At the dollar tree store

[Mac2]

I've been thinking back to all I've found over the last few years at the local dollar store that I've used in my quest for lure making materials and other items used for fishing in general. Some are seasonal, some not. Just thought I'd drop in and share.

First in the list is gift bag shredding by the Voila company. I've found the silver mylar, gold mylar and red as well as the iridescent strands in the bag of "clear" to be literally a blessing when making tails and skirts on small jigs. My first try was with the silver and red. I tied a vertical fan shape on a 1/16 oz red lead head in silver strands and then added a red stripe down the middle of each side and used red thread for the tying. So far the little silver and red jig has caught 21 species of fish.

Lately, I've been experimenting and tying with the iridescent semi-transparent strips......really nice when laid in layers over a shinier holographic gold found at the store at Christmas time usually used for icicles on the tree.

To make "eyes" for crawdads, I once found a round hairbrush with knobs on the ends of the bristles. On the other end, I found them to be anchored in the handle with hooks which could be pulled with pliers.

The hair extenders in the toy section for little girls come in a good assortment of colors, very fine strands to add color and action to jigs. Knotted, they make joints on beetle fly legs. I cut the hair into 6 inch hanks secured first with those electric cord straps.

The nail files made with metal blades and diamond dust make good hook sharpeners.....found near the nail polish and clippers. I think you get three for a buck.

Found some Hard as Nails "Extra Wear" I've been finishing my ties with as a sealer. Clear, no color.

Good Hunting at the store............Mac

[Rebbasser]

Dr. Mac-N-Stein strikes again!

For you guys that don't know Mac comes up with all kinds of good ideas. He turned me on to a mango colored nail polish that is a fantastic topwater color.

[Mac2]

Good seeing you again and thanks for your compliment.....and all this time I thought the Stein in me had gone kaplooey......

Good Fishing, Mac

[the pyromaniac]

Nice tips! Where are you in eastern Tennessee?

[bamabassman]

mac....man oyu are fantastic at this stuff. hopefully one day i can "try out" some of the things oyu talk about. but for me (call me a cluutz) i need some pics to fully understand how and what you do. any way you can post up some pics of these things for us? thanks.

and rebb...great to see you here again too. also pyro, where have oyu been man?

[the pyromaniac]

I've been on the shelf with a leg injury (slipped on a wet, mossy rock in May) so I can't fish much. I've been working every weekend at my fishing buddy Tóño the Mexican's restaurant and not had much time for anything. To top that, my wife's health has been awful. We're going for her to have her gallbladder removed Tuesday morning. It's been a rough stretch..... I'm so beat that my top prayer concern after our health and our finances is that I really need my mother-in-law's visa petition to not be rejected like it was last time. I'm going to need her help when her daughter has gastric bypass surgery in September.

I've been doing some fishy research though... I know some of this information will make me a better angler!

[bamabassman]

gee man....i will pray for ya'll. things are tough everywhere buddy. hang in there ok?

[the pyromaniac]

I'm doing what I can, just really hoping for the mother-in-law's visa to be approved. I really will need the help!

[ydoc]

Originally Posted by Mac2

First in the list is gift bag shredding by the Voila company. I've found the silver mylar, gold mylar and red as well as the iridescent strands in the bag of "clear" to be literally a blessing when making tails and skirts on small jigs. My first try was with the silver and red. I tied a vertical fan shape on a 1/16 oz red lead head in silver strands and then added a red stripe down the middle of each side and used red thread for the tying. So far the little silver and red jig has caught 21 species of fish.

Lately, I've been experimenting and tying with the iridescent semi-transparent strips......really nice when laid in layers over a shinier holographic gold found at the store at Christmas time usually used for icicles on the tree.

Thanks for the tips! I don't make my own lures, but will make my own (jig/spinngerbait) skirts from time to time... I had read about adding some mylar strips to the "rubber" skirting material to add some "flash".

While looking at Cabela's one day, a lure maker told me about using mylar "tinsel" - yeah, like you put on Christmas trees - instead of the more expensive made-for-fishing supplies. If you wait until after Christmas, you can buy bags of this stuff (and in all colors) for pennies on the dollar.