Mesh Tube for holding soft bait within lure / lure making.

[RonPaulFan]

I bought Mesh Tube at Dollar Tree.  I'll experiment with making some flash with a soft bait holder to attach to lures to better retain softer baits as it gives some color and flash.

See the picture.  It's an open weave mesh tube like a Chinese finger trap made of colorful reflective plastic flat strands woven into a tube of about 3/8 inch diameter and 36 feet long for just a dollar.  One package might make 200 soft bait holders at a cost of a half-cent each.

I bought many packages of all of the many different colors.

In the picture, see a piece I cut off that is just over two inches and has both ends tied.  The mesh tube expands when you push the ends and that would make it easier to stuff in some bait.  I've read in our posts that fish and minnows used as bait gets soft and mushy when previously frozen.  That or fish eggs or many things that might not stay on the hook well will be quickly and easily retained in this mesh tube by just stuffing it in and tieing a simple overhand knot on each end.

Now, I'm brainstorming configurations and possibilities.  Leave extra material on one side of one knot and unravel it and it is a tail-like appearance.  It can simply add to a hook on a lure.

I might make up some hooks on braid to add to a longer length like a worm lure.  The sparkly colorful mesh tubes look somewhat like plastic worms of colors and sparkles.

For casting distance, I might want to feed a weighted hook into one or two and mixing colors with light on the bottom and dark on the top like a fish.

Think about it and post your ideas.

Tip: With this store, you might see something you might think to test, decide you want more later, never see it again or perhaps months later, so try to determine how much to buy when you see it.  I didn't know which color the fish would like best, so I bought it in all of the colors.

Ronald   

[PAC12_AfterDark]

Is it high temp? Would be cool to shoot a swimbait over it, but it might melt it.

[RonPaulFan]

Is it high temp? Would be cool to shoot a swimbait over it, but it might melt it.

I just heated up the end of a hot melt glue stick with a propane torch to as hot as it gets before it drips and ran it over the mesh and glued it to a shinny metal spoon spinner.  It didn't harm the mesh tube and stuck it securely to the lure.

I just discovered another good feature of this mesh tube material for bait holding. I didn't bother to tie the ends because I was only testing it's heat tolerance, but pushing on an end, I see it expands from about 3/8 inch to about 1/2 inch similar to the Chinese finger trap. This has me thinking that tieing an overhand knot on each end is unnecessary because you can push in a larger than 3/8 inch chunk of fish meat and it will collapse upon and hold it in place without the need for the ends to be closed. This makes the concept work even quicker and easier.

[EyLayo]

Here’s 1 way to use some of that up. This jig has a real similar hollow tube used as the body.

[RonPaulFan]

EyLayo, That thing is so UGLY that if I were a fish, I would bite it just to ... uh, nevermind ... I suppose that's the point -- it works. As TieDyeTwins was known to say: "Think like a fish!"

I put the lure with the mesh hot melt glued to it in my locker at work and it's a little dark there. When I open the door, the shinyness catches and reflects light and it stands out and the cross mesh gives it a fish scale look. It looks like the pattern on expensive lures. The way light reflects off of the shinny mesh tube is a line of brightness along the centerline of it which corresponds to the lateral line of a fish.

It also seems to be very durable. Since it's a mesh, glue really grips it well.

The picture you posted (THANKS!) shows what can be done with it. I was thinking of using the weighted hooks for swim baits and slipping a mesh tube over it and tieing on just the front near the eye of the hook leaving the other end open. The reason to leave it open is that it will hold and retain soft bait put into it and at the end of the day removed to put away the lure clean and dry and ready to hold soft or mushy fish meat on a next fishing trip.

When using the mesh tube as soft bait holders to be disposable and added to the lure later, it would be a time saver to make up a lot of them (make them small) all at once and put them in your freezer. Then when fishing, just hook it on for the appearance similar to a feathered treble hook on the trailing hook to have the sent and taste of fish meat (or whatever other soft bait) as well as a little flash and movement.

Ronald

[PAC12_AfterDark]

Nice thank you- I'll try and snag some.

[Cowboypirate]

Here’s 1 way to use some of that up. This jig has a real similar hollow tube used as the body.

My friend that is  thing of beauty - perch will want to make friends fast with it. I have seen these used in fly tying videos and it gives me an idea for a differnt perch bug I have been playing with - txs RPF for finding them cheap - I will go looking

[EyLayo]

Rpf, unfortunately I can’t take credit for its creation. It came in some yard sale tackle I picked up. But, I’ll take the challenge and be sure to catch a biggun on it just for you. Keep the wheels turning, you’ll find a great use for your bargain bin treasure. Happy fishing

[Springbuck1]

Here’s 1 way to use some of that up. This jig has a real similar hollow tube used as the body.

  That looks like a heck of a panfish fly, with a plastic bead head instead of lead.

---

I've got an idea about like yours. Drop a couple crappie nibbles inside the tube, and tie a bug like EyLayo posted.

Or, like you said, it expands and contracts like an accordion. Tie the front end behind a jig head with a few wraps of thread. Leave the back end loose and slightly frayed so you can push it up an insert your soft baits, like a little stick of dried Powerbait or whatever, then cut half the body off a curly-tail jig, and thread that on behind. The tubing will relax back out to length, the plastic jig body will act to plug the back end some, you'll have an action tail, sparkle, scent, and some mid-body flu-flus for extra action.

Last idea. Do the worm thing you mentioned, tying the front end to a long Aberdeen wire hook, or an actual plastic worm hook, but also run a line full length inside the tube, and tie a tiny spinner blade like the kind on a beetle-spin, on at the tail end of the worm.

I'll buy some to mess with, too.