THE LATEST NEWS
Rayjus Severs Ties with Former Co-Owner
Morris, IL – January 12, 20 18 – Rayjus Inc. has severed ties with former co – owner Ray Odom. A verbal agreement has been made in principle and both parties are working towards a formal agreement with their respective attorneys. “Our company was founded on principles of diversity and inclusion and this will continue to be a top priority for us,” said Company President Justin Romines . We hold our personnel to the highest moral and ethical standards . Rayjus has always represented the American way, liberty and justice for all, and we are committed to our community and our customers to stay true to this core value.
We are grateful for the opportunity to learn, evaluate and improve from our experience . Our commitment at Rayjus is to provide our employees with the best working environment as possible while delivering exceptional customer service and product.
Adding Orange to Crawfish Lures Gets More Bites
Crayfish, mudbugs, yabbies, crawdads – call ‘em what you want – there are more than 300 different species of them in North America, and their bodies range in color from red to olive green, and even blue.
But it’s the tiny bit of bright orange on the very tips of their large ‘pinchers’ (chelipeds) that have become a minor obsession for anglers like 2014 Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year Greg Hackney, and other avid anglers like myself.
The orange highlights on many of their pinchers make these freshwater lobster species look like they’re fresh from a $30 manicure at the local nail salon.
Trying to replicate this naturally fashionable color scheme includes the use of paints and dyes on soft plastics, as well as custom painting crankbaits – because we’re absolutely convinced that adding a tiny touch of bright orange generates more bites.
There’s some science behind our thinking
“For whatever reason, orange seems to be the color Mother Nature chose to dot the tips of the pinchers, which likely serves as an advantage as they seek one another for reproduction, and also a warning color for predator fish to ‘stay away’ – but somewhat unfortunate for the crawfish, the contrasting orange also helps bass to find them even in off colored water,” explains Gene Gilliland, B.A.S.S. Director of Conservation, who is also a passionate bass angler.
Picasso, Rembrandt, and Hackney
“I’ve always dyed the tips of soft plastics with orange or chartreuse, but only in recent years have I started using the paint,” says Hackney. “Paint is great because it takes a lot less to get a ton of bright color on the lure,” he explains.
More orange for Smallies, less orange for Largies
“I do believe that smallmouth are truly sight oriented fish that are attracted to bright colors – they’re just such an inquisitive species, but for largemouth, I use a little less paint, because they don’t seem to like it quite as bright,” says Hackney, who is using a very affordable $99 Quantum Prism spinning rod for most of his smallmouth fishing.
He opts for the 7’ 4” model when dragging plastic tubes, the 7’ 0” for wacky rigging, and the 6’ 6” Prism rod for drop shotting.
Widely produced, as well as customs worth leaning on
Hackney is by no means alone. It seems his penchant for applying Spike-It paints and dyes is shared by every bass angler who has ever stepped on a trolling motor pedal.
Nearly everybody carries either a bottle of the Southeast Georgia based company’s Dip-N-Glo, scented marking pens, or paint, to provide a simple and very effective dab of chartreuse, orange, red, or blue.
But there’s also a handful of both mass-produced lures, and custom models perfectly ‘painted’ or colored right out of the package to satisfy my orange pincher obsession.
In fact, my earliest recognition of orange’s importance was on the original, now vintage, model #V86 phantom green craw Wiggle Wart, featuring a rather transparent olive green body, and yes, a hint of orange on the diving bill.
These days I lean on Oklahoma angler and custom lure painter Beau Kemp, whose work can be seen @WaylonsBoot on Instagram, to add plenty of orange to my Wiggle Warts and widely produced Rapala DT series of crankbaits. Although, we’ve discovered the Rapala color called “Rusty” offers a bite-generating scheme with plenty of orange right out of the package.
Hand poured soft plastic craws to satisfy the orange craw obsession
Now, when it comes to soft plastics, I’ve yet to discover an orange-tipped, more natural looking creation, than those made by Paul Krew. Based near Buggs Island Reservoir on the Virginia-North Carolina border, Krew has been making hand-poured plastics for 30 years, and his efforts are truly works of art.
I personally prefer his compact little hand-poured soft plastic Weasel Craw, but it’s Krew’s color schemes that really set him apart. For example, I had always wanted a soft plastic craw with an army green body, some blue – and of course, plenty of orange on the pinchers – and he is the only person I’ve ever found to make them.
And while I can’t honestly say I’ve used his hand painted crankbaits – they too are among the Rembrandts of the casting plug universe.
“Orange just seems to be a color they see a lot in the natural universe – from sunfish to crawfish pinchers, and so whether I’m pouring plastics, or painting crankbaits – I’ve often emphasized orange,” says Krew.
I couldn’t agree more with Mr. Krew. I’m absolutely convinced the addition of orange to a crawfish imitating lure helps generate more bites, especially from smallmouth, but also largemouth to some degree as well.
So even though we tend to default to our more natural bass fishing color pallette of green pumpkins, blacks and blues – adding a splash of orange can certainly increase your catch rates.
River2Sea Adds FLW Tour Pro Glenn Browne
Vacaville, Calif. – January 11, 2018 – Northern California based lure manufacturer, River2Sea announces the addition of Ocala, Fla. FLW Tour Pro; Glenn Browne.
Browne is a 12-year veteran of professional tour fishing, who has earned more than a million dollars in his career. Along the way, the Floridian has earned four FLW wins, 27 top ten finishes in FLW competition and has qualified for six trips to the Forrest Wood Cup.
River2Sea’s Marketing Director, Andy Logan said that Browne has been a part of the extended family for years, and the company is happy to make the relationship official. “Glenn has been someone we developed a friendship with as we’ve met and gone fishing together through our travels to Florida and ICAST,” said Logan. “As a person, he fits our company, and are thrilled to officially bring him onto River2Sea’s pro team.
Brown echoed the feelings of the company. “I am truly excited to team up with River2sea, they are such an innovator in the sport of bass fishing with a wide variety of fish catching lures,” said Browne. The relationship between River2Sea and me is one that we have developed over the past several years. Every weekend after ICAST the guys stick around to go fishing. I take them offshore fishing or bass fishing, and it’s great to be joining the family. The guys at River2Sea have become such great friends over the past years, while I was going through my cancer battle this year both Angelo and Andy checked in with me on a regular basis to make sure I was doing well and if there was anything they could do for me.
Outside of the personal friendship, Browne said there are other reasons he is proud of the association. “River2Sea is a company willing to build lures that are exclusively angler designed. It is exciting to be able to sit down with Simon Chan and work together to design lures that I have the ultimate confidence in when I hit the water,” he said. “I have been fishing with their Bully Wa series of frogs and Whopper Ploppers for years and know how great all of the River2Sea products perform. I am grateful for the opportunity to work with such an innovative and established company that is willing to invest in different ideas and products.”
The company expects big things from their new addition. “Stay tuned, big things to come for Mr. Browne and we are looking forward to him being a big part of our Pro team,” said Logan. “He brings a wealth of experience and knowledge of fishing at the top level. His strengths as a shallow water fisherman make him a perfect fit for our team, we are excited to bring him on board.”
About River2Sea – River2Sea USA manufactures products for both fresh and saltwater applications. The product line features the highest quality materials and workmanship available in the business today. From the surface to the bottom, and in the tackle stores they make lures that produce results… from River2Sea.
‘The Cajun Baby’ Cliff Crochet Signs with Santone Lures
Pittsgrove, NJ, January 10, 2018. Professional Edge Fishing, Inc., a brand and angler representation company, has announced the sponsorship of Bassmaster Elite Series angler Cliff Crochet by the Texas-based lure manufacturer Santone Lures.
Crochet says that people in the fishing world had always spoke highly of Santone’s products, “and Kathy and Jerrod Vaught are just great people. They just want to create products that help guys and gals catch fish. So, I jumped at the chance to work with them. Everything they do, is done right. From the clean packaging to the quality hooks on every bait…it’s just good stuff.” When asked if he had a favorite in the line, Crochet said, “I really like the Rayburn Swim Jig with its heavy-duty hook…that’s a jig I really like. They have a great product line and I’m really eager to help them develop new products and build their brand.”
“We’re very pleased that Cliff chose to represent us at the Elite level”, says Kathy Vaught, President, Santone Lures. “He’s a great addition to Santone Lures and we’re looking forward to the new year and new possibilities”.
ABOUT CLIFF CROCHET:
Crochet is a Bassmaster Elite Series angler from Pierre Part, Louisiana., and a veteran of more than 100 Bassmaster entries. Cliff claimed victory in 2016 at the Bassmaster Central Open on the Atchafalaya Basin in Louisiana. Santone Lures joins Crochet’s other sponsors including K2 Coolers, Skeeter Boats, Yamaha, DUCE Rods, Luck E Strike, Bill Lewis Outdoors (Rat-L-Trap), Power-Pole, Plenum Medical Gas Solutions, Lowrance, Seaguar, Huk, and Fishing Frenzy Tackle. For more information about Cliff Crochet, visit http://cliffcrochet.com.
Follow Cliff Crochet at https://facebook.com/cliffcrochet/ Twitter @CliffCajunBaby and Instagram @CajunBabyFishing.
ABOUT SANTONE LURES:
Santone Lures is a fast growing, Texas-based fishing lure manufacturer of high quality jigs, spinnerbaits, buzzbaits, and jig heads. Santone strives to offer anglers the best performing lures and highest quality customer service. http://santonelures.com.
Follow Santone Lures on Facebook, Twitter @TeamSantone and Instagram #SantoneLures.
ABOUT PROFESSIONAL EDGE FISHING:
Professional Edge Fishing, Inc. is a New Jersey based, full-service angler management, representation, and marketing company specializing in the outdoor sportfishing market. Professional Edge Fishing represents several of the top professional anglers in the fishing world, which include Michael Iaconelli, John Crews, Ish Monroe, and Cliff Crochet. Professional Edge Fishing also works with many product manufacturers by developing custom marketing campaigns designed to connect these companies directly with millions of grass roots fishing enthusiasts around the globe and provide significant value. For more information, visit http://ProfessionalEdgeFishing.com, contact Becky Iaconelli at (856) 521-0046, or info@professionaledgefishing.com
2018 Atlas Awards – T-H Marine Supplies
T-H Marine Supplies Inc. is excited to announce the return of the Atlas Awards Program for the 2018 tournament fishing season! T-H Marine will award cash prizes to Atlas Awards members who are the winners or highest qualifying finisher of sanctioned events, giving everyone the opportunity to win like the top-level pros!
The Atlas Awards program is just $29.99 for a one year (Jan. 1, 2018 – Dec. 31, 2018) membership and gives all anglers the chance to compete for, and win, extra money just for having T-H Marine parts on their boat. This also includes one T-H Marine hat and 2 logo decals.
For 2018 the payouts have been restructured to give more opportunity to anglers fishing smaller tournaments. The payouts below will be for EVERY tournament, regardless of size (50-boat minimum). So Many Ways To Win! Please see official rules for more details.
Each item is valued by credits, one credit is worth $25 in cash, or $50 in store credit. Find more information on sanctioned events, eligible products, and how to submit claims here.