Is steel the deal?

By Gord Ellis

The debate about the future of lead fishing tackle is far from dead. In fact, the Canadian Sportfishing Industry Association and groups like the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters are fighting a strenuous battle against a potential angling lead ban.

The evidence concerning the effect of lead fishing tackle on loons and other waterfowl in Canada looks increasingly questionable. And the pace at which the federal government seems ready to rid fishing products of lead is not only unfair to anglers, it's putting a huge burden on a fragile industry. Only by working with the fishing industry can the government phase-out lead with a minimum of economic damage.

Unfortunately, the real problem with lead has less to do with loons and more to do with its toxicity to humans. The evidence that lead is poisonous to people is irrefutable. Despite the health risks, few anglers seem anxious to give up the stuff. Yet, when a company like Zebco recalls a million and a half kid's fishing rods because there's a chance of lead in the paint on them, the problem with solid lead sinkers and other lead fishing products becomes more glaring. So, the writing is on the wall for lead, even if the wall is still a way off.

Like all anglers, I've come to rely on lead to put lures and bait in front of fish. Lead sinkers and jig heads are ubiquitous in tackle boxes across Canada for good reason. A small piece of lead can quickly sink a worm or plastic grub. Lead is also remarkably cheap, keeping the price of angling down. When you look at some lead substitutes, particularly tungsten and bismuth, their cost is an obvious impediment. Jigs, sinkers, and weights made of either substitute come at a hefty price, often double or even triple that of a lead product. This creates sticker shock for many anglers. So, if lead is to be replaced, is there a non-toxic product that's both heavy enough to do what it does and is in a similar price range?

Two products I've used extensively in the past year are tin and steel. Both work well if you're willing to make a few adjustments, but I believe steel is the better overall choice.

Tin is more expensive than lead and can cost nearly twice as much for a similar number of split shot. Because of this, it hurts a bit more to lose rigs. Tin is not as heavy as lead, so tin split shot and jigs have to be about one size larger than a similar-sized lead product to do the same job. Because of its relative hardness, tin transmits the feel of a lake and river bottom better than does much softer lead. Tin is especially good when you're drifting or dragging. Tin split shot is, however, a bit shinier then lead, and this could be a negative factor in clear-water situations.

My biggest problem with tin is its brittleness. This is especially noticeable when you reuse tin split shot. It splits more readily than lead. Overall, though, tin is a decent replacement, without the toxic concerns.

Steel is harder than either tin or lead, but is the likely successor to the fishing-weight throne now held by lead. The reason is largely price. A steel product such as a bottom bouncer, jig, or sinker, when made in mass quantities, is nearly the same price as lead. The reason steel is slightly more expensive comes down to manufacturing. Lead is moulded, steel is machined.

Steel is not an unknown quantity in the fishing world. Bass anglers like Charles "the Bass Doctor" Stuart of Oakville have used steel for years. "Steel is cleaner to handle than lead," said Stuart. "Lead is dirty. Also, if you keep lead for a long time, it gets dark and nasty. There's also an absorption problem with handling lead that's a health concern as well."

Stuart, who once fished professionally in England, now focuses on bass in Ontario. He's a finesse fisherman and a stickler for details. He believes steel is a better overall choice for his type of angling than lead, regardless of the health benefits. "Steel holds its integrity and stays bright," he explained. "You also get a good quality sound from steel. This is particularly good when bass fishing. Lead will not give you that."

While Stuart admits that many of his bass-angling colleagues still use lead, he says that's changing. "The transition from lead has been huge," he said. "Guys are using up their lead weights and switching to steel."

The steel products I've used have been largely sinkers and weights for walleye fishing. Last season, I fished bottom bouncers and walking sinkers made by a company called Bullet Weights. It's been making steel and brass worm weights for years and has managed to create an impressive line of steel angling products. At first glance, steel sinkers look much like lead sinkers. The relative weight of steel sinkers is also reasonably close to lead, although steel is about 20 per cent lighter. Its hardness, however, takes some getting used to.

The vibration and feel of steel sinkers on bottom is superior to lead. This was especially evident with walking sinkers. The steel bottom bouncer I used was called the Ultra Sound Bouncer and looked similar to the lead and wire versions I've dragged around for years. The Ultra Sound is designed to make use of steel's hardness by having the weights rattle together to create vibration. I'm not sure this would always be a desirable trait when walleye fishing, but it didn't seem to hurt my fishing success. Overall, the Ultra Sound Bouncer worked at least as well as a similar-sized lead bouncer, possibly better. Switching to steel for that presentation was relatively painless.

I really liked Bullet Weights steel walleye walking sinkers. They did the job as well as regular lead walking sinkers and transmitted subtle changes in the bottom that lead could not. The slightly larger size of these weights, compared with lead walking sinkers, didn't seem to make a big difference. The Bullet Weights sinkers also have neat additions to the well-used design, including an adjustable line clasp and tapered back that allowed for a flutter-free descent. Again, switching from lead to steel proved to be seamless. I doubt anyone would miss lead walking sinkers after using the steel version.

I also used steel worm weights and egg sinkers. They performed well. Steel makes a great Carolina-rig weight that's louder than brass and less expensive.

Yet, steel has drawbacks. Steelheaders who want to crimp a steel egg sinker onto a dropper line or split shot under a float will be out of luck. Steel sinkers are too hard for crimping. However, slinky drift rigs made with steel shot should fit the bill for that purpose.

One thing I wasn't nuts about with some steel weights was the potential for rust. If certain steel sinkers were put away wet, they would begin to corrode. No one likes rusty tackle. Some steel products are made of stainless steel and rust is not a factor. A thin protective coating over a steel weight would solve the rust problem, but would increase the diameter of the weight.

Steel jigs I've tried so far have not been great. Looking around the Internet, I could find no steel jigs that were of a traditional shape and design. However, I can't see why there couldn't be a good steel jig made that would have similar properties of a regular Fireball, Lipstick, or round head. Perhaps the demand is just not there yet or it's still too costly to make a steel jig properly. Maybe other non-toxic products like tungsten, bismuth, and tin will prove to be a better jig material than steel.

One player in the non-toxic sinker lineup we haven't heard much about, at least in North America, is zinc. It's the element of choice for sinkers in England, as it's cheap and readily available. So far, there are few zinc products for sale in the United States and seemingly none in Canada. Graham Maisey of Belvoirdale imports zinc sinkers into the U.S., but he says they've been slow to catch on. Carp anglers buy most of them.

Yet, Maisey is convinced zinc is an even better overall choice for sinkers than either tin or steel. He says hard sinkers like those made of zinc (or steel) are preferable to lead in an interesting way. "Because zinc sinkers are hard, they don't hang up as often," explained Maisey. "Hard sinkers tend to bounce off a snag. And zinc doesn't corrode."

For now, though, is steel the deal? It might be too early to tell, but judging from the sinkers I've used so far, steel looks like it will have the least financial impact on Ontario anglers, while retaining many of the traits that have kept lead so popular. In fact, steel might be preferable to lead for walleye and bass fishing, in particular. Of course, steel is also non-toxic, and that trait alone might make many of us do without lead.

(Note: The focus of this article was on steel and tin tackle. Many of these companies and others also offer other non-toxic fishing products made of materials such as bismuth, ceramics, clay, granite, brass, or tungsten.)