The
Revival of Old Lures
Paul Elias
EDITOR’S NOTE: Bass wise-up to lures the more
frequently they see them. When anglers buy old lures
and fish them, they quickly discover that the old lures
are catching as many, if not more, bass than they did
when they were new. The reason is that these older lures
are ones that the bass haven’t seen before. Anglers
fishing these old lures have new confidence in the old
ones that win big-money tournaments. We’ll talk
this week with some of the nation’s top pros to
learn what old lures they’re still using and why.
Paul
Elias of Pachuta, Mississippi, who has tournament bass
fished for 30 years and participated in Bassmaster Classic
since 1979, has won seven major bass-fishing tournaments
as well as the 1982 Bassmaster Classic.
“Old lures are a little secret that tournament
bass fishermen don’t talk about, but we all carry
tackle boxes full of them. We pull these old lures out
for certain situations and at specific times when new
lures won’t fit the bill. One of my old favorites
is Mann's Little George, which I mainly fish when I’m
trying to catch schooling bass. I’ll swim the
Little George through the school, let it fall and then
hop it off the bottom like I do a worm. From the time
that lure was first invented, and I started fishing
it in 1976, I’ve never taken it out of my tackle
box. I know that since I’m using the Little George,
and no one else much is using it, my odds of catching
bass are much greater than if I fish a lure that everyone
else does. The Little George has gotten me out of several
tough situations. Anytime I need one or two more bass
to finish a limit, I’ll pull out the Little George.
I consider it just as
hot a bait now as it ever was. The old Mann’s
20+ with its wide bill is still my number-one deep-diving
crankbait. I can fish it around and through cover much
better than I can other crankbaits. I also like it because
it has an unusually-wide wobble that the bass seldom
see.
“My favorite color is a brown back with chartreuse
sides and an orange belly. Most people like to use the
latest and greatest crankbaits, so they’ve forgotten
about the old Mann's 20+. I also still break out the
old Bagley square-billed crankbaits in different fishing
situations. More companies are coming out with square-billed
crankbaits, and you’re seeing a lot of handmade
square-billed crankbaits. The square-billed crankbait
has always been one of my favorite lures for hot-weather
bass fishing. I like to fish the Bagley’s, which
has a wide wobble, in 3 to 5 feet of water and walk
it through lay-downs and stump to call bass. What most
people don’t realize about old baits is that they
never lose their bass-catching ability. Generally what
happens is a new bait comes along that’s similar
to that old bait, and most fishermen believe they have
to have the newest, the latest and the greatest. So,
they put those old baits
aside and forget about them. However, a tournament angler
keeps a mental database on what makes a bait catch bass,
what water and weather conditions are best to fish that
bait, what situations can he use that bait in and it
be the most productive, and how long has it been since
that bait has had any publicity. Old lures are being
used by tournament pros more than the bass-fishing world
realizes.”
Tomorrow: Zell Rowland
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