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Trace Making
Trace making by Tim Kelly
(Spring 2001 Edition)
Wire traces are deeply personal things. Everyone who makes their own arrives at slightly different solutions to the problems involved. These are the three different styles of trace which I use, they all have slightly different properties which I like to use in different situations, depending on lure size, style and application.
The first style is the simple single strand trace. This is used for jerkbaits and larger lures. This style of trace is the least likely to tangle and if it gets a bit bent can be straightened out easily. Also it is very strong for it’s weight. This might sound a bit odd when you think of the size of the lures, but some of the jerkbaits are weighted fairly critically and the light weight of the single strand wire effects the action the least. The downside with this type of leader is that after they’ve been bent and straightened a few times they might get weaker. It is wise to replace them more often than the appearance of the trace might suggest.
The
second style I use is the uncoated multi strand type. I don’t use this type
very often but for some reason prefer it for trolling. I tend to make these
leaders quite a lot longer, about 18” to 2’.
This type of leader is the most susceptible to kinking, this is probably
why I don’t like them for casting, but make the thinnest flexible traces.
The
third type is the plastic coated wire. I use this for all of the lighter trace
applications. It makes very durable kink resistant traces. They are flexible and
easy to make. I also use this type of wire for flies and jigs. One of the great
advantages of this type of wire is that you can form an open loop in the end.
This gives flies and also things like senkos and sluggos more movement, when
attached direct to the hook.
I
have always had a problem believing that swivels make any difference to line
twist. It seems impossible to me that a swivel will make any appreciable
reduction unless fitted to an anti-kink vane. Also I don’t like the extra
weight of a swivel at the end of the trace. I can’t help thinking it must have
some effect on the lures action. With this in mind, and the fact that with braid
line twist is not a problem, I have tried many different methods of attaching
the line to the trace. The good thing about swivels is that the ring gives a
large diameter, smooth surface to tie the line to so that the trace wire
doesn’t cut through the braid. The ideal answer would be something that
weighed very little but gave the large diameter smooth surface of the swivel
ring. I tried various different things, including those little Drennan and ESP
rings that carp fisherman use for something, with reasonable success but I was
never completely happy.
On
an LAS fish-in at Milestone I was chatting to Steve LeMaitre. Steve makes the
most fantastic traces, if you’ve seen his lure bucket, you will know what a
perfectionist he is. Anyway, I looked at his traces and noticed that he had a
small metal thimble over the loop at the line attachment end of his trace. I had
seen pictures of these things, but the only ones I’d seen were great big ones
used by off shore big game anglers to protect their mono loops. Steve’s were
much smaller. I asked him where they came from and he told me they were just
drennan crimps! The trick is to thread them onto the trace then to carefully
bend the crimp round with a pair of round nosed pliers, trying not to flatten
the crimp too much. Then the trace can be twisted up as normal.
Another
thing I like is for the link to be fixed in line with the trace. I find that if
the trace articulates where the wire and the link join it can cause tangles,
especially on spinnerbaits where the trace can wrap behind the arm. Shrink tube
is the easy answer, just get a short length of it and thread it down the trace
then over the back of the link, heat and hold it all straight while it cools. Be
careful not to over heat the tube as you can damage the wire with too much heat.
The
finishing touch for the traces is to cover the twisted wire so that it can’t
tangle and damage the braid. This is easily achieved with shrink tube or if I
have time I like to use a hot glue gun. If you squirt a bit of this glue on the
wraps you can mould it round with a wet finger to smooth it before it cools and
sets.
The components I use for my traces are Malin Stealth #10 131lb single strand wire. Sevenstrand uncoated bronze wire in 40, 60 and 90lb. Both from Rok Max tackle. Drennan Green Pike Wire in 12, 20 and 28lb. Sevenstrand plastic coated 60lb. Fox easy twist 30lb. I used to use the plastic coated wire from Veals but it’s silver coloured and I seemed to get a lot of pike biting the trace when fishing with jigs. The fish would either be missed or hooked outside the mouth as the jig caught in the side of the fishes face. The green Drennan doesn’t seem to suffer from the same problem. I use normal Drennan crimps for the “thimbles”, and Stringease links. I believe Dave Lumb is now selling these in some sizes, I think he calls them “power snaps”. I sometimes use Genie Link Clips (as recommended by James Dean a few issues ago), but the Stringease types are as reliable and have a bigger loop, which lets the lure move more freely.
Thread
the crimp onto the wire, then carefully bend the crimp round using a pair of
round nosed pliers.
Making
a haywire twist in single strand wire. This stops the loop collapsing under
pressure.
Uncoated
wire(right) Heat the last ¼” of the wire at this point to help the wraps
finish neatly. Again only apply enough heat to let the very end of the wire glow
briefly.
Apply hot glue onto the wraps, then smooth over with a wet finger. If the glue goes off before you are happy with the finish, lightly heat the glue with a lighter and finish it again.
