Trouble with cowgirl blades...?

[JIGGIN']

I love the cowgirl as much as the next guy, but recently I have been having trouble getting the blade to consistently rotate opposite one another. Do other here have the same issue and if so, what do you do to resolve it? Thanks for any advice....

[Rebel9921]

I could be wrong but I dont think those blades are supposed to rotate opposite of another... Not with the way the Cowgirls are made... if you look closely... if they rotated the opposite of other, the clevises wouldnt be able to rotate fully... they would cancel out each other, hitting each other... Both blades moves in one direction... They move fast enough through the water they could give out an illusion that they're rotating opposite of another...

[snowman678]

My guess is that he means they are not rotating opposite each-other on the shaft (one on one side of the shaft, the other the opposite). I've had some trouble getting them to rotate correctly in the past, and what I've started doing is giving 1 good tug with the rod before I start cranking. This seems to help get things spinning correctly.

[JIGGIN']

That is what I meant snowman... Thanks!

[Rebel9921]

Now I get the picture... Well yes... I have had that happen to few of my DCGs... but that was after it was hit by a Muskie... What happens is that the hit is so violent... violent enough to bend the shaft... and that impairs the clevises from moving freely... Look closely... you might see a gentle bend... maybe a hard bend... either way... just fiddle with the shaft til the clevis moves freely...

I had a 45+ inch muskie hit a black/nickel DCG so hard at boatside that left more than 4 bends in the shaft... took me a good 15 minutes bending it back straight and getting the clevis to move freely... Poor thing got nailed again no less than a hour later that left 3 new bends (didnt see how big this one was as I was trolling)... other 15 min and I got it fine-tuned... still have it...

If a little fine-tuning doesnt work... then do what Snowman suggested... but then again... fine-tuning is FUN... never know what new action this fine tuning could create...

[MUSKYMAN1011]

Are you guys saying those "two Blades" are suppose to turn in the same direction?

Thanks

Brian K

[MUSKY18]

I haven't really had a problem with my DCG's, but my DC-10's are really bad for this. Instead of spinning opposite of each other, the blades ride on top of one another. So instead of a flame blade and nickel blade spinning, all I am getting is a flame blade on top and nickel on the bottom. Both are spinning, just not independently of each other. This bait is brand new and does it.........shaft not bent, so I don't know what the fix is.

Yes, Muskymann......both blades spin in the same direction when reeling the lure in.

[MUSKYMAN1011]

Thanks for the Info...!

Brian

[HugoBox]

Sort of along the same lines - is there a better way to straighten them than just trying eyeball it and bend the wire. I just replaced hooks on one and added shrink tubing back to it. I'm anxious to see how she runs now. I only had #5 hooks to put on and I think they come with #7 so I hope it'll still hook up well.

-thanks - erik

[snowman678]

M18, I've actually had more problems w/ the DC-10 (and even DC-9) than the DCG's. That is where I got started w/ the rod pump right after the lure hits the water. I think the cast has a tendency to get things a little out of whack and the quick pump gets everything going again. Of course, it could be all in my head (which I might say the muskies have all messed up right now)

[DHanson]

Isn't a DC-10 the same thing as a double cowgirl?

[cjac]

They are similar baits from different makers; the DC-10 is from Llungen Lures and the Double Cowgirl (DCG) is from Muskie Mayhem.

Another double 10 blade buck not mentioned is the Double X from Muskie Mojo. They have a maribou dressing compared to the flashabou of the DCG and the silicon of the DC-10. They're also built on a heavier wire, 0.62 compared to the DCG at 0.51, or something close to those specs. I've not had issues with the bending on my Double Xs.

The maribou pulses really well in the water, the Double Xs catch fish too.....

[Rebel9921]

One more tidbit... I have read somewhere that the trouble lays with the clevises... the holes where the shaft passes thru isnt big enough to allow the blades to spin freely... correct this problem and it should be fine... Only way I can think of doing this is to take it apart, replace with appropriate sized clevis and reassmeble it on new wire shaft...

Erik... yes they normally come with 7/0 Mustads... basically theres only two ways... eyeball it and straighten it out as best as you could... or cut it apart, rebuild it on a new wire shaft... You pretty much could take advantage of this rebuilding and use 0.62 instead but you'd need new clevises to fit... I've tried drilling the existing clevises and IMO its not worth it... no matter how dead on center you are at drilling it... you'd make the hole bigger and the metal thinner... chances are that the blades would break off from one hit...

As far as I know... Out of the BIG THREE (Musky Mayhem, Llunge, and MOJO) that makes DB10's... only MOJO uses 0.62 wires... I know of few smaller companies that will use either 0.51 or 0.62 along with 0.25 or 0.40 Blades... Gerry's Girls does this, that I know of...

[b1gf1sh1]

tweak one or both clevises away from each other. a little tiny twist does wonders for me i see no reason why it would'nt for others. if you do both, twist them away from each other. not much is needed and too much kills the bait completely. remember they are brass and really easy to bend. what this does is make the blade already in a spinning position as it's already turned. if your scared don't be, they can be bent a little back again. use a needle nose. just don't colapse the hole and it's cool.

[MUSKY18]

Cjac......if you like the marabou on the 10's, check out the "DINNER BELL", i got one and love it.

[BrianF]

Hey Jiggin'

I've got a couple of fixes for you...

Sorry I wasn't able to show you them while we were up on Vermilion.

#1- Use a small diameter, thick-walled clear surgical tubing (available at Stamina) to keep the clevis' where you want them - opposite each other. This requires that you re-wire the bait though.

Snip a small piece of the tubing and use this as a sleeve to cover just the top of both clevis', with the clevis holes in the middle of the small piece. Use a large hook or small drill bit to create a hole which the wire will run through. Both clevis' will be inside the plastic with the wire running up through the bottom and out the top of the plastic tubing and thru both clevis'.

#2 - Also, the blades are probably getting mis-shapen (e.g., bent) from use. If you bend the blades back to their original position, they will not hang up on each other nearly as much. Plus, you'll get the bait to pull more, which I think helps to trigger more bites. To re-shape the blades, I simply bend them down slightly about 2/3 of the way back (in the fat part of the blade), which helps flatten them where it counts. They'll run better for a while, but ultimately they all get replaced. The painted blades are worse than the metallic blades for getting bent out of shape and hanging up on each other. Perhaps the plating process makes the metallic blades a hair more rigid and less prone to bending out of shape from use...but that's a guess.

Better for me to show you all this rather than try to explain on the internet.

B.

[JIGGIN']

Thanks Brian, we better go fishing together sometime soon so I can see that fix. You are certainly a good tackle tinkerer! Good luck at the tourney next weekend. I hope you and Gman score BIG!!!