Captain's Corner

By RICK FRAZIER

© St. Petersburg Times, published May 3, 2000

Did you ever wonder why one lure is your favorite, even though an identical one in your box never gets the call? The favorite lure may have paint missing, rusty hooks, and look like nothing in the water, but it still catches the heck out of everything.

Let's face it, all lures are not created equal if they are the same. They may look the same, but act different in the water. That's why it's important to "tune" lures, or at least see how they track through the water.

Pools are great places to check out your plugs. You see how it floats, dives, darts and retrieves. You see if the plug is tracking sideways, which could spook fish.

If you find your lures tracking more to the left or right, use pliers and bend the eye-ring slightly to the opposite direction. Another trick is to make sure the trebles are swinging freely. If not, add split rings to free up the hooks. That way the hooks will be more hydrodynamic and won't act as a drag. The split rings also will slightly lower the hooks from the lure's body, which will help with missed strikes.

-- Rick Frazier runs Lucky Dawg Charters in St. Petersburg. Call (727) 526-2590.

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