Hi there...happy to see that you like the old Storm Lures Wiggle Wart! It is by far the favorite lure that my dad designed, and you're right, the searching action of the lure was fantastic! The gluing process of the lures were the cause of the lips not lining up quite right much of the time. Many times the lips (and sometimes the entire body) would slip slightly while being glued, and then dry just a little "off". A few years later, a pin was added to the mold by my dad to assist assemblers with keeping the lip halves lined up. But earlier Warts often did have misaligned lips as you say! I believe he introduced the Wiggle Wart in 1975. :)
I grew up fishing alot during the 70's. My Dad bought tons of Wiggle Warts. He said they they would bounce off everything under the water. So when they bounced funny the bass would hit them hard. Like it was there last meal. In Arkansas they use them old ones alot because of the mold misalignment on the Warts. I still have same original's from my Dad's tackle boxes! I heard they are going for high dollars now. Went to a very old tackle center in Mooresville In. Two weeks ago. I will be damned if they didnt still have some left on the racks. Bought them all up! Thanks, To you and your Father. Shawn.
@@shawnbeck2303 Hi Shawn! That’s amazing to find old Storm lures still on pegs! They’ve been out of production since early 2000! New WWs are made by Rapala. Yes, often the lips were misaligned on the Warts, but it was indeed designed to have an erratic bouncing action. The lip issue was a tuning issue mostly, but the true wiggle action was intentional! Glad you found some goodies. Arkansas was and is a hotbed for them, with the rocky structure of many lakes there... mainly Table Rock. Don’t open them!! Lol
Thanks for the trip done memory lane. I worked in a bait and tackle shop in 1981 through 1983. Most of my tackle dates back to those days. We stocked 9 out of 10 of those. The boss saw event then that BPS was a threat to local tackle stores and refused to use their catalog as a supplier...which they were really pushing back then. I had a few of the original Bagley's DB2 in brown/chartreus crawdad that were by far the most productive hardbaits I ever owned. Never the same after that. Culprit worms had a color combo of laminated orange and motor-oil. No flake. Not flashy. Didn't catch enough fishermen so it was discontinued. I used my last this year. Two 4's and a 5 on that one worm. Hell of a goodbye to the best worm and color combo ever.
Just a thought. With technology today, laser scan these old baits and 3D print them and see how they work. Could do some wood carving as well and see how they work depending on the density of each wood species.
i had that 1988 basspro catalog!! i used to spend hour reading trough it and my childhood dream was to one day be able to visit the store, back then they did not have as many locations as they have today and being an 8y/o growing up in Mexico, it was even harder for me to fulfill that dream. man.. i wish a still had it i would love to read it again.
@@reelingwithrobby I caught a lot of bass on Mr Twisters worms I grew up on a small lake in central Florida. I am talking really more than 50 years ago. I caught my PB this year on a water melon red and black swim tail sinko 12 lbs 8 ounces. Fish it the same as Mr twisters no lead . They have much better line now. I caught a 11lb bass on a purple Mann's jelly worm in 1974.
@@reelingwithrobby That's funny. Caught 11 in 1974 on a Mitchell 300 spinning reel with 10 lb mono. 2021 using a Lew's superspeed loaded with 50 lb powerpro braid with 30 lb floracarbon leader I get a lot fewer break offs now. Able to fish denser cover.
That old candy bar jig hanging in gramps garage or the Rapala someone dug out the trash heap behind the shed..They both caught jackpot fish years after their time.
I loved those 80's BPS Uncle Buck spinnerbaits they were quality. I still fish those Strike King Spin Dance spinnerbaits with the Tennessee blades... some things never get old if they're still catching bass.
The first time I ever ordered from Bass Pro I was blown away how nice the ladies where on the phone and would always say yes when they asked "Y'all want to hear what our specials are?" I could listen to their sweet southern accents all day and always bought a couple "specials".
I just discovered your channel...IMMEDIATELY SUBSCRIBED!! I've been fishing since the late 1960's, and have owned and used every lure you highlighted. Like you, I wish I had boxes of those old Wiggle Warts, Strike King Frogs, and Bass Pro Shops "Tornadoes". I never understood why lure companies would discontinue proven, fish-catching, baits -- especially when they still sold well. I can't wait to explore your channel. I used to love gazing through that annual Bass Pro Shops "Master Catalogue"....
Don't know the manufacturer, or if it's discontinued, but there was a bait called the 'floppy' that was death to smallies on the Shenandoah in the '70s.
Not quite as old as these, but for me it’s the Berkley Frenzy. The marketing when they came out got me, and I bought a bunch of em, but they worked. Even caught two bass at the same time on a Fire Tiger diver. ‘Fish Feed on the Action!’
The Tornado is still effective today! My grandpa gave me his brothers tackle box (my uncle) R.I.P! He was a great old school fishermen and had amazing old school rods , old school baits, I used the Tornado lastnite at dusk , after fishing Berkeley Choppo for most of time. BANG!!! I had 4 straight 3 lbers , then caught another 3 in my next 5 casts. I had my 2 year old daughter with me and she was amazed , daddy looked like a pro . Burleigh Falls Ontario Canada 🇨🇦
The Helin Flatfish. My all-time favorite. It drove Northerns and Bucketmouths crazy with rage and/or hunger. Yakima Bait reintroduced the Flatfish but the original by Charlie Helin is a legendary fish snagger and is vintage. Some originals can be found on that eB** place. I found a bunch and they are in my tackle collection.
Today most people think of the Flatfish as a muskie or lake trout lure... if they even know of it at all. But pretty much know one knows it was originally created as bass lure. Charlie Helin, a Detroit auto worker, claims to have whittled 1500 lures until he hit on the what would become the Flatfish. By 1946, he had sold over 5 million. By the time the company was sold to Yakima Baits (1988), well over 40 million had been produced, making the Flatfish one of the most - if not THE most - sold lure in the world.
My dad is in his early 60s he's been fishing all his life, thanks to him I have a lot of these antique lures. I'm never going to use them but they're cool to look at on the shelf. Great content sir you have a new sub.
I came on your channel by luck and found it quite interesting. Fishing is one thing I liked for my whole life and have the tackle to prove it. The first Bass Classic tournaments permitted 5 rods and reels and one tackle box that could not weigh over ten pounds. When BASS tournaments first started anyone could enter as long as they paid the entry fees and agreed to the rules of the tournament. I happen to have one of the most popular use tackle boxes. (Plano model 757) I had plans to fish one tournament but failed to get too. The rules of the first years of bass tournaments were designed so anglers had to compete on an equal level. This changed as bass tournaments evolved into a giant success and sponsors and manufactures made it an advertising format for their products. What other pastimes can you enjoy doing from wearing Pampers to Senior’s sized Diapers? Fishing is the number one most popular pastime in the World. I still use my old tackle and new tackle as well. Good fishing tackle will last a lifetime if taken care of. I still use a Color Selector for fun sometimes; mine also has a PH meter too. Here a is a short list of old lures I use Mann’s Stingray Grubs, Mann’s Jelly worms, Mann’s Rat, Mr. Twister’s curly tail grubs, Rebel Deep-Wee-R, Mann’s HardNose Floating Snake, Johnson’s Silver minnows and Uncle Josh’s Pork Baits just like you. If you have, any jars that look bad you can save them by replacing the salt brine with new. You just have to make some and sterilize the jars. I have some over 30-years old. You can add scent using Concentrated Anise, Grape, and Garlic oils used for cooking and baking. You also can die them colors you prefer, this only works on white ones. I have the same box you have mine is more used looking. I think you are an avid collector and that is great for preserving Fishing History. Looking forward to seeing your next video. By the way, Antiques are over 100-years old and I am no antique angler. I am older and still can keep up to most young pups fishing and can put a whipping on plenty of them fishing with my old tackle.
Gizmo Carr Glad you stopped by, and thanks for the great addition to our comments section, Gizmo! I’d be curious how you replace the brine in pork rind. Back when Alan Jones and Urban Schreiner sold their first batch of No. 11 pork frog for $300, they were still trying to figure out how to get the baits to hold dye and keep from turning rancid. Lucky for us, they soon figured it out!
@@RetroBassin I found a number of different recipes on the internet on blogs. They all vary slightly. The brine I made used coarse Morton Kosher Salt and water. I boiled the water and added salt until it would not absorb any more salt. I put the brine in a sterilize jar and added more salt. I let it sit sealed for 24 hours. I remove the pork baits from their jars, washed them in warm water at the same time cleaning the jars, and sterilize them with hot water. I placed the baits in the jars and filled them full to the top with brine. That was over a year ago. I used some this fall and they were still good. The used ones I put in a jar of brine alone, and washed them before putting them back in the jars they came from. If your baits still look good and never been used or open, who knows how long they will last. If you see sediment in the jar, I would change the brine and use those baits first. The jars I added grape oil to turn the pork fogs a beautiful dark blue. The only time I use pork on jigs is when the water is cold in spring and fall. There is nothing better because all soft plastic baits get hard and stiff in the cold water. Pork does not. Pork frogs last forever and soft plastics tear off. The only thing is, you have to keep them wet or they will dry out and you need an ax to get them off. I still have a couple pork pockets, they have sponge liners, you wet them, and put Mr. Frog inside, he stays soft and wet. Pork baits are old school but they last forever. I guess I should use them up and forget about them but I don’t want too. I have jars with the price tag on them. ($1.88) That is all can tell you.
Will never forget my first bass. Caught him on a 6" Mister Twister Phenom blue with red fire tail (color now discontinued) at Bells Lake in Turnersville, NJ in the early 80s, I was about 10 years old. Cast the worm near an old fishing dock in some lilly pads. One of the best memories of my life. Still fish with MT Phenoms to this day just because of that first catch. Love the channel!
I had the Doug Hannon snake bait when I was a kid. I don't recall ever catching anything on it, but it looked great in the water. I loved the grass frog and later the pop-n-frog, but I always missed a ton of fish with them. I prefer the zoom horny toad, much better hook up. I still have several jars of uncle Josh products. In the northwest we've always used wiggle warts for salmon and steelhead.
My grandfather passed away a couple of months ago, and as I was going through all of his fishing stuff that was left to me, I found one of the Grass Frogs in black. I immediately was taken aback by the hydrofoam material. I'll have to try to land a fish on it for Papa and my channel.
I still mimick the snake bait, with cork and ten inch ribbon worms. It isn't pretty, but works. I had the same reaction with the grass frog, only it was a large bowfin who took the bait. It was heart stopping. First thought was this thing actually works!
Tom Mann had a top water bait that did not last very long. It was called the Frog Mann and came in several outside patterns. A plastic frog-looking bait, with a rattle feature. Fishing this Mann's top water bait in the Spring and Fall would give the best results from this lure. The Tom Mann Frog Mann lure came out in the 1970's and went out of production sometimes in the 1980's. Two triple hook set-up, with one on the belly and one in the rear. This bait, for some unknown reason, did not catch on. Frogs are high on the food chain for bass in areas (south) of the country where frogs are plentiful. This bait was made for some great top water action, bass action! Thanks so much again for another great retro-bait program!
In my opinion, the overall best lipless crankbait ever made, was the Mann's Finn-mann, which was similar to both the Leroy Brown and the Pogo Shad. My first exposure to it was at a tournament at Eufaula in the early eighties. The lure was not even on the market yet, but a company rep was at the ramp waiting on my boss. There looked to be a drug deal being made right there on the ramp as the rep handed over a couple of the baits to my boss, who was a member of the Mann's field staff. He promptly went out and caught twenty-eight pounds on a chartreuse/black back one.
Glenn Gaylor That story right there is WHY I started this channel! I really hope the comments section at RB continues to be a forum for folks who know a lot more about fishing history than I.
@@RetroBassin, I've only got three or four left, none of which are in the right colors (pearl gray/black back, and the aforementioned chartreuse/black back). Always on the lookout for them though.
The float n fly technique often used on cold Dale Hollow waters, used a craft fur 1/16 oz Jig, tipped with an Uncle Josh fly strip, usually white. I’d pay top dollar for a few jars!
Well Retro thanks to you I tied on a Rapala minnow spoon yesterday and got a nice 5lb walleye, off my backyard. I dont know why I stopped fishing them.
1. Dancein eel. 2. Cotton Cordell BIG O. All you need is coveralls with all kinds of fishing related patches. Just subscribed!!!! Doug Hannon did more for my fishin except for my father.
Dude. I love your channel. I was raised in a bass boat from 1972 until 1986. In 86 i got my drivers license and discovered“girls” if you know what I mean. I had other priorities until about 1998. So much has changed from back when I was learning how to fish. A lot of the lures we used worked great. I stay on eBay buying old lures. My dad taught me a lot. He was a pro-am . He could have went pro. But being a professional bass fisherman is not the perfect family life. Any way you keep making videos and I will keep watching. Oh!!! I think you live in Texas. Are you going to the BassMaster Classic? I would like to meet you there. Maybe I get my dad’s old Bass Club shirt out and wear it if you wear something retro also. I am going. I have always wanted to go. I am definitely going to be there all 3 days from the time the doors open till they close. Email me at Notworkinmonte@gmail.com
My buddies and I spent many an graveyard shift pouring over BPS catalogs "back in the day." I've tried most of the baits you mentioned, and I don't recall EVER catching a fish on any of them. Especially the Tornado spinner, and the Doug Hannon Snake Bait.
I hate to think 1978 is antique. My God I'm must be cosidered prehistoric. Heddon baby Zara, great lure, I don't use it anymore because I'm afraid to lose it.
Back before I had ever heard of Bass Pro Shops, an older friend showed me a Mepp's Comet Minnow. We only knew it as a "Mepp's Minnow" and it was pretty much the only lure he owned. We caught almost anything that would take a lure. Trout, bass, panfish, pike and pickerel were caught in our lakes and ponds. Never did gat a walleye though. Now, I own several in every size they make. Still an awesome lure.
There are 2 that I would love to see come back. I will name 1 but not the other one. A floating spinnerbait, they were made by Hoppers in Tennessee. They had a Bream cork on the wire leading up to the bend. They really didn't float but when you let them fall it would sink really slowly and rock side to side, pitch it by a stump or log and hang on. The second one I'm going to keep to myself, I try to buy everyone that I can find on eBay.
Hey Chris 👋👋 I can think of a few more for you ! The SMITHWICK TOOTHPICK is one that's hard to find. The BILL PLUMMER SUPER FROG is another ! I had that 1978 BPS catalog too, but I actually got a chance to order from it in 1978, and in 1979 ! 👍😁✌👍👍
I'm 76 years old and I've got a lot of this old stuff and still use it. Including a set of Heddon Supersonics. Never one to "mothball" something that works. That's not what it was created for. IMHO
I have the 1979 BPS catalog sitting out on display in my house. I still have a few jars of old Uncle Josh pork rinds, too; the Fenwick Lunkerstik 2000 is still my favorite rod; and Mann's Razorback Pig and Deep Pig my most nostalgic crankbaits. How many fish I've caught on all that stuff is unknowable....
I’ve still got four of those snake baits and two of the tornadoes (though the skirts dry rotted off). I also have three suspending (I think) Wiggle Warts from back in the 80s. Miss the Uncle Josh stuff as I used to fish a ton of jig and pig setups because they were pretty inexpensive for a broke kid. One bait that I used to love but don’t remember the name of was a clear lipless crank that had different color prismatic inserts - red, blue, chartreuse, green, and pearl. As a kid when I got it, I loved getting five lures for the price of one.
Think that bait was called the Lil' Huey, an As Seen On TV lure that came with green, yellow, red, orange, and purple inserts. Another one is could be was the Rebel Blackstar, which is one of my favorite old timey cranks.
I had a 5-pounder borrow my Tornado. It had a twisted propeller type of blade instead of the chatter blade seen here. Up until that day I had always thought the bass only ate the skirted jig and the blade was just for vibration and attraction. Nope. She engulfed the whole thing. Although my time with her was short we created a memory to last a lifetime.😂
Got big collection of old lures and Old Bass Pro shop catalogs I enjoy thumbing through had the Bass Professor stuff and books and his spinning reel too.
I have an old Lee Sisson deep diving balsa crankbait that was my dad’s. He did use it at least once but it’s in very good condition and I’m gonna keep it and never use it again. I love it.
That Tube Worm is more like a shakey head than a Ned rig. And Randy Blaukat on Intuitive Angling had a video on pork frogs. I believe he mentioned a replacement for the old ones.
I was hoping to see on here the Bomber Fat A Bill Dance signature series with Excalibur hooks that came out in the mid 90's .They introduced A transparent Fire Tiger Shad and a transparent Ghost Shad with a loud BB rattle that produced a ton of big bass for Me and a buddy of mine..Sadly they suffered the same fate as these lures when out of the blue, no heads up, not even a John Deere letter left in the their place, they were gone quicker than a girl from Cranston..
Bass Magnets!, No idea who made them, just know my dad had a full set of them in the Early-mid 90's. They were a crankbait loosely shaped like a crawdad, came in all sorts of colors. Last weekend Dad was showing me his "new" set of Bass Magnets he found on ebay, dropped a pretty penny on them too.
I have been binge watching in my limited free time at night!! Love every episode. Any idea when the Creme website store will be allowing purchases again? They keep saying temporarily closed... I prefer their pre-rigged 4" scoundrels. I have the hat to match your sticker in the background!! Keep on rocking. Gonna to hit 10K subs soon!
Mann's made a plastic lizard that was labeled mann's FLW. They had a wide tail that tapered real small at the body. The side legs were super thin that had a ton of action as did the tail. I lost count of the 5 plus pound bass I caught on the junebug color. Wish they still made them. I haven't had or seen them for years.
Two topwater lures I miss are Devil's Horse "Toothpick" and Heddon's "Crazy Crawler". I have a crazy crawler I've retired. But the Toothpick I want again.
I stumbled on your TH-cam channel and I am glad that I did. The content of this video brings back memories. I think that about half of my tackle is discontinued and one day be sought after collectors on EBay. I am in the process of buying tackle that I once had on EBay and it's expensive. Great video.
Tube worms were the first item I ever ordered thru the mail. I think I was in the 4th or 5th grade. I put the exact change in the envelope. I can remember jumping up and down on my parents king sized bed when the Roland Martin song would start on the portable radio/tv. The tv had a 5” screen and used the radio dial. Having a second tv was a big deal back then because you could watch both channels at the same time! Imagine that!
I love this channel! I don't know how you find all of this info but it is very cool! The old catalogs remind me of when I first got interested in bass fishing. Keep up the good work!
Loved the bagly balsa wood Small fry lures the foil shad Blue gill and craw dad would Catch some nice bass in the early 80s in the clear lakes around San diego when I was In high school caught a big Trout on a gold tinfoil shad Use 2 save my 2 dollars I got For mowing the yard definitely took are of them
Man I came across these soft plastic snake fishing baits at a yard sale were about 10 inches long had to buy them. And they were incredible ,remember seeing 2 or 3 bass at a time go after them. Unfortunately all ended up tore up and haven't been able to find them.
I use a number of out of production baits. 2 of my favorites are the Short Wart and Front Runner. I am almost out of original Wiggle Warts but like the new ones OK.
In the early 80s the Arbogast Arbogaster was my favorite lure. It was a deep diving crankbait that had a hula skirt on it and bass loved it. Wish they still made those!
I had the Snakebait. My dad used to laugh at some of my lures that I would buy as a kid until one day I went out and just slaughtered them on that thing. Only problem was that for some reason gar would attach that thing like it owed them money so I lost all of them that I had in fairly short order.
The first bass I ever caught was an 11 lb stripped bass when I was 5 or 6 with my stepdad. Lol I had a pretty hard time pulling it in but I managed to get it to the boat. We used live shad but I don’t remember how he had them rigged at the time.
I've got three Tornadoes hanging from the mouth of a mounted bass in my living room. I'm afraid to fish with them for fear that I'd lose them. Evidently while I was taking care of a newborn and a wife with post partum, bass pro pulled the Tornado from it's shelves. When it was time to get back to fishing, I went into BPS looking to purchase more Tornadoes and when asked, the store clerk looked at me like I had just landed here from Mars. I found out that I now have VINTAGE lures. Been using the new chatterbait lately. I've had absolutely no luck "hooking" up with any bass. Bring back the Tornado!
Taking a week of vacation during the full moon in June. Went to get something for the camper and found another Tornado spinnerbait that I was unaware of. So now I have four Tornados. The paint had big chips in it and the clapper had worn a groove in the blade but it's still a fishable Tornado. I put a new skirt on it and it went into my tackle box with the others that I pulled out of retirement.
I remember ordering two left handed Shimano bantam mag baitcasters from the BP catalog in early 80's, and then waiting for what seemed like forever, great times though.
Cool video. Remember the Strike King Pork-O? That thing was amazing! Also, I have a handful of Tornado spinnerbaits I bought was back when. Never used them...
Hi there...happy to see that you like the old Storm Lures Wiggle Wart! It is by far the favorite lure that my dad designed, and you're right, the searching action of the lure was fantastic! The gluing process of the lures were the cause of the lips not lining up quite right much of the time. Many times the lips (and sometimes the entire body) would slip slightly while being glued, and then dry just a little "off". A few years later, a pin was added to the mold by my dad to assist assemblers with keeping the lip halves lined up. But earlier Warts often did have misaligned lips as you say! I believe he introduced the Wiggle Wart in 1975. :)
I grew up fishing alot during the 70's. My Dad bought tons of Wiggle Warts. He said they they would bounce off everything under the water. So when they bounced funny the bass would hit them hard. Like it was there last meal. In Arkansas they use them old ones alot because of the mold misalignment on the Warts. I still have same original's from my Dad's tackle boxes! I heard they are going for high dollars now. Went to a very old tackle center in Mooresville In. Two weeks ago. I will be damned if they didnt still have some left on the racks. Bought them all up! Thanks, To you and your Father. Shawn.
@@shawnbeck2303 Hi Shawn! That’s amazing to find old Storm lures still on pegs! They’ve been out of production since early 2000! New WWs are made by Rapala. Yes, often the lips were misaligned on the Warts, but it was indeed designed to have an erratic bouncing action. The lip issue was a tuning issue mostly, but the true wiggle action was intentional! Glad you found some goodies. Arkansas was and is a hotbed for them, with the rocky structure of many lakes there... mainly Table Rock. Don’t open them!! Lol
@@trooper64 that’s advice about not opening them 👌🏾
@@trooper64
I’ve won a truck load of money on Lake of the Ozarks on the ole warts..still have 20 originals left !!
I have a few. I thought they were so funky looking I did not throw them. The bill molded into the body just didn’t look right.
Maybe I try them now.
Love me some old school lures. My GrandDad used to say "If it caught fish 40 years ago, it will catch fish now".
My friend caught his pb on a devil horse!! 8.5lbs here in Louisiana!
BPS has tanked out with crap gear. Old school BPS and Cabelas was far superior
2 times the cost, 2 times the junk
Thanks for the trip done memory lane. I worked in a bait and tackle shop in 1981 through 1983. Most of my tackle dates back to those days. We stocked 9 out of 10 of those. The boss saw event then that BPS was a threat to local tackle stores and refused to use their catalog as a supplier...which they were really pushing back then.
I had a few of the original Bagley's DB2 in brown/chartreus crawdad that were by far the most productive hardbaits I ever owned. Never the same after that.
Culprit worms had a color combo of laminated orange and motor-oil. No flake. Not flashy. Didn't catch enough fishermen so it was discontinued. I used my last this year. Two 4's and a 5 on that one worm. Hell of a goodbye to the best worm and color combo ever.
Culprit has a crawdad color that looks like its motor oil and orange
Just a thought. With technology today, laser scan these old baits and 3D print them and see how they work. Could do some wood carving as well and see how they work depending on the density of each wood species.
i had that 1988 basspro catalog!! i used to spend hour reading trough it and my childhood dream was to one day be able to visit the store, back then they did not have as many locations as they have today and being an 8y/o growing up in Mexico, it was even harder for me to fulfill that dream. man.. i wish a still had it i would love to read it again.
Missed my favorite, the Nip I didee. Still catching bass on it. I’m 74, Dad started me at 5..
The first bass I ever caught was when I was 5 years old on a mister twister pearl and black shad!
Mr twisters where hot about 50 years ago. I use a swimtail sinko now or speed worm , swim jig with a crawfish trailer.
@@charlesputnam9370 yeah, they’re very simple but they definitely can catch some fish!
@@reelingwithrobby I caught a lot of bass on Mr Twisters worms I grew up on a small lake in central Florida. I am talking really more than 50 years ago. I caught my PB this year on a water melon red and black swim tail sinko 12 lbs 8 ounces. Fish it the same as Mr twisters no lead . They have much better line now. I caught a 11lb bass on a purple Mann's jelly worm in 1974.
@@charlesputnam9370 that’s awesome! Congrats on the PB! How different was the tackle then in terms of durability and casting distance?
@@reelingwithrobby That's funny. Caught 11 in 1974 on a Mitchell 300 spinning reel with 10 lb mono. 2021 using a Lew's superspeed loaded with 50 lb powerpro braid with 30 lb floracarbon leader
I get a lot fewer break offs now. Able to fish denser cover.
Dang I miss the days looking through those old catalogs.
I need to do that more often!
@@zed9955 Know the feelin’.
That old candy bar jig hanging in gramps garage or the Rapala someone dug out the trash heap behind the shed..They both caught jackpot fish years after their time.
I loved those 80's BPS Uncle Buck spinnerbaits they were quality. I still fish those Strike King Spin Dance spinnerbaits with the Tennessee blades... some things never get old if they're still catching bass.
His spinners were only outdone by his Bassmate Calendars…
The first time I ever ordered from Bass Pro I was blown away how nice the ladies where on the phone and would always say yes when they asked "Y'all want to hear what our specials are?" I could listen to their sweet southern accents all day and always bought a couple "specials".
Don’t forget the Norman Weedwalker! I still have the one I used as a kid
I have a bunch ! Lol
I just discovered your channel...IMMEDIATELY SUBSCRIBED!!
I've been fishing since the late 1960's, and have owned and used every lure you highlighted. Like you, I wish I had boxes of those old Wiggle Warts, Strike King Frogs, and Bass Pro Shops "Tornadoes". I never understood why lure companies would discontinue proven, fish-catching, baits -- especially when they still sold well.
I can't wait to explore your channel. I used to love gazing through that annual Bass Pro Shops "Master Catalogue"....
Awesome video man! I got into bass fishing in the early 80s and had most of these lures. Great memories! Thank you.
Don't know the manufacturer, or if it's discontinued, but there was a bait called the 'floppy' that was death to smallies on the Shenandoah in the '70s.
Not quite as old as these, but for me it’s the Berkley Frenzy. The marketing when they came out got me, and I bought a bunch of em, but they worked. Even caught two bass at the same time on a Fire Tiger diver. ‘Fish Feed on the Action!’
Yes, the perch pattern was killer for me
Ah, I still have a few of those old snake lures and the new snake lures he put out before his passing. I was a huge Doug Hannon fan.
The Tornado is still effective today! My grandpa gave me his brothers tackle box (my uncle) R.I.P! He was a great old school fishermen and had amazing old school rods , old school baits, I used the Tornado lastnite at dusk , after fishing Berkeley Choppo for most of time. BANG!!! I had 4 straight 3 lbers , then caught another 3 in my next 5 casts. I had my 2 year old daughter with me and she was amazed , daddy looked like a pro . Burleigh Falls Ontario Canada 🇨🇦
I thought I was too young to recognize most of those baits... I miss the Strike King porko Junior ! Was a killer trailer on jigs for big bass.
The Tube Worm is a hit again. Thank you for your video.
Creme Lure Co. There’s a really cool, old video of Jimmy Houston on TH-cam of him popping nice bass on a blue Tube Worm!
Man that was the big deal back in the day.
I have the green pogo shad you showed at my Dad's house somewhere. I never fished it much, but it was always in my tackle box as a boy.
Always a great watch !!! keep up the super content Chris!
kind of late, but uncle josh is bringing the no 11 pork back this year
WHAT!! Thank you for letting me know!!! I had no idea and I used to love Uncle Josh Pork. Caught a lot of fish on that!
@@411sponge72 And #10 (Big Daddy).
That is awesome
Try using two for a slower fall deadly on the big ones
The Helin Flatfish. My all-time favorite. It drove Northerns and Bucketmouths crazy with rage and/or hunger. Yakima Bait reintroduced the Flatfish but the original by Charlie Helin is a legendary fish snagger and is vintage. Some originals can be found on that eB** place. I found a bunch and they are in my tackle collection.
Today most people think of the Flatfish as a muskie or lake trout lure... if they even know of it at all. But pretty much know one knows it was originally created as bass lure. Charlie Helin, a Detroit auto worker, claims to have whittled 1500 lures until he hit on the what would become the Flatfish. By 1946, he had sold over 5 million. By the time the company was sold to Yakima Baits (1988), well over 40 million had been produced, making the Flatfish one of the most - if not THE most - sold lure in the world.
What size flatfish should i toss for big bucket mouths
What a bad ass channel. I'm only 42, but this has been a time warp for me. Subbed.
Thanks for tuning in, good buddy!
My dad is in his early 60s he's been fishing all his life, thanks to him I have a lot of these antique lures. I'm never going to use them but they're cool to look at on the shelf. Great content sir you have a new sub.
I came on your channel by luck and found it quite interesting. Fishing is one thing I liked for my whole life and have the tackle to prove it. The first Bass Classic tournaments permitted 5 rods and reels and one tackle box that could not weigh over ten pounds. When BASS tournaments first started anyone could enter as long as they paid the entry fees and agreed to the rules of the tournament. I happen to have one of the most popular use tackle boxes. (Plano model 757) I had plans to fish one tournament but failed to get too. The rules of the first years of bass tournaments were designed so anglers had to compete on an equal level. This changed as bass tournaments evolved into a giant success and sponsors and manufactures made it an advertising format for their products. What other pastimes can you enjoy doing from wearing Pampers to Senior’s sized Diapers? Fishing is the number one most popular pastime in the World. I still use my old tackle and new tackle as well. Good fishing tackle will last a lifetime if taken care of. I still use a Color Selector for fun sometimes; mine also has a PH meter too. Here a is a short list of old lures I use Mann’s Stingray Grubs, Mann’s Jelly worms, Mann’s Rat, Mr. Twister’s curly tail grubs, Rebel Deep-Wee-R, Mann’s HardNose Floating Snake, Johnson’s Silver minnows and Uncle Josh’s Pork Baits just like you. If you have, any jars that look bad you can save them by replacing the salt brine with new. You just have to make some and sterilize the jars. I have some over 30-years old. You can add scent using Concentrated Anise, Grape, and Garlic oils used for cooking and baking. You also can die them colors you prefer, this only works on white ones. I have the same box you have mine is more used looking. I think you are an avid collector and that is great for preserving Fishing History. Looking forward to seeing your next video. By the way, Antiques are over 100-years old and I am no antique angler. I am older and still can keep up to most young pups fishing and can put a whipping on plenty of them fishing with my old tackle.
Gizmo Carr Glad you stopped by, and thanks for the great addition to our comments section, Gizmo! I’d be curious how you replace the brine in pork rind. Back when Alan Jones and Urban Schreiner sold their first batch of No. 11 pork frog for $300, they were still trying to figure out how to get the baits to hold dye and keep from turning rancid. Lucky for us, they soon figured it out!
@@RetroBassin I found a number of different recipes on the internet on blogs. They all vary slightly. The brine I made used coarse Morton Kosher Salt and water. I boiled the water and added salt until it would not absorb any more salt. I put the brine in a sterilize jar and added more salt. I let it sit sealed for 24 hours. I remove the pork baits from their jars, washed them in warm water at the same time cleaning the jars, and sterilize them with hot water. I placed the baits in the jars and filled them full to the top with brine. That was over a year ago. I used some this fall and they were still good. The used ones I put in a jar of brine alone, and washed them before putting them back in the jars they came from. If your baits still look good and never been used or open, who knows how long they will last. If you see sediment in the jar, I would change the brine and use those baits first. The jars I added grape oil to turn the pork fogs a beautiful dark blue. The only time I use pork on jigs is when the water is cold in spring and fall. There is nothing better because all soft plastic baits get hard and stiff in the cold water. Pork does not. Pork frogs last forever and soft plastics tear off. The only thing is, you have to keep them wet or they will dry out and you need an ax to get them off. I still have a couple pork pockets, they have sponge liners, you wet them, and put Mr. Frog inside, he stays soft and wet. Pork baits are old school but they last forever. I guess I should use them up and forget about them but I don’t want too. I have jars with the price tag on them. ($1.88) That is all can tell you.
I'm so glad TH-cam recommended your channel to me. I love vintage lures and gimmicks. I just subbed
Will never forget my first bass. Caught him on a 6" Mister Twister Phenom blue with red fire tail (color now discontinued) at Bells Lake in Turnersville, NJ in the early 80s, I was about 10 years old. Cast the worm near an old fishing dock in some lilly pads. One of the best memories of my life. Still fish with MT Phenoms to this day just because of that first catch. Love the channel!
That was a good sunny day color
I had the Doug Hannon snake bait when I was a kid. I don't recall ever catching anything on it, but it looked great in the water. I loved the grass frog and later the pop-n-frog, but I always missed a ton of fish with them. I prefer the zoom horny toad, much better hook up. I still have several jars of uncle Josh products. In the northwest we've always used wiggle warts for salmon and steelhead.
i have a couple of jars of those pork frogs from back when I used to fish pig & jig as my go-to
also have some of those Rapala minnow spoons
I found about 10 jars of them cleaning an attic I wish I didn’t toss them
My grandfather passed away a couple of months ago, and as I was going through all of his fishing stuff that was left to me, I found one of the Grass Frogs in black. I immediately was taken aback by the hydrofoam material. I'll have to try to land a fish on it for Papa and my channel.
I still mimick the snake bait, with cork and ten inch ribbon worms. It isn't pretty, but works. I had the same reaction with the grass frog, only it was a large bowfin who took the bait. It was heart stopping. First thought was this thing actually works!
Tom Mann had a top water bait that did not last very long. It was called the Frog Mann and came in several outside patterns. A plastic frog-looking bait, with a rattle feature. Fishing this Mann's top water bait in the Spring and Fall would give the best results from this lure. The Tom Mann Frog Mann lure came out in the 1970's and went out of production sometimes in the 1980's. Two triple hook set-up, with one on the belly and one in the rear. This bait, for some unknown reason, did not catch on. Frogs are high on the food chain for bass in areas (south) of the country where frogs are plentiful. This bait was made for some great top water action, bass action! Thanks so much again for another great retro-bait program!
I've been lookin' for a Frog Mann for a while now!
In my opinion, the overall best lipless crankbait ever made, was the Mann's Finn-mann, which was similar to both the Leroy Brown and the Pogo Shad. My first exposure to it was at a tournament at Eufaula in the early eighties. The lure was not even on the market yet, but a company rep was at the ramp waiting on my boss. There looked to be a drug deal being made right there on the ramp as the rep handed over a couple of the baits to my boss, who was a member of the Mann's field staff. He promptly went out and caught twenty-eight pounds on a chartreuse/black back one.
Glenn Gaylor That story right there is WHY I started this channel! I really hope the comments section at RB continues to be a forum for folks who know a lot more about fishing history than I.
@@RetroBassin, I've only got three or four left, none of which are in the right colors (pearl gray/black back, and the aforementioned chartreuse/black back). Always on the lookout for them though.
The float n fly technique often used on cold Dale Hollow waters, used a craft fur 1/16 oz Jig, tipped with an Uncle Josh fly strip, usually white. I’d pay top dollar for a few jars!
Well Retro thanks to you I tied on a Rapala minnow spoon yesterday and got a nice 5lb walleye, off my backyard. I dont know why I stopped fishing them.
1. Dancein eel.
2. Cotton Cordell BIG O.
All you need is coveralls with all kinds of fishing related patches.
Just subscribed!!!!
Doug Hannon did more for my fishin except for my father.
The Bass Professor was the man!
@@RetroBassin
Do you know how he died? And his age?
Dude. I love your channel.
I was raised in a bass boat from 1972 until 1986. In 86 i got my drivers license and discovered“girls” if you know what I mean. I had other priorities until about 1998.
So much has changed from back when I was learning how to fish.
A lot of the lures we used worked great. I stay on eBay buying old lures.
My dad taught me a lot. He was a pro-am . He could have went pro.
But being a professional bass fisherman is not the perfect family life.
Any way you keep making videos and I will keep watching.
Oh!!!
I think you live in Texas.
Are you going to the BassMaster Classic?
I would like to meet you there.
Maybe I get my dad’s old Bass Club shirt out and wear it if you wear something retro also.
I am going. I have always wanted to go. I am definitely going to be there all 3 days from the time the doors open till they close.
Email me at
Notworkinmonte@gmail.com
My buddies and I spent many an graveyard shift pouring over BPS catalogs "back in the day." I've tried most of the baits you mentioned, and I don't recall EVER catching a fish on any of them. Especially the Tornado spinner, and the Doug Hannon Snake Bait.
Just subscribed keep up the good work bud
I have caught a ton of bass on the Hula Popper, Coach Dog color, fished up close to the bank in the early morning. It is my favorite bass lure,
I hate to think 1978 is antique. My God I'm must be cosidered prehistoric. Heddon baby Zara, great lure, I don't use it anymore because I'm afraid to lose it.
Back before I had ever heard of Bass Pro Shops, an older friend showed me a Mepp's Comet Minnow. We only knew it as a "Mepp's Minnow" and it was pretty much the only lure he owned. We caught almost anything that would take a lure. Trout, bass, panfish, pike and pickerel were caught in our lakes and ponds. Never did gat a walleye though. Now, I own several in every size they make. Still an awesome lure.
There are 2 that I would love to see come back. I will name 1 but not the other one. A floating spinnerbait, they were made by Hoppers in Tennessee. They had a Bream cork on the wire leading up to the bend. They really didn't float but when you let them fall it would sink really slowly and rock side to side, pitch it by a stump or log and hang on. The second one I'm going to keep to myself, I try to buy everyone that I can find on eBay.
Hey Chris 👋👋
I can think of a few more for you ! The SMITHWICK TOOTHPICK is one that's hard to find. The BILL PLUMMER SUPER FROG is another ! I had that 1978 BPS catalog too, but I actually got a chance to order from it in 1978, and in 1979 ! 👍😁✌👍👍
I'm 76 years old and I've got a lot of this old stuff and still use it. Including a set of Heddon Supersonics. Never one to "mothball" something that works. That's not what it was created for. IMHO
That’s awesome, Ivan!
I have the 1979 BPS catalog sitting out on display in my house. I still have a few jars of old Uncle Josh pork rinds, too; the Fenwick Lunkerstik 2000 is still my favorite rod; and Mann's Razorback Pig and Deep Pig my most nostalgic crankbaits. How many fish I've caught on all that stuff is unknowable....
The old stuff is the good stuff!
I’ve still got four of those snake baits and two of the tornadoes (though the skirts dry rotted off). I also have three suspending (I think) Wiggle Warts from back in the 80s. Miss the Uncle Josh stuff as I used to fish a ton of jig and pig setups because they were pretty inexpensive for a broke kid. One bait that I used to love but don’t remember the name of was a clear lipless crank that had different color prismatic inserts - red, blue, chartreuse, green, and pearl. As a kid when I got it, I loved getting five lures for the price of one.
Think that bait was called the Lil' Huey, an As Seen On TV lure that came with green, yellow, red, orange, and purple inserts. Another one is could be was the Rebel Blackstar, which is one of my favorite old timey cranks.
Man. Miss the pork frog. Caught so many big bass in the spring on black and blue jig and pig.
Uncle Josh has since started selling them again!
Grass frog were awesome when they first came out and I caught a lot of fish. But something changed later and they just stopped catching fish.
I had a 5-pounder borrow my Tornado. It had a twisted propeller type of blade instead of the chatter blade seen here. Up until that day I had always thought the bass only ate the skirted jig and the blade was just for vibration and attraction. Nope. She engulfed the whole thing. Although my time with her was short we created a memory to last a lifetime.😂
Damn I still use hulas and jitterbugs. Hard to beat a great topwater bite.
Got big collection of old lures and Old Bass Pro shop catalogs I enjoy thumbing through had the Bass Professor stuff and books and his spinning reel too.
I have an old Lee Sisson deep diving balsa crankbait that was my dad’s. He did use it at least once but it’s in very good condition and I’m gonna keep it and never use it again. I love it.
That Tube Worm is more like a shakey head than a Ned rig.
And Randy Blaukat on Intuitive Angling had a video on pork frogs. I believe he mentioned a replacement for the old ones.
I loved the Tornados! Caught so many bass and pike on those. So versatile. I’d love to copy that bait and reintroduce it.
Me too!
I still have 1
I was hoping to see on here the Bomber Fat A Bill Dance signature series with Excalibur hooks that came out in the mid 90's .They introduced A transparent Fire Tiger Shad and a transparent Ghost Shad with a loud BB rattle that produced a ton of big bass for Me and a buddy of mine..Sadly they suffered the same fate as these lures when out of the blue, no heads up, not even a John Deere letter left in the their place, they were gone quicker than a girl from Cranston..
Bass Magnets!, No idea who made them, just know my dad had a full set of them in the Early-mid 90's. They were a crankbait loosely shaped like a crawdad, came in all sorts of colors. Last weekend Dad was showing me his "new" set of Bass Magnets he found on ebay, dropped a pretty penny on them too.
Bill Norman had them at some point. I've got a few...
LOVED the snakebait!! Also miss the Dance’s Eel. Pike loved them!
We need more Bass Professor these days!
I have been binge watching in my limited free time at night!! Love every episode. Any idea when the Creme website store will be allowing purchases again? They keep saying temporarily closed... I prefer their pre-rigged 4" scoundrels. I have the hat to match your sticker in the background!! Keep on rocking. Gonna to hit 10K subs soon!
How can any of these lures work? I thought all bass agreed at the great bass meeting of 1983 to never eat any of these again!
Yes...decades before the infamous Googan-baits-only meeting!
U sound like my wife. She asked why do u keep buying fishing equipment. I told her u stay away from garage sales I'll quit
@@Ergo8152 Hahahaha
Mann's made a plastic lizard that was labeled mann's FLW. They had a wide tail that tapered real small at the body. The side legs were super thin that had a ton of action as did the tail. I lost count of the 5 plus pound bass I caught on the junebug color. Wish they still made them. I haven't had or seen them for years.
Tom Mann’s chug n spit is also a good one
Anything Tom Mann made was good…we’ll maybe except the Hard Worm LOL
Two topwater lures I miss are Devil's Horse "Toothpick" and Heddon's "Crazy Crawler". I have a crazy crawler I've retired. But the Toothpick I want again.
I stumbled on your TH-cam channel and I am glad that I did. The content of this video brings back memories. I think that about half of my tackle is discontinued and one day be sought after collectors on EBay. I am in the process of buying tackle that I once had on EBay and it's expensive. Great video.
Check out otter tail. We use them on the Chesapeake for stripers since pork rinds are no longer
I have two of those snake heads! I have the tornado & also have a Leroy brown!
I favored the Devil Horse back in them days. Big bass on top water is hard to beat.🎣
I always had trouble casting those lures on baitcasting gear!
I was about to comment about the Devil Horse as well! First bass i remember ever catching as a kid
Roland Martin still swears by them.
First largemouth bass I caught was on a rooster tail
Tube worms were the first item I ever ordered thru the mail. I think I was in the 4th or 5th grade. I put the exact change in the envelope.
I can remember jumping up and down on my parents king sized bed when the Roland Martin song would start on the portable radio/tv.
The tv had a 5” screen and used the radio dial.
Having a second tv was a big deal back then because you could watch both channels at the same time! Imagine that!
I love this channel! I don't know how you find all of this info but it is very cool! The old catalogs remind me of when I first got interested in bass fishing. Keep up the good work!
Yeah buddy! I try to dig up what information I can, but so much history has already been lost to Father Time. Thanks for tuning in!
Love these vids.
Couldn’t even be done to list all the baits, lures, and colors snd patterns that I miss so dearly. Lol
Welcome aboard the Retro Wagon, BigBass!
Always had great top water luck with the heddon crazy crawler. Got get the speed right for the action but it gets slammed when you do.
Loved the bagly balsa wood
Small fry lures the foil shad
Blue gill and craw dad would
Catch some nice bass in the early 80s in the clear lakes around San diego when I was
In high school caught a big
Trout on a gold tinfoil shad
Use 2 save my 2 dollars I got
For mowing the yard definitely took are of them
Man I came across these soft plastic snake fishing baits at a yard sale were about 10 inches long had to buy them. And they were incredible ,remember seeing 2 or 3 bass at a time go after them. Unfortunately all ended up tore up and haven't been able to find them.
I use a number of out of production baits. 2 of my favorites are the Short Wart and Front Runner. I am almost out of original Wiggle Warts but like the new ones OK.
one of your best episodes to date, nicely done.
Thanks! But sure need to get out of the studio and onto the water!!
Absolutely love your show. remember to think Debo I first saw you on his show.
Debo is the man!
Damn, I must be getting old. I've used everyone of those lures except for Mann's Leroy Brown.
Do you know where I can find a War Eagle Double Willow Gold Spinnerbait in Bone-Chartreuse?
In the early 80s the Arbogast Arbogaster was my favorite lure. It was a deep diving crankbait that had a hula skirt on it and bass loved it. Wish they still made those!
I miss the Lindy Shadling with square lip so much!
I don’t know how many zander ( europe walleyes) i caught with them!
I had the Snakebait. My dad used to laugh at some of my lures that I would buy as a kid until one day I went out and just slaughtered them on that thing. Only problem was that for some reason gar would attach that thing like it owed them money so I lost all of them that I had in fairly short order.
Abu Shyster, Rapala Floater , Sonic, and Jitterbug, my all time best.
I also have two Mann's lures I never go without, the super frog, and the baby one minus
I would like to see Zora ghost made again
The first bass I ever caught was an 11 lb stripped bass when I was 5 or 6 with my stepdad. Lol I had a pretty hard time pulling it in but I managed to get it to the boat. We used live shad but I don’t remember how he had them rigged at the time.
My 3 to add to the list
1)- Heddon River Runt
2)- Heddon Meadow Mouse (especially the fuzzy ones)
3)- abrogast jitterstick (in black it was amazing)
Three goodies! My Bassin’ Bud Brandon still fishes with the River Runt to this day.
I had the snake bait in Copperhead color . Man I'd love to fish that thing again ! they need to re manufacture that one again .
I miss the snake bait and I miss the Bass Professor.
@@RetroBassin what about aquasonic lures?
I LOVE vintage gear, love to use vintage gear! Great channel!
I've got three Tornadoes hanging from the mouth of a mounted bass in my living room. I'm afraid to fish with them for fear that I'd lose them.
Evidently while I was taking care of a newborn and a wife with post partum, bass pro pulled the Tornado from it's shelves. When it was time to get back to fishing, I went into BPS looking to purchase more Tornadoes and when asked, the store clerk looked at me like I had just landed here from Mars. I found out that I now have VINTAGE lures.
Been using the new chatterbait lately. I've had absolutely no luck "hooking" up with any bass.
Bring back the Tornado!
Taking a week of vacation during the full moon in June. Went to get something for the camper and found another Tornado spinnerbait that I was unaware of. So now I have four Tornados.
The paint had big chips in it and the clapper had worn a groove in the blade but it's still a fishable Tornado. I put a new skirt on it and it went into my tackle box with the others that I pulled out of retirement.
22 Jun 21 my Tornados still catches bass!
I remember ordering two left handed Shimano bantam mag baitcasters from the BP catalog in early 80's, and then waiting for what seemed like forever, great times though.
Love the old school lure my personal best lure was a bass oreno
One I wish they'd bring back is the old Heddon Prowler. I caught some of the best fish of my life with it.
Where’s the cotton cordelle Redfin?!?! Still have one in a brand new package I’ve been saving lol
Heddon tiny crazy crawler,Zara spook,Johnson silver minnows,rattle traps,silver buddies,road runners,rebel craw,buzz bait,water dogs.........👍
Cool video. Remember the Strike King Pork-O? That thing was amazing! Also, I have a handful of Tornado spinnerbaits I bought was back when. Never used them...
I sure do! And I have some...
@@RetroBassin What??!! What kind of shape are they in?
@@Twangtown7 As good as 30-year-old pork can be!
I use Rapala minnow spoon all the time. One of the best lures for reeds and even large grocery stores carry it here.