Lure Making

[Rage]

Lure making has grow to be quite a hobby for guys and gals with a lot of time on there hands during the Canadian Winters and who would also like to save some money by making spinners, musky baits, trolling spoons for the Great Lakes and so on. I got into making my own sinkers for Carp fishing two years ago and had a hard job finding the necessary supplies, Lead Melter, Sinker Molds and other related equiptment. Oh sure you could by this stuff from the U.S of A. but the shipping and exchange rate was horrible. Through Google i managed to find a company called Real Pro's Sportfishing, they are situated in Hepworth, Ontario....dont ask were that is i dont know. They are Canadas Leading supplier of Lure Making Parts and Components and from there web site i would have to say they are right. I was able to purchase my Lee Electric Lead Melter from them plus Sinker Molds Made by a company called Do-They are the best quality mold's i have seen anywere, they are comparable to Herters Molds in the U.S. that i bought back in the 70's when i was into Jig making. Since i dont do any other form of Fishing other than Carp i am not familiar with the cost of these Spinner Baits and other forms of Lures needed for the Species that you guys are fishing so i cant tell if there Components are cheap or otherwise. Since i just posted to another post....someone was asking about a Supplier of Lure Making Equiptment and i answered his question i decided to make a seperate post in case my Post was not Read. Just trying to help.

 

Cheers for now.

 

Rodpody....

[timmeh]

Thanks for the info, i will check out their website.

[Joey]

That's where I buy all my Musky spinnerbait and in line components. They're very helpful and knowledgable up there.

 

Their prices aren't the cheapest, but they're not bad either, although there aren't many other alternatives out there.

 

Joey

[Zib]

Here's another place in Canada that sells the supplies.

 

http://www.luremaking.com/index.htm

 

 

Oops, I guess they're the same place.

Edited December 4, 2008 by Zib

[Guest gbfisher]

Funny..Im making some Musky baits right now.(jointed perch baits).

I buy my hardware from http://www.luremaking.com/ also make my own spinners for pickerel and buy the hardware from them as well. Its over night dellivery and I havent had any complaits so far. They have most of what you were talking about.

 

 

 

OOOPS ..............DITTO for me.......

Edited December 4, 2008 by gbfisher

[Roy]

I have been buying from them for a while now. Great people to deal with. They are also one of our sponsors here at OFC.

[bigugli]

We buy all our components at the same place. Unless you want to buy bulk from the actual manufacturer, there is no cheaper alternative.

[LeXXington]

I placed an order with them and less than a week later it all arrived.

 

Average prices, lots of choice and most important its located in CANADA

 

Great company. .. just my $0.02

[Wild]

Rodpody do you or anyone else plan to make other sinkers?

 

I am setting up a small shop style foundry for aluminum brass and even limited iron casting so I will be able to produce custom lure and sinker designs. Already have an interesting aluminum muskie plug design here on the desk.

[mepps]

I get most of my part from them too, but they stopped selling #8 spinner blades and other musky components a while back - I've been waiting for them to come back in stock for month, but I dont think they will carry them anymore.

 

The only other source I've found for #8 french blades sells them by the thousand, which is way out of my price range at the moment

[crappieperchhunter]

Thanx for posting that Ron. Something I have not got into, but it's nice to hear of a reputable business from a reliable source like yourself.

 

Those coffin sinkers you made are excellent....although I don't think they are making me catch more fish

 

Hope to see you over at your carp honeyhole in 2009.

[hammercarp]

Thanks for the info Rodpoddy. Carp tackle, especially weights are not cheap and I have been thinking of making my own.

[Zib]

I get most of my part from them too, but they stopped selling #8 spinner blades and other musky components a while back - I've been waiting for them to come back in stock for month, but I dont think they will carry them anymore.

 

The only other source I've found for #8 french blades sells them by the thousand, which is way out of my price range at the moment

 

Stamina sells the #8 French blades in 5-pk, 50-pk, & 500-pk

 

http://www.staminainc.com/spinner_blades/french_magnum.html

 

You can always buy from the places that sell large quanities only then sell what you don't need on Ebay for a little profit.

[Greencoachdog]

I just found this company:

 

http://www.lurecraft.com/

 

They have the Pro-Tec powder paint for $4.59 for a 2 oz. jar, about a dollar cheaper than anyone else... and $2 cheaper than most.

 

I like Do-It molds for jig hooks, cheaper and a much better selection than I've found anywhere else.

 

http://www.do-itmolds.com/

 

I like Rotometals for my lead (click on bullet casting alloys), you can get a great price on bulk and shipping is free in the U.S

 

http://www.rotometals.com/

 

 

I also like the Stamina company that Zib put up.

 

I realize these are all U.S companies, but you may be able to save enough to make up for the shipping.

[Zib]

I like Do-It molds for jig hooks, cheaper and a much better selection than I've found anywhere else.

 

http://www.do-itmolds.com/

 

I've found most other places to be a lot cheaper on hooks than from Do-it. I've also found their jig molds cheaper elsewhere as well.

 

Have you ever tried Matzuo Sickle hooks for your leadhead jigs? They are deadly sharp & much better hook-ups plus less lost fish than the cheap Eagle Claw & Mustad hooks. A lot of guys use them for walleye on the Detroit River & won't use any other hook.

 

Other sites to look in too are:

 

http://www.barlowstackle.com/

 

http://www.jannsnetcraft.com/

[Greencoachdog]

I've found most other places to be a lot cheaper on hooks than from Do-it. I've also found their jig molds cheaper elsewhere as well.

 

Have you ever tried Matzuo Sickle hooks for your leadhead jigs? They are deadly sharp & much better hook-ups plus less lost fish than the cheap Eagle Claw & Mustad hooks. A lot of guys use them for walleye on the Detroit River & won't use any other hook.

 

Other sites to look in too are:

 

http://www.barlowstackle.com/

 

http://www.jannsnetcraft.com/

 

I actually prefer the Eagle Claw hooks for my jigs for a couple of reasons Zib.

 

1. The man made reservior I fish has an enormous amount of stumps and flooded timber (rotted off at the waterline years ago). The light wire Eagle Claw hooks are designed to bend when snagged to release the jig instead of having to break them off every time you snag. They can then be rebent into shape and used a few more times with the proper drag setting on your reel.

 

2. The Eagle Claws come in colors, red, chartreuse, crawfish (orange), gold, and bronze. I'm not sure if hook color makes a hill of beans difference... but I think they're sexy!

 

 

The last time I ordered hooks, Do-It molds was the only place that had all the colors I wanted in the size I needed... and they were cheaper than most places.

[spinnermaker]

I have been making my own spinnerbaits for over 2 years now. It is a wonderfull hobby and i really enjoy doing it. I do mostly trout fishing here in the Newfoundland outdoors. I also buy my spinner components from luremaking.com. I find them really friendly there and i recieve my order in 3 days. They have really good prices there also. I checked out http://www.staminainc.com/spinner_blades/french_magnum.html from the post that Zib had posted and i found out really quickly that luremaking.com has deadly prices. I was looking at the 5mm plastic beads that real pros charges $0.68 for 100. staminainc charges 2 something for them. I would absolutely reccomend luremaking.com for all your luremaking components.

[Dnthmn]

Rodpody do you or anyone else plan to make other sinkers?

 

I am setting up a small shop style foundry for aluminum brass and even limited iron casting so I will be able to produce custom lure and sinker designs. Already have an interesting aluminum muskie plug design here on the desk.

 

Wild, we're gonna hafta chat down the road!!! I would be interested in some brass components for various items. Let me know what you plan on getting into. PM me and I'll give you my email address.

 

While we are on the topic of lure making does anyone have a supplier for non lead pour metals such as bismuth or a tin-bismuth alloy? I've found one near Hamilton online but have not contacted them yet. Here is the website and if anyone has dealt with them please tell me about your experience.

 

http://www.alchemycastings.com/

 

Thanks.

Edited January 12, 2009 by Dnthmn

[outllaw]

service is a mainstay in the business. real pro has that and much more

[OhioFisherman]

Old enough to remember the Herter`s catalogs, used to get one every year, might have been how Bass Pro Shops got their start with the business from them?

 

Shipping charges from the States makes some of the prices not such a deal and there seems to be a bit of a delay with cross border shipments. Probably best to buy locally if you can.

 

I had phone numbers for places with deals on hooks, but 1000 quantity minimums. also for a couple places that made limited pour jig molds out of silicone? Good for like 1000 pours, a custom mold that would duplicate one style of jig head if you had one to send them.

 

Doesn`t hurt to call some companies direct, some will work with you if stuff they sell doesn`t have a distributor in your area.

 

Most of the molds I have used were Do-it`s good quality to them never any problems with the molds.