Difference between Freshwater & Saltwater lures

[fishing_in_israel]

Something I've been meaning to ask for some time now:
What's the difference between Freshwater & Saltwater lure hardware -- is it just the split rings and trebles, or is the built in wire (where the split rings attach) different as well?
I'm not talking about suspending in freshwater being different to suspending in saltwater -- just the hardware.

If my thinking is correct, I should be able to swap split rings and trebles to 'convert' a freshwater Rapala to a saltwater one.... yes?

If so the advantages are many. First the suspending freshwater Rapalas will float in saltwater (albeit slowly) and therefore give a benefit over submerged rocks/reefs.
Also it would give an extra lure base from which to choose. Just because some of us fish in saltwater doesn't necessarily mean that we are going after large fish. There is plenty of fun fishing for the smaller predator species - especially on ultra-light gear; which gives us the chance to use Mini-Fat Raps, small Original Floaters etc.

[muskiehunter]

The wire might be different as well.I would think all the metal components would be stainless.

You should be able to just change the hardware and use them.Even if the wire corrodes its worth all the different possibilities that you have.

[Fishooked]

The thru-wire like Steve said would probably rust, but you should ok with the changes he mentioned.

Hell even the freshwater split rings have been rusting on my in freshwater...

[fishing_in_israel]

I have been using some freshwater ones in saltwater already and just rinsed them under the tap and dried them when I got home. So far I haven't seen any signs of rust.

[walter]

Dec 6, 2009 13:05:22 GMT -4 fishing_in_israel said:

I have been using some freshwater ones in saltwater already and just rinsed them under the tap and dried them when I got home. So far I haven't seen any signs of rust.

true, if you wash and dry your baits in fresh water then even fw series will work fine.

usually sw series have different (not only salt resistant but also stronger) trebles and rings, and the wire is a bit thicker in some models. btw, i think the wire type is the same for all lures. also, some lures are available both in sw and fw version - that's just the same lure with only different trebles and rings.