Storm Lures

[Sour_Squirrel]

Just curious but can anyone tell me what is the difference between Storm lures that are "pre-Rapala" and "post-Rapala"?

It seems the pre-Rapala baits are more desirable among collectors.

My question is why??

[Harrison]

More desirable simply because they are no longer made by storm. This is true for luhr jensen as well.

[hirk]

Storm were made in hondouras and maybe costa rica? Then mexico, depends where they we're made too.

[GbayGiant]

It would be great if they brought back the Original Shinner Minnow. They almost stopped making the shad but they started making more after they changed its finish. The original finish/color was the better one. $20 each when in mint condition. I have a box full of them still. All shapes, colors and sizes.

 

They are not for sale!

[OhioFisherman]

Don`t quote me on any of this. I believe the original Storm lures ( Red Label ) were made in the USA, blue labels in Mexico, and once Rapala got a hold of them production moved to China.

 

My use of them was limited to wee warts, wee steelie warts, wiggle warts, magnum warts, hot n tots, and Texas shads. First walleye fishing on Lake Erie starting in the 70`s with my brother and dad. The wart series seemed to have a habit of attracting some outsized smallies on lake erie and I experimented with them from there.

 

As it was explained to me each move in production brought subtle changes to the lures, a different formulation in the plastics used and different quantities of rattles used, which affected the sound and vibration produced in use.

 

For me the red labels were the best producers, and they disappeared off the store selves quickly when changes were announced. They seemed to have a higher percentage of lures with the " wander factor ", it seemed like every 5 or 6 one you bought had a slight difference in action that made it a fish catching machine.

 

Hot n tots also worked great for walleyes and smallies on lake erie, but had an annoying habit of the metal lip working loose after catching a number of fish and getting water in them affecting their action.

 

Texas Shad were a rattle trap style lure and I used them over all other lures of the same style because they worked best for me. Their production life seemed a lot more limited, and since their use wasn`t really geared to walleye fishing in this area they were a lot harder to find.

 

During the rebirth of the walleye fishing on Lake Erie here in the 70`s and early 80`s most tackle shops and bait store here had Warts and Hot n Tots as their primary lures offered for the Walleye fishing on Lake Erie.

 

Although steelhead fishing was never really a primary interest of mine? Most of the steelhead I caught were on Wee warts or Wee steelie warts on Lake Erie or it`s tribs fishing for smallies. I also lost a bunch of them fishing for bass in waters in New York and Canada that also had pike and skis with out a steel leader.

 

The newer ones will work, just in my opinion not as well.

 

A link if it helps, the Storm family had something to do with the production of these remakes?

 

http://www.bsfishtales.com/wiggler.php

[adempsey]

They also changed some of the designs, but some were also changed back. For example, the Hot'N'Tot had a metal lip which people liked because it banged on the rocks and was also bendable. The metal lip was changed to a plastic lip of different shape and size. With the current "original" Hot'n'Tots I am not sure if the lip is metal or plastic [it's painted and it seems like metal, but I haven't actually tried to bend one]. The shape and thickness is also now the same as the older model.

 

Dave Storm started his own line at some point called Kaboom Lures and continued some of the original storm models. I am not sure if he's still in business or not.

 

Never seen those Brad's lures before. Nice find, the design and paint jobs are exactly like Storms. Might have to order some.

Edited November 2, 2012 by FishLogic

[Dave Bailey]

I prefer to buy Canadian if I can, but not sure if I'll ever give up using a Storm Chug Bug.

[Cudz]

HEre is what I have found out over the years. The orginal warts were made in 2 plastic molds and have a seem on their back. As the molding process went on with the molds, the molds would eventually not be as perfect as when they started thus creating a less than perfect lure. These warts wouldn't always run perfect but sometimes have a erattic movements which made them 'hunt'. When rapala bought them out they made the lure look identical but the construction process had changed and they were all made 'perfect'. There is no seem on the back of the new warts and they run true all the time and they now have better hooks. So rapala actually made a 'better running' lure. It is this 'hunting quality' that people are after. In fact within each storm mold there are better hunting lures so some people actually know which production numbers to look for and those wart fetch the highest $$.