Aaron Martens Scrounger

Aaron Martens Scrounger Head 2 per pack

The Scrounger swimbait has a 35 year history, beginning in Southern California in the early 1970’s. John Waters, the inventor of the Scrounger swimbait, created it to be an inshore saltwater swimbait.

In the creation of the Scrounger, John used what he believed to be one of the most effective fishing lures of all time, a simple jighead. Because of its upright single hook system, compared to the treble hook system. The Scrounger would provide a much higher hook-to-set ratio and hook-to-catch ratio. He redesigned the jighead to a round jighead with an indention for a plastic bill to fit right the eye of the hook. The Scrounger’s bill is set up right and cupped around the now round jighead. Allowing the water to pass over the jighead in a complete 360 degrees, this forces the jighead to oscillate back and forth. To control the oscillation, John tied a round nose snap to the line, and for the first time the jighead worked in tandem with the soft plastic trailer. John had accomplished his mission creating the Scrounger swimbait which produced an oscillating action, unlike anything ever seen before. In addition to the improved swimming action, the Scrounger’s soft plastic bill also improves the odds of freeing the Scrounger when it becomes wedged in rock or rubble and acts as a weed guard allowing the Scrounger to be fished in and through heavy cover or over weed beds.

The old style jighead swimbait’s action is governed by the soft plastic trailer rigged on it. Currently in 2007, fisherman even go to the extent of rigging a jighead with a soft plastic trailer sideways in attempt to increase the swimming action.

Almost instantly, John knew he had accomplished his mission. He formed a company called North American Waters and with his son Tom, produced and sold over 500,000 Scroungers in the first ten years.

The Scrounger could be fished at any depth in the water column from the bottom to the surface, while keeping the Scrounger in the desired strike zone. Even the inexperienced angler could fish the Scrounger with ease and catch fish. Being produced in numerous sizes, any saltwater species of fish could be caught on the Scrounger, Sand Bass, Calico Bass, Halibut, Cods, Yellowtail, Dorado, Pargo, Albacore, Wahoo, Yellow Fin Tuna, Sailfish, etc. All species of fish reacted to the Scrounger the same way. It was like the Scrounger’s oscillating action affected the fish’s’ hard drive. They simply could not resist it! Saltwater fisherman in California rigged the Scrounger with live bait and an array of soft plastic trailers matching the forage. The Scrounger quickly became a great multi-species saltwater lure.

Over the next 20 years, the Scrounger had been produced by a least three, possibly four, other lure manufactures, all producing it for a relatively short period of time. By the turn of the century, it became very hard to find the old Scrounger, especially a good one.

In 2006, Aaron Martens Lures LLC opened for business, a partnership including Aaron Martens, Joshua and Scott Kolbinsky. Each lived and fished both salt and freshwater in California until 2000, at which time, all moved east. The partners had fond memories of the Scrounger, having fished it from the Channel Islands off of California to Cabo San Lucas Mexico over a period of fifteen years. Producing some of the best catches of their lives, time and time again, we would never go fishing without our box of Scroungers. The partners decided the Scrounger would be the first lure that Aaron Martens Lures would manufacture. But this time, the Scrounger jighead would be redesigned so it would have a greater horizontal presentation, develop multiple bill sizes in various thicknesses, this would permit the Scrounger to be casted or trolled from a slow to a fast retrieve. The Scrounger would be fitted with a Gamakatsu O’shaughnessy jig hook for improved penetration. One year later, Aaron Martens Lures produced the new Scrounger, now offered in thirteen sizes and bill combinations and for the first time for both salt and freshwater fisherman.