"I
first heard of a new lure
called the Osprey in
1999. A Japanese customer
had come into the tackle
shop looking for big
baits, with a page from a
magazine. Amongst the
Japanese writing were
pictures of a Castaic
Soft Trout, a Basstrix
Swimbait, and another
bait that I could not
identify. The customer
informed me that the
unidentified bait was an
Osprey Talon, and it was
the hottest big bait in
Japan...":
so says Chris
Johnson
of Bass
World West.
Let Chris
continue:
I
was immediately intrigued
by the Osprey,
because of it’s
classic hand-poured
swimbait shape. Missing,
though, was the
traditional molded in
lead head and exposed
single hook. This bait
incorporated a harness
and treble hook that sat
on the belly of the bait.
The pour and use of color
was also the best
presentation I’d
ever seen in a trout
bait.
After
a little investigating, I
found that the hottest
bait in Japan, was poured
a little closer to home:
in Bishop, California,
USA. It seems that this
bait, as many other big
baits, was designed
originally as a tool to
catch large brown trout.
A man named Steve
Harner had
designed an all-plastic
bait that would not need
a lead head to balance
its swimming action. It
was only a mater of time
before the Osprey was
discovered by trophy
hunting bass anglers ...
The
original Osprey Talon
was a 9” bait with a
single belly-mounted
treble hook.
The
original Osprey
We
immediately removed the
stock hook and replaced
it with a Gamakatsu.
We then tied a short
leader of Power Pro
braid to the first
hook and attached a
second, smaller Gamakatsu
as a trailer. This
proved to be critical, as
most of our early bass
were initially hooked on
the stinger.
The
"Pro-Rig"
version of the Osprey
- note the trailer hook.
The harness is also
totally revamped ensuring
better hookups and a
longer lasting lure
In
March 2001, Jeff
Taibi, Kevin
Linehan and I
opened Bass World West
in Santa Ana, CA. With
over 20 years combined
retail tackle experience,
and dedicated to the
trophy and tournament
fishermen, we knew that
custom tackle service
would be our niche. The Osprey
Talon figured big
in our plans.
I
began experimenting with
the Osprey later
that year, trying to
build a better mousetrap.
My idea was to make the
bait a little more
durable, and to devise
the perfect hook system.
The bait was a great bass
catcher, but the built in
harness would sometimes
tear out of the bait on
the hookset. I’d
only catch one fish
sometimes before the bait
was ruined. I needed a
new way to run the line
to the hooks, without the
use of a metal harness.
The
first Pro-Rig
Osprey was built
with a hollow coffee
stirrer I got from the
donut shop next door to Bass
World West. I had
decided to remove the
original harness and glue
a tube running through
the bait. The main line
would then pass through
the tube and tie up to a
split-ringed Gamakatsu
hook on the belly of the
bait, with a stinger hook
also attached.
The
first run of the new rig
in our casting tank had
me really excited. The
bait ran straight and I
knew that the hooks would
stick the bass, and the Osprey
would slide harmlessly up
the line. The integrity
of the bait would hold
up, fish after fish. We
added a stainless steel
washer to the belly
opening, and placed a
small centering weight in
the bait. Then we
perfected the hook
placement, and the bait
was ready.
After
testing the new rig on
several willing bass, and
finding better tubing
material, we decided that
the successful rig was
ready for the public. In
September 2001 we debuted
the Pro-Rig
Osprey. Tournament
wins at Casitas, Perris,
Castaic, and Cachuma were
soon to follow by anglers
using the newly rigged
swimbait. Double-digit
bass were taken from
Clear Lake, in Northern
California, all the way
down to El Salto, in
Mexico.
Through
hundreds of hours of
development, and
thousands of bait sold,
we are convinced that the
Pro-Rig Osprey
is the most deadly big
bait ever produced.
Trophy bass and
tournament wins from all
over California were
achieved with this
design. Colors, such as Bluegill,
Baby Bass, Pro
Blue Neon, Clear
Lake Hitch, and Silver
Shad have expanded
the Ospreys’
appeal to bass which
don’t have rainbow
trout as part of their
diet. Trophy bass
everywhere are
susceptible to its lure.
Though
many Osprey
knock-offs have emerged
in the past year, the
original continues to
pace the field.
Innovative designs in
bass tackle only come
along so often, and the Osprey
Talon is one of
them. The Pro-Rig
design only takes a great
thing and makes it
better.
Chris
Johnson
of
The
man himself, Chris
Johnson, with
the results of his
handiwork - a 7lb San
Vincente (California)
Bass on the "Pro-Rig"
Osprey
The
Pro-Rigged Osprey Talon
is
available exclusively
from
in
these eye-catching
colours
in 7" ($20-99) and
9" ($23-99) sizes:
Dark
Rainbow
***
Light
Rainbow
***
Special
heavy glitter Rainbow
***
Ghost
Rainbow
***
Western
Trout
***
Hitch
***
Pro
Blue
***
Baby
Bass
***
Bluegill
***
Silver
Shad
***
Carp
***
And
Chris
Johnson of Bass World West
has done it to the Whitmer Rago Generic
Swimbait too!
A "Pro-Rig"
version of this new lure is out:
For a detailed description on how to go
about "pro - rigging" this
lure on your own, click on the pic
OR order online from:
(click on "Swimbaits - Big
Baits").
"I
would rather fish the "Pro -
Rig" versions of the Osprey
and Rago lures. They
are appropriately and optimally
tuned and modified and are equipped
with Gamakatsu hooks
...": Jacques
Wolmarans
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