Making the Soft Head Green Machine

[Squidnation]

This past July I got an invite to go marlin fishing on the Pelican with Capt Arch Bracher. We had a great time and caught a blue and missed a blue as well as a limit of nice dolphin. I got to spend some time on the bridge and started talking about tuna fishing. I never mentioned I owned a tackle manufacturing business. Well when I told him what I did he said I needed to come out with a soft head green machine. He told me he couldn't find them anymore and most companies stopped making the soft headed version. He showed me the couple that he had left and they were torn apart pretty good. Well I came home and started fooling around with ways to make a soft head with the materials I had in the shop. Here is what I came up with. it is easy to make and everyone probably has all the components in their shed or on their boat.

You will need a 7 in green squid, two green trolling skirts, 1/2 oz or 1 oz egg sinker, some wax thread, scissors and vegatable oil.



My wax thread is on the boat so I just used mono for the demonstration.

Cut the mantles of your green squid.



Then cut the tenticles of the green squid as well.



Lube your egg sinked and stick it in the squid. If your green squid doesn't have the insert like mine then the oil is probably not necessary.



Lube your squid as well as the inside of the squid skirt and slide it over the squid down to the where the body meets the eye socket.





Now with the other green trolling skirt - place it over the squid backwards and slide it down the squid to where the body meets the eye socket. slide it over the first trolling skirt.



Now take your wax thread and tie down the two skirts where they overlap each other where the body meets the eye socket. Tie it tight but no so tight that you cannot get line through it. Then fold the top trolling skirt over the line and you have a soft head green machine.



Capt Arch told me the reason he prefers a soft head green machine is because when a fish comes at the bar and hits a soft head and misses he is more likely to return. If there is bait on the bar, the tuna usually mangles the bait and doesn't return. And he noticed if a fish hits a hard lure and misses he is more likely to not return. but he said that the fish usually keeps coming back to soft heads until they finally hang themselves.

[mike hennessy]

like that idea good goin

[Capt-D]

Now you know that you should have had Daisey DeuX do the how to on this!

-D

[gradywhite273]

top shelf bill, thanks for sharing it,

[babalaza]

ok lets hear it why is the inner skirt smaller

[Squidnation]

Because it was the only other green skirt I could find in the office. Usually it would be about the same length and actually the same color. and I would probably use a bit smaller of a weight. But I just used what happend to be on my desk for the demo. needless to say I have a messy desk

[Patudo]

For what it's worth - Moldcraft still lists them on their website?



http://www.moldcraftproducts.com/lures_softMachine.html

[reel fishy]

This is a perfect example of human ingenuity at work. Great job! Let us know how it pulls.

[frankypettolina]

Hey Bill, I was looking a the cut down squid, kind of reminds me of the "other" things Frank Johnson sells. Squidnation branching out???????

[#1Gaffman]

Hey Bill, I was looking a the cut down squid, kind of reminds me of the "other" things Frank Johnson sells. Squidnation branching out???????

Good info, i might just full around and see if i could make a few of these things.