Antique Fishing Lures

Antique fishing lures date as far back as the late 19th century, representing such famous manufacturers as Heddon, Creek Chub, Paw Paw, South Bend, Pfluegar, and Shakespeare. The typical antique fishing lure is made out of wood and strongly resembles fish bearing swirling contrasting colors.

Like modern-day fishing lures, antique fishing lures were designed for the particular type of fishing. Antique fly fishing lures are distinct from antique deep sea fishing lures. In the category of the former exist assortments of pre-made multicolored flies boasting colors such as brown, gray, red, blue, orange, yellow and white. Even these older lures look real, at least on or in water, such as the antique hula pooper fishing lures. Many of these are still prepackaged, so their colors haven’t faded. Any antique fly fishing lure guide usually provides serial numbers, photos, dates, and prices, as well as, on occasion, a brief history for the sake of the collector.

As far as the deep sea fishing lures, wood was a common material. The antique wooden fishing lure resembled a long, narrow fish bearing swirling painted colors to represent eyes, gills, body spots, and scales, such as those of the Creek Chub. These colors were sometimes blended together but quite often separate and distinct from one another. The one exception to the case would be Heddon antique fishing lures with the Bud line, featuring little fish with the body of a Budweiser beer can. The interesting thing about this line, however, is that many lures were made to accommodate several other brands as well, such as Coors, Cocoa Cola, and a plethora of Japanese brands as well. Camouflage and bullet-style fish lures expanded Heddon into a wide variety. Many collectors value these because of their history and their Japanese influence. South Bend’s Bass Oreno is also another distinction in the world of antique fishing lures and Wahoo collections. Shakespeare, which was commissioned to build controls for war ships during World War II, bought out Pfluegar—another well-known manufacture of yore—in 1966 and had become esteemed for the famous Rhodes wooden minnow (1905) and is still operating with yet new lures to compete with modern companies.

Antique fishing lure prices are expensive for some, depending on the degree of rarity, but those antique lures which are still common in existence might be found at an affordable cost. Any antique fishing lure for sale would undoubtedly by a great deal, depending on what it is. Collectors know very well what’s available and where and what is considered acceptable and legitimate for an antique fishing lure value. An antique fishing guide offers information that helps searchers and collectors evaluate already owned antique fishing lures, and find more obscure antique fishing lures.

Any angler who is a true angler knows the significance of antique fishing lures. Many of these lures aren’t used anymore and are kept in their also-valuable wooden or box-jointed cases, but understanding lures and how they work includes knowing from where they came.