John Costello on Flathead

John Costello of My Lure Box has earned a great reputation for fishing a range of species — particularly flathead and mangrove jack — as well as for his educational resources and content, and his highly regarded range of lures. In this video, Coastwatch fishing correspondent, Dave Macdonald, catches up with John at the Australian Fishing Trade Association event to talk flathead — covering a range of tips and fishing techniques, and looking at how John’s range of soft glide and paddle glide lures are suited to the species.

David MacDonald:

I’m here today with John, I think we all know it, My Lure Box. The best lures for Big Flathead.

Five times winner, is that correct?

John Costello:

Yeah, it’s over five now. There’s been some great years of big fun ed fishing with them.

David MacDonald:

Such a unique product. Big soft plastics for big fish.

What’s the smallest fish that you can catch on them?

John Costello:

Uh Joey got one about half the size of the lure the other day which we thought was pretty funny. But generally, generally I would say the average is 65 and above.

David MacDonald:

Fantastic.

So it’s a different technique. Long casts, really quiet stealth. And that’s what I want to talk to you about.How important is it to be really quiet up in those flats?

John Costello:

It’s the number one thing that I think people forget to bring into their fishing that stops them from catching those big fish before they’ve even wet a line.

David MacDonald:

They’re smart, aren’t they?

John Costello:

They’re really smart and some people that haven’t quite got the big fish game going have been fortunate enough over the last few years to get some big fish across some species. It’s the number one thing I think they underrate how dialled in these fish are. They’ve survived a long time in those estuaries and  it’s not by chance.

David MacDonald:

That’s right. So there’s no point flat out straight up into this fishing spot. Little cast, no chance. So these soft glides and soft paddles, isn’t it?

John Costello:

Yeah, yeah. So paddle glides and soft glides.

David MacDonald:

Paddle glides, yeah. Soft glides. They’re about eight inches long, aren’t they?

Or bigger?

John Costello:

They’re even bigger. They’re a 220mm long lure.

David MacDonald:

That’s enormous. So it’s a very unique lure on the market. And so with the rigging of the lure. Do we have to worry about that or it just comes in the packet?

John Costello:

All of my lures, all of the packets that I’ve brought to market, they all come pre-rigged and you can buy spare rigging packets. But I have them perfectly rigged so it’s going to swim perfectly straight out of the packet. I’ve tried to solve some of those problems for the anglers because I know the headaches myself of years of trying to rig plastics. And that can be a frustration that when you’re on the water you want to be fishing, not trying to fumble around with rigging. So everything comes rigged.

David MacDonald:

I think that’s a really important factor. When you grab a lure out of a box or a packet, you just you want it to work. Back in the days there was sometimes you’d have to adjust the bibs and all that stuff. But now it’s great to have the confidence that you can just open back it. Put in those long casts and you’re a chance every time.

John Costello:

Yeah, yeah.

And if you get yourself out there early morning before the boat traffic with the stealth and the long cast that you’re talking about. You might just catch the biggest flathead you’ve ever seen. And there’s been so many emails and uh photos that I’ve received since I released the soft glide. That is just that. So it’s been a beautiful entry into the market of uh designing and creating lures. Yeah.

David MacDonald:

How exciting. Tell me, Can you fish too fast? Can you retrieve a lure back too fast for a flathead?

John Costello:

You certainly can. There’s days when the smaller fish will come and grab almost any lure you present to them. But if you’re talking about a big flathead. They’ve been in that system nine, ten years. They’ve seen lots of lures and they know what’s real and what’s not. So being able to present a lure that can fool a really educated fish. That’s the game. So subtlety and speed are probably two of the big parts. Once you’ve got that stealth down, Having a subtle approach, a level fall to a lure that resembles a bait when it stops, that’s the key. So a lot of soft plastics when they fall because of the jig head and the weight they turn vertical and go straight to the bottom. An uneducated little school sized flathead will be all over that and they love that. But an educated big flathead. A lot of them have seen that time and time again.

And it’s that level fall that’s one of the pieces of my big lures that is getting it done more than any other lure that I’ve seen, in the comps as well.

David MacDonald:

And you mentioned smart fish. Your lures actually look like what they’re eating. So it’s either a a whiting, a pike, a mullet, those sort of larger fish that they’re hunting up in those shallows. You can see why they’re so effective.

John Costello:

Yeah, they are. The fall rate on the lure is really important. And it’s it’s sort of because you want a jig head that can send out for a cast, sometimes that fall rate is not something that people pay attention to. But with a bigger profile lure, it’s got a drawing power because of the profile the flatheads see that size of bait as something worth eating, especially the big flathead. They’re not going to leave their lie for something that big very often.But often if you bring a big bait past them, there’s a drawing power to those lures, and that’s what has just set the lures apart from so many other things that are out there. Yeah.

David MacDonald:

Fantastic.