Musky America Magazine January 2023 Edition

Touching Up The Wood Craig Sandell © 2019 The traditional Muskie angler loves his/her wooden lures. Many Muskie anglers will tell you that the wood provides the lure with the type of action that plastic or composite lures cannot match. I will not debate the issue here. In this article I will provide some suggestions for conditioning your wooden lures so that they remain effective. It is not possible to discuss lures without mentioning brand names, however, the mention of a brand name should NOT be construed as an endorsement for the lure or as a testimonial as to its effectiveness. Wooden lures can be found in the crank bait category, the jerk bait category and the surface bait category. These wooden lures are effective because of their action in the water as they are retrieved. It is this action that not only attracts Muskie but also shortens the life of the lure. The Hawg Wobbler shown here is an excellent example of what happens to a lure over the course of a single season. The wear that is see here is caused by the hooks swinging freely with the action of the lure. Even if the hooks were blunted, the lure would still be marked from the hooks hitting the body of the lure. Yes, you can put an epoxy resin coating over the lure but this will add to the weight of the lure and impact upon

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