SpoonMinnow Posted January 1, 2015 Report Share Posted January 1, 2015 With the increase in lure prices from the largest companies such as BP and Cabelas, I can understand anglers looking for cheaper sources. Lure prices in 2015 catalogs are unbelievable and I'm hoping parts and materials won't rise as much. Good thing I have crankbaits, many unused, purchased over the last 30 years that cost less than half as much for the same currently sold. It's also a good thing I've stocked up on jig and spinnerbait parts that will last my lifetime. I no longer sell lures for the reason that outlets sold them cheaper considering my time and material costs. But now I might reconsider. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darkman Posted January 1, 2015 Report Share Posted January 1, 2015 always for personal use, I do it for fun and for me it was the best way to learn jigs, I made them with free lead (tire shop) and hooks that were on sale (VMC or mustads at the time) and a rubber band, now I make them still with good hooks but I tie jigs now, at this point im learning how to pour plastics and carve out swimbaits but always for my own use...few homies get stuff as well but very few (like 4 people all together) peace Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishon-son Posted January 1, 2015 Report Share Posted January 1, 2015 I make for myself and few friends...I use to sell on ebay..but ebay took the fun out of it...there price increases killed the resale market...I was buying wholesale from top lure companys..( megabass the biggest ) and got to the point that the profits went right to ebay...for the plastic side of it I had to lower my pricing to sell product because the next guy was cheaper....but I always keep enough product on the boat to sell at the docks..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ipt Posted January 2, 2015 Report Share Posted January 2, 2015 i make for myself mostly, friends caught on and now i have friends of friends and people finding me on facebook that i will make stuff for. its still a hobby and i do not intend to make any money, breaking even is hard work! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpoonMinnow Posted January 2, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 2, 2015 breaking even is hard work! You got that right! especially considering what the customer has to pay for shipping added to the bill. I still sell glitter but not enough to increase my supply once it runs out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anglinarcher Posted January 2, 2015 Report Share Posted January 2, 2015 For myself, almost never for sale. While I have sold lures, it is only when someone just will not leave me alone. I would rather give my lures away then sell them right now, they are like my kids. LOL I did not get into lure making to save money but to make what I could not buy. I had needs or desires in lures that the production guys were/are not meeting. I can make what I want or need. Still, if the cost keeps going up, maybe I might supplement my lure cost by making a few to sell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Apdriver Posted January 2, 2015 Report Share Posted January 2, 2015 Only make for myself and share this hobby with my son. Make a few baits for friends of mine. Maybe when I retire, I'll sell a few baits. Maybe. Don't ever want to take the fun out of it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silo1688 Posted January 2, 2015 Report Share Posted January 2, 2015 I make mine for profit. I sell consignment at local shops and it pays for my tournament costs (3-4/year). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Travis Posted January 2, 2015 Report Share Posted January 2, 2015 I have done both over the years. Most everything (besides initial start up) has been paid for profit from selling. I don't sell as much now as I place my time as more valuable than what profits I would make. The market has changed considerably and most guys I get contacted by now are not looking for custom hand poured lures. They are looking for knock off cheap baits in some other companies colors. I still get contacted for this sort of stuff but the market is saturated, in my opinion, and much of the customer base I come across couldn't tell a quality custom hand pour from hack work. As far as personal use I fish only a fraction of the time I used to and to be honest paying for lures is cheaper for me versus the loss of my time. Time is the one asset I can't seam to ever get enough. If I were to do this for money, I wouldn't be making the baits either as I would be in it to make money (stop my job sort of thing). The time it took to make several thousand selling plastics the way most of us do is a huge time sink and not something I would want to upscale (or even could) to approach anything near a decent salary. I would have to contract it out to be honest as the time spent making the baits would be better spent elsewhere in the business. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Driftwood Posted January 2, 2015 Report Share Posted January 2, 2015 I used to sell to a lot of bait stores but most went out of business during the big recession. Also, a lot of tournaments and directors took product to sell. That being said, with the cost of materials it's hard to compete with the overseas suppliers. I make mine to trade with others who make crank baits and spinner baits. We all win in the end. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bass100 Posted January 3, 2015 Report Share Posted January 3, 2015 I had a business for a few years and did very well. The only reason I shut it down was because I became disabled. As time went on it started to get a bit easier because the companies would come to me which allowed me to make more baits. I started out making for myself but everyone said I should sell some and it went from there. I had a hard time in the begining because I let the next guy decide how my business was going to be run price, quality, etc. Once I decided it didn't matter what the next guy did it only matters what I can do and what I think it is worth that things became much much easier. Now I am back to making baits as a hobby and I love it. I can now spend 20 hours building a hand carved swimbait and absolutley love the end result but I couldn't do that if I was still running a business. I do miss making baits for everyone else but I love making them for myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mudd Butt Baits Posted January 5, 2015 Report Share Posted January 5, 2015 unless you can pour larger number of cavity molds, there is no money in trying to sell. I Have a 3, 6, 7, and 10 up mold. Plus you have to have volume or it is hard to make any money. Plus stores get 35-50% on there end. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CustomBaits4You Posted January 16, 2015 Report Share Posted January 16, 2015 I keep very few for myself. Majority I make I sell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
