This edition of Lure Lore is devoted to an odd category of lures commonly referred to as "bleeder" baits or lures that exude a substance that might attract fish. Within this category I've also included lures that one might put something in to give the lure more action and/or create a noise. In previous editions of Lure Lore two such lures were discussed, the Bleeder Bait Company's Bubbler lure and the Hi-Yo lure. I've only listed 6 such lures but I know there are many more so if you as a reader have any other such baits, drop me an email and I'd be happy to add your pictures and description to this page!

The Aqua-Bat Lure was made by F. S. Burroughs & Company of Dover, New Jersey, c. 1947. This lure uses a pellet that is inserted in the head of the lure under the chin and is held in by a spring-loaded metal plate as shown in the upper right picture above. As the pellet desolved in the water, it generated a gas that caused the lure to act erratically. It measures about 3" in length and is a top-water fishing lure. The lure came in a plastic top yellow box with a bottle of "Aqua-Tabs" and came in assorted colors including Green Frog (GF) pictured above. Typically, the pellets in the bottles have turned to powder so it's fairly rare to find a bottle with the pellets intact.

Boiling Big Y Lure

The Boiling Big Y Lure was made by Young Lures, Inc., of Piedmont, South Carolina. This lure is a spin cast lure that uses a effervescent tablet (much like a Alka-Selzer) that "...give a boiling effect in the water to attract fish and get the big, lazy ones.." according to the instructions. The table is inserted into the top of the lure after pulling up the top fin, then closing it. The lure measures 2-1/4" in length, is a sinking lure and has a rattle inside the body. The packaging included 4 tablets which, according to the packaging, came in 5 different colors and flavors including Bass, Oil of Anise, Shrimp, Shad, and Strawberry! (Hmmm...no 'shortcake' to go with the strawberry?) I've not been able to determine the age of this but it's certainly within the last 20-30 years and maybe of even more recent vintage.

CATSAS-Systems Bait

This 'pikie' style jointed lure is designed to bleed sardine oil via a piece of pipe cleaner inserted into the belly of the lure. A tube leading from the head to the pipe cleaner is filled with the oil use a squeeze type bottle. There is a small plastic plug in the head that is removed to fill the body with the sardine oil. The instructions and box do not indicate the company of manufacture although it does refer to the lure as a "CATSAS-System" bait. I believe this is a Canadian lure as the instructions are written in French as well as English. The lure measures 5" in length and came in a plastic case with instructions and a squeeze bottle of oil (not shown in the picture).

Swim-N-Lure / Action Lure

This simple plastic lure from the 1950's & 1960'swas marketed under different names and configurations as seen in the picture but all under the same patent number. The lure is made up of two parts, the 'air chamber' (front half) and the 'fuel tank' (back half). Sold as a "Self-Propelled" lure, the 'Swim-N' version came with a bottle of powder which was used to fill the 'fuel tank'. When put in water, the powder caused the lure to act erratically or 'swim' and according to the directions, the noise made by the powder disolving attracted fish.

The "Action" lure came with two different colored tablets (white & brown or white & blue) that were put in the 'fuel tank', first the colored one and then the white one and then water was added and the lure put back together and then fished.

In both cases, the lures have holes in the top and bottom that allowed the gas generated when it came in contact with the water to expell and cause the lure to 'swim' or act erractically.

One unusual thing about this lure is the patent number that is listed on the instructions, 2,932,916, issued to Robert E. Strickland of Canoga Park, California on April 19, 1960. The patent title is for an "Aquatic Toy" and describes in some detail the concept behind using a gas-generating chemical to cause the toy to sink and rise when water comes in contact with the chemical. (Don't know how old my readers are but does anyone remember the toy submarine that you put baking soda in to cause it to rise and sink?)(I think it was a premium in a cereal box). To view the patent, click HERE! (Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader)

This 5" lure was made by the Bait Path Mfg. Co., Ltd., of Canada. Due to it's size, it was advertised for larger fish such as Muskie, Northern, Trout, Walleye and Salmon. It came with a tube of dried blood, a 1/4 teaspoon of which was to be put inside the lure. The head of this lure is held to the body by an elastic strap inside the lure so one pulled the head away to put the dried blood in. In addition, the directions state, "Desinged specially, so that poultry, liver, worms, beef, fish, cheese, etc., can be inserted inside the lure...when using live worms attach pins through worm and insert in core, worms will work their way through holes at rear so as to trail behind tail of lure..." The date of manufacture is unknown but I suspect it is of recent vintage.

These two lures were made by the Fair Play Industries Co. of Detroit, Michigan and date to the late 1940's. These also came with a bottle of bubble tablets that were inserted into the body of the lure to give it action and create noise.

If you have any further information on any of the items displayed on this page which you'd like to share, please send your comments to me and I'll update the page accordingly. Contributions of interesting items and/or unknowns are encouraged. Lures pictured in Lure Lore are not for sale.

Comments? EMAIL ME!

Web Author: Tom Jacomet
Copyright ©2008 by Tom Jacomet - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED