I can’t get no, satisfaction, I can’t get no satisfaction, and I tried and I tried but I can’t get no satisfaction with store bought lures.  Hey, hey, hey…store bought lures just don’t seem to catch as many fish as ones that I have altered with.  It doesn’t matter what species of fish it is; it’s just so rewarding knowing that I just caught a fish with something I helped make. 

 Hand crafting lures goes way back to the beginning when man built their first lure. Maybe they added a feather or shinny stone to a bone to attract or entice a fish to catch them.  The great thing now is anglers can purchase holographic tape and craft products from fishing tackle retailers, lure building supply companies, or from individual companies like WTP Inc. (www.wtp-inc.com) who offer a wide selection of products for hand crafting lures.  WTP Inc. owner, Ron Warczynski, loves to see the final results of lures when anglers enhance them with holographic tape products.  “There are so many different things you can do with the tape products; there are endless ways of using it to change a lure, planner board, flashers, dodgers, spoons, blades, and the list goes on and on,” Warczynski, “it’s only limited to the imagination of whoever is using it and the self satisfaction is immeasurable.”

By definition, stand out means: to maintain an upright position as specified.  That pretty much sums up the StandOUT hook.  While a number of hook companies produce hooks exclusively for drop shotting, none of them compare to the StandOUT hook, because of its unique design.  In fact, instead of it being called a drop shot rig when the StandOUT hook is tied on to the line, the rig is referred to a StandOUT Lever Action rig.  “It’s similar to the drop shot rig, but the hook acts like a lever to hold the bait up and adds action to the lure,” T.J. Stallings, marketing director for TTI-Blakemore Lures continued, “the StandOUT hook makes rigging and fishing a drop shot easier; the lever action means no big hook set, just sweep set it like a circle hook to catch the fish.  Smallmouth bass will hit the bait, turn and set the hook themselves.”

To rig a StandOUT (www.ttiblakemore.com) Lever Action rig begin by tying a Palomar Knot on the top eye leaving at least 10-inches of line on the tag-end then run the tag-end through the lower eye of the hook and tie your drop shot weight accordingly to the length you want from the hook.  A general rule of thumb is 6- to 12-inches depending on where and if the fish are suspended off the bottom.  When fishing a drop shot technique most anglers will use specifically designed equipment just for drop shotting.  Hook size will normally range from size 6 hooks to 2/0.  For drop shot weights, the majority of anglers will use 3/16-ounce but it can range from 1/8-ounce to 1-ounce specially designed with a built in swivel to keep the line from twisting and shaped to resist getting snagged.  There are even rods with blanks made just for drop shotting.  In general, most anglers will drop shot with 4- to 6-pound test fishing line with a spinning rod and reel.

Stop!  Before you read any further, look at your fishing rods.  Do you have a boat or house full of heavy action flipping sticks that could also be used as a pool cue?  If so, you may want to skip reading the rest of this article because it’s all about having fun while fishing with Ultralight combos.

Fishing tackle has come a long ways since anglers made that first cast.  Some of the early rods had the same flexibility as rebar (concrete reinforcing bar) and weighted about the same.  Not today, fishing tackle has gone high-tech.  That means lighter, stronger, and more durable materials.