Abstract:
A fishing bait on a hook may be held in a chosen location by a sinker through which a fishing line passes. The fishing line is connected to the hook, and when fishing the line is pulled, the bait may twitch, enticing fish to strike the bait without moving away from the chosen location.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   This invention relates to fishing tackle and more particularly to artificial fishing lures. 
   Game fish are often territorial. They attack other creatures they perceive as a threat to their habitation, or to their control over a desired location. The territory a game fish defends might be a bed scooped into a lake or stream bottom, a rock or boulder, a log or other sunken object, a coral outcropping, or almost any prominent structural feature below the upper surface of a body of water. 
   Artificial fishing lures that appear to be moving past a territory being defended by a game fish will not always provoke a strike. Nor will game fish strikes consistently be provoked by fishing lures that are motionless when they are at rest because they may appear to be lifeless. 
   OBJECTIVES OF THE INVENTION 
   Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide improved fishing tackle. 
   An additional object is to provide jigs, soft bodied, and non-floating fishing lures with strike inducing action. 
   A further object is to provide fishing rigs with a sinker component that eliminates line twist. 
   Another object is to provide attachments for live and artificial baits that impart fish attracting motions to such baits. 
   Another object is to provide fishing rigs in which the fishhook stays point-up. 
   Another object is to provide fishing rigs that can produce strike provoking movements while the rigs stay put in a chosen location. 
   Another object is to provide twitchable fishing rigs that do not have to be advanced toward the person fishing them in order to produce game fish strike inducing movements. 
   Another object is to provide fishing rigs that catch more fish because fewer strikes are missed. 
   A further object is to provide fishing rigs that are rugged, economical, highly attractive, easy to use and change and adjust, and which do not possess defects found in similar prior art fishing rigs. 
   Other objects and advantages of the fishing tackle incorporating this invention will be found in the specification and claims and the scope of the invention will be set forth in the claims. 

   
     DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING 
       FIG. 1  is a partially broken-away, perspective view of an embodiment of a fishing rig in accord with this invention. 
       FIG. 2  is a side view of the fishing rig shown in  FIG. 1 . 
       FIG. 3  is a top plan view of the fishing rig shown in  FIG. 1 . 
       FIG. 4  is an enlarged cross sectional view taken along the line  4 - 4  in  FIG. 3 . 
       FIG. 5  is an enlarged broken-away top view of another embodiment of a fishing rig in accord with this invention. 
       FIG. 6  is an enlarged broken-away rear view of the embodiment shown in  FIG. 5 . 
       FIG. 7  is an enlarged, partial, broken-away side view of another embodiment of a fishing rig in accord with this invention. 
       FIG. 8  is a front view of the sinker in the embodiment of  FIG. 7 . 
       FIG. 9  is a top view of the sinker in the embodiment of  FIG. 7 . 
       FIG. 10  is a rear view of the sinker in the embodiment of  FIG. 7 . 
   

   DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
   The drawing shows fishing rigs in accord with this invention. In embodiment 1, shown in  FIGS. 1-4 , a fishhook  2  has an eye  3 , a sharp point  4  that extends in a direction generally toward the eye  3 , which is also the general direction in which the rig  1  travels when retrieved by an angler. A hook shank  5  connects the eye  3  and point  4 . A line-tie bend  6  in the shank  5  located between the point  4  and eye  3  may be closer to the eye than to the point. The opening  7  through hook eye  3  has a predetermined diameter. The point  4 , shank  5  and line-tie bend  6  may all lie in essentially the same plane. The eye  3  may be in a plane that is essentially perpendicular to the plane of the point, shank and line-tie bend. 
   The rig of embodiment 1 includes a weight or sinker  10  having an uppermost surface  11  and a lowermost surface  12 . An opening or bore  13  extends all the way through the sinker  10 . The bore  13  is located below, but adjacent to, the uppermost surface  11 . The uppermost surface  11  is defined as the outer surface of the sinker  10  that is located above the bore  13 . The lowermost  12  surface is greater in area or larger than the uppermost surface  11 . The lowermost surface  12  may be essentially flat. 
   A fishhook connector  15  has a first portion  16  that is embedded in the sinker  10  above lowermost surface  12  but below the bore  13 . The portion  16  may be embedded closer to the lowermost surface  12  than to the uppermost surface  11 . A nub or bend  14  at the end of portion  16  may be used to anchor the connector  15  in the sinker  10 . A second portion  17  of the connector  15  may include an eyelet  18  that extends beyond the rear end  19  of sinker  10 . Eyelet  18  may be in a plane that is essentially perpendicular to the flat lowermost surface  12  of sinker  10 . Eyelet  18  is intertwined with hook eye  3  in that the diameter of the eyelet  18  is smaller than the diameter of the opening  7  through the hook eye  3 . 
   A fishing line  20  extends through bore  13  and is freely movable therein. A terminal end  21  of line  20  is tied or otherwise attached in conventional manner to line-tie bend  6  of hook  2  behind sinker  10 . The attachment of line end  21  to line-tie bend  6  may be above eyelet  18 . 
   A fishing bait  22  is impaled on the hook  2 . The bait  22  may be an artificial fishing lure, such as a plastic worm or aquatic creature. The bait  22  also may be natural food, such as a worm or minnow. 
   In  FIG. 1  the numeral  25  identifies a location beneath the surface of a body of water being fished which a territorial game fish may choose to defend or control. The rig  1  may be moved and manipulated until the rig comes to rest on the location  25  being defended by a game fish. By gently tugging, or pulling, on line  20 , fishing bait  22  can be made to move, or twitch, from a first position or location shown in full lines to a second position or location shown in phantom. Because of the manner in which hook  2  is connected to sinker  10 , this lifelike, strike inducing motion can be imparted to the bait  22  without causing the sinker  10  to move off the location  25  a game fish is defending. This is further illustrated in  FIG. 2  where pulling on the line  20  would move hook point  4  from the position shown in full lines to the position shown in phantom, and thereby would move bait impaled on the hook point closer to the sinker  10 . 
     FIGS. 5 and 6  illustrate another embodiment of the invention in the form of a fishing rig  30  that is identical to the fishing rig  1  of the  FIGS. 1-4  embodiment, except for the means used to connect the hook  31  to the sinker  32  and the orientation of the hook eye  33 . In this embodiment the hook point (not shown), shank  34  and line-tie bend  35  are all in essentially the same plane, as described above, and the hook eye  33  is also in that same plane. Bait is impaled on hook  31  in the same way as shown in the  FIGS. 1-4  embodiment. 
   Arms  36  and  37  of sinker  32  define a notch  38  located adjacent the rear end  39  of the sinker and below the bore  40 . A fishhook connector  41  comprises a cylindrical rod  42  that spans the notch  38 . A first portion of the rod comprises its ends  43  and  44 , which are embedded in arms  36  and  37 . The opening  45  through hook eye  33  has a predetermined diameter. The diameter of rod  42  is less than the diameter of the opening  45 , which enables the rod to pass through the hook eye and movably connect the hook  31  to sinker  32 . 
   A fishing line  46  attached to the line-tie bend  35  will produce the same lifelike, strike inducing motions described above, when the line  46  is pulled or twitched, without requiring that the sinker  32  be moved from a location a game fish is defending. 
     FIGS. 7-10  show another embodiment of a fishing rig  49  in accord with this invention that is identical to the embodiment of  FIGS. 1-3 , except that the shape of the sinker  50  is different in shape from the sinker  10 . Sinker  50  an uppermost surface  51  and a lowermost surface  52 . An opening or bore  53  extends all the way through the sinker  50 . The bore  53  is located below, but adjacent to, the uppermost surface  51 . The uppermost surface  51  is defined as the outer surface of the sinker  50  that is located above the bore  53 . The lowermost  52  surface is greater in area or larger than the uppermost surface  51 . The lowermost surface  52  may be essentially flat. 
   A fishhook connector  55  attaches to the sinker  50  a hook  60  that is identical to the hook  2 . Connector  55  has a first portion  56  that is embedded in the sinker  50  above lowermost surface  52  but below the bore  53 . The portion  56  may be embedded closer to the lowermost surface  52  than to the uppermost surface  51 . A nub or bend  54  at the end of portion  56  may be used to anchor the connector  55  in the sinker  50 . A second portion  57  of the connector  55  may include an eyelet  58  that extends beyond the rear end  59  of sinker  50 . Eyelet  58  may be in a plane that is essentially perpendicular to the flat lowermost surface  52  of sinker  50 . Eyelet  58  is intertwined with eye  61  of hook  66  in that the diameter of the eyelet  58  is smaller than the diameter of the opening  62  through the hook eye  61 . 
   A fishing line  65  extends through bore  53  and is freely movable therein. A terminal end of line  65  may be tied or otherwise attached in conventional manner to a line-tie bend (not shown) in the manner depicting the tie to bend  6  in  FIGS. 1-3 . Attachment of the line  65  to hook  60  would be behind sinker  50 , and attachment to the line-tie bend may be above eyelet  58 . 
   A fishing bait impaled on the hook  60  will have the same lifelike, strike inducing motions described above, when the line  65  is pulled or twitched, without requiring that the sinker  50  be moved from a location a game fish is defending. 
   While the present invention has been described with reference to particular embodiments, it is not intended to illustrate or describe all of the equivalent forms or ramifications thereof. Also, the words used are words of description rather than limitation, and various changes may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention disclosed herein. It is intended that the appended claims cover all such changes as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.