Fishing Lure

There has long been a need for a fish lure that combines the qualities of natural bait with those of artificial lures and yet is simple to use and effective in catching fish. Most lures have one or more characteristics that make them inconvenient and/or ineffective to use. A fish lure must have all the advantages of natural and artificial lures to be successful with both the fish and the fishermen.

The fish lure of this invention utilizes the soft pliable and flexible plastic material in the elongated worm-like sleeve positioned on the free end of a fishing line or leader with the shank of the fishhook extending from within the forward end of the sleeve out through the end with the barbed portion extending rearwardly along the outer peripheral side of the sleeve. The opposite end of the sleeve is open for filling the sleeve with emulsified fish bait material suitable for the fish being sought. A bead is carried on the fishing line or leader for being moved into the open end of the sleeve to close it and prevent onrushing water from entering the sleeve thereby causing the fish bait in the sleeve to be dispensed too rapidly through outlet openings provided along the sleeve's substantial length. The bait material in the sleeve is maintained in an agitated state by action of the fishing line moving radially outwardly from the longitudinal center toward the side walls as the fish lure is moved through the water.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the fish lure of this invention;

FIG. 2 is a side elevation view thereof showing the fish lure being filled with an emulsified bait material;

FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view taken along line 3 -- 3 in FIG. 1; and

FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view taken along line 4 -- 4 in FIG. 3.

The fish lure of this invention is referred to in FIG. 1 generally by the reference numeral 10 and includes a leader 12 having a loop 14 in its inner end for connection to a fishline not shown. A fishhook 16 is carried on the outer free end and includes three barbs 18 connected to centrally positioned shank 20. Shank 20 is connected through an eye 22 to the leader 12 by a knot 24 having a free end 26.

A worm-like sleeve 28 elongated and hollow and made of soft pliable and flexible plastic material is positioned on the leader 12 with the shank 20 of the fishhook 16 extending into an opening 30 in the forward end of the sleeve 28. The sleeve material sealingly engages the shank 20 and the free end 26 of the leader 12 is sufficiently rigid to engage the side wall of the sleeve to assist in anchoring the fishhook 16 in the forward end of the sleeve. The barbs 18 are uniformly positioned around the forward end of the sleeve and extend rearwardly therealong closely adjacent to the outer surface of the sleeve.

Sleeve 28 includes a plurality of outlet openings 36 along its substantial length for dispensing an emulsified bait material 38 which is placed in the interior of the sleeve through use of a dispensing bottle 40 of the squeeze type having a nozzle 42 which fits into the open end 44 of the sleeve as seen in FIG. 2. The bottle is merely squeezed by the fisherman for ejecting the liquid bait into the sleeve.

A bead 46 carried on the leader 12 is movable, if desired, into the open end 44 to close it to admission of water for mixing with the bait, as seen in FIG. 3.

During use, the fish lure 10 will be pulled through the water by the leader 12 connected to a fishline and the lateral movement of the leader 12 in the sleeve will tend to stir up the bait 38 and facilitate its being dispensed through the openings 36, as seen by the arrows 50, in FIG. 4. If desired, bead 46 may be left out of the open end of the sleeve to facilitate faster disbursement of the bait material as the water will tend to force the bait out through the outlet openings as the lure moves along in the water.

It is seen that the lure of this invention has all the characteristics of natural bait along with those of artificial lures. The lure has the scent of natural bait from the emulsified bait material inside the sleeve and the sleeve itself has all the appearances of a nightcrawler or worm due to its elongated pliable shape and material. It is further seen that the sleeve includes a plurality of longitudinally spaced transversely extending ridges 60 alternating with grooves 62 to further give the appearance of a worm. The dispensing of the bait material is controlled through use of the bead 46 as a cork in the open end of the sleeve and agitation of the line 12 within the sleeve further facilitates dispensing of the bait material. The hook is maintained in the sleeve in sealing engagement with the closed end of the sleeve and by the anchoring action of the free end of the leader engaging the side wall.

A further advantage of this invention is that the same lure can be used for different fishing in that different squeezetype bottles of emulsified bait can be readily maintained and easily dispensed into the lure as desired by inserting the nozzle end of the bottle into the open rear end of the sleeve. Upon completion of the fishing the lure may be readily cleaned by washing it under a water faucet or in the body of water being fished whereupon the lure will be ready for the next fishing which may include fishing for a different type of fish and the use of a different emulsified bait material.