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Mine was a gradual need out of necessity. We had fished for Striper for years and had only caught a couple, until one night we got 4 all on the same lure in about 2 hours (it was a magical evening that I've not seen since), but I only had the one lure that was the hot color. Since we were camping at the time, some spray paint and nail polish we dug up did the trick to modify the other lures to match. Turns out we caught 2 more on the same stupid lure and nothing on any of the modified lures. Was it coincidence? Or, was there really something special about that lure? Then, I decided to hunt for muskies a few years later and figured I'd go broke buying $25 and $30 lures to drag around the bottom of the lake. Since I was such a "pro" at repainting lures, I figured, how hard could it be? As it turns out, you don't save as much money as you'd hoped, and it's much harder than I thought it would be, but so rewarding when you catch your first fish on a homemade lure. Special thanks to all of you guys for ironing out many of the lure making kinks, I can't tell you how much I appreciate the site and all the help!

Not that I'm glad others have had the same issue, but now I don't feel quite as dumb. Talk about frustrating!

It's not the casting of the Musky lures that gets me, it's the tremendous resistance to crank them back in!

You'd think the two syringe style epoxy would be idiot proof, but I just got the worst double syringe I've ever seen. Somehow the thing defies logic and the simple physics of the universe! When you push the plunger, liquid only comes out of one side. After shaking, hitting, banging, and any other thing you can think of, liquid won't come out of the other side and I started to think it had hardened up in there somehow. Of course, 2 hours later, the other side decided to free up on it's own a spew the needed amount out onto the workbench. So, you'd think the problem is solved, but every time I use it, it does the same thing (3 tries at it now). I've never had this issue before, but it's ironic to say the least. They've got it so you "can't mess it up," until it's messed up, then there's no way to fix it without cutting the thing apart. Good times.

Thanks, I just found the giant ball of chaos last night and felt like I needed to share. They look good, until you store them the wrong way.

***Update*** If you make these, DO NOT throw them into a container where they can touch each other for storage. Over time they will stick to one another and get flat spots on them, best to leave them punched into the foam board until needed. Once they're coated with GST International top coat, they do fine.

This may not be applicable here because all glow style paints and plastics might not work the same, but, my son got some glow in the dark drumsticks and the instructions said they will glow great when "charged" using regular lamp or sunlight, but will really glow brighter and longer when charged with a black light. Maybe this is common knowledge, but it was news to me. We got a portable battery operated 6" black light tube and it works wonders for the amount and time of the glow. I know that's a bit off topic, but might be helpful to charge it with UV before tossing it in the water. Jason

That thing looks great in the water!

It's funny how fast a hobby can turn into a job and all the fun vanishes... Been there more than once. I think the best part of a hobby is to do what you want and when you want to do it. Once it turns into a job, it's someone else telling you what to do and when to do it. Hopefully this will be just a one off deal, but word might travel.

Are there any other variables we can throw in there? This might be too simplified, but it's certainly something to think about if you're as mental as I am. Make sure you're testing the lures the same way you'll be fishing them. I messed around with a couple lures getting everything lined up so they ran right where I wanted them. Like a big dummy, though, I was testing them by casting them out and reeling them back in over a known depth of water with the tip of the rod almost touching the water. That's all great until you start to troll with them and the trolling rod holders have the tips of the rods about 9 feet above the surface of the water, and of course, that actually matters. I now test by trolling my lures the way they'll be fished over a sandy area to see when they start to touch bottom using line counter reels to make sure line length isn't messing with me too. If this were easy, it wouldn't be as much fun. Jason

Can't wait to try running the drill backwards at first, never heard that before and it seems so obvious now! Jason

Welcome, TONS of info on this site for just about anything. Good luck.

Necessity allows me to throw a lure I've made, or, it will once the ice is off the lake. I've only tested so far, but time is getting near. Musky lures are in the $20- $30 range each, which is ridiculous to drag around on the bottom of the lake looking for a nice snag to steal it. I have no choice, it's either make my own, or not go Musky fishing... it's still going to be tough though.

Can't wait to check this out. Thanks very much for taking the time, it sounds really amazing. Jason

You just need to rig up a can holder on the other side of the drill press table, crank up some loud music, and sprinkle a couple tipsy people around your workshop to complete the vibe. Maybe even get someone to stand behind the drill press and hand you drinks occasionally.

Who knew?

Bad knees have forced me into the same situation, standing to do everything. I can sit for long periods or time, and I can stand for long periods of time, but it rips up the knees if I have to get up and down a bunch of times, so I'm standing right there with you. I've also modified everything in the shop so I can stand, or lean on an old bar stool once I can stand no longer. Getting older forces you to use your brain more and your limbs less...

I just tried it and I'm getting an error as well, they must be having issues as it worked previously. jason

You're not kidding!

It's an ironic twist, make lures more expensive so you can promote fishing. If no one can afford the lures, there is no fishing!

The only thing I've ever wrapped in foil is leftover pizza. Even then, I didn't do to good of a job... I'd be interested in the responses, I keep thinking it's something I'd like to try. Jason

That's a really cool magazine. The only critique would be the first two pages, the font is too fancy and the red color of the font makes it too difficult to read as it blends into the background image a little too much. Maybe it's my old eyes, but I had to skip those two pages. Other than that, it's nicely done.

Saltwater, that video was really cool, thanks for posting. I guess I was 25 years too late with my crazy idea... I've never been a huge proponent of color being as important as some other things like speed, depth, action, etc, but I figure it has to matter somewhat with all the availability of colors out there, but maybe that's just to catch me and not so much the fish... Thanks guys! Jason

Would most everyone agree that lure color, which might not be as important as some other factors, does play a role in whether a fish is triggered into a bite? If so, then I've got a crazy thought. What about a lure with one stripe of each of the 7 colors on it? Maybe I'm over simplifying, but what if a fish keys into a certain color on a given day and that's what they want to eat, period. If a lure goes by with all of the colors on it, is it possible the fish could see it's key color and make a commitment? Again, just a thought that popped in my head, but a lure with long horizontal stripes might get the job done. Q: What lure color were you using when you caught that monster? A: All of them! Jason

I used to, but I got rid of it because I never used it. I'm rethinking that decision pretty heavily right about now... Jason