A couple projects I’ve fiddled with in the cold months:
Aluminum Beer bottle teasers:
100 lb mono, 1 swivel, 5 empty aluminum beer bottles.
Tied arm length pieces together with uni knots into three way junctions to allow the bottle to swing freely. The last piece was made a little extra long to account for the last bottle. Pounded a nail through the caps then tied a knot behind the hole before screwing the bottle on. All tied to an old swivel. Estimated tackle cost: 50 cents or less
I’ve never tried these things in the water so they’ll probably need some adjusting by either holes drilled or flattening, I’ll work it out when I try them. I’ve made black and blue ones too with the 50th super bowl bud light bottles and they look good.
Knife jigs:
Old heavy stainless knives, Drill bits, cutting oil, split rings, assist hooks, metal cutter/grinder, drill.
Decide whether or not you want to trim the blade off or not (I’ve had both types work well for me, haven’t decided on a preference yet). Drill hole very close to edge.use cutting oil and go very slow. Stainless is absurdly hard to drill so be patient or you will burn through bits. There are some YouTube videos on how to drill stainless if you’re interested. Smooth out any burrs with grinder. assemble with split ring and hooks. Estimated tackle cost: 20.99 plus tax in assist hooks, couple bucks in split rings=$1.20 per jig if the knife was free.
I’ve caught aj’s, Bonita, and Black Sea bass on these things, haven’t had the chance yet to try them on mahi or blackfin yet. They look dumb but they work. Had a monster aj snap me off after near spooling me last season.
Just thought I’d post a couple ideas for those that want to try their hand at DIY (cheap!) tackle. They probably aren’t the best, but I know the jigs work at least in shallower depths. And I do get a special satisfaction out of catching something on a lure I fashioned myself. Can’t wait to see how the teasers run.
[img]http://old.charlestonfishing.com/forum/uploaded/Millacd/20162251