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Red Oak Farm
3040 Big Buck Road
Trezevant, TN 38258
owners@redoakfarm.com
Copyright © 1998 -2012
All Rights Reserved
Red Oak Farm
Revised: almost weekly
Bringing
in Big Bass
by Lewis R. Jones
Reprinted with permission from Emu's
Zine
Occasionally the need to modify or
enhance a lure's appearance arises. A way I like to modify 
topwater lures is by taking a lighter colored emu feather about an inch and a
half long, attaching it to a super sharp #4 or #6 treble hook with light colored
thread by winding it around the hook and feather about 12 to 15 times and tie it
off, then put a couple of drops of epoxy glue on the threads to make it durable
. Take the back hook off of a lure like a Hula Popper or Pop'R and replace it
with the one I have just described and you're in business. You can change
feather lengths and colors, hook sizes etc. depending on your needs at the time.
Emu
feathers work well because of their long, easy to swallow, slender shape, that
alone will trigger strikes from bass because most of their forage minnows
are this shape and color. The natural colors of the feathers make them easy to work
with also because there is no need to dye them. Most minnows are about the same
shades of black/gray/white as the feathers are. Each feather is actually
two separate sections going out of that one main stem that opens and closes
with every little bit of water movement.
This breathing action is very enticing to the bass. The use
of liquid fish
attractant/feeding stimulant is easily done with emu feathers also because the
feathers soak up and hold the attractant's smell on the bait.
With emu feathers, there really is no wrong color.
The
various natural feather colors are much like that of the minnows bass feed on.
All you have to do is pick out the size and shade you want. Now that you
know how to use emu feathers in your bass fishing trips, remember, it's just as
much fun to catch them the second time as the first.
Sport fisherman Lewis Jones is a native of Carroll County, Tennessee and participates in several bass tournaments each year.
See our Feathers page to purchase suitable feathers.