Easiest And Cheapest Lure To Make That Catches Fish

[WVbassin87]

I've always wanted to try making my own lure, but i don't know where to start. i figure if i start now, i'll be good enough to make it a winter hobby and have a good supply come next spring. so where do i start?

[smalljaw67]

It depends on what kind of lures you want to make, for example you can get into making soft plastic baits by getting a starter kit that will only set you back $100 or so and it will let you make a few bait to see if you want to move further. For hard baits like cranks, you can go to a place like Barlows Tackle or Lure Parts online and buy wodden blanks that you need to sand, seal, paint and assemble. If you want to make jigs and spinnerbaits you can get some unpainted pre-made heads and do the rest and decide if you want to take it to the next level and pour. I've been making spinnerbaits and jigs since 1998, I bend my own wire, I pour my own heads and you really have to like doing it because it can set you back and depending how much you fish, it can take years to recoup your investment. I know there are some guys that make soft plastic baits to save money and they do but they only make a few colors and have 2 to 4 molds, they make the specific baits in specific colors and that is it but if you end up liking it what usually happens is you end up buying dozens of molds, tons of colors and glitters and other things and you end up spending a lot. If you go to  Tackle Underground you can find a lot of information for whatever you are interested in.

[einscodek]

What kind of lure.. and depends how far and how much you want to invest..

I reconfigure my own lures out of bulk and clearance purchases .. mostly Spinnerbaits and frankensteined plastics.

I could buy wood stock and plastic lips and paint my own crankbaits and epoxy them over but now its starting to involve more tools and getting more expensive.. and taking away from time spent on the water.

Buying hooks and molding jigheads now even more.

 

The point is, there are people making jigheads and other parts which are good quality so why spend hundreds of dollars replicating those efforts when you can purchase those components on he cheap esp in clearance sales.

A lures which is easily strippable and reconfigurable: spinnerbaits .. and boy does the right configuration slay fish.

I've been slaying them in clearwater this year with one I configured for clearwater fishing.

[Jig Man]

Cheapest would be to get some scrap wood and make a top water bait.  Anything else just keeps requiring more and more and more.

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

Painting and skirting your own jigs or spinnerbaits is pretty easy. In-line spinners are straight forward and have room for experimenting. You can make spoons from actual spoons (eating utensils) picked up at garage sales.  

[jeremyryanwebb]

Cheapest would be to get some scrap wood and make a top water bait.  Anything else just keeps requiring more and more and more.

I completely agree.  Ive made a couple topwater lures simply by carving them out of bass wood, which is extremely cheap at your local craft store.  Sealing the bait so it doesnt take on as much water.  Less startup costs than the rest. And the good thing about hand carving is that your imagination is your limit, lots of trial and error but it wont break your pocketbook.

[Deleted account]

wrap some aluminum foil on a hook, shape to taste. Pinch a split shot against the hook (paint eyes on it if you must) If you have a hook and split shot around, and are grilling anyway, total cost $0...

[Kevin22]

Make a spinnerbait! Try local shops, most carry the pre-formed heads and blades. You'll need the pre-made head, some pliers, blades of your choosing (single blade will be easiest), clevises if you are doing multi-blade, swivel for the main blade, and a split ring to attach the blade to the swivel. And of course, a skirt. 

[OkobojiEagle]

Buy various weights Roadrunner jigs; paint to your satisfaction; learn to tie various dressings (rabbit strips, buck tail, marabou, mylar...); enjoy

 

 

oe

[Munkin]

Crankbaits are the hardest to figure out (ballast, bill angle, etc.). Soft plastics are the easiest with a two piece aluminum mold in your favorite bait being preferable. Myself I started out with jigs as I lost a lot of Eakins Jewel jigs and they were hard to find once I moved back to Maryland from Missouri.

 

For anything you want to try I would buy some pre-made stuff from Janns Netcraft, Stamina Inc., Barlows Tackle, etc. before sinking a lot of money in it. I have found that pouring lead heads has saved me money but I suck at painting crankbaits. Each person is good at different things so experiment to find what you are good at and what you need. You could be a master at making deep diving crankbaits but if the only places you fish are 6' deep farm ponds filled with grass it does you no good?

 

Allen

[EmersonFish]

Depends on what you mean by "making" your own lures. If you consider buying an already made jighead with a weedguard and putting a skirt on it making a lure, that's a good way to save some money and catch a lot of fish. I take those Arkie jig heads (1/4 & 3/8 oz), a spool of wire, a couple of rolls of living rubber, and some silicone strands for accent colors, and make a bunch of jigs that I catch a ton of fish on. 

 

I have thought it would be a lot of fun to make my own molds and design some soft plastic baits. Seems it would be satisfying to catch fish on something I came up with. Maybe I'll look into that this winter.

[Texasfisher1]

I'm just now getting into pouring my own soft plastics. Makelure.com is where I went but there's a lot of choices out there. Good luck.

[ColdSVT]

I made a topwater lure out of wood once

I cut it on a jigsaw, sanded for ever to get the shape i wanted. ( looked like a cross between a chugbug and skitter pop in shape) i drilled a hole into length wise and added two copper .177 BBs for weight transfer, sound, and to keep the tail low. I glued a small piece of a wooden dowel into the hole. Put two trebles on it, and float tested it. Then painted it an off white color, kinda like eggshell yellow

Caught a fish on the sixth cast! I fished with it for one evening and then put it up. It sits on my desk at home now lol

[gulfcaptain]

Um, after reading all these posts, I'm gonna stick with ordering baits to fish with during the winter.....lol

[Tim Kelly]

Go to your cutlery draw, distract wife and pocket a couple of spoons. Disappear to man shed and pull out a hacksaw and drill. Chop off handles. Drill holes top and bottom of the spoon, split ring through the holes, swivel one end, hook the other. Add water.