Musky Maven Creepers & Crawlers
castmaster
Posted 6/8/2008 10:52 AM (#321534)
Subject: Musky Maven Creepers & Crawlers





Posts: 910


Location: Hastings, mn, 55033
Thought I'd share some pics of a small batch of creepers and crawlers I finished recently.




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(CreepersForSale.JPG)


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(CreepersForSale#2.JPG)


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(CreepersForSale#3.JPG)


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(CreepersForSale#4.JPG)



Attachments
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Attachments CreepersForSale.JPG (61KB - 182 downloads)
Attachments CreepersForSale#2.JPG (68KB - 173 downloads)
Attachments CreepersForSale#3.JPG (73KB - 154 downloads)
Attachments CreepersForSale#4.JPG (67KB - 179 downloads)
Kenslures
Posted 6/8/2008 10:54 AM (#321535 - in reply to #321534)
Subject: Re: Musky Maven Creepers & Crawlers




Posts: 235


Hey Castmaster, very nice job. I can see this keeps you out of trouble. Keep up the good work. Ken

Edited by Kenslures 6/8/2008 10:57 AM
muskyhunter63
Posted 6/9/2008 3:00 PM (#321721 - in reply to #321535)
Subject: Re: Musky Maven Creepers & Crawlers




Posts: 706


Location: Richland Center, WI.
Nice looking creepers! Have a question. I have been thinking about trying my hand at a few creepers myself. I made up some bodies and now it is time to put on the wings. How did you determine where to put the wings? I hate to drill holes in the body for the wings only to find that they won't work. Any help would be appreciated.
Ken
firstsixfeet
Posted 6/12/2008 2:52 PM (#322124 - in reply to #321534)
Subject: RE: Musky Maven Creepers & Crawlers




Posts: 2361


Very pretty, and the work involved is enough to make me sweat just looking but.....how many of them work? And how well do they work?

I see a couple shapes I would be reluctant to buy without trying, but I also see a couple that look very familiar. Wish I had about 30 in the boat and a quiet night lake to try them on...
castmaster
Posted 6/12/2008 10:25 PM (#322177 - in reply to #322124)
Subject: RE: Musky Maven Creepers & Crawlers





Posts: 910


Location: Hastings, mn, 55033
firstsixfeet,
All work well. I hand tune each bait to make sure they work. Just out of curiosity which ones are you reluctant about?

You also have to remember that the functionality of a creeper has more to do with the wings and the bottom of the lure than the top.

And yes, a quiet night on the lake listening to a creeper come bloop bloop blooping its way in is the reason I got into this in the firs place!

Edited by castmaster 6/12/2008 10:29 PM
firstsixfeet
Posted 6/12/2008 10:50 PM (#322181 - in reply to #322177)
Subject: RE: Musky Maven Creepers & Crawlers




Posts: 2361


Going to the top picture, the A row all bother me because of the cylindrical shape. They have as much weight over the wing as under the wing. The balance and tipability may be helped by hanging the hook out behind the bait a little, but the reason the creeper was developed and became so popular(imo) was the propensity of the crazy crawler to roll at any kind of speed. I am suspicious some of your creepers can just about double the speed of others and stay stable in the water. But I have not seen them run, and maybe gouging the top to drop the center of balance in the bait was just a crutch for not placing the right wing in the correct attitude. I don't know, but historically some creepers have worked much better than others, ask the Hi Fin bait company.

Good creepers have the capability of running across the water, they are not only a slow bait. It would be interesting to have a creeper run off in the tank at a musky show, and see which creeper covers water fastest when retrieved without suffering a rollover or starting to plow. I could see it. Run it in side by side heats with double elimination in each heat. That would be a great test for creeper makers or at least an interesting interlude for creeper lovers.
castmaster
Posted 6/13/2008 7:54 AM (#322198 - in reply to #322181)
Subject: RE: Musky Maven Creepers & Crawlers





Posts: 910


Location: Hastings, mn, 55033
The left row definitely has to be fished slower than the others so they dont roll, just as you say. The reason I build different body shapes/styles is to give the fish something different. Sometimes its nice to have a fat SLOW deep sounding creeper, other times you may want one that can be fished faster. All depends in what the angler and fish want at a particular time I guess. But I do hear what your saying, some guys like to be able to fish creepers slow/fast in the same bait, and those in the left row you cant do that with. Me, I'll just carry a variety of creepers and fish the ones that I feel will perform best in the conditions. kind of the same as when fishing flat calm vs. waves. There are few creeeprs that really perform well in the waves, so those are the ones I'll be throwing when its choppy, but have others that sound much better than those do in calm seas, so they are the ones I fish then.

probably no different than gliders, trolling baits etc.....each has their time & place, and each angler has their preferences.

Edited by castmaster 6/13/2008 7:55 AM
JBush
Posted 6/13/2008 10:59 AM (#322237 - in reply to #322198)
Subject: RE: Musky Maven Creepers & Crawlers




Posts: 311


Location: Ontario
Those are all wicked looking. I got into fishing Creepers last summer and I'm gonna try it more again this year with a little Bauer Creepin Hogg, and two monsters, Wave Walker and Water Spider. I have to stop myself from jumping in for these thing they sound so good and move so much water in the dark! One thing I've noticed is that in all three cases, I need to have my rod tip off the water a bit more than I thought I would to get best action/sound. Lowest rod tip position makes them dig in more and not ride as nice for me. With jointed ones (the Bauer and the Walker) they throw more water but run quiter. The solid Water Spider is much smaller than the Wave Walker but twice as loud. Seems like solid body rocks more than jointed for me so far. With the Bauer, I put a heavier hook under the chin to pull the fins deeper and she runbles really nice for a small bait (less than 6 inches). I probably do 90% of my slow surface crawling with 10 and 13 inch jointed Believers, but this year I think the Creepers will shine. How well do these baits hook generally? Believer is like velcro to all fish, they grab it and they're on for good. Moving so slow and in a straight line, I bet Creepers will be great hookers. In the case of the Wave Walker, it has 4 trebles and is not Ontario Legal, I gotta dump one and am open to any suggestions. Also, what are the optimum leaders here? I use heavy stranded wire mostly. Sorry to hijack the thread, really intrigued by this style of bait and I think I still have a lot to learn. Great looking baits castmaster, that black/gold scale would kill where I fish.

Edited by JBush 6/13/2008 11:02 AM