I'm not a knowledgeable metal lip swimmer guy, but with the proliferation of options out there I've branched out from the atom40 and augmented my collection with a sprinkling of swimmers from some of the custom plugbuilders out there.

I noticed that some of these plugs really roll in the water right out of the package, so it must be an action that is built into the plug on purpose, but it looks a bit unnatural to my eyes, Maybe a side to side movement looks more like what I'm used to. So tell me, what is the story with the roll, is it desirable, or should I be breaking out the pliers and tuning those plugs ASAP?

I'm not a knowledgeable metal lip swimmer guy, but with the proliferation of options out there I've branched out from the atom40 and augmented my collection with a sprinkling of swimmers from some of the custom plugbuilders out there.

I noticed that some of these plugs really roll in the water right out of the package, so it must be an action that is built into the plug on purpose, but it looks a bit unnatural to my eyes, Maybe a side to side movement looks more like what I'm used to. So tell me, what is the story with the roll, is it desirable, or should I be breaking out the pliers and tuning those plugs ASAP?

Roll dosen't bother me one bit... UNLESS the plug rolls out on me.

i dont like roll if the plug has big eyes or is 2 tone- if its a \ solid color, its fine IMO...

to reduce roll, you can bend the eye loop up, but this may make the plug dive deeper than the original eye placement. You can also up up in belly hook sizes to give the plug more 'keel' effect or if your really desperate, you can also pour hot lead in the belly swivil holes- Ive done this to a few 2 hook dannies that i only wanted one hook on the belly and the results were fantastic. keep in mind I over think a lot of things :hihi:

properly made, properly tuned danny style lures will snake in an "S". Similar to a down hill skier. :kewl:

All danny lures roll.

not piemma's and not beachmasters :D

piemma's?

hes a member here.... he doesnt sell but he may do a trade or give you one..... but thats up to him- his metal lips have some of the best action i have ever seen.

hmm..cool, I didn't recognize the name from commercial sellers, well if he's reading this and feeling generous, I'd love to see this non-rolling danny...I'd even trade something...
Thanks

To roll or not to roll...I'm talking about egregious roll, where the danny is moving through the water like Ian Thorpe freestyling his way to the gold...I obviously have too much time on my hand to be thinking about this....

I'm anti-roll.

To me the snakey way a Beachmaster Danny moves through the water is why it works so well.

hes a member here.... he doesnt sell but he may do a trade or give you one..... but thats up to him- his metal lips have some of the best action i have ever seen.

He just needs to put bigger hooks on em :hidin:

I don't like roll on my Danny's at all.Wiggle is all I want.............subsurface metal lip swimmers ,especially when used in current is another thing.There I want more roll and less wiggle.
In heavy current plugs that wiggle tend to go nuts and over-wiggle ,looking very un-natural

To roll or not to roll...I'm talking about egregious roll, where the danny is moving through the water like Ian Thorpe freestyling his way to the gold...I obviously have too much time on my hand to be thinking about this....


if you have a small propane torch, go outside with the plug and a pair of plyers and a small sinker and melt some lead into the belly swivel holes. it will make a big difference. take the hooks off and the split rings off first and dont breathe the fumes. I do this to needlefish to ge them to balance better and to dannies to slow that annoying roll...if you dont want to hurt the paint, put a few layers of masking tape over the hole then cut out an opening in the tape with a razor blade.

I thought that this thread was about sushi. Mmmm Danny Roll...

Roll or not, the Gibbs Danny is an extremely effective plug, if used right. That action works. If you want your Gibbs Dannies to have the action of a Beachmaster Danny, why not just buy a Beachmaster Danny? Different plugs work best in different situations.

If you want your Gibbs Dannies to have the action of a Beachmaster Danny, why not just buy a Beachmaster Danny?


Easier said than done

danny, or any other lure for that matter, roll is up to the designer or the lure and that of it's buyer in tuning it. some lures have a tendency to roll by design, some manufacturers choose to stop the roll. some manufacturers dont even know what roll is or how to stop it. in some instances, roll is something you definitely want in a lure. other times, limited to no roll is needed. knowing when could be the difference in catching and not catching.

now, our catch success is what always, or at least should, justify our reasons here. however, you need to look at it from a different point of view - the fish. now, go ask someone that's been under water what lure roll does? i do believe mike laptew (fish_eye) wrote up about this in a thread within the last year or so. maybe he'll even comment on it. it may change your thinking on lure lure. it should at least spike your interest.

Thanks Seawolf, I think that this :cputin: http://www.striped-bass.com/Stripertalk/showthread.php?t=33922&highlight=roll is the post that you are referring to?

eric, that's the one.

one thing to remember, some of these lures that people might say dont roll might not have eyes on them. so, you dont always have as solid of a point of reference to concentrate on to see if that lure rolls and if it does how much.

i usually wonder why people go nuts of top water swimmers that supposedly dont roll when the top half of that lure isnt even seen by the fish below or behind. if the lure rolls you now see that top half color. if you tun the lure to dive a little you now see the top half color. all things to consider when you select your lure colors.

check out the videos of the swimmers on tattoo's tackle for more of what laptew and i'm talking about. http://www.tattoostackle.com/videos.php

Easier said than done

Actually all you need to do is drill out the belly weight on the Gibbs and replace it with one that is a little larger. Even then, there are plenty of days when the Gibbs catches better than the Beachmaster. Beachmasters have also changed over time, getting fatter when they added the eyes. How you tune it and how you retrieve it is way more important than who made it when comparing those two plugs. Only complaint with the Gibbs has been that its front loop is too small to easily tune.