Agreed Mike, I have not once had a problem with any of my Aqua Skinz bags falling apart, I put my tail hooks in first nose up on the longer needles and Pencils, short plugs hang nicely from the insert. I'm not sure why your hooks are getting hung up in the bag maybe over loading? swimming deep wading and climbing with mine I even feel down a 75 foot cliff with no damage to the bag

Not according to some of the people here.

Go get 'em Paul !!

I think some surf fishermen are getting Orvised up.
All hat, no cattle.
Like to hang out in the parking lot and talk.
Actually I think it's skinned up

Yep, I love my Van Staal single row bag... better than I like my aquaskinz large back.

Think its a great products for $100 (relative to the price of other bags). However, some of those commando bags are nice!

Hooks can penetrate the thin plastic walls of cheaply made inserts when you try to remove a plug. Canyon bags are especially noted for this. Same with the BW bags. This can happen whether the plug is nose up or nose down.

Hard plastic inserts, if they're cheap, will crack if the bag smashes against a rock.

With well made inserts, neither will happen. Some have larger drain holes in the bottom that the point of a hook can get through and cause the plug to become stuck in the bag.

The well-designed and well thought out bags have none of these problems. It doesn't mean that you need to spend $300+ for one, but you should look for those features in a bag.

The old Surfcaster Deluxe bag was a hell of a buy for around $130 if you didn't need to carry more than 4 big plugs. The front row of the inserts would only carry 4" or 5" plugs.

I don't have one of these high end bags but I have some friends who do. The Maks, Commandos, and Ebb points are really well made. The price may be prohibitive for some (like me :( ) but you can get them made how you want them. If you want a rind holder here and a water bottle there with this many bucktail pouches and d-rings all over the place then that is what you get. That is the one huge benefit since there are no bags out there that fill every one of my needs.

I just have two questions:

1. Is the $600 plug bag made by Gucci?
2. Does it come with gold plugs?

I got sick and tired of killing every bag that I bought. Aquaskinz was destroyed in less than two months. Had it repairded, then destroyed it again. Next was Bronko, which lasted a bit longer, but also ripped apart.

I certainly dont consider myself an "Orvis Catalog" surfcaster. I have gear that works. I can get away with $150 waders and $50 wetsuits, but as far as bags go it seems that $100 doesnt get you that great of a product.

I fish hard. On average I would say 4 nights a week. My gear, including my bag, is completely submerged 80% of the time. Not to mention, getting slammed into rocks, etc... I needed a bag that would stand up to heavy abuse.

And BTW ... You ceretainly dont need to spend $600 to get a good sturdy bag.

lure bags
 

The $600 bag was probably the Hunter bag that originally retailed for $350 before all these upstart bag makers in the last couple of years. Hunter made excellent bags before closing shop. I hear he is preparing to open again. Anyway he amassed a big following and a longer waiting list for the only true custom bag available. Part of that $600 price is the collectible aspect i guess.
There are many quality custom bags available now for around $300. I've seen the Commando and it is a nice bag. The nice thing about most of these new lure bag makers is they are built 1 at a time and are true custom bags. If you want extra buck tail slots or a pork rind bottle holder, belt clips or even a flap that opens the opposite way you can get it that way.
I have several bags including Coastal and the original black Van Staal that are close to 20 years and still going strong. A good bag is worth the price. I hate when my gear falls apart or a manufacturer does not stand behind their product.
Some dont really need it but if you swim or fish hard buy the best you can afford. If you get tossed by a wave and lose all your plugs you will wish you had that extra velcro to keep it closed.
By the way most of the ideas in these new bags came from Steve Campo down here on Long Island who sold a few of his hand stitched bags for $500 over 20 years ago.

my father is a master tailor of 45 years... I never even thought of asking him to make me a bag... some things are so obvious, you never think of them! So what does a bag that holds 10 eels and 3 plugs look like???

Numbskull Bags
 

He made at least two bags...I got one!

Can you get it monogrammed?
Does it come with matching boots?
How about a vanity mirror and measuring tape with gold-plated tab?
Just how many plugs can it carry, and will I need to get a new one when next season comes around? :biglaugh::rotf2::biglaugh:

Nick with Ken at EbbPoint make top of the line bags which I think are better made then Jimmy's bags were.

I have an early prototype 3 tube bag from Ken that I had made to my design with a large pocket in front for sluggos and rigged eels- and a pork rind pocket and bucktail holders and a pocket in the flap for leaders. I don't like all of this excessive velcro which drives me nuts so I had just an inch and a half of velcro put on the flap with a one handed buckle to keep the main flap closed and a buckle for the front pocket. In the spring, the front pocket was designed to hold a plano box for small rubber- instead of the rigged eels.

So the moral of the story is that it is worth paying some money if you can get the bag custom designed with everything you want for how you fish.

And it cost 14 percent of the Louis Vuitton hand bag I got my loving wife last Christmas.

Just packed my AS small/tall.The fabric around the top that catches hooks is almost torn right off.The flap has been cut multiple times on the inside.It still holds plugs and sits on my belt just fine.Beat...but I think I bought it for under 50 bucks a couple years back.I have backups but that one fits my belt and holds the right amount of plugs for me.I haven't seen a 3 tube bag with a reasonable price tag on it.May just get another of the same and customize the spots that rip apart and collect hooks.Can't see spending big bucks on a bag to hold fishing lures that will never get washed cleaned or rinsed.Eel and bunker potion will seep into it ,fish slime and guts will help decorate the exterior.:buds:

Me and some buddies have a great bag design that is exaclty what youre talking about. It includes an insulated zipper pouch for eels/riggies (holds 12) for the long 24 hour island trips overnighters. Water shares a wall so it stays cool. 3 tubes for plugs built in. Chest and shoulder strap. Has a bungie/rip stop nylon collapseable top to store a dry top.

Take a look at some of the inovations in rock and ice climbing bags. Black diamond and patagonia, plus other custom makers have some nice products to model after. Light weight is key!

Winter project, but we might network with a premier surfcasting bag manufacturer to get this design out there.

I do own a high end bag and it is worth every penny. Can't agree enough with Paul S about digging hooks out or having a bag fall apart after you just walked 2 miles and you are in the middle of no where with nothing to fix it. It sucks, so I personally don't mind spending a couple hundred bucks on a bag that will last a life time. By the way...just noticed you could win a new custom surf bag on a particular site......(C) for your(S)elf

The moral of the story is - do you by something with a life time guarantee for $300 or do you spend $100 every year or even every other year.

Nice to meet u last night pc, sorry the guy I was with was an a**. Some ppl just don't like changes or understand different ways of fishing.
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

You forgot to mention the overseas labor.. :grins:

How's that lifetime guarantee work if the company is gone 2 years from now?

It's the companies life not yours

The quality is practically a lifetime guarantee. Have you seen these bags? The MAK and Cammandos are bullet proof. So were the Hunters.

Sorry I mis-spoke - what I mean is if you buy a custom bag that is well built it should last a lifetime. I echo what Luds mentions in the above thread.

Look at the featherlite surf bags that are still around. These bags are made to last.