PATENT ABSTRACT
An improved lure for use when fishing provides better control of the lure by novice and experienced fishermen, better camouflage of the hook and weighting system associated with the lure and more secure setting of the hook when a fish bites. The improved lure comprises a standard tube bait in combination with a hook and weighting arrangement that makes the lure easier to use than prior art tube baits.

PATENT DESCRIPTION
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    I. Field of the Invention 
         [0002]    The present invention relates to soft plastic tube-type fishing lure. More specifically, the present invention relates to improvements to tube-type fishing lures concerning their ability to attract fish and their ability to securely hook a fish that bites the bait. 
         [0003]    II. Description of the Prior Art 
         [0004]    Tube baits generally consist of a soft plastic tube surrounding a cavity and having a generally closed end and an open end. A plurality of plastic tentacles extends from the open end of the tube. Tube baits also include a hook. The hook has an eye, point, barb, shank and bend creating a gap between the shank and the barb typically, a single hook with a wide gap is used with tube baits. The shaft sometimes exits the open end of the tube such that the curve positions the barb parallel to the center axis of the body of the tube. Alternatively, the user can push the point of the hook through the soft body of the tube and positions the barb of the hook outside of the tube and generally parallel to the center axis of the body of the tube. In either case, the eye (and sometimes a portion of the shank) is pushed through the closed end of the tube. Sometimes a weight is also attached to the shank of the hook outside the tube between the eye of the hook and the front closed end of the tube. However, such a weight can result in an unnatural appearance. 
         [0005]    Prior art tube baits have proven to be effective when used by experienced professional anglers. However, amateurs and inexperienced anglers have difficulty catching fish with such baits. Some of the problems inexperienced anglers encounter relate to their inability to get the tube bait to mimic the patterns real minnows and crawfish display. Minnows, for example, tend to drift down through the water without their heads pointing either up or down. If the weight distribution of a tube bait is such that either end of the tube points down as it falls through the water, the tube bait will look unnatural to fish in the area. Likewise, if the angler does not provide enough slack in the line, the closed end will point up as the tube bait drifts down presenting an unnatural appearance. 
         [0006]    Inexperienced anglers also have problems setting the hook of prior art tube baits. If the hook is not set so it penetrates both soft tissue and one of the bones of the mouth of the fish, large fish or those that put up a fight easily can escape. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0007]    The present invention addresses each of the problems with prior art tube baits outlined above. To provide a more natural presentation of the tube bait to fish in the area, a unique and distributed weighting mechanism is provided. To reduce problems associated with setting the hook, the hook having a single point used in the prior art is replaced by a hook having a plurality of points and barbs is used. 
         [0008]    The construction of the improved tube bait of the present invention will be better understood from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment with specific reference to the accompanying drawings. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0009]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a prior art tube bait. 
           [0010]      FIG. 2  is a cross-sectional view of the tube bait of  FIG. 1  through line  2 - 2 . 
           [0011]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the tube bait of the present invention. 
           [0012]      FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional view of the tube bait through line  3 - 3  of  FIG. 2  showing a first embodiment of the tube bait of the present invention. 
           [0013]      FIG. 5  is a cross-sectional view of the tube bait through line  3 - 3  of  FIG. 3  showing a second embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0014]      FIG. 6  is a cross-sectional view of the tube bait through line  303  of  FIG. 2  showing a third embodiment of the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
       [0015]    As shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 , prior art tube baits  1  typically comprise a tube  2  having a soft plastic wall  3  surrounding a hollow chamber  4 . The wall  3  has a front closed end  5  and an open rear end  6 . Projecting rearwardly from the tube  2  and attached to the rear end  6  of the tube  2  is a number of soft, flexible plastic tentacles  7 . The tube is generally hollow and has a central axis  8 . The tube bait  1  also has a hook  10 . The hook  10  is generally J-shaped and includes an eye  11  for attaching the hook  10  to a fishing line, a shank  12  extending from the eye  11  to a curve  13  and a barb  14  extending from the curve  13  to a point  15 . The major portion of the shank  12  is positioned inside the hollow chamber  4 . The shank  12  penetrates the front closed end  5  of the tube  2  to expose the eye  11 . The curve  13  penetrates wall  3  of tube  2  intermediate the front end  5  and rear end  6  of the tube  2 . Thus, the barb  14  and point  15  of the hook reside outside of the tube  2 . The barb  14  is generally parallel to the central axis  8  of the tube  2 .  FIG. 1  also shows an exterior weight  16  attached to the shank  12  of the hook  10  between the eye  11  of the hook and the front end  5  of the tube  2 . The eye  11  is used to attach the tube bait to a fishing line (not shown) in a conventional manner. 
         [0016]    The positioning of the weight  16  in  FIG. 1  typically causes the tube bait  1  to tip with the weight down as the tube bait descends through the water resulting in an unnatural presentation. Also, the single barb  14  and point  15  of the hook  10  makes the typical tube bait difficult to set when a fish bites or nibbles on the tube bait. The wide gap and exposed barb  14  and point  15  of the hook also result in an unnatural appearance. These problems are all overcome by the embodiments of the present invention disclosed in  FIGS. 3-6 . 
         [0017]    The embodiments of  FIGS. 3-6  still all comprise a soft plastic tube  2  having a wall  3  terminating in a front end  5  and a rear end  6 . The front end  5  is typically closed while the rear end  5  is open to the hollow chamber  4  of the tube  2 . Attached to and extending away from the rear end  6  of the tube  2  is a plurality of tentacles  7 . However, each of the four embodiments shown in  FIGS. 3-6  show important improvements over prior art tube baits. 
         [0018]      FIGS. 3-6  each show a leader  20  and a treble hook  30 .  FIGS. 4-7  also each show an interior weighting mechanism  40 . However, as described below the interior weighting mechanism  40  shown in each of  FIGS. 4-6  is different. 
         [0019]    The leader  20  shown in each of  FIGS. 3-6  comprises a shaft  21  made of a length of wire with eyelets  22  and  23  formed at each end of the leader  20 . When used, the eyelet  22  is used to attach the tube bait to a fishing line (not shown) in any conventional manner. The eyelet  23  is used to attach the treble hook  30  to the leader  20 . In the drawings, such attachment is made using a coupling ring  24 . However, other conventional means can also be used to attach the hook  30  to the leader  20  without deviating from the invention. The length of the shaft  21  may be adjusted depending on the composition of the interior weighting mechanism used. 
         [0020]    As shown, treble hook  30  comprises an eye  31 , a shank  32 , three J-shaped curves ( 33   a ,  33   b  and  33   c ) and three barbs ( 34   a ,  34   b  and  34   c ) each terminating in a point ( 35   a ,  35   b  and  35   c ). The shank  32  can, of course, be three separate shanks fused or otherwise joined together. Eye  31  is used to join the hook  30  to the leader  20 . While a treble hook  30  is shown in the drawings, what is important is that the hook presents a plurality of barbs and points as opposed to a single barb and point. Thus, any hook with two or more barbs and points may suffice. The advantage of using a hook with multiple barbs such as treble hook  30  is that the hook will more securely set in either the soft tissue or bone of the fish at multiple points as opposed to a single point. 
         [0021]    The various interior weighting mechanisms  40  shown in  FIGS. 3-6  provide various advantages related to the speed of the tube bait  1  as it drops through the water and the presentation of the tube bait  1  as it descends through the water. As shown in  FIGS. 3-6 , the interior weighting mechanism  40  resides within the hollow interior chamber  4  of tube  2  and about the shaft  21  of the leader  20 . In  FIG. 3 , the interior weighting mechanism  40  includes a plurality of spherical weights  41  of differing sizes and/or densities. Each spherical weight  41  has a bore sized to permit the shaft  21  to pass through the weight  41 . The distribution of weights of different sizes or densities along the shaft  21  allows for control of the presentation of the tube bait during descent. Specifically, the distribution of the weights of different diameters or densities along shaft  21  can be used to ensure that the tube bait drifts down without either end tipping markedly downward or upward relative to the other. Of course, the correct distribution of smaller and larger weights  41  along the shaft  21  will be dependent on the characteristics of the plastic tube  2  and tentacles  7 . Also, if the weights  41  are not packed too tight on the shaft  21 , some rattling of the weights will occur which also serves to attract fish. The weighting mechanism  40  could also include a time release capsule filled with a scent that either attracts fish or masks the human scent of the angler which may have transferred to the tube bait  1 . 
         [0022]    The plastic used to form the tube  2  and tentacles  7  may be sufficiently dense to cause the tube bait to sink on its own without adding weights  41 . Even when this is the case, it may be desirable to control the rate of descent or to prevent the ends of the tube  2  from pointing up or down as the tube bait  1  descends. Such control is provided in the embodiment of  FIG. 5  by replacing the spherical weights  41  with one or more low density internal floats  51 . Such floats may be of different sizes and densities like the weights  41 . Each will typically have a bore therethrough so the floats  51  can be arranged on the shaft  21  of the leader  20  and within the hollow chamber  4  of tube  2 . Proper arrangement of floats  42  on the shaft  21  will again depend on the composition of the tube  2  and tentacles  7 . They should be arranged to provide generally level descent at the proper rate. In  FIG. 6 , a combination of floats  42  and weights  41  are arranged on the shaft  21  and within the hollow chamber  4  to provide such level descent at the proper rate. 
         [0023]    The various embodiments shown in  FIGS. 3-6  provide important advantages over the prior art. First, the overall appearance is more realistic. There is no large weight at the front as in  FIG. 1 . Instead, the weights  41  (and/or floats  42 ) are all located within the hollow chamber  4  of the tube  2 . Further, there is no large hook projecting through the side of the tube  2  as shown in  FIG. 1 . Instead, the barbs  34   a ,  34   b  and  34   c  of the treble hook  30  are all to a very large extent camouflaged by the tentacles  7 . 
         [0024]    Second, the presentation of the tube bait as it drifts down through the water is more lifelike since the interior weighting mechanism  40  (i.e., the weights  41  and floats  42 ) provide not only a proper rate of descent, but also substantially eliminate tipping of the tube as it slowly drops through the water. Locating the weights and floats inside the hollow chamber of the tube bait also results in a more natural appearance. 
         [0025]    Third, the hook  30  of the present invention provides multiple potential points of contact between the mouth of the fish and the hook. Catching soft tissue with more than one point and barb is typically enough to prevent the fish from escaping the hook even if bone is not penetrated by any of the barbs and points. 
         [0026]    Those skilled in the art will recognize from the foregoing disclosure that the present invention provides important advantages over the prior art. Those skilled in the art will also appreciate that modifications can also be made without deviating from the present invention. Thus, the foregoing description is intended to meet the disclosure requirements of the patent laws without being limiting.