# cheap sinkers



## bluefish1928 (Jun 9, 2007)

What are some ideas to get cheap sinkers?

homemade alternatives?


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## NC KingFisher (Nov 20, 2011)

Old spark plugs, rocks, baggies of sand


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## patindaytona (Jun 17, 2006)

I saw a packet of miniature baggies about 2 " x 1" at flea market today. Would be great to just fill with sand and tie with line. I fish at the jetty and loose tons of sinkers there, and the sinkers are just falling in between crevasses in those rocks anyway......unseen.
I also used those weights off of discarded cast nets...


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## AbuMike (Sep 3, 2007)

Castnet weights...


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## DANtheJDMan (Aug 29, 2012)

Old or new nuts for cap screws.
I go fishing below a dam and you will never get your rig back. I buy 5/8 grade 2 nuts for $1.90 a pound and there are about 18 in a pound.
I tie


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## rabbitdog2 (Aug 20, 2011)

Tire weights.


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## liveherring (Sep 12, 2013)

bluefish1928 said:


> What are some ideas to get cheap sinkers?
> 
> homemade alternatives?


How many ounces you need?


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## bluefish1928 (Jun 9, 2007)

liveherring said:


> How many ounces you need?


 2-3 ounces each


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## DANtheJDMan (Aug 29, 2012)

Ok how do you edit your post?
What I was going to say is I put a short length of 6-10# mono through the nut and tie a figure 8 knot. Then I attach it to my bottom rig which has a swivel with a clip.
I put a float on the main line so the nut gets caught in the rocks. A good fish will break the line and your on. Sometimes it will pull your nut loose and you will get a fish and your weight back. It's fun and a lot cheaper than buying lead sinkers. I need to find a bucket of old used nuts. Cheaper yet.


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## OBX Jay (Sep 3, 2007)

patindaytona said:


> I saw a packet of miniature baggies about 2 " x 1" at flea market today. Would be great to just fill with sand and tie with line. I fish at the jetty and loose tons of sinkers there, and the sinkers are just falling in between crevasses in those rocks anyway......unseen.
> I also used those weights off of discarded cast nets...


miniature PLASTIC baggies?


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## NC KingFisher (Nov 20, 2011)

You need like little mesh baggies, or pieces of pantyhose


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## RuddeDogg (Mar 20, 2004)

3/4 or 1 inch hex nuts


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## CoolDude (Sep 28, 2010)

Unless you are going to switch up your style of fishing you're always going to need sinkers and other basic gear. I posted a while back about a rare trip to Bass Pro to look at rods and reels. I made a (negative) comment regarding the price of reels to a random fisherman and he sorta looked down his nose at me like, "you cheap bastard"...chances are that I'd fish circles around him, but back to the purpose of my post...

...sinkers don't necessarily come with marketing and related brand "mark ups"...Very few things serve as a good substitute. That being said, I use Ebay and Craigslist. When winter sets in...instead of daydreaming about a 200 dollar lightweight spinning reel (that don't and won't outperform a 50-80 dollar reel from Walmart)....search for and buy terminal gear. Line, hooks, sinkers...lures. You will get decent deals on them for the next few months. I've lucked up on formed sinkers at the ounce cost of lead...and many times less. All of the fake fishermen will be getting rid of their stuff shortly (not cut out for it...or they need the newest new stuff for next year)...the hardcore guy looking for deals won't sit down in front of the computer until late November/December. Don't try to buy gear in April or May when everybody and their mom has fishing fever.

Worse comes to worse, take the money that you saved from not buying that over priced reel and go buy some sinker molds. You're going to fish for life so why not? They're 25 or 30 bucks. Most of us only use a few different styles of sinkers so 2 molds will do (1-6oz bank and pyramids). Lead can be bought in ingots or you can get some exercise by retrieving old car batteries or tire weights that you can melt down and pour into sinkers.

Sinkers, unlike line and, sometimes, hooks...don't go bad. I probably always have 3-8lbs of sinkers at hand. I'm going to be running short on my faves by next season (3&4 oz pyramid) so it's time to start looking for the next deal. I hate, hate...hate to run out and have to get them from Walmart. In the last 10 years I've managed to only have to buy specialty sinkers (sputnick or "toggin'") at cost.


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## Alexy (Nov 1, 2010)

Yard sales near the coast. Every one and their mother sells reels, rods and lures. Very few people want or care to sell just the weights and other tackle, you can usually get a bunch for very little money.


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## SAND CRUISER (Aug 4, 2012)

I went to Wally World the other day and they had 5oz pyramids marked wrong. $1 for a pack of 3. The 3 pack of 3oz was $6.96 I think. I asked the cashier to make sure they were priced right and she said "they're priced correctly and if you don't buy them someone else would because the price is what it's supposed to be." I bought 22 packs (66 sinkers) for less than $25. If I need 2,3 or 4oz I'll just get out the digital scale and a hack-saw! Check your local store ASAP!


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