Oldest Lure In Your Tacklebox 2025
RSM789 reply :
This is kind of an old guy's topic, but what is the oldest lure in your tackle box & does it get used? I thought about this last week when deciding what topwater I wanted to start with the following morning.
I began bass fishing back in the mid 70's when I was a teenager and I still have a Heddon Lucky 13 (white with red head of course), a frog patterned Hula Popper and grey Cordell Spot, all of which are approaching their 40th birthday. Come to think of it, I probably also have a few Mann's jelly worms & Mister Twister Slither's that somehow didn't melt in the old Rebel Bass'N'box they were originally stored in. I often considering tying those old guys on, but then end up choosing something else, so even they aren't used much, they still are front & center on the bench.
The oldest one I use with any regularity would have to be a teeth marked Tiny Torpedo that I have had since about 1980. I have some more modern prop baits, but the torpedo seems to out produce them for me. Most of the other old ones that were used often eventually got lost in cover or busted off by a fish.
Catch and Grease reply :
I've got some jitterbugs, hula poppers and creek chubs that are 30 or more years old. Also have some old cranks and original Rat-L traps.
Jigfishn10 reply :
Would definately be this one:
My best producing Topwater. Retired last year.
starweldpro16 reply :
Don't know if it qualifies as a "lure",but I have an old Lake of the Woods walleye spinner I bought when I was 15. It has been used,but I have it in the original package. 37 years ago I was in Ely,Baudette, and International Falls on a fishing vacation with my Grandfather. We flew out of Ely up into Canada for a week,then fished the Rainy for a couple days out of Baudette. I fell in love with that country and it's fishing. Had I been of age I may not have come back.
Raul reply :
Mepps Aglia size 2 gold, Mepps Comet size 2 silver, Rapala Original Floating Minnow size 5 silver black back, 41 years old and I still use them.
aavery2 reply :
Poes RC1 crankbait.
Fish2FISH reply :
I'd have to say an unidentified green craw crank that my great grandfather had.
papajoe222 reply :
It isn't in my tackle box anymore, but I bought an Original Rapala back in 1964 that was a walleye killer. I retired it along with one I'd purchased for my dad when he passed in '67.
In my tackle box, I have a Lucky13 and a Crazy Crawler that were bought around the same time. The oldest lure I use regularly is a MudBug although I do have a big Lazy Ike that sees occasional trolling use.
bigbill reply :
Bomber FAT A's
BPS XPS TOPNOCKER
J Francho reply :
Some Poe's Cedars, Bagley's, and some Fat Raps. There's some wooden Heddons, MudBugs, and Wood Choppers, but they rarely get used. I keep them as a conversation piece.
RSM789 reply :
On 9/12/2014 at 9:21 AM, papajoe222 said:... I have a Lucky13 and a Crazy Crawler that were bought around the same time. The oldest lure I use regularly is a MudBug although I do have a big Lazy Ike that sees occasional trolling use.
Crazy Crawler, I had forgotten about that bait with its collapsible side fin things. I remember having a Mudbug as well, I used to like it & the Hellbender quite a bit. Don't remember when I lost them...
papajoe222 reply :
Sometimes I'll break out that CrazyCrawler when everyone else is throwing a buzzbait. It's something the fish havent seen or heard in a while. I don't even remember how to work a Lucky 13, it's been so long.
Choporoz reply :
The oldest that I carry around is a balsa lure that I carved and painted when I was about 10. Never caught anything on it, but I am going to one of these days....I still throw it once in a while. Other than that, I still carry some spoons and Lazy Ikes that are over 40 years old. I don't throw them unless I'm in water that holds pike or walleye, but I suppose I should try them on LMB, too.
My grandpa sent me some ancient lures last year. Most are on display in a nice wall cabinet. However, I really wanted to throw one and catch something so I could show my grandfather a pic. First cast with this old wood crank with a metal bill landed this guy. I retired the lure immediately, so I wouldn't risk losing it. Unfortunately, grandpa can't see well enough to see the pic, but he likes hearing me tell him about it.
primetime reply :
On 9/12/2014 at 6:59 AM, Jigfishn10 said:Would definately be this one:
My best producing Topwater. Retired last year.
I still have a tray with the old Excalibur lures in it including a few of these topwaters and the square bill with the same shape that gives the fish a new look. The Jimmy Houston Signed Super Spooks by Excal are also good and sound different, but my favorite old lure is another Xcaliber that is a killer.
The Ghost Minnow Floating Minnow Jerkbait is a killer. Slim profile, casts well, and has a crazy erratic action, just make sure to put new Trebles on it, and a suspend dot helps many days as it floats fast, so slowing the rise often will have Bass Trying to rip the Rod out of your hands....I love their version of the Red head white body as it is more subtle than most and works great......You can still find these around cheap and they are a lure everyone should try if you fish rip baits alot like I do and like to throw Long A's,Rogues, Rapala's and Rebels, Flash Minnows etc.
primetime reply :
The Bill Plummer Super Frog but I never use it, was kind of excited when I first saw the Panther martin version and if correct I believe Harrison Hodge Inc. made the super Frog and since they make Panther Martin I guess that makes sense. Growing up on Long Island where they are based, I used alot of Panther Martin Spinners for Trout/Bass while fishing out of my Sea Eagle raft with a 17lb thrust Minn Kota Trolling motor on LI lakes and Rivers.
That was a Reliable little Raft for 2 people, Great Design with the 2 boards as seats and it never once tipped over and it was used ALOT when I was young. I
would like to get a few Crazy Crawlers as that used to be one of my favorite topwater lures, especially at night. It always seemed to catch larger Bass than the Jitterbugs and Hula poppers.
I need to find some Crazy Crawlers, but I actually do carry and will throw the Bill Norman American Made Rat-lur topwater walking lure, and I have a bunch of old bagley's from when they were based out of Fort Myers Florida (Before going out of business then coming back) and the Top Gun Jerkbait, Mighty Minnow, and Hellcat are awesome lures, and any old balsa lure is usually good.
I could go on forever and I love looking through Bass Pro Catalogs from the 80's and 90's to see all the lures and baits that either stayed around, or morphed into something else as they usuallly do come back around again. The best selling color 20 years ago nationwide was pumpkinseed, then Electric Grape, and now Green Pumpkin....Wonder what is next?
Daniel Lin reply :
I got a small little tackle tray from the thrift store for $2 that had a selection of Lindy's No-Snagg slip sinkers in it and a few other random pieces of terminal tackle..... and a blue Rapala Jointed Countdown-9 (CDJ-9) that after some Google-fu and fleabay checks, leads me to believe it's actually fairly valuable. I haven't used it yet because of it's potential value, but let's be real, I'm most likely never going to sell it either.
If anyone happens to know the value of it, it's apparently been used, and is marked with "Ireland" on the bill.
Jolly Green reply :
I have a red head South Bend Midge-Oreno that I can't buy a bite on, but I still try now and then. I found an old Heddon Wood Cobra at a flea market, the action of which I really liked, but the two times I threw it the bass didn't care for it so much and the paint started to come off in earnest, so it's just decor now.
Bluebasser86 reply :
The oldest bait that's actually in my tackle box would be my original wiggle warts for sure. I've got some much older baits but they stay at home where they won't get lost.
Bankbeater reply :
I have a couple of the Original Cordell Big-O's that came out in the early 70's. I also have a Heddon Big Head which was a Big-O knock off, and a few River Runts. They stay at home in their own tackle box.
tholmes reply :
I have a Jitterbug that's got to be 40 years old. It started life as a frog pattern, but at some point, I spray painted it black. After several re-paints, it's still catching bass and I still use it regularly.
Tom
Mike L reply :
I have a 30 yr old Pop R that I would be sick if I ever lost.
It's all beaten up, scratched, discolored etc. That little bugger still catch's fish better than any new bait.
Mike
Goose52 reply :
I still have all my baits (called lures or plugs back then) from the early- to middle-1960s. Some are safely in boxes in the garage...but some are still in the active boxes. I don't actually fish with many of them however; afraid to lose them I guess. The only 1960s vintage bait that sees regular use is a small Rapala original floater.
Anyway, I was fishing a small pond yesterday and opened a crankbait box and saw one of my 60s baits, thought of this thread, and decided to catch a bass on it. Ended up catching three little bass on it. It was a MirrOlure model 15LS jointed crankbait. I just visited the MirrOlure web site and was surprised to see that these are still being made. Anyone else remember these?
Not much of a bass......................but this is the first bass caught on this plug in about 47 years - perhaps longer... 
desmobob reply :
I have some old floating jointed Rapalas, a Mudbug, a Heddon River Runt Spook Sinker, an old Tiny Torpedo, and I just found and opened a package of Mann's Jelly Worms that was in an old metal tackle box that belonged to an uncle of mine.
I'm pretty sure the River Runt is the oldest, but I haven't tried to figure out its vintage yet.
Tight lines,
Bob
RSM789 reply :
On 9/21/2014 at 11:06 PM, Goose52 said:...It was a MirrOlure model 15LS jointed crankbait. I just visited the MirrOlure web site and was surprised to see that these are still being made. Anyone else remember these?
Not much of a bass......................but this is the first bass caught on this plug in about 47 years - perhaps longer...
I found a plug that looks exactly like that last year. It was hooked on a branch that I snagged with a jig & pulled up to the boat. I have never used it, but now it has my curiosity up.
Others have mentioned the old Heddon River Runts, I had forgotten about that lure. Another one I used to like, lost somehow and then forgot it existed. Maybe someone found my old River Runt in the same manner I found the MirrOlure...
roadwarrior reply :
Goose52 reply :
On 9/22/2014 at 11:58 AM, RSM789 said:I found a plug that looks exactly like that last year. It was hooked on a branch that I snagged with a jig & pulled up to the boat. I have never used it, but now it has my curiosity up.
Try fishing it. Mine runs about 3-4 feet deep, has a good "wiggle", and has some flash from the metal lip - seems to work...
On 9/22/2014 at 11:58 AM, RSM789 said:Others have mentioned the old Heddon River Runts, I had forgotten about that lure. Another one I used to like, lost somehow and then forgot it existed. Maybe someone found my old River Runt in the same manner I found the MirrOlure...
My surviving Runts - had them both since sometime before 1967. I guess one of these days I should try to catch a fish on one of these too...
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