Do you only fish with your own baits or do you use others as well?
Almost always fish my own lures regardless if I’ m in saltwater or in fresh. But I do enjoy fishing other builders stuff. Some of the bass tackle I use is of course commercially made.
What is your process for developing a new lure?
I always start with an idea that I will sketch out on paper. I will have an idea of what I want the lure to do and work from there on the design. The size of the lure, what type wood and weight placement are all very important. I then will do a more detailed drawing scaled to the exact size of the lure I will be carving: transfer this to the wood and go from there. If I am really pleaded with the final build I will sometime keep the original and make a silicone mold of the master. The large wooden lures are all hand carves. After the build I work on the weight placement and test it in water until I am happy with it. Painting and topcoat are the last step in the process.
What type of materials do you usually use?
My favorite wood is Eastern red Cedar. I use it for many of the different lures I build including big crank baits, big glide lures and multi jointed lures. I have tried every wood I can get my hands on. I like a hard wood like maple or oak for glide lures and jerk baits but it’ s hard to work with. I have also done a lot of resin cast lures.