| SPORTFISH HAWAII is proud to
present hand-made Hawaiian Big-Game trolling lures by master craftsman Stuart Dixon, a
lifetime resident and avid fisherman of Hawaiian waters. Stu personally pours, peels and
polishes each and every one of his lures, and no lure will leave his shop with his
distinct LEPRECHAUN LURES Logo unless he feels it passes several of his own specific
tests. Stu is a scholar of the sea and he has developed a very distinct philosophy as to
what he believes attracts fish. He places that philosophy into every lure he makes, and
you will immediately notice his level of craftsmanship the moment you remove the lures
from their package. Stu’s designs are proven fish catchers. The photos will not show the detail as well as we’d like, but when you receive them you will also notice their unique hydrodynamic design. In fact, some of his lures (such as The Joker) are oblong instead of round, and while you may initially believe this is a design or finish flaw, a closer inspection with the lure in the water will show it was intended to be this way. Stu’s designs must meet both his and local angler’s approval in mock form before he considers placing them into production. In addition to hours of sea time testing the design on each of the rod positions on board various boats to determine how well the lures run and raise fish, he will provide local anglers with a potential design and obtain their feedback as well. The result is hundreds of hours of testing and raised fish before a design passes. Once Stu believes a lure design meets his criteria and should go into production, he pays special attention to the detail in the construction of the lure. Stu uses special inserts of various materials to maximize the reflection and flash from within the head of the lure. Some of Stu’s insert materials cost $210.00 per square foot, but he’s willing to pay that much because of the flash it will produce once the lure is in the water. If the insert doesn’t come out just right after the mold is poured causing the tight flash effect he’s looking for, he rejects the lure and refuses to sell it. Notice that Stu doesn’t always put eyes on the head itself. This is because Stu believes the fish will strike the skirt area instead of the head, resulting in a higher percentage of hookups. Most brands of skirts come with eyes, and Stu believes that removing the eye from the head directs the fish further aft and into the hooks as opposed to the head itself. We agree, and we have seen the results ourselves. In keeping with IGFA rules, yet wishing to keep the skirts short and the hooks large (especially on his smaller lures), Stu does two other things that very few manufacturers do: namely bore out the tail end of the head so the crimp fits inside, up to about 3/8 of an inch, and he also makes many of his lures with a single skirt ring. Stu again believes these little changes focuses the fish strike on the skirt eye area, and with the leading hook closer to the head, it will result in a higher percentage of hookups. Call us if you have trouble rigging your skirts on a single ring, and we’ll explain the trick. You will also notice the fine polishing of each and every lure he sells. Compare Stu’s work to any other brand on the market. His methods and choice of materials make for more time consuming production than other mass produced lures, but the result is clearly worth the effort. Anglers and fish alike can’t seem to resist the temptation to get hold of a Leprechaun Lure. |