I make many different types of handmade wooden lures great for saltwater fishing. I take requests on what type of lure you want, the size, whatever hook size you want, and whether it is a topwater or midwater bait. Please feel free to email me or PM me if you are interested or have any questions. Prices can be discussed via email or PM.
Here are some pictures of a few of the lures that I have made. If you are not able to see these pictures let me know and I will email or PM them to you.
Thank you and tight lines.
Email Address : trenttompkins98@gmail.com
That’s interesting; what type of wood do you generally use?
May all your favorite bands stay together…
Mostly oak but sometimes I find some interesting wood and will use that.
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Originally posted by 23Sailfish
That’s interesting; what type of wood do you generally use?
May all your favorite bands stay together…
Just started making them, so no.
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Originally posted by IM4USC
Sell many?
Trent, go to the fly tying section of your local tackle shop and get some flashy colors you like. Then, order some epoxy from green light surf supply. Learn how to use these well and you’ll be amazed at what kind of product you can produce. Also, oak is plentiful around here but it’s not great to work with, very dense and hard. Get bass wood or even poplar and you’ll feel like you’re working with butter. Sand paper is your friend. Keep doing your thing though.
IMO, your lures are rough. Doesn’t mean they won’t sell, but you’ll need to refine them if you expect to sell many. I had a tackle biz for 15 years making & selling flies & lures. A shop owner I dealt with once told me that “pretty sells”. Keep that in mind, because no matter how well they catch fish, they have to catch the angler first. They don’t have to be complicated, as simple lures catch a lot of fish, but they will have to have visual appeal to both angler & fish. I’ve been making lures & tying flies for about 50 years as a hobby & business and started another biz recently too. I haven’t really got it going as yet, because time & money never seem to be in enough supply. I’m also working a regular job. However, anything I can help you with, please feel free to ask. I certainly don’t know it all, but may be able to direct you to sources that can help you.
I don’t make those type of lures either, I tie flies & pour lead. There is a talent & specific skills to making any type of lure. You need to develop & refine both & produce a product that folks want to buy & try if you expect to keep it going.
I would never try to steer anyone away from such a wonderful site as this one, but there’s information on other sites that would help you with making lures. I just got on Facebook, something I put off for a long time & there’s some folks on there who make all types of tackle. Some very good information shared there as well.
Check out tackleunderground.com which is a tackle making site.
Check the “Lure Building” forum on stripersonline.com too. There’s some awesome lure makers on there who freely share information & many of them make wood lures. You may have to search the threads there, but worthwhile. While there check out the guy from Finland, SolarFall. (http://www.stripersonline.com/surftalk/topic/462615-solars-homemade-lure-corner/)
If you can first, make lures that produce well, and look even half as good as Solar’s, you can sell them at a premium price & all that you can produce. That guys talents
That was a very diplomatic post by BigJim, a very nice way of saying those are butt ugly:smiley: They may catch fish, but they won’t catch fishermen.
Capt. Larry Teuton
Swamp Worshiper
Well, Capt Larry anyone who begins something like this has to start with the talent & skills they possess. Hopefully, as they get more involved with it, skills & the end results improve. My first flies & lures were “butt ugly” too. I started from scratch with no instruction at all. At that time, outdoor magazines were the only information available for the most part. I caught fish with some of them, but I knew they didn’t look like what I saw in magazines, so there was room for improvement. Trent is off to a decent start, and most likely he’ll make many mistakes & his lures will improve along the way. However, he has the advantage of access to a lot of knowledge & information that I didn’t have when I started. But, he has to take advantage of it, and make use of it if he wishes to succeed in selling lures.
I’m sure you’re aware there are many very good tackle makers out there making & selling lures. Lots of competition.
At the time I started, as a kid around 1966, I was only concerned with catching fish, and making my own flies & lures was just another interest. At that time, I had no intentions of selling anything. Probably the majority of hobbyist start the same way. There’s a big difference between hobby & business.
Believe me, I made a lot of mistakes my first go around with selling, and many of those lessons were learned the hard way.
My previous post was only intended as a critique and to be helpful. If it came across any other way, I never meant anything negative.
Trent seems to have the interest, and if he truly has the desire, then in time his lures should improve as far as the “butt ugly” appearance. As I stated, they’re rough, but so are diamonds when first mined. 
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My previous post was only intended as a critique and to be helpful. If it came across any other way, I never meant anything negative.
I never took it as negative. It was a very positive negative 
Capt. Larry Teuton
Swamp Worshiper
You can’t make money (small entity) in the lure industry unless you have something unique and able to protect. There are thousands of garage manufacturers that learn this the hard way.
If you haven’t been in YouTube go there. Or anyone else interested in making their own lures.
I’ve been watching this guy.
https://youtu.be/inCPA4DRCss
He has dozens of detailed videos and sometimes he catches fish with the lures.
I’ve been out of state for 6 months(military) and can’t wait to be home to build a few. Some to catch(try) fish and some for gifts, decorations, man caves etc.
The idea of making money from the start is ludicrous. Build them for fun. Personally, I’d rather give them to friends and family.
10% of the people catch 90% of the fish.
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I never took it as negative. It was a very positive negative
OK, I can live with that! 
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You can't make money (small entity) in the lure industry unless you have something unique and able to protect. There are thousands of garage manufacturers that learn this the hard way.
IMO, it depends on how much you need to make. I understand your comment, and many who try don’t succeed. My first 15 years selling flies & lures I made money at it, but not a living. I made enough to keep it going & pay the related business expenses & for most of my personal fishing costs. It was a “side line”, as I worked a full time job then too. I also had a mortgage & 4 kids to raise and making flies & lures didn’t generate enough income to cover that.
At the “garage business” level, most folks will never become wealthy making & selling lures, unless they do have something very unique. I’ve always felt that higher quality will sell, but most folks can’t produce high quality in the volume that would result in a lot of money being made. It’s simple math.
I closed my first business in 2003 & still have some long time customers that call me wanting replacement flies & lures that I had made for them years ago. Building customer loyalty is important.
There’s the niche factor too. Make a good product that produces well & is durable, and they’ll certainly sell. Anytime your product line is limited to a smaller group of potential customers, that’s going to limit your sales. I started tying flies, primarily bass & saltwater stuff. But, that only appeals to a small demographic, and even with tying flies for all fly fishing interests, that’s