Such lures (which I will call "spin bugs" to separate them from the regular cork or plastic "bass bugs") should weight at least 1/4 oz. or a bit more to cast well. They are usually bulky, having hair or feathers which hold them back during the cast.
Spin bugs or bass bugs are usually made to resemble some kind of insect or bug which has fallen into the water. These are generally such big insects as dragonflies, butterflies, moths, beetles, and grasshoppers. Such insects float and kick around on top of the water, so spin bugs which do the same are the best fish-getters. However, some of these lures are also made to resemble minnows, small fish, or frogs.
The simplest type of spin bug one can make is a small popping bug. The spin bugs are much smaller, shorter, and have fewer hooks. And they will have hair or feathers added to imitate the legs or wings of a bug or insect.
The popping spin bug can be made from soft, light wood such as cedar or basswood. It should be about 11/2 in. long and 7/8 in. in diameter. The head slants downward at the regular 45-degree angle. You need two small screw-eyes and one treble hook to finish this bug. One screw eye goes at the head for the fishing line, while the other one holds the treble hook at the tail.
The screw eyes and hooks should be smaller than those used for regular fresh-water plugs; a No. 2 or No. 4 treble hook is a good size to use. The hooks should be sharp, fine-wire types of the best quality. You'll hook more fish with needle-sharp hooks than with dull, cheap ones.
Before the treble hook is put on the screw eye it should be wound with bucktail hair. First cut your bucktail hair so that it is only slightly longer than the shank of the hook. Next, get some fly-tying thread and make a few turns with it around the hook shank near the eye. Now form three or four pinches of the bucktail hair and have them ready.
Take one of the pinches of bucktail, lay it against the hook shank and wind several turns of thread around it. To make the wings of the spin bug which project from the sides, use buck-tail or other hair. Take two pinches of the bucktail and wrap the butts tightly with fly-tying thread.
Then dip or dab the windings with clear, waterproof cement. After they dry, drill two holes in the wood body of the bug, one on each side. When you do this, make sure that the holes are just big enough to take the butts of the bucktail wings snugly. In other words, it should be a tight fit.
Then dip the butts of the wings in clear cement and insert them into the holes. You can also force a drop or two of the cement into the holes with a stick or brush. When the cement dries the bucktail wings will be held firmly in place.
Finish off the wrapping with more turns. Add another pinch of bucktail next to the first one and wind some thread around it. Keep doing this until the hook shank is completely covered. Bind it with a whip finish or a series of half hitches. Then coat the thread wrapping with fly-tying cement or with one of the clear, quick-drying cements which come in tubes.
With one of these spin bugs on the end of your line, you should enjoy success every time.
Pearls are elegant jewelry. You can buy them shaped as necklaces, bracelets, earrings or even as an accent to a ring. There are hundreds, if not thousands of pearl jewelry designs to choose from in the market today. Before you buy one for yourself, you should learn how to identify if what you are getting is genuine or fake.
First, you have to know the kind of pearl that is available in the market. They are categorized in two:
1. Saltwater pearls - these are formed inside oysters that are living in the heart of the ocean. It has three types - Tahitian, Akoya, and South Sea Pearls - depending on the kind of oyster that produced it. 2. Freshwater pearls - these are formed inside mussels that are living in lakes, rivers, ponds, or any other body of fresh water.
Either saltwater pearls or freshwater pearls can be natural or cultured. Natural means that there is no human intervention and the pearl is formed naturally by the oyster or mussel. The pearl oyster secretes nacre an iridescent material made of calcium carbonate. The nacre will coat a microscopic irritant entering its shell until a pearl is formed. On the other hand, cultured means that a pearl grower will carefully open the shell and introduce a small object as an irritant (commonly a bead or metal), then get them back into the water and wait for the pearl to form. This usually takes 2-5 years.
There are a lot of fake pearls out there, but it is more pleasant to own a genuine pearl jewelry at least once in your lifetime. A genuine pearl does not only mean "natural". Even "cultured" pearls are genuine pearls too, having an advantage of being more affordable than natural pearls.
When you hear of fake pearls, it means that they are man-made pearls made of glass, ceramics, plastics or any other similar materials. They are also called "faux" pearls and are sold as costume jewelry. In the face of modern technology, man can create pearls that look like the original one. Mind you, fakes can have the exact original look, but they do not have the same weight or texture. And their luster is dimmer, which is enough to show that they are imitations of the original. They do not contain any gem value.
To help you with identifying genuine freshwater pearls, here is a three way test:
1. Tooth test - get the pearl and run it against your front teeth, just right below the biting edge. If you sense a gritty feeling, it is most probably real. Fake pearls are smooth, like plastic or glass. However, be very careful of the pearls that are made from ground shells as they can also be gritty. 2. Luster test - test the pearls against all kinds of light. Fake pearls will have a shine only on the surface, while genuine pearls always shine from within. 3. Rub test - get two pearls and rub it together. It should be gritty and do not slide off each other.
Both Jimmy Cox & Robert D. Thomson are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Jimmy Cox has sinced written about articles on various topics from Web Development, Horse Racing and Investments. Long Lost Manuscript Resurfaces With The Secrets To Making Fishing Homemade LuresClick here for FREE online ebook!