Tackle Organization

[mercman]

Yesterday afternoon, i had the sudden urge to take a really good look at my tackle box, and after removing everything and standing back for a look, i realized, i had no idea how to organize stuff

I am a multi species angler.My main targets are Bass, both LM and SM.Pike, perch, Pikerel, and this year Muskie.

Since last year,when i returned to fishing, i have built up an arsenal of epic proportions.I think most of you would be dang proud of me Last christmas my brother and i exchanged fishing tackle as gifts, and the mountain grows. I went out today and bought 8 plano trays to help.

I have soft baits by the bushel, and jerk baits, crank baits, spinner baits, spoons, DT's,Clackin Raps,top waters, etc.

How do you organize yours. What system do you guys and gals use to keep the lures at hand and make them easy to find when you need them fast. Do you leave everything in the boat, or take just what you need for the days fishing. Tools like pliers, cutters, and such.In with the tackle or seperately.

I take all advice seriously, so your help would be appreciated

 

 

[BillM]

My dad has a corner of the basement where all 'our' tackle is stored. If we are going on a specific trip, we'll pack a few plano boxes for that trip and be done with it. We have way to much crap to bring along regardless of where we are going. Soft bags + plastic boxes do the trick for us...

 

We usually sit down a week or so before a big trip and make up a few boxes.. It's a good excuse to Bull and talk about how awesome the trip is going to be

 

Nothing ever stays in the boat, unless we are doing multiple day trips for the same species...

Edited April 18, 2011 by BillM

[bassjnkie]

I use the blue Bass Pro double sided worm binders for all plastics (don't think they make them anymore). For hard baits shallow Plano boxes one in each spot (no tangles) and it's half the thickness of the regular ones, space saver. Spinner & buzz baits, the Falcon boxes work wonders (pricey). The rest I use Plano boxes. I usually take most of it, I fish different species when I on the lake, bass, perch, walleye.

[Rizzo]

For musky fishing I have a couple of big rubbermaid bins with holes drilled around the perimeter that I can hang baits off, plus a bar hanging across the centre for hanging more baits. Also have a whole bunch more loose baits lying in the attic. When I go fishing I decide for the mostpart what type of fishing I expect to be doing that day - ie trolling deep crankbaits? casting jerkbaits?. I'll then fill the box up 75% what I expect is the pattern for the day, and the other 25% is in case I guessed wrong!

[MCTFisher9120]

I just organize by lure type.

 

If you got some Plano tackle boxes then label 1 or 2 as Crankbaits, put those in there....then another 1 with Jerkbaits, then get yourself a square cube shaped spinnerbait box. There handy for all your spinnerbaits, get a second for spoons and stuff.

 

All plastics belong in a worm binder...all that extra weight of tackle trays is silly. I can get sometimes 30 bags of plastics in 1 worm binder...2 or 3 and you can hold a lot of stuff.

 

Good luck with the tackle organize

[uglyfish]

i have a big closet i keep all my gear in. but for organizing things...

 

i keep all my soft swim baits in one 3700 tray.

hard swim baits in another tray.

 

deep diving cranks in their own tray, shallow divers in other trays.

 

lipless cranks in their own tray.

 

flippin jigs go in their own trays.

 

jerkbaits, topwaters and frogs in a tray

 

and terminal tackle goes in anothr tray.

 

i use all 3700 plano trays. i dont hav a boat so i have the large size plano guide elite KVD bag. it holds 10 trays and has several pockets to hold all my plastics and tools.

 

i use a tackle binder to hold all my spinnerbaits.

 

all my other gear for other species are sorted into their own plano boxes and stored on the shelves. keep each box labelled and u can easily identify each box and grab what u need quickly.

 

i fish bass tournies as a non boaters, so i need to keep all the gear i can vand orgnized to maximize my time on the water. also needing to be prepared to fish any situation i come across.

[Nipfisher]

I have a Plano Guide series bag that holds 5 plano trays. I have them set up to hold my various baits for walleye and bass. (Jigs and soft plastics in one, crank baits in another, spoons in one, spinners in one and then my hooks, weights, terminal tackle, clippers, lighter, etc in the 5th one). If I am gonna target pike or muskie (my 1st year too) I have a large double sided plastic box that holds all my lures up to 10". Seems to do the trick for now but I am in the process of re-organizing. In my garage I have 9 tackle boxes, some full, some 1/2 and others empty. I went with my 8 year old and made him his own box today for fishing off the dock.

 

I'm going to donate some of my stuff to our public librarry as they have a loan program for kids that want to go fishing but don't have the gear.

 

Check out the Show Off your Tackle box thread for some ideas. Lots of great pics there.

Edited April 18, 2011 by Nipfisher

[Sharkbait22]

After fishing a long time for multi-species using various methods in many locations I’ve learned to keep it simple. I have four 12x8 Plano-type boxes, two vests, a singbag, and a large suit case style thing from the 80s called a 4X4 which carries a lot of gear I mainly just use on the boat in the Kawarthas. I floatfish, flyfish, spey, spinfish, use solid wire, and baitcasters. Imagine the complexity. Knowing where and how you plan to fish and what generally works lure-wise takes a lot of the guessing out and limits your tackle needs. This comes with time. I have double and triple of some gear (hook sharpener, pliers, etc) because I don’t want to have to dig out items from other boxes/pockets just to place them in another pocket. I have several larger boxes that stay in my house that have different gear for each fishing method. This is all fresh in my mind because I too just finished putting the ice gear away (oh there’s another gear) and organizing the softwater tackle.

[mike rousseau]

if you fish each species seperatly as i do...

 

each fish has its own tackle box,...

 

walleye box is full of cranks(too many)... jigs... spinners...GULP!!!!

 

store bought musky box... dont be cheep...they hold 50 baits!!(sorry rizzo...my dad is like you...uses buckets...drives me nuts) as well as a soft sided box of any sorts for leader makimg materials...hooks...tools... a couple smaller baits...etc

 

and carp... put it this way... i bring a wheel barrow for that tackle...so you could say im still working on organizing that one...lol

 

and bullhead and perch in a little kiddie tackle box of their own because its a messy game with thos two fish...

 

hope this helps mercman...

 

good luck with the musky hunt... its a heartbreaking game in the begining but you will smooth out and catch fish in the end

[Guest nuker]

i organize by technique/fish

 

i fish mainly walleye so i have plano boxes for bobbers, rigging, jiggin, etc.

 

i also keep the small tools with the apropriate box. eg. jig eye buster in jig box, nail clippers in all...

 

so in my boat i typically only have one tray out at a time on the deck depending on how i fish.

 

that said, 8 plano boxes, a few pool tubes for pre tied rigs.

 

i have a small duffle for line and misc tools

[mercman]

Thanks for all the great ideas.I see i have some work ahead of me.I guess as time goes by, i will know more what works best and when.that will surely help me decide where stuff goes.

 

Cheers

Paul

 

 

[Woodsman]

For spoons & plugs I like the Special Mate boxes. The newer ones with the side shields on the dividers are great.

120 separate slots & room for 2 spoons in each if you choose.

[PainInTheBass]

Like, MTBF, I like to separate lures by type since many lures are multi-species lures for myself. I have crankbaits in 2 planos, topwaters in another. I have terminal tackle in one, jigs in another. I have ultralights in another 2 tiered tacklebox, and a falcon spinner/buzzbait box. I keep soft plastics also divided by type/application, and separate those in different pockets in a couple of different tackle bags.

[GBW]

aw Paul, you can keep a shop up and running and keep it nice and clean yet ya can't find a way to do the same with your fishing gear?

I'll tell you what to do. pack it all up in well labeled plano cases. then, pack it in a bag that it all fit's into. then you can either ship it to me or we can hook up and I'll take care of it for you....

[splashhopper]

any pictures of these beautifully organized boxes?

[mercman]

aw Paul, you can keep a shop up and running and keep it nice and clean yet ya can't find a way to do the same with your fishing gear?

I'll tell you what to do. pack it all up in well labeled plano cases. then, pack it in a bag that it all fit's into. then you can either ship it to me or we can hook up and I'll take care of it for you....

 

Thanks Geoff...i knew i could count on you buddy Fact is, i've been back fishing for a year, but i have been in parts for 30.

[GBW]

Thanks Geoff...i knew i could count on you buddy Fact is, i've been back fishing for a year, but i have been in parts for 30.

Not a problem Paul, I'm here to help...

check out the case I use as it's very handy for almost everything. I still use a small soft case for the lures I plan on using that day and a hard case for all the big musky stuff.

[GBW]

page 1 has my stuff

http://www.ofncommunity.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=43490

[d_paluch]

I have to say....

 

pictures or this thread didn't happen! (I like pictures)

Edited April 18, 2011 by d_paluch

[Handlebarz]

here is what I use for musky baits. I also use the bigger Plano boxes for my 6 1/4" biats

 

I will use the big bait box for daily fishing on my boat in the fall it also makes for a great wind block between the windows for them cold fall days.

I will use the smaller ones for going on friends boats and just bring a few baits

 

 

[Guest LivingLegend]

I just put everything in my pockets.................. I need to bring alot of bandaids too.......

Edited April 19, 2011 by LivingLegend

[Henricus]

I hadn't fished since I was a kid and have been re-aquainting myself with the sport over the last couple of years as well. Mostly bass fishing but last I year decided to take a serious run at muskie fishing. A couple of words of advice: be careful! If you thought you spent a lot of money on fishing gear before, you have no idea what you are in for with muskie. Having said that, your family will never struggle to buy you a gift again. For organization, I use the Plano big gear box for muskie and a big soft bag that will hold 8+ trays for everything else. The plus about the soft bag is it has a shoulder strap which will free up a hand for rods et al when moving a lot of stuff. I also swear by the soft bait bag binder and spinner bait box.

[Woodsman]

A few pictures of my Special Mate tackle box.

[Roy]

I was looking at those too, Woodsman. What are the dimensions on that one? How sturdy is it?

[Woodsman]

22 1/2" long X 11" deep X 9" high.

Seems quite sturdy.

 

Rick