Jack Gaunt spent more than 40 years as a BC commercial fisherman. In his 47-foot troller, he roamed the coast from the Columbia River to Alaska. He became successful at catching salmon, and moderately successful with tuna. While experimenting with flasher-hoochie techniques, he developed the Hot Spot flasher-dodger, which was first marketed in 1969. He also developed the Apex, a plastic fishing lure that proved especially deadly to chinook and coho salmon and to rainbow trout.