crankbait substitute

I have depleted my stock of Deep Thunderstick JR,s, losing one of
these "treasures" is just to expensive.Has anyone found a good substitute? I primarily use them for fishing rivers.
Thanks

[Walleye Express]

Mike.
I know exactly what you mean. I have been stingily using the Rainbow colored Jr's to catch King Salmon on the Pere marquette for years. I bought a nice stash when I knew that Storm was being gutted by Normark. Now, I'll go to extreme lengths to get a snag out when using them. And have went to 30 pound Rip Cord, so I have fewer break offs. Caught about 15 Kings this year on one Rainbow colored lure before she went down with Moby Dick in a log infested hole. Nothing made as far as I have seen will ever replace their action in the water. Nothing can imitate that tight little vibration of the Jr's, and I feel sadly nothing ever will again.

It is nice to know I am not the only one that freaks every time one of my Storms break off.Watching my fellow fishing partners lose their cool when their favorite lure becomes "one with the bottom" is kinda funny and sad at the same time.
I have searched throughout my area for any old stock, scoring any DT-JR,s is almost impossible.Buying off E-Bay is a last resort,but driving 220 miles to fish one day,I want to maximize my presentation as much as possible,$15.00 lures would be the cheapest part of the trip!
Renosky deep divers are somewhat comparable and further testing will have to wait until spring.I attempted to contact Gary Gray on his success with Renoskys and have not yet received a reply.I also asked Scott at Reef Runner Lures if the bill on the Deep Little Rippers could be narrowed slightly to more closely match DT-JR,s profile(expensive experiment!),no reply at this time.
Reading several posts on the variety of crankbaits that are producing for everyone I am at a loss why my best luck is with DT-JR,s.

MIKE ( MT )

[rebs]

Hi Mike
I fish lake erie out of buffalo, dunkirk, and barcelona and use Renowsky's exclusively with great success
at times I will go with a worm harness but for the most part its Renowskys

rebs

[Walleye Express]

Mike.
I'd have to agree with ETT about the Little Rippers being a close cousin (in swimming action) to the Jr's. But there is always subtle little diferences between a lures action, given the slight design, weight and hook type differences. We as humans, I feel won't ever see these differences from our (out of the water) perspective. I've seen Reef Runners in action on Erie, they work great. But have had minimal successs on them on Saginaw Bay. Why? It's not what I'm seeing, but what the fish are seeing. The Jr's have/had that charm.

[jake]

you may be on to something with the little rippers they have sweet action. you have to wonder how much you would lose with a narrower or shorter bill.

[rebs]

in the deep little rippers what size and colors seem to be working
rebs

[mudpuppy]

Walleye Express , here's a suggestion that might help you on your salmon lure dilemma . Some guys I know on the east side of the state have been having good luck on Barrimundi Maulers in the rivers. They come in three sizes including a 3 1/4 inch , 5 1/2 inch & 6 3/4 inch model . Super heavyduty , 32 colors including Rainbow . Havn't tried them yet but will next year . Hard to find . Best bet is to order a catalog . 1-888-830-9211 .
The PM is a great river . Havn't fished it in quite a few years . Up around Walhalla is where we fished mostly . Nirvana , too . Good Luck

[ETT]

Mike.
On Erie many guys who used to be big time Deep Jr. users have become Reef Runner fans. Reef Runner makes a Deep Little Ripper that (in side by side tests)I think would likely force you to switch, even if you could still get Deep Jrs.

You need to check them out.

Best of luck.

ETT; I also use Deep Little Rippers,they are my go to lure on Lake Sakakaweja in North Dakota.( Long Live The SPOTTED FROGGY !!! )
The lake is filled by the Missouri and Yellowstone rivers and frome where I fish in the lake to the confluence of these two rivers is about 35 miles,once the walleyes/saugers enter the river system(current 2-3 mph), DT-JR's rule.
I have tried DT-JR's,DLRipr,Renoskys,and Rapalas;the DT-JR's outproduce by a large margin(limit to zero).
While using a modified 11' trolling poles I can observe the lure action very accurately,the DLRip pull the hardest with a more agressive vibration\ocillation,DT-JR's are less agressive and pull easier,Renoskys exhibit vary little rod tip movement and the lure action "telegraph" is hard to read.Trolling at 2-3 mph in depths ranging from 2 to 35 ft deep(using deep divers) I depend on my rod tip for the slightest deviation from "normal",so that makes using Renoskys difficult for me.I do believe they might replace my Storms when the time comes.Next season will be interesting;new boat,new lures,new electronics,can it get any better?