Al Gags Needles?

[Flaptail]

I wasn't going to jump in on this one but here I go. First of all Al was making these back in the mid eighties. They are made exactly the way they were then but better. First the hardware is spro swivels, the paint and finish are better. The weighting and hook placement make these plugs sink level in the water something that is known in a needlefish to be very valuable especially when fish are feeding on suspending sand eels in the surf. I looked at them and even brought a vintage 87' chartreuse scale job to the MSBA show to compare so that I would be sure he was making them as he did then, I was impressed. He is making them better. If you don't like the hook arrangement you probably never fished an original. I have and many of my friends have. The Chartreuse w/ silver sides in the larger model and the smaller were killers. The olive scale was so good it should have been illegal some nights. In the eighties there weren't many making needlefish plugs. Boone, Gibbs, Spoffords, Pichney and Musso and Al GAG. I used them then and I will use them again. If you think the hook placement is wrong you still have something to learn about needlefish styles and orientation in the water. I will post some pictures of the 80's jobs. They might be competition for some makers and they may not be but I for one like them and I call them as I see them I don't make them up.

[Flaptail]

Here are the pics of the old Al Gags needles.

[blue oyster]

i have to agree with eben , i got a couple of the first run gs slammers and they fished like crap , and the worst part was al said they were bad later on but did not offer to fix or replace them , he said get some lead tape for golf clubs and add it to the front till it swims proper its not like i got them for free , needless to say they went in the trash

[jkswimmer]

My two cents, when I started using the needlefish in the late 80's I found the were to far forward on some models. When I set the hook on a hit I came back with only scales. This what led me to make my own. The hooks do look to far forward.

[Bliz]

jkswimmer,

You are saying that the belly hooks are too far forward, and others in this post are saying they look too far back...

Do you know what you are agreeing to?

Wherever you have two fishermen, you usually have three opinions...

Try fishing them, and let the Bass decide! ...

[DZ]

I agree with Flap. I've been using many different types of needlefish plugs since they became popular in the early 1980s. The Gags Needlefish was one of the first to come out with a thru-wire design and it came out BEFORE even Gibbs went to thru-wire construction. Al heard the feedback and saw the need and then developed a needlefish with many innovations including stronger barrel swivels and the unique concept of enabling the wire to rotate within the plug. I and others used these early needlefish with great results and we put them to the ultimate test out at Needlefish Island. Many guys owe their first 50 to these plugs.
I've not seen the new versions first hand but if they're anything like the old Gag's Needle they will be effective.
That said, I fish all brands of commercial needlefish, Habs, Super Strike, Gibbs, - I like them all and have taken more than my share of bass on each. They all have different and unique applications. Now we have another commercial needlefish on the market, the Gag's, it can only help us - the consumer.

DZ

[Bliz]

These will offer the angler another needle that will draw bass with "Finesse" in the water...

They're fantastic!

I was very impressed with the quality, and the cost!...