Surf Sinkers to dig in....

[deepsessions]

Hello again guys,

Besides Pyramid Sinkers what else is out there? I need something to dig into the sand better.

Is there any online stores that specialize in terminal tackle for Surf Fishing?

Thanks

[kingfisherman23]

You want storm sinkers or breakaway spiders.

The hurricane is a pyramid with a column of lead at the tip. The sputnik/breakaway/spider is a bank sinker with pivoting wire legs that help it dig in.

http://www.stripersonline.com/surftalk/attachment.php?attachmentid=12642&d=1155257237

Image from SOL

As far as sites go, I'd do a google search. There are plenty of good places out there. Oysterbaytackle.com is a good place to start.

Evan

[Fireline20]

My favorite is the the Frog Tongue as it casts real well, digs and holds but releases easy when reeling it back in. Problem is, they are hard to find in local bait shops (I know of only one at Kure Beach.

My next favorite is the Storm for heavy seas and 3 sided pyramids for light to normal seas.

I have used the Sputnicks but I don't care for them because they are hard to unlodge and are a pain to reel back in..plus if you lose one in the surf it WILL become a line magnet and WILL eventually create a Snag Monster.:mad::mad::mad:

jmho

[BentHook]

For holding power the breakaway in 4oz with hold better the the others in 6oz.The metal legs are designed to release when winding in.The only drawback is they cost more and may be hard to find if your not in the south..The breakaway and bank sinkers have the weight forward and will give more distance when casting.

[Sandcrab]

I use the anchor sinkers from BPS. The 6 oz one holds like an 8 oz... Look just like the Sputniks but the wire is on top of the sinker and you have to bend it down to work... They are a pain to reel in once you have "set" them in the surf... but they stay like crazy! ;) BPS makes them in 1,2,3,4,6, or 8 oz sizes...

Sandcrab

[Lightload]

I spent some time on the beach one day just testing sinkers. Here's what I found:

The sputnik holds waay better than anything that doesn't have wires on it AND it's the easiest sinker to retrieve because once the wires collapse and lay alongside the sinker, there's really nothing to drag in the sand. Trouble is Sputniks are a pain to use, they're expensive and if you break one off you've just created a punji stick for someone to step on. Also, some guys who use J hooks find that they can't set the hook because it takes more than one yank just to release the sinker. But if you want to throw light and hold heavy, get some sputniks.

Next up are the storm/hurricanes that have the bulb on the end, especially in sizes 4,5 and 6 ounces. These fly well and hold well. When you go to 8 ounces, the flat top portion is just too wide and the sand will build up on one side or the other and the sinker will turn sideways, dumping its load of sand. In other words, the sinker would work better if it was narrower at the top and longer in the body.

Third is the Frog's Tongue. Flies very well and holds very well in all the sizes.

Then comes the long slender hurricane/storm and then the pyramids.

All things considered, I use the Frog's Tongues just about exclusively. They hold well, they fly well AND they are compact so they don't take up a lot of room in your tackle box.

[jlentz]

I use the Hilts mold for making the Storm sinkers in 6 and 8 oz. I have had them get so buried in the sand when throwing on the sandbar with big breakers, if you let them sit longer than 10 minutes you could not pull them free and would have to break your line.

John

[TideJones]

I have not officially tested them, but I feel like the in-line disk sinkers, ounce for ounce, hold better than the pyramids.

[eric]

im selling a sputnik with breakaway wires mold.

6oz, its holding power is close to 9oz..

[Sgt_Slough]

im selling a sputnik with breakaway wires mold.

6oz, its holding power is close to 9oz..

I'm interested, can you email me a pic otgman(at)verizon.net

I make a variety of sputties

http://i496.photobucket.com/albums/rr328/Surf_Fishing_Guru/sputniks.jpg

and this one too . . .

http://i496.photobucket.com/albums/rr328/Surf_Fishing_Guru/flightedgripaway.jpg

[Caught Myself]

I'm a pyramid kind of guy but I have to admit that gripaway wins first prize for the coolest looking sinker ever. Kinda Flash Gordon but I'm sure it would work well. Thanks for the pic.

[eric]

the gripaway in sgts pic is a flighted sinker.
meaning as you starting retrieving it fast, those wings make the sinker plane to the top of the water..
clear from weeds and rocky bottoms.

[WV Cobbmullet]

Anyone know where you can get a mold for the frogtounge sinker?

[Lightload]

Yeah, but they ain't cheap.

A business called "Collins Customs" makes them. I don't have a web page address so try Googling it. I do have a phone number if you need it. But be prepared.....these molds ain't cheap!

Back when scrap lead was sky high you could easily recoup your initial cost for a Collin's mold. Now that lead's down to 5 cents a pound it'll be awhile until you make up the cost of the equipment. Of course, if you don't have any other access to Frog's tongues then the cost really doesn't matter.

Also, the Collin's molds are massive so it takes a lot of volume of hot lead to get them to throw good sinkers. My Lee Production Pot couldn't handle it so I had to go to an external heat source, a cast iron pot and a ladle to make decent sinkers.

OK, I found the web site: http://shawncollinscustoms.com/sinkers2.htm#FrogTongueSinker

[Fireline20]

I spent some time on the beach one day just testing sinkers. Here's what I found:

The sputnik holds waay better than anything that doesn't have wires on it AND it's the easiest sinker to retrieve because once the wires collapse and lay alongside the sinker, there's really nothing to drag in the sand. Trouble is Sputniks are a pain to use, they're expensive and if you break one off you've just created a punji stick for someone to step on. Also, some guys who use J hooks find that they can't set the hook because it takes more than one yank just to release the sinker. But if you want to throw light and hold heavy, get some sputniks.

Next up are the storm/hurricanes that have the bulb on the end, especially in sizes 4,5 and 6 ounces. These fly well and hold well. When you go to 8 ounces, the flat top portion is just too wide and the sand will build up on one side or the other and the sinker will turn sideways, dumping its load of sand. In other words, the sinker would work better if it was narrower at the top and longer in the body.

Third is the Frog's Tongue. Flies very well and holds very well in all the sizes.

Then comes the long slender hurricane/storm and then the pyramids.

All things considered, I use the Frog's Tongues just about exclusively. They hold well, they fly well AND they are compact so they don't take up a lot of room in your tackle box.

Ditto to what he said:D:D

[WV Cobbmullet]

Thanks Lightload Ill give them a call must be high they dont put prices on thier web site.

[eric]

maybe post a price if you call them later.
i wanna know too how much a 4.5.6.8 mold would cost..

[RuddeDogg]

You want storm sinkers or breakaway spiders.

The hurricane is a pyramid with a column of lead at the tip. The sputnik/breakaway/spider is a bank sinker with pivoting wire legs that help it dig in.

http://www.stripersonline.com/surftalk/attachment.php?attachmentid=12642&d=1155257237

Image from SOL

As far as sites go, I'd do a google search. There are plenty of good places out there. Oysterbaytackle.com is a good place to start.

Evan

Yep have some if each.

[SmoothLures]

I mostly use bank sinkers, some days a 4 oz will hold just fine, when it gets rolled around I use a 4-6 oz breakaway unless everyone else next to me on the piers is using something that's rolling. If I'm fishing a beach with no rocks I'll toss pyramids but usually stick with the bank sinkers as I don't mind a little rolling around if I'm by myself fishing (which you are in MB from the surf).

[beach bum]

For heavy surf, I use a storm sinker similar to the one pictured by kingfisherman23, except the coulumn of lead on the bottom of mine looks like a corkscrew.

[Lightload]

I've got the 6,8,10 model. It's been awhile but I think I paid $120 for it.


Sgt Slough, those are some great looking sputniks. I'd like to know the procedure you go though to make them.

[Sgt_Slough]

Now that lead's down to 5 cents a pound

Where pray tell are you getting lead for 5¢ a pound?

Sgt Slough, those are some great looking sputniks. I'd like to know the procedure you go though to make them.

First is acquiring the molds from Europe and they can be pretty expensive (I've paid over $45 with shipping), then the wire. I buy the wire with the eye already formed either 8 or 12 inches long in 0.051 inch size. That's pretty thick, a lot thicker than any wire I've ever had in commercially produced sputniks. I like the thicker wire because it offers more adjustability in holding power. Gotta buy the beads too, when you add it all up with the lead and 4+ hours of propane coming out of a high-output burner, the per-unit cost is high.

They are a real pain to make too, at least to have them come out nice; it's very labor intensive removing flash and cleaning the holes then inserting and bending wires, adding beads and bending again . . .

People ask me to sell them but I'm embarrassed to ask what they are really worth; the number seems crazy, even to me . . . I guess with the way the cost of everything rose that's why nobody is making them anymore for commercial sale; there are none in the shops up here.

[Lightload]

I sold some aluminum cans to a scrap dealer last week and during our conversation he said that the price of scrap lead was down to 5 cents a pound.

[waywack40]

Sinker Molds:
http://www.luremaking.com/catalogue/catalogue-index/catalogue-items/sinker_molds.htm

[junkmansj]

Still have those Molds??





Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: brOoklyn, nyC
Posts: 1,067
im selling a sputnik with breakaway wires mold.

6oz, its holding power is close to 9oz..
____________________-
Still have those Molds??

[thebigman]

You can find some of the breakaway style moulds here - http://www.google.co.uk/products?q=breakaway+moulds&btnG=Search+Products&hl=en&show=dd

Not sure about them shipping to the US but I'd be happy to send them over to you guys at cost (as long as you're not wanting hundreds :-)

[Lightload]

Bigman, That's really a very nice offer! Thanks for helping out.

[deepsessions]

Great info guys......I really appreciate it.....