How to Make Great Lure Covers 

for Baits with Treble Hooks!

by: Dave Johnson - Bass Pro Radio.Com

Have you ever bent over to pick up a rod and found that when you pick up the one you want you get two or three others because the treble hooks from one of your rods has become tangled in the line or lures of the other rods?  There are two things you can do to really cut down on this problem. 

First every time you put a rod down, place the hook into one of the guide frames and then pick up the line going from the bait to the rod tip and wrap it around the rod at least twice.  When you wrap the line around the rod it also takes the line running through the guides and pushes it down against the rod, making it harder for hooks from other rods to get tangled in your line.

Second, put a lure cover over all baits with treble hooks!  What is a lure cover?  There are many available from all catalog stores but if you have a half hour you can make enough lure covers to last you a few years. 

First go to a fabric store and ask if they have head liner material for a car.  If they do, buy a single square yard.  It normally comes in a few different colors.  I normally buy either blue or black.  This material is cloth on one side and a foam sponge on the other side.  Also pick up some hook and loop material (Velcro).  You will need about 4 feet of this stuff.  Get the hook side with a sticky backing and the loop or fuzzy side with no sticky stuff.

Take the headliner material home and dig around your kitchen for a bowl about 7 inches round.  Lay the bowl on the backside (foam side) of the headliner and draw as many circles as you can get on the material.  Now take a pair of scissors and cut out all the circles. 

Take the sticky backed hook material and cut it into 3 inch pieces.  You will need the same number of 3 inch pieces as you have circles of headliner.  Peel the backing off the sticky side and put it on the cloth side of the circle starting at one edge and going toward the center of the circle, sort of like the hands of a clock but start at the edge and go to the middle.

Next cut the loop or fuzzy side of the Velcro into 5 inch pieces.  Again you will need the same number of 5 inch pieces as you have circles.  Take the loop or fuzzy side and put it over the hook side for about 1/2 inch to 3/4 inch so the 2 pieces hold together.  This will leave about 4 inches to hang past the edge of the circle.  It will sort of look like a ping pong paddle if you did it right.

Now take a rod with a crank bait tied on and the rear set of hooks hooked into the bottom guide frame.  Take your new lure cover and lay the lure and rod into the middle of the circle.  Fold the side opposite of the Velcro loop/fuzzy end in, and cover it with the side with the Velcro loop/fuzzy side.  Wrap the Velcro loop/fuzzy side around the rod and lay it on the hook side of the Velcro.  Now you have a snag proof rod. 

These also work great at keeping your pork from drying out when you are using a jig and pig.  Just wet the lure cover down and the sponge side will keep your pork from drying out!

For me this is a big time saver!!  Now when I pick up a rod, I only pick up one, and not all of them on the deck!!! The cover peels right off and goes in to my pocket until I am ready to change rods again!