-ring attached to the line-tie eyelet. Split-rings also connect each treble hook to the body eyelets. Most fishermen inspect their trebles regularly to see if they are sharp, but often overlook checking out their split-rings. (For more detailed information on split-rings, see ABC’s of Crankbaits - HARDWARE: SPLIT RINGS, SNAPS, SWIVELS, ETC).
Sometimes the materials manufacturers use for their split-rings are soft and therefore weaker, but this keep the costs of manufacturing down. Some split-rings are made of materials that rust over time. So it pays to inspect your split-rings regularly and swap them out with quality, strong, rust resistant replacements.
Oval split-rings are nice because they don’t rotate like round split-rings do. Because of their unique design, the split-ring’s wire ends always remain off to the side, never up or down. This also assures that both the body eyelets and the attached treble hooks are always in contact with two overlapping layers of wire. And when split-rings are used to connect line to the nose eyelet, the oval shape prevents the angler’s knot from slipping into the single wire opening and possibly getting worn or cut on the wire ends.
SHARPEN HOOKS:
If money is no problem, it’s easier and quicker to just buy replacement treble hooks for your crankbaits. But if your budget is tight, sharpening your hooks is a good option. Use a very fine sharpening stone when sharpening any hook; the flatter the better. (Know what kind of stone it is, as some require oil, some water, and some are used dry.) Remove the treble from the crankbait with split-ring pliers, as this will make sharpening easier.
Begin by laying the treble hook flat on the stone with two points down and one pointing up. Carefully grab the treble and start moving the hook back and forth along the stone half a dozen times. Call these points # 1 and #2. Now flip the treble so that point #2 and #3 are flat on the stone and again move the treble back and forth 6 times. Now flip it again and do the same procedure for points #3 and #1.
Most anglers check the sharpness by pulling each point across their thumb nail, and if it is sharp, they will all dig in and not drag across. But if one of the hook points fails, go back to the stone and start the process over again.
There are also some portable battery-operated sharpening tools on the market today. These inexpensive devices allow the angler to put any hook point into a designated hole where a revolving hone sharpens the point at the proper angle. The claim of the manufacturers is that they can teach a novice to sharpen a hook in 6 seconds. (This option has not been tested by CRANKBAIT CENTRAL staff.)
Eventually a treble hook that is sharpened too many times will need to be replaced, and in that case, go with quality hooks! With trebles, you get what you pay for.
<Continue with PART 2>
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