Posted on 03/16/2014 4:16:12 PM PDT by smokingfrog
Fishing lures are designed to attract fishermen and not fish.
I didn’t make up that line, but I wish I had. It’s nearly as true as “all fishermen are liars.”
My future father-in-law always instructed me that when I showed photos of the big bass that I had caught in his farm pond, tell people I caught them in a bar ditch.
I did as told, because I wanted to keep fishing in that pond and keep dating his daughter. The fact that she had access to a pond with big bass certainly didn’t hurt the relationship.
Old fishing lures can be quite valuable. Last week in Florida, someone paid $125,000 for a set of 89 vintage Heddon lures.
Heddon advertises itself as the world’s oldest lure maker, having started in 1894. The company was started by James Heddon in his family kitchen in Dowagiac, Mich.
Heddon is credited with inventing the first artificial fishing lure made of wood, and eventually a factory was built in Dowagiac. In 1983, Heddon was sold to Pradco of Fort Smith, Ark., and legendary lures like the Heddon Spook, Lucky 13 and Torpedo are still being manufactured today.
Recently, a friend of mine had an elderly aunt pass away. Her uncle had died many years earlier and had an old metal tackle box with a few fishing plugs in it.
Having no interest in fishing, she gave them to me. Most of them were unmarked, but a couple had identification.
One was an old-looking Heddon. Well, you know the first thought that popped into my head: Could this be some hidden treasure?
(Excerpt) Read more at newsok.com ...
I am presently looking through my tackle box. I have a few lures given to me by some old codgers through the years.
Who knows, maybe I even have a paid fishing trip or two to places I have always wanted to fish at in it.
I didn’t know they had a connection to the aviation industry.
That would be nice.
Sounds like they were quite the entrepreneurial family. They even made radio antennas for WWII.
I once saw a list in Outdoor Life, of the world’s most popular lures.
The only one I remember was the Mepps Spinner, made in France was number 1.
I caught more big bass on the frog pattern Lucky 13 than any other lure. Lost the last one fishing for striped bass on Lake Travis.
9 best fishing lures of all time
1) The spoon
2) Floating minnow bait
3) Ball-head jig
4) The popper
5) The spinner
6) Suspending bait
7) Diving crankbait
8) Spinnerbait
9) Plastic worm
http://www.in-fisherman.com/2013/08/21/9-best-fishing-lures-in-history/
In some cases, hey are like little pieces of folk art. I love them!
my fil, the old arrogant goat that he is, had a garage sale...without checking with us, or even asking about value he sold a whole tackle box full of old lures for a pittance....I knew it was a mistake when a guy came in a bought the “whole” box for one flat price....imagine he made a nice haul on that one....
I'll have to pull them out and see if they're worth anything.......
Who made the Jitterbug? My uncle caught lots of lunker bass with that one.
Thanks! Remember that `plopity plop’ sound well. Followed by how to fillet a bass & then dredge the filets & plop them into the skillet. Don’t forget the lemon juice.
Maybe you know. . . I’ve been wondering if among the types of bass (freshwater), are some better for eating and some less good for that?
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