Sam Rayburn Guide

Anonymous writes "

When Uncle Josh Bait Company founder Alan P. Jones got out of the Navy in World War I, he used to do a lot of fishing, frequently with his good friend, Urban Schreiner. Although they fished a number of lakes, their most popular spot for bass fishing was a remote little lake in central Wisconsin called Jordan Lake. Jordan Lake was not remote because of the travel distance involved, but because of the terrible roads leading up to it. Once you left the main highway, sand was sometimes so deep, you had to put hay on the roads to prevent the car wheels from burying themselves up to the hubs. Consequently, nobody went to this lake - nobody, that is, except the Joneses and the Schreiners. Each June, they always made a fishing trip to Jordan Lake, camping in tents. Jordan Lake in those years really teemed with black bass. They used to catch many of them in the early morning on plugs, but as the sun rose higher, the fish would stop hitting plugs. So, they switched to live frogs, usually with good success for the balance of the day. There came one day in the summer of 1920 when there were no frogs to be had at Jordan Lake. Jones and Schreiner stomped around the marshy areas near the lake but couldn't come up with anything. Either the frogs had become too elusive or they had caught them all. It was then that the idea came to them. Why not make a frog out of something else, such as pork? So, up to the butcher shop in Oxford they went for a slab of pork back fat with the rind on it. They cut and whittled until they came up with a rough facsimile of a frog. They put the bait on the hooks, and this bait caught so many bass that from that day forth, they left the plugs in the tackle boxes. During the rest of the summer and throughout 1921, they experimented further with various shapes of the pork frog. They wanted to get a lively tail action, yet have enough pork so that there would be a sufficient hunk of meat for the fish to smell. It took a lot of whittling on fat backs and a lot of knife sharpening, but after experimenting with many variations, they found what they felt was the perfect combination. This bait was so successful in producing fish that they decided to go into business and make it commercially. Jones' primary business was the Jones Dairy Farm that slaughtered hogs and made Jones Sausage. By being in the meat packing business, it was natural for the new company to obtain its raw pork rind from the Jones Dairy Farm. How Come the Uncle Josh Name? As they were fishing, Urban and Jones would kick around the question as to what name they should put on the pork frog. As you can imagine, they came up with a number of bizarre names. Anyway, there was an old farmer whose property adjoined Jordan Lake from whom they rented boats. This farmer talked like a stage comedian who was popular at the time, a comedian by the name of "Uncle Josh." Jones and Schreiner called him Uncle Josh (behind his back, of course), and liked the ring of the words "Uncle Josh". This is the name eventually selected for the company. There were plenty of headaches getting started in the pork rind bait business in the spring of 1922. Perfecting the proper cure for pork rind was particularly time consuming. It helped that Jones had been curing bacon at the Jones Dairy Farm for years, but bacon is not the same as pork rind. The first baits made at Jordan Lake were white, but Jones decided to dye the skin side of the baits green to make them look more like real frogs. The original green dye wouldn't hold well on pork rind. Besides, the cured bait tended to spoil soon after being packed in glass jars. One old fellow in the town, an ardent fisherman, commented, "Boys, you have wonderful bait, but it stinks so!" Both Schreiner and Jones worked at their regular jobs all day, so to get production really moving they hired an employee, but just one. Their first plant was an old abandoned Jones Dairy Farm plant that stood at the end of East Milwaukee Avenue in Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin. The first big shipment went to a large jobber, Jenney-Semple-Hill, in Minneapolis. It was $300 worth. The Pork Frog was the original product, but within a year or so, they realized that it would be best to have a line of pork rind baits. In short order, they developed four more shapes. There was the Pollywoggler, the white pork rind bait with the whiskers made from red yarn. They also brought out a Bass Strip and Fly Strip, both of which were just pork rind without fat on them. Then, shortly thereafter, there was the Pork Chunk, and oval piece of pork with no tail. There were many growing pains in the early years. However, they gradually licked the problems such that today Uncle Josh produces the finest pork rind baits made anywhere. Although the Uncle Josh operation is still not large, they make more pork rind baits than any other manufacturer in the world. After World War II, better dyes came along that could make pork rind in colors other than just green and white. Black and brown proved to be very productive. They also developed and introduced new shapes - eels, lizards, leeches and all sizes of strips. Today, the pork rind comes in a myriad of shapes and colors to fit every fishing situation. The Uncle Josh product line has also expanded to include other types of baits. They now have catfish baits, carp baits, and even metal lures. Alan P. Jones loved all kinds of fishing - from sunfish to salmon, from muskies to marlin. His first love however was bass fishing, especially hooking a large black bass on an Uncle Josh Pork Frog. In March 2002, three Milwaukee-area businessmen cast their lines in the small-business acquisition waters, when they reeled in the 80-year-old family-owned bait manufacturing business in Fort Atkinson. Uncle Josh Bait Company, known for its line of pork rind bait, was angling for a makeover and expansion under new owners Patrick McDevitt, Kurt Kellogg and Chris Miller. "It's a great name with a great heritage behind it," said Kellogg, who is now Uncle Josh's president. We look forward to continuing the proud tradition of Uncle Josh, while continuing to develop new and better products to help our customers catch more fish.

Look! It's not a frog! It's a Phantom Craw! Featuring a narrow head with a slit in the middle for better leg action, the Phantom Craw has wider legs with claws at the end to displace more water. The bait resembles a rabbit ears shape with much less bulk up front on the thick pad around the hook point. The Phantom also has a much wider surface area covering the skin-thin legs. The narrow head and wide legs are exactly the reverse of the traditional pork frog chunk. This new pork bait is ideal for flippin' and pitchin' on the back of a jig.

Earth Shattering Action - That is how to describe the new SIZMIC line of toads. The Sizmic products were developed by avid bass fishermen in Alabama and will tease a bass into striking with their great action. The Toad and Toad Jr. feature a recessed hook cavity that prevents hang-ups in heavy cover. And be sure to check out the Creature Toad. Uncle Josh took the great leg features of the Toad and combined them with the tube-like body and a skirt. This is a great bait for a Carolina-rig or when pitching or flipping into heavy cover. The Magnum Toad has to be seen to be appreciated. This is a trophy fish bait that measures 8.5" long and has plenty of action. It looks like a big bass killer! The SIZMIC line also includes a Shaker Worm, Tremor Lizard, Flu-Go, Shocker and 10" Sizmic Swimmer. Look for these at your local fishing supply dealer because they are going to be HOT!!

Well there you are, a look at one of the premier fishing companies in the world. For more information contact Uncle Josh Bait Company, 525 Jefferson Street, Fort Atkinson WI 53538 or go to www.unclejosh.com to see the complete product line.

Anonymous writes "

Takahiro Omori, winner of the BASSMASTER CLASSIC used an old BB2 to win what many feel is the most prestigious bass tournament held. This very effective lure, along with other old Bagley lures built in the early days, have been highly sought by today's tournament pros. Many lure makers have tried to duplicate the action of these old lures, but most have had only limited success. The really good news is that Lee Sisson Lures now makes these great baits available to you and other fishermen throughout the world. Sisson baits have the same shape, lip, flotation, and action as their predecessors, and results show that they will catch bass when other baits are drawing a blank. But actually why shouldn't they. After all, Lee Sisson built these lures for 12 years while working as a designer and production manager at Bagley's during the late 70's and early 80's. Owner/Designer - When Lee Sisson began fashioning hand-made crankbaits that would run considerably deeper than those on the market, he began to establish himself as one of Louisiana's top tournament anglers. In the process, he also began to develop a reputation for his craftsmanship as a quality lure maker. It was Lee Sisson who took the crude crankbaits of the past and refined the diving lures into a reliable fishing tool that even the most inexperienced fisherman could utilize successfully. Working from Jim Bagley's original design of the Balsa B, Sisson molded the kind of lures that ran from just below the surface to depths that had never been explored by crankbait fishermen. His deep diving lures such as the DB3 and Diving Killer B, soon became favorites for many of America's bass fishermen. In past years Sisson has influenced the lures in most of our tackle boxes and we weren't even aware of it. He has manufactured baits for many of the major lure companies such as Heddon, Strike King, Mann's, Arbogast, Bass Pro, Cabella, etc. ….you get the picture. All of Sisson's lures are made from Jelutong, a light but tough wood which has the flotation of balsa but the strength of cedar. This light wood allows for a well balanced lure with maximum action. Sisson's manufacturing techniques give the lures a quick vibration with a wandering action only wood can provide. Another feature Sisson added is the Ticker sound chamber. This chamber simulates the "ticking"sounds shad and crawfish make. These are just some of the reasons Lee Sisson lures have influenced the industry for decades. The Lee Sisson product line consists of baits that established his reputation for reliability and quality. Lures such as the Diving Woody 2 (DKB2) and the Big Deep Ticker, (DB3), along with the rest of the Ticker Series are good examples. But Sisson hasn't been resting on his laurels because he just keeps improving on the already proven line of products. Sisson is also reintroducing the "tuning button" in diving lures. Early Bagley lures designed by Sisson had this feature and it was one of the reasons for their great success. The tuning button is a lead button in the lip at the pull point. By moving the weight forward into the lip the lure has a face down attitude. This allows the lure to start diving from the first turn of the handle, reach the strike zone quicker and stay there longer.

The light but tough Jelutong body and wide quick action is the heart of the Pink Eye. Like all of Sisson's lures, the Pink Eye has the same fish catching features which makes it an important lure to have in your tacklebox. The Shallow runs to 2 ft, the Diver gets to 6 ft, and the Pink Eye X-Stream dives to 10 ft. Most small lures can't even think about going that deep, but the depth is achieved in Sisson lures by using the new weight-forward design in the lip.

Take the extremely quick vibration action only wood can offer, add the flat sides and the Ticker sound chamber, and you have the new Slim Willie. This unique ½ inch wide flat-sided lure comes in a deep version which dives to 8 ft (using the weight forward lip), and a shallow version which dives to about one foot. A very effective method of fishing the shallow version is to make it "wake the surface" by holding the rod tip high as the bait is retrieved.

The Tennessee Tuffy has a coffin lip inserted straight in for maximum depth and a tight action. The flat sides and Ticker sound chamber combined with the action only wood can create is one reason this lure has been a favorite for years.

The Ticker Series - The Big Deep Ticker is the lure that actually got Lee Sisson into the lure business. Lee had the only deep diving crankbait and was winning most of the tournaments in his area. This is the same lure Lee built in Louisiana which became the Bagley's DB3. Dives to 18 feet.

Diving Woody 2 - If you liked the old Bagley DKB2 you will love this lure. Sisson has reproduced the old DKB2, even putting the weight forward in the lip to get the lure down quick and keep it in the strike zone longer. The Deep Woody 6 is a 6 inch bait that dives to 20 feet, has a Ticker, heavy hardware and a vibrant searching action. The Medium Woody 6 dives to 10 feet and has all the features that make the Sisson lures sought after by fish and fishermen.

Ultra Mag 30 - Big lures for Big fish. A rugged 11 inch body with extra strong hooks and split rings which tested out at 100 lbs. make this bait a brute. Combine the strength and action with sound chambers that create a vibration which draws fish from great distances, and you have a special lure that big fish just can't resist.

Tree Frog - Finally a scum bait that is heavy enough to cast to those hard to reach pockets and floats high enough to keep it above all the trash. The strong single hook is hidden in the enticing replaceable trailer to make it completely weedless

The Flicker - Imagine you are on the lake as the sun begins to rise and you seen a school of shad waking just under the surface. As you watch, you see a shad flick ever so often. Then all of a sudden the world turns to bass. The new "Flicker" bait will wake under the surface just like that shad, and this change of action triggers strikes. This unique action is achieved by a special wire bend that puts the blade in line with the spinnerbait pull point and a willow-leaf blade that is bent on a 90 degree angle about 5/8 of an inch up from the tip. The blade is strategically placed directly over the hook for better hook-ups.

The Skimmer - Casts like a dream and will easily "walk the dog" on the surface by simply retrieving it. This action is achieved by using the same diving plane as in the Hybrid, but turned over to act as a spoon. The bait uses a heavy ¾-ounce spinnerbait head with the surface plane attached to the wire.

The Hybrid - A truly unique lure that combines the best features of a spinnerbait and a crankbait. Basically it is a spinnerbait frame with a diving plane. The Hybrid uses a unique diving plane which is hidden between the ¾-ounce spinnerbait body and the blade arm. This makes it as weedless, if not more so, than a regular spinnerbait. The blade arm goes through the diving plane and a large willow-leaf blade hangs from a premium ball bearing swivel. If you allow the lure to sink to 25 ft. the Hybrid will hold that depth during retrieve. The combination of the weedless design of a spinnerbait with the diving plane drives it down where the lunker bass hide. You can fish the lure in any type of structure such as brush and standing grass where you might normally hang up a crankbait. Another great feature of the Hybrid is that you can adjust it to run to one side or the other. This is achieved by bending the blade arm just after it comes out of the diving plane. By tuning the lure to run to one side you can bounce it off trees and get it into hard to reach places under boat docks, floating structure, and pilings.

Sisson doesn't just build crankbaits. His arsenal also includes the Sisson Popper, a 2 ¾ inch conventional popper, the 3 inch Sisson Spinner, and the 4 ½ inch Woodwalker. Also included is a ½-ounce, 4 inch quick swimming action Sisson Minnow. When you combine nearly 30 years of lure designing, testing and manufacturing, along with truly innovative features, you see why Lee Sisson Lures have influenced the industry for three decades. Should It Rattle Or Not? That has been the question since a weight came loose in a plastic lure in the early 60's and seemingly caused the bait to catch a bunch of bass. And to this day the debate continues. A few years ago the "add a rattle" group tried to convince folks that louder was better. That didn't last long, but the "don't add a rattle" group has begun to question that theory also. Sound is just a part of the vibrations fish feel as you drag a lure through the water. The movement of a lure is felt by a fish even if the lure has no rattles. Bass have one olfactory sense and one visual sense, but three ways to pick up movement (vibration) in the water. They pick up vibration patterns through their lateral line, inner ear and swim bladder. Studies have shown that vibration will attract fish even quicker than taste or smell. One study showed sharks were attracted to vibration more often than blood, even though their ability to pick up blood in the water is very acute. This tells us that vibration patterns could be more important than color, even though most of us are influenced a great deal by the color of a lure. Notice I said vibration "patterns", because not all sound is the same. Bass and other species have fine-tuned senses which allow them to chase down prey even in the dark of night in muddy water at a depth of twenty feet. But those same senses warn them of danger when things just don't seem right . The trick is to use this refined sense to attract fish, not spook them. Lee Sisson has spent a lifetime studying the reactions that different sounds have on fish. Years of research on and in the water, studying bass in tanks and talking to fisheries biologist, have confirmed the fact that fish are attracted by certain vibration patterns. "It all started back when Sisson was in college". Sisson says. "As a student I had plenty of time to fish and spent many hours on Toledo Bend. I always wondered how bass found schools of shad and stayed with them. One day as I was running down the lake a school of shad surfaced. It was a hot day anyway, so I baled out of the boat and into this big school of shad. That is the first time I heard the ticking sound. Shad were all around me and they were all making a sound like the clicking together of small rocks. I watched and listened as a school of bass suddenly slashed through the school. As the bass chased the school I saw crippled shad sink towards the bottom where even larger bass were waiting to feed. Sisson goes on to say, "I learned two very important things that day. The first was the fact that sound is a very important aspect of fishing. The second was that I sure was glad I wasn't a shad." The same type of ticking sound you hear from a school of shad is also made by crawfish. This is the reason Sisson developed the tuned Ticker sound chamber. The Ticker in Sisson lures simulate the sounds that both crawfish and shad make. Sisson states, "I don't want a loud sound in my lures, but I do want the right sound. We developed the Ticker sound years ago and it has been so successful that we now put it in all of our crankbaits". So as the should it rattle or not rattle debate continues there is now a third option. Perhaps tuned sounds which simulate baitfish and attract bass and other species is the most important factor of all. The life-long goal of lure designer/manufacturer Lee Sisson has been to produce the finest quality wood lures at a price every fisherman can afford. Sisson continues to improve the lures and keep the price down by developing and fine-tuning production techniques gained by over 30 years of experience.

For Additional Information Contact: Lee Sisson Lures 305 McKean St. Auburndale, Fl. 33823 Phone (863) 967-4036 Email - leesissonlures@msn.com