Crappie Psychic debuts flat jigheads he’s been using for decades
The Crappie Weapon, Crappie Trailers and Crappie Ammo all became even more dangerous to the crappie population about three months ago when The Crappie Psychic introduced Hamma Heads.
Clyde Folse, the lure manufacturer’s founder, is letting everyone in on something that has given him a decided edge to putting fish in the boat for the past 20 to 25 years. It’s been all about the lead jighead he has been making for himself, hammering them out at home in Raceland.
It’s easy to see the difference between the Hamma Head and other leadheads on the market. The Hamma Head’s head is about as flat as can be.
That wasn’t the case when he started experimenting with them years ago, Folse said.
“Nobody made flat jigheads,” he said, noting there have been triangle-shaped jigheads on the shelves, just not flat ones.
“I would take a triangular (or round), go in the shop and hammer” it flat, he said, noting that the big difference is the jighead’s action in the water column. Drop a marble in an aquarium, and it will fall straight to the bottom. Drop a quarter in the aquarium, and it will slide or wobble to the bottom.
“I haven’t used a round jighead in 25 years,” he said, whose family business got Hamma Heads on the market in late fall 2020.
Folse said that as he was getting ready to launch his line of new jigheads, he was going to call them “Flatheads,” or something similar to that. However, his wife, Janelle put her foot down.
“My wife said, ‘I’ve been watching you for 15 years with a hammer in the shed, hammering round jigheads. You’re not going to call them Flatheads,’” he said.
Thus, the name Hamma Heads were born.
The flat jigheads come in 1/32- and 1/16-ounce sizes, both with bronze Mustad hooks: a No. 4 for the 1/32-ounce and a No. 2 for the 1/16-ounce.
People at seminars conducted by Folse, a working guide, repeatedly ask him why he puts a No. 2 hook on a 1/16-ounce jighead. And they wonder why he prefers a 1/16-ounce jighead with a larger hook — many 1/16s use a No. 1 — when they rely on a 1/32-ounce model that has a slower fall.
“I don’t want to catch (bream),” he said. “That’s why I use a 1/16, why all the 1/16s have a No. 2 Mustad hook, which is a high-quality hook.”
The Hamma Heads also feature a bait holder to help keep a soft-plastic bait snug against the head.
Folse doesn’t paint the jigheads, because often, paint cakes the line tie, plus, it would add to the cost. But he shared a valuable tip. Get a bottle of Salon Perfect Neon Pop Professional Nail Lacquer, which literally shines underwater. There is only one color, as far as the lure manufacturer is concerned: orange.
“It has to be Neon Pop, because it’s like traffic-cone orange, almost a fluorescent orange, my favorite color. I put one little dot on each side,” he said.
Folse’s second color preference is pink.
For more information about the Hamma Heads, visit thecrappiepsychic.com or call 985-790-0862.
