Ingenuity is the mother of lures
The coming winter months lend themselves to the art of tackle craft. Indiana County's Joe Tuholsky pursues the activity from a somewhat unusual direction.
The key to success
While a professor at a college in a neighboring state many years ago, Tuholsky came in possession of a large number of keys. It seems the institution where he taught was in the process of changing many of its locks.
A member of the custodial staff passed the outdated brass keys along to Tuholsky, who rather than throw them in a sack as a potential boat anchor, decided to turn them into wobbling metal lures.
"It's really easy to convert a key into a wobbler," said Tuholsky. "It begins with the bend. But there's really no precision —no specific angle — to it."
Tuholsky puts a slight bend in the neck of the key, right at the point where the height of it tapers down in size. It's this bend that gives the key a wobbling action as it's brought through the water.
Other than the change in contour, the key-to-wobbler makeover takes little effort. Tuholsky drills a small hole in the tip of the key to act as the line attachment.
"Be sure to clean up the edges of the hole after it's drilled," said Tuholsky. "The hole will have sharp edges that will cut your line if it's not de-burred."
Additional protection can be achieved by using a small split ring or a snap instead of tying directly to the lure.
The hole in the key used to string it on a chain is for the hook. A split ring is fastened to the key, then a treble hook is worked onto the split ring. Split rings and hook sizes are matched to the size of the key.
Feed 'em spoons
Like many anglers, Tuholsky uses spoons for many fishing applications. But he's a bit more literal. His spoons actually are spoons, the kind used to eat your Wheaties.
"Both teaspoons and tablespoons have a great action in the water," said Tuholsky. "And this isn't just the spoon end of the utensil. I use the handle portion, too."
Tuholsky saws the handle away from the spoon end of the implement. He files the cut to a smooth edge, drilling holes in each end for the line tie and the hook attachment. As with the key wobbler, holes are dressed to prevent line abrasion.
Rather than throwing the handle in the recycle bin, Tuholsky uses it to fashion a spoon of a different style. The slender profile of this lure provides a tighter wobble.
It's fashionable these days in the NFL for teams to wear throwback uniforms, which are reproductions of the franchise's gear from an earlier era.Similarly, Tuholsky honors the past by using his woodturning lather to kick out custom lures that mimic the ones he grew up fishing.The Lucky 13, Bass Oreno, River Runt, Pikie Minnow, Hula Popper, Jitterbug — these are the lures Tuholsky used when he learned to fish years ago. And while some are still available, he prefers to use wooden versions he produces in his garage."I was a high school industrial arts teacher for a while during my past, so the hands-on aspect is something that comes naturally to me," Tuholsky said.He uses a variety of native and exotic woods to produce his plugs. In many cases, he glues two or three wood types together before turning on the lathe. The finished product then exhibits a multipatterned look due to the laminated construction. He leaves these lures in their natural finish.Actually, even lures made of one wood type often are left unpainted. When he does paint them, he frequently uses the red-and-white pattern, a color combination that was popular in the past and continues to trigger fish.Tuholsky's friends and relatives don't need to worry about keeping their silverware and spare keys out of sight when he comes to visit. Their wares are safe. He gets much of the material needed for his projects by stopping by rural hardware stores, breaking the ice by giving away one or two of his gems."I don't sell any of my lures," he added. "But I do give a lot of them away."
