Setting Out Structure - The Porcupine an easy setup fish attractor

Setting Out Structure

Written By: Rick McFerrin

Owner/Full Time Guide

February 2008

How many times have you been on the lake and just by chance found an old sunken tree that someone planted that you couldn't see? Chances are depending on the season, and if you didn't get hung up in it, you may very well have caught any number of species of fish out of it. Of course the Key Word are "If You Didn't Get Hung Up In It". Right? Planting structure has long since been a key way for Bass, Crappie, Shell Cracker and Blue Gill fishermen to increase their catch potential. In past years the structure of choice many times was a discarded Christmas tree, which definitely will attract fish. But they are hard to transport in your boat and because of their buoyancy and depending on the size of the tree took a lot of weight to secure them to the bottom of the lake. Then, someone thought of using PVC pipe which was a great idea. The PVC helped eliminate having your bait hung up but to get the attractor to resemble a "Tree" or a "Bush it took several different size of pipe and multiple elbows and t's. And depending on the size a bigger chunk of something to hold it down. Then a gentleman (and Crappie fanatic) named Larry Harper helped improved on the PVC idea to create what I believe to be the best attractor on the market today. The Porcupine Fish Attractor. Let me explain how the Porcupine works and what it is.

The Porcupine Fish Attractor

The center of the attractor is a round globe looking sphere that has 26 holes drill into it that accommodates 1/2 inch thin wall PVC pipe cut to the length of your choice. The PVC pipe plugs into the sphere and sticks out in all directions. The pipe is secured to the sphere by using a good PVC glue that can be purchased at any good hard are store. That's me with a saw in my hands instead of an All Pro APX Rod.

I think the rod fits my hands better.If you look closely at the picture to the right you can see the green sphere, cut PVC pipe and the bricks that we used this time as anchorThe only thing you can't see is the 1/2 inch T's that you place on the bottom of the center pipe that
will hold your bricks. (See picture below) The first thing I did and I would recommend you think about doing the same, is building one of these in your back yard first to get a good idea of what you will be faced with when you get to the lake. I decided to cut my pipe in 3 foot lengths which made the

entire attractor almost 5 feet tall when completed. You can get a good idea of it's size by looking at the picture to the immediate left with my youngest son Daniel. Daniel is right at 5 feet tall even without the heavy coat, toboggan and hood. By the way it was 26 degrees when I did this project at home and he kept saying. Daddy can't we put this together in the barn? Having every thing pre-cut and organized it was very easy for Ken and I to assemble these in the parking lot at the lake. Now you can begin to see why the Porcupine Fish Attractor has so many advantages over a real tree or a conventional PVC pipe attractor.

The spine that stick out gives these a much fuller "PVC TREE" for the fish to swim in and out of, but yet still retains the benefit of being snag free with your artificial and live bait. The PVC pipe provides cover and will collect algae which will attract bait fish which will attract the ones your looking for. Since the PVC is hollow on the inside water will fill the tubes quickly as it sinks and unless you place these where there is a lot of current 2 bricks should be plenty to hold them securely.

Where Do You Place The Attractor?
Truthfully you could place the Porcupine just about any where. And depending on the length you

cut your pipe in all depths of water. My dilemma was that on the lake I guide, the water fluctuates in depth as much as 15 feet or more due to the winter draw down and can vary from year to year. So it was very important to make my decision on placement before I ever got to the lake. With the help of long time good friend Mr. Ken Jenkins we did a little map planning well in advance. Be sure that the map that you use has GPS coordinates on

it so when you get to the lake you can enter them into your GPS when you drop the sphere and mark your map as well. It was important to me to get these within my fishing comfort depth range and still have them hidden out of sight until the water comes up. Why? Well if I don't they will just become another community hole. And since I guide full time I'm kind of stingy like that. The Porcupine Fish Attractors will work in ponds, around boat docks, either sunken or suspended with a cable or rope. Spawning areas, flats, ledges and drops. You can create a "stump row" leading from deep water to shallow water. The possibilities are endless, especially if your lake stays at a fairly constant water level.

Conclusion

Larry has sure helped to come up with a great idea that I know will increase my customers catch over the next year. And the Porcupine Fish Attractor can do the same for you. They are durable, easy to assemble, provides habitat for spawning areas on older lakes that have lost some of it's original structure, gives the fisherman some private structure of their own. And can make the difference between a so so day and a good one on the lake. It is a good idea to check with your state fishery department to find out if any laws pertain to dropping structure before you start out. For more information on the Porcupine Fish Attractor you can click on the logo and go directly to their web site, call 270-254-0150 or e-mail Larry Harper at lharper@fishattractor.net. It's going to fun to see what comes off my Porcupines this season. Watch the Home page of my site for follow up reports and pictures. Rick McFerrin Owner/Full Time Guide www.tennesseebassguides.com