Crow Horse

Cuda, both small & large for the win.....

I went the expensive route. GoPros on the bow & stern (kayak) mounted on booms I made. I record video and as previously mentioned, I'll pull stills I want from the video. I also have another GoPro mounted on a selfi stick for underwater shots. I use a remote to trigger the cameras. Not the best photo but the booms are visible.

That's a good point and it might have played a role as well as a sealer issue. Interesting.....

My sense of it is that color does play a role but is secondary to the disturbance. Whatever one believes the function of the paint is, there's no denying that it also seals the wood to prevent an intrusion of water into the wood fibers. Over the long haul, water and untreated wood will present problems. I wasn't implying that the Devil Horse is a sub standard product. I really like fishing it and it does produce. But when a premium product falls short of it's benchmark, it's time to correct it. I've found that many times when a manufacturing company is taken over by a much larger company there's a tendency for a regression (or reversion) to mean that occurs. When that happens a product's quality tends to slip away.

I think the difference between the photos you posted and mine is the length of service. Mine were only used for one day of fishing while I'll bet that yours are considerably older (in terms of use) than mine. Looking ahead, if what I've experienced in one days time is any indication of how well the paint will hold up, it's not a stretch to believe that a significant portion of the rest of the paint will fail. Again, this isn't a very big deal but I'm quite tired of having to deal with mediocre or sub standard products that fail prematurely. Also understanding that errors do occur in the production process, I'm willing to give them the benefit of doubt in correcting the issue. So far, they've stepped to the plate and I'm please with their response.

Wow! They (Lurenet) just replied to me with the following: "Thank you for contacting us about the problem you have experienced with our product. Feedback from our customers is an integral part of our business and we encourage it. Please return the defective lure to the address below so that our QC department may review it to determine if this is a problem that has already been addressed or if it may need to be addressed. We will be happy to send a replacement; if this is a discontinued model, we will send replacement of one similar, and send out an additional lure to you to cover the postage. If the product is broken due to breaking from hitting rocks or normal wear we will not replace. *If more than 2 baits are sent in for replacement, we will review them and replace any that appear to be manufacturing defects but will not replace any that are the result of normal use or abuse. " I'll be returning them......

I plan to keep using them but I'll probably apply a sealer to the areas that the paint is compromised. If the wood absorbs water, then the action of it might be altered. Water soaked wood will probably shorten the plugs service life especially because of it's use of screws/ screw eyes instead of through wire construction.

Yes, they are made of wood. It'll be interesting as to how they respond (if they do). I'll try to call them directly and see where that takes me. This isn't a big deal in the grand scheme of things and I'm not looking for something for nothing. However, they are highly regarded and classic lures that have been around for decades. I'm hoping that this peaks their interest and they correct the paint failures. I only recently learned about the Devil's Horse and decided to stock up on them. I'm really pleased with how they produced (despite the paint issue) and will continue to use them. Swapping out the original trebles for single inline hooks worked really well. I am impressed as to how well fish stay pinned.

Has anyone experienced the paint cracking/flaking off of new Devil Horses? Photos are 2 of mine that have one fishing day on them have the paint cracking on the underside. I sent them an email and waiting on their response.

What is the general consensus regarding the color of topwater plugs relative to the sky? I would think that dark colors with a bright sky and light colors with a cloudy or dark sky. What is the general rule?

Video clip of a bass jumping and trying to shake free of a Whopper Plopper 110 with 4/0 inline hooks

Once you assemble the trailer, consider making some type of locking apparatus for the yak as well as the trailer. I store our yaks year round on the trailer and they are locked as is the trailer. Every lock is defeatable but you want to make it less attractive to thieves by making it a giant PITA to steal. It's sad that our world requires this but these are the conditions which prevail.....

Mini update. Using a 110 equipped with 4/0 VMC inline hooks, I managed 2 fish that were solidly hooked. Certainly not definitive, but it is encouraging. The topwater bite was almost nonexistent but I kept working it. So far, so good. I did add a 3" curly tail grub to the trailing hook. More testing is needed.

I could never do back to back fishing days, partly because I usually fish between 6-8 hours of hard fishing (read - not leisurely) and partly because I'd need to recheck gear (respool, sharpen hooks etc.) and charge batteries. I try to pay attention to detail and when I'm tired I'm going to make mistakes that could prove to be costly. I really wouldn't want to lose a PB fish or worse, turtle my yak.

I have a Malone Xtralight trailer (it's been discontinued) and it's been trouble free for 6 years. I did install LED's and it's been perfect. I was extremely lucky and found it for sale ("used") 6 years ago and it was virtually new. Paid $500. A good trailer is worth it's weight in gold. Older photos with incandescents. Edit - I added the cargo rack & cargo box.

The black bungee cord just keeps the collar under tension and in position. It prevents the arms from folding in on itself when you don't want them to and conversely, it'll keep it folded up. My drift chute is similar to this one. I added a float and a line to reverse empty it (if that makes sense). The opening has small floats on the top and weights on the bottom. It works really well.

This is the anchor setup that I use. It gets threaded through the anchor trolley and terminates at a zig zag cleat. It allows me to release the anchor line quickly and paddle away. The float works well and I can return to recover the anchor. I use a small 1.5# anchor which works well for the water that I fish. On occasion I'll use a drift chute if I want to slowly drift instead of anchoring.

This! It works a treat and is so simple to do.

Just a couple of items that might prove helpful. Always, Always, Always wear a GOOD PFD. No exceptions!!!!!!!!!! We have several Tacomas and they work well for transporting our yaks (10'ers). I started with just strapping them inside the bed with an extender but as I acquired more gear I needed to make some changes. I then made a rack that strapped in that used J racks. Finally I made the jump and got a yak (Malone) trailer. Best thing I ever did. Now the bed is freed up for more gear & tackle.

Like others have said, weld it. It's easy and jus takes a little time. I welded several bolt holes that didn't match up with new foot braces I installed. It's pretty easy and I have no problems with the repair. Being that your hole is on the very bottom of the hull, I would want a a more substantial repair so I would weld it and then cover the weld with G/flex 650 Toughened Epoxy. I don't know if this applies to you but I see many yakers just drag their yaks from their vehicles down to the launch site. Instead, use a cart. It's easier and it won't wear away your hull making it more susceptible to punctures.

Some of the Ram Mounts are a plastic composite and there are also aluminum Ram components. It just depends on your needs. I personally like the composites because of the weight savings as long as they are up to the task. My yak has enough Ram mounts on it to be their poster child. Good stuff but it comes at a price.

Isn't amazing how disconnected people are to the natural world? Even here in rural upstate NY I've encountered many people (who've lived here all their lives) who are clueless about the animals & birds that live right around them.

My list of common critters: bald eagles, fisher, river otters, deer, and beaver. Although they are "common", it's still a thrill to be able to see them.....

What's the most unusual or peculiar animal you've crossed paths with while fishing? For me, just a couple of weeks ago an emu walked up to me while I was rigging my yak in preparation for a days fishing. I was more than startled to turn around and look eye to eye with such a large bird. I discovered later after chatting with the ranger that it's been around for about 3 days and they don't know who it belongs or belonged to. Edit: Although that day the bite was off and finding hungry & cooperative bass was extremely difficult, it was an awesome day because of this fellow. I can't begin to accurately convey how stunned/shocked I was to see it.

Barbless for me and the bass. I feel that I'm injuring the bass enough already and the barb could very well make the injury even worse. Sometimes going barbless doesn't matter and I don't drop any fish. Other times I'm not as successful. So be it.