I may need a therapist
 

Has anyone tried making a plug that will skip/hop or jump out of the water (like a small baitfish trying to escape). I have been thinking about giving it a try but haven't quite got my head wrapped around the idea enough to start trying to work it out, in fact I'm not even sure it would be possible........but I think if the line attached just foward of the middle of the plug and the weighting was right it might be possible (almost like an upside down darter). Fishing season is almost over so I am starting to think about starting something different, something that I have yet to see done. I would get a kick out of getting it to work and watching it hop, skip or jump. I don't know why but watching a plug work or swim properly gets me pumped and keeps me content casting for hours without giving up hope that the next cast will be the one. Isn't the first step acknowledging I have a problem:jump1:.

It's a sign of genius.

I have made large spooks that jump instead of walk the dog (to my dismay). Keep a convex profile nose to tail, and heavily tail weight it so it floats vertically. It will go airborn when you tug it hard. Not real sure it looks very natural, though.

Probably looks kind of like the yellow guy standing on the piano below, eh?

:banano:

surf howdy will pretty much do that if you overweighted it a little and make out of red cedar. It is pretty much all I use in the spring

another idea to explore would be a moving ball/chamber in the lure that aids in casting and moves fore and aft when you twitch the rod tip. The rebel jumpin minnow has this as well as the smack it. I have made some wooden copies of both of these lures and the woodies have good action with large ball bearings in them...

Have you ever fished one? They are a little too light for me but if they actually jump out of the water than I can remain optimistic that I may be able to accomplish the action I want.

yup out of the water. You can get surf howdies to submarine and jump of of the water too :uhuh:

i find that the 1.5 oz (or whatever the smaller size is) howdy will jump on occasion if you stick with the 1/0 hooks it comes with. i switched to 2/0 because i was losing alot of fish and it lost some of its "jump" and also some of its effectiveness.

jumping minnows are great. they're light but they fish heavier if that makes any sense. upgrade to 1/0 trebles and i think it fishes fine with a lami 1201M, great with a 1201L.

the roberts ranger and spofford ballistic minnow kind of skip and jump along. the gags bluefish bomb was similar. i think gibbs actually made one that was called the skipper.

to me, skip and jump type lures are great for agressive blues and small bass. i'd shoot for something that can be made to skip and jump in quick bursts, but then be slowed down with a more suble action - that's where the howdy and jumpin minnow shine.

if you make a version of the jumpin minnow that weighs about 1.5 oz and maintains the action of the original, i'm first in line :hihi:

If you like the Rebel Jumpin' Minnow, upgrade the hooks and add 8 cc's of water or mineral oil. It cast well this way and the action isn't compromised.

I have a version of a Ballerina that does stuff like that.
good luck

canal pencils will jump if you give them a jerk of the rod. Especially when you weight them to either sink or just barely float.

I,m not a plug maker but in the 80,s i would snap the lip off a Rebel sinker 7" and work it like a pogie with very light jurks,just enough to break the surface