Sunday 5 August 2012

Aldi bag - Perfect lure bag


Aldi Lure bag video review


Aldi aren't known for their fishing tackle, in fact they're not known for much else other than a cheap supermarket shop.Every now and again though they get some bargains in, from computers to fishing tackle. I will admit that in my opinion, most of the fishing tackle they get in isn't the best but every now and again there's a bargain to be had. Today they had a few items in, fishing socks, trousers and vests plus rods, rod bags, bait and tackle sets, go here for a look. Most of the stuff didn't take my fancy but I did pick up a few packs of small spinners which were spot on for £2.99 and will surely catch me a perch or two in the future. I noticed the rod bag which looked good too but I have little use for it. The one thing I'd come for specifically was the shoulder bag they had for sale at £9.99.


For ten pounds this is a handy bag, with a few extra side pockets for your bits and bobs and a handy bottom pocket/tray which conveniently holds long pliers, cutters and forceps with room for a few more things if needed. I was well pleased they fit in there because I already had plans for the rest of the bag. The top and side zip pockets hold my small boxes, one containing small spinners and the other which has all my spare hooks, split rings and swivels.


My Savage Gear lure hang bag is a bit big for carting around and so I've been looking for a smaller bag to use to put in just the essentials for when I'm fishing places where I know beforehand which lures I'll be using or on venues where a bit of walking might be needed. Browsing the PAC Facebook page I noted a tip off that Aldi would be selling tackle today and while scanning their web page I spotted the bag and it's potential. Many lure anglers have already done this to other bags and I now had this bag marked down for a spot of modification.


I was sure I had some drain pipe in the hut but upon searching found none there, except some smaller diameter pipes which were no use to me as they wouldn't fit my lures. I then realised that the local DIY shops were closed so I couldn't go buy what I needed. I scratched my head and had another look around and then I finally found what I wanted, those rod tubes should do the job perfectly. I grabbed a couple and set about chopping them in to 18cm long pieces to fit nicely into my new bag. I figured I could fit fifteen of them in at a squeeze and the bag would still close perfectly. Incidentally, the diameter of the tubing is 6cm. You can obviously use larger tubing or possibly even square plastic drain pipes would fit nicely and could even make more efficient use of the space. Have a look and see what suits you best.


That looked spot on. I was thinking I could maybe think of a way to secure them in place but decided against it since I then had the flexibility to take them out later if need be. Next I needed to cut some notches in to the tops of each tube so that the hooks from the lures would sit nicely and help prevent tangles even further. Using the saw I cut a random number of notches in each piece of tube and then quickly cleaned up the mess before the missus spotted what I was up to. I would have done the whole job outside but another one of those thunderstorms had made me come in out of the rain, and boy did it rain.



I chucked the tubes back in and then put some lures in to see what it was like, not bad at all. I then set about doing the hardest task of them all, deciding which lures I wanted in and which I wanted out. That's a tough task for a lure hoarder. Every lure I picked up I wanted in the bag, even though I mostly use that one rainbow. Damn this lure obsession.



But I wasn't quite happy, it wasn't quite right. The last few sessions I've been out I've travelled light and then found that I wanted to use spinners and small lures to have a go at the perch and I hadn't brought them. So I wondered if I could fit a small lure box in, the usual standard sized small storage boxes you get and yes my Savage Gear lure box fits in perfectly. Without the tubes you could easily fit three of those boxes in possibly four making the bag also perfect for your small lure sets. By removing one row of tubes it still left me ten slots for my larger lures and I could fit all my smaller lures in too now. That's spot on is that.



Get yourself to Aldi now and pick up a bargain lure bag before they're all gone. I'm already considering going for another one tomorrow. I have no idea what I need it for, I just hope it's not a bag addiction to go along with my lure addiction! Oh my god, what is happening to me?


EDIT - I've used the bag as my main lure bag since this DIY job was done (nearly five months), but I've since made a slight adjustment to the inside. The cut up pipes work, but I found that I was getting the lures snagged in the bag itself sometimes. The bag has a mesh compartment in the lid and when this is closed it was getting caught on the hooks. I also managed to keep getting the hooks caught on the side of the bag too. This became annoying and wasted time on the bank.

So i've removed all the pipes and now I just throw my lures in the bag. Wait, that's got to be a bad idea. All those hooks getting tangled up with each other and surely stuck in the bag and my fingers every time I try to grab a lure. I missed the other bit of DIY I did. Again, not my idea, but grab yourself a bit of pipe lagging and cut it in to pieces about half an inch to an inch thick. These will make for excellent hook protectors. You will never again get them stuck in the bag or wrapped around each other. A bonus of this feature is that if you drop a lure in the water, the hook protectors make the lure float rather than sink to the depths out of sight. I always attach the lure to the trace before removing the hook protectors just in case I drop the lure. Cold hands don't always work how they should. One negative of the hook protectors is the fact that they will hold a bit of water. So make sure you dry your lures in the house after a session or you will open your bag a week later to find rusty hooks! Another plus is that you can seemingly fit more lures in your bag than with the pipes, but this is also a negative since you'll end up carrying around lures you will never use! So here's a tip. Pick your favourite lures, pick a few that will work the depths or something to change it up and then leave the rest at home. You'll find plenty of space then for a pasty and a brew!







6 comments:

  1. Gutted! I bought an identical bag the other week with a Chub logo on it for more than twice the aldi price!

    Like what you've done with the tubes inside, good idea!

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  2. It's annoying when that happens mate. The tube thing isn't my idea though, plenty of people around the internet have already done it but if it gives someone else the idea too that's my target.

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  3. good idea marshy, i have one of those and it has lasted two seasons so far

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  4. That's ideal, that is. I have a respirator bag off evilbay that needs 'arranging'... ;)
    Off to B&Q pronto for some square pipe!

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  5. A great little bag,use mine for canal dead baiting

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