Lure making 101

[Great Lakes Lure Maker]

Yesterday I set out to run some #4's. I ran about 1200 lures and it took about 5hrs total. At this point, If I value my time at $25.00 an hr and I already have .13 cents into blanking the lure, that would mean that at this point once I have finished the stamping, I have roughly .23 cents into making the lure blanks. From there I have several more steps to go to produce a finished product. De-burr, paint/polish, assemble, package. I know someone is going to ask " If it only costs .23 cents to make the lure...." By the time I de-burr, polish or paint, assemble, package, ship, pay the electric bill, buy paint, tape, hooks, rings, swivels, packaging, tooling, pay employees (once we have hired) pay for advertising, sport shows, get a website running, and pay an accountant...  i'm sure i'm missing some here, but you get the point.

 

Here are 2 videos of the forming process and setting the hook saddle into the lure. 

 

 

This is the forming process. The lure sets into the die and held into position by 2 pins that fit into the holes already blanked into the lure. This ensures that every lure is formed exactly the same, with no variations. This press is foot operated.

 

 

The second video is setting the hook saddle into the lure. The saddle holds the hook from moving and loosening the hook. It also nests the hook to the lure so that once "stressed" by a fish, it wont snap off. This press is hand operated. (obviously) 

 

 

 

Here is the end results of 5hrs of stamping lures.

 

Here is what the lure looks like once completed.

 

At this point the lures are ready to be de-burred and either painted or taped. Once they are de-greased, tape removed and a bath in hot water and dawn dish washing soap. (to remove any left over grease and acetone from de-greasing)

 

I hope you find these videos and this post to be informative. Not everyone gets to see how lures are manufactured and I hope you gain something from watching. 

 

Thank you,

Jason Oakes

[Sk8man]

Thanks Jason....hopefully folks will realize from these very candid postings that the process is not "magical" and these lures aren't just "cranked out" and packaged automatically by some robot machine as no big deal like a lot of things out there. The lures I received really show the high standards you employ and the quality of product.  I've had great results from your other lures this season and I'm anxious to try out the new colors and spoons.  I hope you're able to keep your fingers away from those die hammers though....   You'll need ALL of them for pulling rigs

[Great Lakes Lure Maker]

Yeah Les,

 

I have been running those presses since I was 13. In that time I have seen 2 people stamp their fingers and lose part of them. One was pretty bad. So I have developed a healthy respect for those machines. There is one simple rule, don't stick your finger in the die to clear or move anything. That's why you see me using a wire in the forming process. Setting the lure, I try to keep my fingers just out of the die and drop the lure in a way that it lands on the pins. If not, I use the wire to position it, then to remove it. The saddle die is a different story. It was made so you could hold the lure in position and stamp the saddle in. That one gets a little hairy some times and if you hold it too high or too close it will actually pinch your finger when it punches. Not enough to hurt, but after several times it does begin to hurt. That's why in the end I show that I still have all my digits in place. Always good to end the day with all the body parts you started with. Those presses are old and if not kept serviced and greased, they will double trip on occasion. That's when people get hurt if not respecting rule # 1, which is "protect yourself at all times". Never stick a finger into a form die, unless you've shut it down. 

 

I'm glad to hear you did well with the lures I sent, and looking forward to fishing with you again soon. I'm anxious to hear how you do with some of the new lures I sent you. I like the action of the SS with the "old school" bend. It runs up to around 2.6 - 2.8 sog before beginning to spin, so it's not exactly what I would call a High Speed lure, but kind of in the middle. Kind of a snappy, short wobble which looks tempting if I were a fish. I'm hoping it will be a hot lure. We certainly dumped a lot of money in tooling for that lure. I was hoping to get a new from die for the #35 this year, so I could form it for use on Ontario, but that may have to wait a while. 

 

Jason

[Xxx]

Very interesting, also like Les stated you need to be on your game using those machines, one little interruption and say goodbye to a finger or two. I can plainly see a lot of handling of the item before its finished. I think after the intense work of the lures, I would sit and cry if I lost one. LOL. This puts a whole new view of respect toward the items I have in my tackle box, last Tuesday I lost a Rapala tail dancer at $ 11.75 I tried for 15 minutes to work it loose but the rocks won, I didn't like it but after watching you, now I'm sick about it. Thanks a lot for showing us how much work goes into each and every lure, sure paints a different picture, quality lures aren't just popped out of a machine and put in a box. Lots of luck to you I surely will be looking to get some of you lures in my tackle box. Very impressed. PAP.

[Great Lakes Lure Maker]

Thanks PAP,

 

My mom came down at one point to ask me to do something for her. She walked up behind me and yelled my name, which made me jump out of my seat. I can't hear anything around me with the press running and the radio on, so I asked her from now on to switch the stairway light on and off if i'm running a press. That way hopefully we can avoid a possible accident. Just an example of how easily an accident can happen. 

 

I would be glad to have you run some of our lures and thank you for the compliments. Much appreciated! 

[Iceman]

GLLM:

You could add two palm buttons as a safety feature to insure that your hands are off the die when you cycle the press. Probably a good idea if you have anyone other than yourself operating the presses.

 

Blanks look nice & beefy!

 

Good Luck

 

John

[Great Lakes Lure Maker]

GLLM:

You could add two palm buttons as a safety feature to insure that your hands are off the die when you cycle the press. Probably a good idea if you have anyone other than yourself operating the presses.

Blanks look nice & beefy!

Good Luck

John

Interesting, how would someone go about doing that?

Sent from my C771 using Lake Ontario United mobile app

[Iceman]

GLLM:  Take a look @ this link, it will explain the palm buttons.

 

http://www.googleadservices.com/pagead/aclk?sa=L&ai=C8z3rjLlkVJzaHcaqsAfbzICADZu O_bIEk93M-LoBgaW5u08IABABKANgyfafi8CksBGgAbXeg-UDyAEBqgQnT9BhQcs8jtP57R9VENOg18Y XmXfZ_suzQhlcawHVebqkx9xDtdG1iAYBgAezofwakAcDqAemvhs&ohost=www.google.com&cid=5G gxE55TNVADqID8WjD59f9Mgx-77bVCoJfJHwBWd8kCJC4&sig=AOD64_28sJWSOXBocLk9BdJOrOrJCM oOZA&rct=j&q=&ved=0CB4Q0Qw&adurl=http://www.pinnaclesystems.com/Ergonomic-Palm-B uttons.html

 

John

[Great Lakes Lure Maker]

GLLM:  Take a look @ this link, it will explain the palm buttons.

 

http://www.googleadservices.com/pagead/aclk?sa=L&ai=C8z3rjLlkVJzaHcaqsAfbzICADZu O_bIEk93M-LoBgaW5u08IABABKANgyfafi8CksBGgAbXeg-UDyAEBqgQnT9BhQcs8jtP57R9VENOg18Y XmXfZ_suzQhlcawHVebqkx9xDtdG1iAYBgAezofwakAcDqAemvhs&ohost=www.google.com&cid=5G gxE55TNVADqID8WjD59f9Mgx-77bVCoJfJHwBWd8kCJC4&sig=AOD64_28sJWSOXBocLk9BdJOrOrJCM oOZA&rct=j&q=&ved=0CB4Q0Qw&adurl=http://www.pinnaclesystems.com/Ergonomic-Palm-B uttons.html

 

John

John,

 

When I click on the link it comes up blank. Is there a place I can find it by searching. 

 

Thanks,

Jason

[Great Lakes Lure Maker]

Keuka Wobblers in Heavy Troll are now being run.  (.060 thick, about 1/2 ounce)  I am running about 2,000. Once I have some good video and pictures I will post them. They are all logo'd now and ready for piercing. 

 

Jason