Elliot Lures - NSW:
Mick Elliot started making lures in 1983 and his 'Darwin Dart' became a popular fish taker. Originally they were all hand carved from timber however due to demand Mick invested in a copy lathe and by 1989 was making all his lures in moulded plastic. They became available in 2,3 and 4 inch models in a wide range of colours.
"The Darwin Dart is a lure close to the heart of many Territorians. Yet it was made in Narooma, NSW. So, why so much love in the North? To start you have the name: Darwin Dart, clever marketing …
And then came its fish catching ability. A quality due to the passion for fishing from its maker: Mick Elliot.
Mr. Elliot started to make his own lure as a teenager in Queensland. After his family had moved to NSW. With the help of his father and brother, Mick started to produce his lures for the commercial market, in 1983. First carved by hand from White Beech wood, the success and demand for the Darwin Dart quickly become too much for the trio. They had to use a copy lathe to respond to the popularity of their product. The ever-growing success of the timber lure prompted the Elliot family to finally decide to change the whole process and start to make plastic molded lures. The metal bib was replaced by a plastic one, and become integral part of the lure. A rattle was added in the belly of the lure. The success continued." from the Rambling Expat blog
http://theramblingexpat.blogspot.com.au/2014/01/the-darwin-dart.html
The lures below are from the first batch of 50 lures that were made for sale and will be signed 'Mick Elliot' with 'NAROOMA' in capital letters. This is a town on the south coast of NSW where Elliot Lures were made.
The review above was published in Fishing World 1985 and shows early card and coffin bib model on the right.
Other models include the 'Dinky Darwin Dart', 'Mackeral Mauler' and popper models. Early timber Mick Elliot lures are in high demand and fetch prices in the range of $20 - 150 depending on condition. Lures in original packaging will fetch double the price of an unpackaged lure.
Below is a very early Elliots lure in the first type of packaging - Mick Elliot handcrafted lures with early phone number contact and area where it was made which is Narooma as mentioned earlier.
Early promotional photos for Mick Elliot Hand Crafted Lures showing the full range of timber models that were available from the mid 1980's.
Early Mick Elliot lures c.1986 showing early packaging and the rare 'Barra Plus' model.
Two Elliot 18cm trolling lures shown in early packaging. Two variations with one obviously packaged directly for sale by Campbell's Fishing Tackle who are based in Western Australia. Colour numbers 47 and 51.
Elliots Poppers were also one of the earlier models made by Mick Elliot and shown below are a few colour sets in wooden models.
Two earlier timber Elliot lures shown in same colour pattern. Note the stickler says Élliot Lures' as opposed to later Élliot's Lures' and also polycarbonate bibs. . . . a lovely pair of lures.
The largest of the early timber Elliot's Bibless (earliest Mackerel Mauler) are extremely rare and only ever a limited supply
Elliot's advertisement from Fishing World, February 1993 showing full range that was available
The Elliot bibs will be either unsigned, or marked with a transparent sticker. Two types are shown above, one with gold lettering and the other with black lettering and 'Darwin Dart'.
The Elliot 'Darwin Dart' lures shown above are the timber versions while below are examples of the moulded versions. Easily identified as they will have the model name in raised letters near the tail.
The Elliots lure range includes some bib variations like the small coffin shaped bibs below.
Elliot 'Dinky Darwin Dart' was the smaller version of the Dart series. Below is an early version of this lure.
September 1989
Review for the Prowler from 1993
Elliot range that was available in the 1990's and sold through Fish Tackle Australia the forerunner to Mo's Tackle in Coffs Harbour.
Elliots 'Dinky Darwin Dart' was first released in packaging that had the P.O Box address and information on reverse of card.
Elliots 'Dinky Darwin Dart' in the earlier packaging for the moulded version in the attractive rainbow trout colour 67.
The Elliot 'Prowler' is another moulded model
This model is the shallow version of the 'Darwin Dart'
The Elliot 'Mackeral Mauler' was an offshore bibless lure and shown below are two examples of the moulded versions.
