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Old 07-18-06, 07:46 PM   #1
dampeoples
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Default Custom/specialty lures?

How many of you guys use custom, or generally expensive lures? I've always just pretty much used off the shelf stuff, or stuff I made myself until July 4th, when I won a contest at Custom Lures Unlimited. Heck, I just found the company the day before, signed up, and won
Anyway, my first prize was a prototype Jitterfrog, it's really a beautiful lure, or well, it was
See, I took it to the local honey hole, and caught a few fish on it, before one took it away from me! The guy who made it, and a couple of my club buddies jokingly said the same thing, they hexed me, I think. I'm pretty sure the knot broke, I went back several times since that happened, always hoping to find it on some log, but no luck.
I was so impressed with it, and it seemed to work better, that I ordered a crank from the same company. I had just lost my favorite color Wiggle Wart (still the best crank of all time!), and decided to get one made up like that (the guy doesn't have 'stock', you tell him how to paint it, and he does), there is a pic of that crank here. It's a nice lure, just got it, and fished a tournament with it last weekend, my partner took me in shallow water, but I got to throw it on a point, and I hooked a White Bass on each treble at once
As far as my personal lures, I only have pics of my spinnerbaits now, one here and here. The top is by far my favorite, it has a twin, except the skirt is white, and the paint is missing on most of it due to fish

It's got me looking around at other stuff, I recently bought one of Mattlures swimbaits, never got anything on it, but I'm new to swimbaits, and I need to get my confidence up on that I'm kind of surprised it's taken this long for me to get on the custom train, I've been fishing a long, long time, hell I run a club!

I've been looking into hand poured baits as well too, I've got some samples on the way from My Mom is becky, and from what I hear, the action is much better, and you get to deal with the people.

I've got about three Lucky Craft jerkbaits too, never caught a fish on them though, I suppose you have to USE them, the floating Rapalas have always produced well for me

Anyway, what about you guys, got any favorites? You can tell me, I promise I won't tell everyone about your killer bait
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Old 07-18-06, 07:57 PM   #2
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in my opinion it is outrageous to pay 15 dollars or more for a fishing lure. yea sure they probly work better than mass produced lures but c'mon 15 dollars for ONE lure!
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Old 07-18-06, 08:03 PM   #3
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I forgot to mention that I bought one of those Castaic baits too, that never worked for me.

I thought the same thing, and this got started with a free lure, and it worked, so I decided to give it a try, like you said, it probably works better. If it does, others will have three times as many lures as me, but I'll have more fish. In theory anyway (And I hope it's true!)
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Old 07-18-06, 08:08 PM   #4
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if i am going to pay $15 bucks for a lure i will call carolina chip FIRST.. his bait are works of art..enough said..

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Old 07-18-06, 09:25 PM   #5
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You're supposed to include the URL so I can find it
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Old 07-19-06, 01:02 AM   #6
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I use a lot of custom baits, I've even been known to paint and make a few

To me its silly that people will pay $30k for a boat, and gripe about a $15.00 lure, but to each his own.

What I personally like about custom lures is it gives the fish something they haven't seen before and as the sport grows that becomes more of an advantage than ever before. That being said, there are no miracle lures, but if I can get 1 extra bite in a tournament it can mean the difference in no $$$ and a lot of $$$.

Besides handmade lures from my circle of friends in the business, I also fish a lot of Japanese lures, but I tend to stick with the lesser known brands. If you get the obscure japanese lures you can find some real gems, but they cost an arm and a leg most of the time.

The biggest thing to remember is that the price doesn't always equate to quality. When Japanese lures first found their way to the US, and when there were only a few people who were making wooden baits In the US, Most of what you saw were works of art with a true edge over mass produced lures.

Now everyone and their dog makes lures, and the flood of lures from japan is crazy (a lot of which are now made in china). Now its hard to find those gems amid the maze of "wannabes" who just cobble something together, and japanese companies who get cheap bodies from China.

It could easily take a fortune to weed through the BS lures out there to find some with the right characteristics to be worth what they cost. Price alone does not tell you anything about lures these days, even the US companies at the top have jumped on the bandwagon of expensive lures lately.

Dwain

PS. I can't believe you lost that prototype frog, that was too pretty to fish with. Kelly at CLU is a class act, and does amazing work.
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Old 07-19-06, 07:52 AM   #7
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Yeah, I've been hanging around the net, looking at stuff, reading reviews, etc, and you're right, there IS a lot of crap. I try to read all the reviews, especially at TT where they buy their own stuff, no mission to promote anything there.
And the frog...yeah, it it caught fish! Starting at 4PM in 90 degree weather! I've got two more coming, one to fish, one to look at
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Old 07-19-06, 09:32 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dampeoples
You're supposed to include the URL so I can find it
www.carolinachip.com

Ditto on the works of art.
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Old 07-19-06, 10:57 AM   #9
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dampeoples. thanks for the kind words.. Im sure you will love the baits... Cant imagine why you wouldnt they should arrive today.
as for that bait you won, and in turn lost. Its basically exactly like the old heddon meadow mouse. They discontinued them a while back, but they have a cult type following.
You can still find them around, on ebay etc, but expect to pay for em .
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Old 07-19-06, 12:42 PM   #10
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Custom baits??? Hmmm....seems like I've read about this subject before. I do believe in them. But the word Custom is overused. Do a search through Google or Yahoo and see what you get. The big companies like Lucky Craft and Yamamoto. I'm not knocking their stuff but what is so custom about them?

And $15 dollar crankbaits??? That's nothing. I can send you to websites where they start at $22 and end at $35. Made here in the USA. Don't need to go to Japan.

Find the guys who make quality custom baits, jigs, spinnerbaits, plastics, etc and buy from them. This may take a while and you may buy some junk but eventually you'll find the good ones. Then build a relationship with them over the years. It will pay off in the long run. You'll get true quality and at below market costs and best thing of all they'll make the baits the way you want them.

And I may know of a website that will assist you in finding custom bait companies or businesses.
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Old 07-19-06, 01:02 PM   #11
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FYI, the frog mold will not come in before I leave for canada. Ill get the frogs out etc the week I return Aug 1.
Thanks
p.s. we will work with anyone to develop a custom color, firmness etc if you want. A few folks have taken us up on the offer and we havent dissapointed one of them yet
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Old 07-19-06, 01:52 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 3dkicker
The big companies like Lucky Craft and Yamamoto. I'm not knocking their stuff but what is so custom about them?
I wouldn't say they're custom as they are mass produced, high quality yes, custom no. $15 may seem expensive for a lure, especially when you can go to walmart and get lures that look similar for $2-3, but I've seen $40 crank baits that look plain as day, $100 swim baits that look real enough for me to eat, I tried to filet one once but I couldn't find any meat.
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Old 07-19-06, 08:15 PM   #13
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I use Als worms from California.They are hand poured worms that come in a huge selection of colors.They flat out catch fish for me. P N J http://www.alsworms.com/index.php
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Old 07-19-06, 10:33 PM   #14
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That's what I'm doing, finding local, or not so local guys that will hand make baits exactly the way I want them, like Ryan here. Got his baits today, was able to try one out, it was great!
I know what you're saying about the service, since Ryan (MMiB) is here, I'll use him as an example. I had CLU make me a crank, similar to a Storm I lost, a friend of mine loved the color, and expressed his interest in a senko like that. Well, I contacted Ryan, and in a few days, I had a sample. Wht more can you ask for? I helped my buddy, Ryan helped me, and now my buddy will purchase baits from him
So yes, when I say custom, that's what I'm getting
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Old 07-19-06, 10:56 PM   #15
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Custom baits give you exactally what you want, but the main thing it gives the bass something they don't see everyday. If you want a special action, color, size, stlye or running depth then custom is the way to go.

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Old 07-20-06, 05:51 PM   #16
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As far as Lucky Craft baits go, I have tryed different baits which look very similar to those made by LC. They look the same, but don't necc. act the same. Have caught so many bass on a pointer that they actually took the paint off. The LV200 is a great bait as well, have caught bass on these when "other" lipless cranks wouldn't produce. The BDS 2 is a fine bait, have caughty some big bass on this particular bait. In my opinion, yes they are worth a little extra. It just depends on whether your fishing for money. If you are then I highly recommend more expensive baits, thats unless you own baits that are proven to catch bass.
Note; I used to have a Bomber that was perhaps the best bait that I had in my collection. But now I have Lucky Crafts, which appear to be at least as good as the old Bomber.
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Old 07-20-06, 06:54 PM   #17
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pnj,
those als worms from cali, have you ever tried the 4 inch reapers?
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Old 07-20-06, 07:00 PM   #18
dampeoples
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Those Al's worms might be good, but that site is terrible. Products #1, Products #2, what's that?
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Old 07-20-06, 07:14 PM   #19
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JB
pnj,
those als worms from cali, have you ever tried the 4 inch reapers?
JB, Yep, I use them ice out here.I sent a few to Mac. He raved about the results.Yeah the site is awkward, but I anit interested in the appearance of the site, just the results from his baits. JB , When I email Chris again, I will get ya some to try.I don't have any left. P N J
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Old 07-20-06, 07:37 PM   #20
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sweet pnj, I'll make it right with ya....I've never fished a four incher, only 3, they used to be a hot river bait, dark punkin craw color, with the tips a yellowish blend. I guess they like the way it darts and decends....
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Old 07-21-06, 11:36 PM   #21
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Quote:
Now everyone and their dog makes lures,
Yeah... They test them with their pugs teeth!

Seriously, You can never go wrong with off the shelf stuff like Bomber A's, Normans, bagelys, RatLTrap, etc .... No need for an angler to spend all the extra cash.

If an angler wants to take it to another level and buy some small production wears, there are lots of great sites: Brian's Bees, CLU, Ghostbaits, Hughes, Legendary, B&D, AL's, Pursuader, Wigglebait, Quali-tied, Dale Sellar's, Blade and Baits, HookerZ, Gary Dees, Bikini Baits, etc.... If you do a search for handmade lures, you will come up with tons of great craftsmen keeping this great craft alive.

As far as
Quote:
Now everyone and their dog makes lures,
Thats okay too! The web has sparked the interest of many of people in this art that is threated to be lost to the high production companies. If 10% of them are still making lures in 5 years..... a success in my book.

IMO... before any angler starts buying handmade lures, fill you box up with many of the great baits avaiable at Wallyworld, BPS, Cabelas, etc.... then when you have enough buy yourself a little something special!! Or better yet.... try making your own lure! Its great to catch a fish off something you cut from a board plank

Example:



Makes you proud of your creation everytime!

Best Fishes!

Chip
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Old 07-22-06, 01:21 AM   #22
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Let me re-phrase that chip, Everyone and their dog that makes lures is selling lures for $18.00 to $20.00+ a pop, and they are not all equal by any means. Just be careful what you buy in that high price range. You could wind up buying something from "buzzindog" lures that was cobbled out overnight thats not worth more than a bait you can buy for $4.00. Just do your homework and try to find out as much as you can about the maker and product. You've seen some of the people I'm talking about Chip, that have a good bait, but not a $20.00 bait, even though thats what they charge. I'm all for lots of makers out there, but it just makes it harder to find the "good" stuff.

A friend of mine once told me what his mentor told him "You can make them right, or you can make money at this"

Dwain

P.S. Speaking of lots of makers it took 10 minutes of searching to find a generic lure brand name that was not taken haha. That google pulls up some interesting stuff.

P.S.S. I don't sell my wooden lures, please no emails about them, thank you
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Old 07-22-06, 07:34 AM   #23
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Quote:
Let me re-phrase that chip, Everyone and their dog that makes lures is selling lures for $18.00 to $20.00+ a pop, and they are not all equal by any means.
Please take my comment as light hearted .... You wrote a very competent response and hit the nail on the head for the most part. My comments were only taking another angle on your phrase. (Knowing you used to post the pug photo was just some funny sarcasim on my part)

p.s.: I liked your USMC lure. very nice!
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Old 07-22-06, 07:39 AM   #24
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Quote:
Custom baits give you exactally what you want, but the main thing it gives the bass something they don't see everyday. If you want a special action, color, size, stlye or running depth then custom is the way to go.


VERY COOL!!!
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Old 07-22-06, 01:06 PM   #25
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i just got this in the mail today, boy i'm stoked, got a night tournament tonight!
In between the storms forecast, I think this ought to work
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