I've never seen it, even with "screw eye" plugs. Is "thru-wired" really necessary ? Are big fish really that strong that they could snap a
1"-1 1/2" diameter piece of maple or cedar in half ? Even with the screw eye holes and screw eyes installed and glued in ? Maybe the fish I catch are too small, ya, thats what it is, I need to catch bigger fish.

A friend gave me a giant jointed pikie to try and repair. A fish had twisted the rear hook and tail hook (he never changed over to swivels) and tore the wood on the tail to shreds. It was irreparable and I told him just hang it on a wall as a trophy. It needed to have a whole new piece of wood turned for replacement.

one night i hooked up real solid then suddenly i went slack
and i knew the plug had come free so i turned my back
and ducked
a face full of treble hooks...

the plug hit the side of the wooden boat with a whack!
when i held it up it was half the length
just the front half....no more tail end or hooks.

it wasn't a through wired plug obviously....
made from an ash or hickory...handle..

I had some big blues absolutely trash a small danny. The only thing holding it together was the through wire.

I know Bassmaster used to have a needle hanging from his mirror that got snapped in half by what I think was a 45 #er.

maple will crack itself in half ,,, don't even need the fish . thru wiring is better safe than sorry .. haven't got enough big fish (50) yet to compare .

I know a guy who cast, fought a fish and all he got back WAS the through wire... :laugha:

Yes, it's happened, both to me and a guy I was fishing with. A certain variety of wooden darter with screw eye construction--tho the screw eyes probably weren't the reason the plugs cracked their whole length. The wood was.

Got a 45 pounder on a yellow Gibbs 3-1/2 oz. Polaris in the canal a few years back and the bitch snapped it in half at the neck. ( no it wasn't a new plug either, it was vintage John P. Gibbs.)