# Are Crank baits Becoming Too Expensive???



## bjpatrick (Jun 18, 2010)

Sometimes when I search through Bass Pro for the latest and greatest crankbait. The typical feeling represents some vendors like Lucky Craft are asking too much for a crankbait. The brain often wonders how a crankbait could cost anywhere from 10-15 dollars. What makes these crankbaits so expensive and is there really a difference between a Bomber or Strike King crankbait and a Lucky Craft. There is understanding that some people will purchase anything with a higher price tag because a higher dollar amount is seen as better quality. The question represents does a 10-15 dollar crankbait actually out preform a 5 dollars crankbait? I'm going to purchase one of these 15 dollar crankbaits and see if the fish get in a line to strike at this expensive item. 

What do you folks think??? 

This Lucky Craft has a pretty feather tail but does it actually catch more fish?
http://www.basspro.com/Lucky-Craft-Rick-Clunn-Wake-Action-Crankbaits/product/100927/-1651191


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## jhiggy11 (Jul 14, 2010)

You are definitely going to get some different responses. In my opinion, I would never pay that much but a lot of people with disposable income may feel that indeed the high price tag means high quality (produces fish). To me, that link is similar to a Mann's Baby 1-Minus, which is a great lure that you can get for 3-4 dollars. There are always lures in the clearance box at bait shops that started out for 15 dollars and are on sale for 5 dollars and still don't sell. There are expensive ones that are junk and there are cheap ones that are junk. I'd rather take my chances with the cheap ones.


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## WLAngler (Aug 29, 2010)

I remember hearing form a certain angler that they all catch fish. It doesn't matter who makes it, what matters are certain factors. Color, depth, vibration/wobble, suspending, floater, the way it's fished, the body of water you're on, water clarity & blah blah blah.... It's just really a matter of finding the crankbait or crankbaits that work on your body of water that you fish on.


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## Tokugawa (Apr 29, 2008)

Don't buy Lucky Craft baits...they don't work.


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## ironman172 (Apr 12, 2009)

I try and not pay retail....at least buy on sale if I can.....if you think the crank baits for fresh water are expensive....price some offshore trolling lures sometime....a molded piece of plastic and rubber skirt....not even rigged with line or hook


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## Jigging Jim (Apr 3, 2010)

I have seen "Broom handle" Muskie Lures priced at $20 each. Yes, they were made with actual broom handles! They were in Gander Mountain, I think. The prices are nuts!


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## WLAngler (Aug 29, 2010)

ironman172 has a very good point, try Ebay.


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## Fish G3 (Jul 16, 2008)

Lucky Craft makes some nice baits. It's personal preference and what you have confidence in throwing. Some guys love to throw bandits, bombers, and the strike king series and those all are around 5 bucks and under. Not really sure who makes a $3 dollar crankbait anymore if anyone... That being said I fish custom crankbaits that are around 20 bucks a pop to some bandits that are about $5 a piece and everything in between. It just matters when, where, and what they want.


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## spfldbassguy (Mar 23, 2009)

There's expensive lures in every category out there not just crankbaits. The fish don't know how much is spent on a certain lure but how it's presented to them. It's up to each individual angler to purchase lures that they want whether they be $5 or $15. Some people will never pay anything over say $10 for a lure and some won't use anything but $20 custom lures. It's just a matter of preference.


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## bassbabe (Dec 26, 2010)

My exboyfriend was a bass guide in Florida. He would swear that cheap lures fishermen would catch more fish, because they were not afraid to toss it into the cover. He noticed that the big money lure fishermen tended to throw into more open water with less cover.


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## robertj298 (Feb 23, 2009)

The expensive crankbaits are made differently than the cheaper ones. They are made more for catching fishermen than fish. Do you really think when you're cranking a crankbait through the water a fish looks at all that detail on a lure or reads the Lucky Craft logo? LOL


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## Wow (May 17, 2010)

Simple economics says, If it sells, everyone will copy it and some will sell it for less. Every year I see yesterdays latest and greatest baits in the clearance bin. New baits, touted by the pros, will sell high until they lose their apeal. The buying public will pay anything for the promise of success. Good lures, like cream, will rise to the top on performance. Notice how many classic lures are still big sellers? They flat out catch fish. Only the best of the best ever reach the classic level. One things for sure, the tackle industry will continue to catch fishermen.-- Tim .........HAPPY NEW YEAR!.....................................................................................................................................


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## Smead (Feb 26, 2010)

Rapala Countdowns are pricey as far as my ability to endure expense goes...but they work.

The Fat Rap and Mini Fat Rap do as well and are a bit less expensive.

Strike King Stuff isn't too pricey...have used their Bitsy Minnow for ultralight and some of their Pro Series stuff.

Then again...good spoons and spinners aren't that far behind crankbaits in cost.


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

robertj298 said:


> The expensive crankbaits are made differently than the cheaper ones. They are made more for catching fishermen than fish. Do you really think when you're cranking a crankbait through the water a fish looks at all that detail on a lure or reads the Lucky Craft logo? LOL


lol, think about this. there is an old saying that 99% of the time rings true. you get what you pay for. if you want a bait that runs sideways half the time, has hooks that are as dull as a point on a boone and crocket buck, rolls over and over when you run it too fast, wont dive to the advertised depth, lip breaks off on 3rd cast and the paint is gone after and hour of fishing then by all means, buy the bait from a clearence table.


ive never seen a lucky craft bait in a clearence bin. ive seen them on sale but never being sold for 80% off. go to buckeye outdoors and most of the time they are sold out of the ones that i buy. but like tokugawa said earlier, "they dont work" my suggestion to those that dont like lucky craft cuz they cost too much is GREAT, dont buy them, especially if you fish tournaments against me.


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

bassbabe said:


> My exboyfriend was a bass guide in Florida. He would swear that cheap lures fishermen would catch more fish, because they were not afraid to toss it into the cover. He noticed that the big money lure fishermen tended to throw into more open water with less cover.


your prob right, but what happens when you get a guy that will throw his 20$ crankbait in the nastiest of the nasty? what you get is a guy that makes bank.


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## Marshall (Apr 11, 2004)

i know of a few luckycraft that has done me very well in the past. But most of the time i use norman, strike king and rapala cranks. With a lot of baits, presentation is the key. Be an accurate caster and you'll catch more fish.


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## Tokugawa (Apr 29, 2008)

robertj298 said:


> The expensive crankbaits are made differently than the cheaper ones. They are made more for catching fishermen than fish. Do you really think when you're cranking a crankbait through the water a fish looks at all that detail on a lure or reads the Lucky Craft logo? LOL


You don't think the fish get conditioned to seeing and hearing a Red Eye Shad come buzzing by every 5 minutes? The cheaper the bait, the more people throw it. The more people throw it, the less effective it becomes. Why do you think pro anglers fish a bait for a year or two before releasing it to production? They want it to work for a while!


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## spfldbassguy (Mar 23, 2009)

Tokugawa said:


> You don't think the fish get conditioned to seeing and hearing a Red Eye Shad come buzzing by every 5 minutes? The cheaper the bait, the more people throw it. The more people throw it, the less effective it becomes. Why do you think pro anglers fish a bait for a year or two before releasing it to production? They want it to work for a while!


Very well written,that's why I try use baits that not many other anglers are using. The fish(all species) do get conditioned to certain lures sounds as they come through the water. That's definitely why certain "hot" lures only shine for a little while on heavily pressured lakes.

I still say if buying a crank,jerkbait,whatever for $15-20 is ridiculous for some people then don't buy them and quit complaining about the price of them. If that's rude then so be it,it's a simple as skipping the pages with those high dollar lures on them. Like LOTP stated,99% of the time you get what you pay for.


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## robertj298 (Feb 23, 2009)

Tokugawa said:


> You don't think the fish get conditioned to seeing and hearing a Red Eye Shad come buzzing by every 5 minutes? The cheaper the bait, the more people throw it. The more people throw it, the less effective it becomes. Why do you think pro anglers fish a bait for a year or two before releasing it to production? They want it to work for a while!


I will catch just as many fish on a rattle trap as I will on a lucky craft vibration. I've used a sammy and will take a zara spook any day over it. I'm not saying the lucky craft baits aren't any good but they sure aren't worth the 3 times more they cost than your average $5 or $6 bait.


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## robertj298 (Feb 23, 2009)

spfldbassguy said:


> Very well written,that's why I try use baits that not many other anglers are using. The fish(all species) do get conditioned to certain lures sounds as they come through the water. That's definitely why certain "hot" lures only shine for a little while on heavily pressured lakes.
> 
> I still say if buying a crank,jerkbait,whatever for $15-20 is ridiculous for some people then don't buy them and quit complaining about the price of them. If that's rude then so be it,it's a simple as skipping the pages with those high dollar lures on them. Like LOTP stated,99% of the time you get what you pay for.


I don't complain about spending $15-20 on a crankbait I don't buy it.
If you can afford $50 for a crankbait thats your business but your kidding yourself if you think you'll catch 10 times more fish or even 2 times more fish than a similar bait that costs $5


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## robertj298 (Feb 23, 2009)

spfldbassguy said:


> Very well written,that's why I try use baits that not many other anglers are using. The fish(all species) do get conditioned to certain lures sounds as they come through the water. That's definitely why certain "hot" lures only shine for a little while on heavily pressured lakes.
> 
> I still say if buying a crank,jerkbait,whatever for $15-20 is ridiculous for some people then don't buy them and quit complaining about the price of them. If that's rude then so be it,it's a simple as skipping the pages with those high dollar lures on them. Like LOTP stated,99% of the time you get what you pay for.


So do you think these same fish become conditioned to the same baitfish that live naturally in a lake and quit feeding on them? LOL


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## spfldbassguy (Mar 23, 2009)

robertj298 said:


> So do you think these same fish become conditioned to the same baitfish that live naturally in a lake and quit feeding on them? LOL


LOL!Oh you so silly,they don't get conditioned but do show preferences for certain things at certain times. Every publication out there has all at one time or another had articles talking about just that,fish becoming conditioned to certain lures so there has to be something to it.


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

robertj298 said:


> So do you think these same fish become conditioned to the same baitfish that live naturally in a lake and quit feeding on them? LOL


they dont get conditioned to baitfish living naturally in a lake because when they eat baitfish, daily, by the pounds, they arent getting dragged out of the water, put into a livewell for hours, drivin 60 miles to the ramp and weighed like they do every time they eat a zara spook. 

nobody really knows what the bass is seeing or hearing. give me the bait that looks the most natural. if i got to pay an extra $10 bucks to catch 1,2,3,4 more fish a week then im going to do that. those fish add up, maybe you can get buy using cheap lures if your doing everything else right and maybe if your cutting corners everywhere, using high dollar lures isnt going to help you that much but here is the deal.

lets say all these scenarios are even remotely true and give this edge over the alternative

best line possible for a given situation = 2 to 4 fish per week
insanely sensitive high dollar rods = 2 to 4 fish per week
best electronics you can get and you know how to use them = 2 to 4 fish
high dollar crank baits = 1 to 3 fish per week
tungsten sinkers = 1 to 3 fish per week
everything else that im not thinking of = 4 to 6 fish per week.

12 to 24 bass extra per week. that seems high so lets say all that stuff combined gives you an extra 6 fish per week that you wouldnt have caught otherwise. any one of those 6 fish can be the difference in a 1st place check and a 10th place check. im going to continue to go with the "you get what you pay for" theory.


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## Tokugawa (Apr 29, 2008)

robertj298 said:


> I will catch just as many fish on a rattle trap as I will on a lucky craft vibration. I've used a sammy and will take a zara spook any day over it. I'm not saying the lucky craft baits aren't any good but they sure aren't worth the 3 times more they cost than your average $5 or $6 bait.


I have a lot of $5 baits that perform very well too. When the fish are active, they will catch as many fish as the LCs, but that is not how I measure a good crank. There are two ways I evaluate a crank:

1. Can I do something with it I can't do with other cranks?
2. Does it catch fish when there is a lot of pressure or when they are turned off?

When the fish are picky, realism matters...especially when the bite occurs on the pause. A longer pause means they can look at it better, and the fewer negative cues you give the more bites you get. For a TW or reaction type bite, realism is less important - noise and action is the primary attractant.

The last consideration is quality of components. The $5 baits don't have the high quality hooks or split rings. The last thing you want is to throw away a favorite crank because it is rusted.


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## SMBHooker (Jan 3, 2008)

bassbabe said:


> My exboyfriend was a bass guide in Florida. He would swear that cheap lures fishermen would catch more fish, because they were not afraid to toss it into the cover. He noticed that the big money lure fishermen tended to throw into more open water with less cover.


Good point, I've seen this happen with fishing buddy's of mine, but I think the *"bait monkey"* fits somewhere in this thread, it accounts for a lot of purchases


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## WLAngler (Aug 29, 2010)

That's why I switch out my hooks on those 5 dollar baits. Makes all the difference.


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## spfldbassguy (Mar 23, 2009)

Let's just end this debate by saying any bait will catch fish but the good ones consistently catch them all the time.


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## robertj298 (Feb 23, 2009)

spfldbassguy said:


> Let's just end this debate by saying any bait will catch fish but the good ones consistently catch them all the time.


I wish I could find a lure that will consistently catch fish all the time LOL I think we should end this debate by saying its not so much the lure its the person working that lure


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## sir fishalot (Dec 7, 2010)

it is true that the higher costing baits may posess upgraded hardwear and perhaps finer detail in there paint;may even suspend better if there that type of bait.this being said,they should rightfully cost more.however, the extent of that cost difference is something i can't agree with.i just recieved my 2011 basspro catalog and noticibly the prices on nearly everything is on the increase;even the so called 5 dollar baits are going up.i believe the problem is that the industry wants to maximize profit,you can't blame them for that,and the fisherman are showing an overwhelmingly acceptance to pay.any industry will set their prices based off what the consumer is willing to pay,so in a way we are hurting our own wallets and setting these prices ourselves.my 2 cents.


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## jshbuckeye (Feb 27, 2005)

So if what im reading is true all I have to do is run the same bait as my fishing partner and we will catch the same amount of fish. Well Puter no out fishin me this yr it will be a tie all yr long.


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## puterdude (Jan 27, 2006)

jshbuckeye said:


> So if what im reading is true all I have to do is run the same bait as my fishing partner and we will catch the same amount of fish. Well Puter no out fishin me this yr it will be a tie all yr long.



Well that's just great,now I have to make sure I have only one of a kind lures,and make sure you don't have any of them.......just adds more work to the ballgame now


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## spfldbassguy (Mar 23, 2009)

sir fishalot said:


> it is true that the higher costing baits may posess upgraded hardwear and perhaps finer detail in there paint;may even suspend better if there that type of bait.this being said,they should rightfully cost more.however, the extent of that cost difference is something i can't agree with.i just recieved my 2011 basspro catalog and noticibly the prices on nearly everything is on the increase;even the so called 5 dollar baits are going up.i believe the problem is that the industry wants to maximize profit,you can't blame them for that,and the fisherman are showing an overwhelmingly acceptance to pay.any industry will set their prices based off what the consumer is willing to pay,so in a way we are hurting our own wallets and setting these prices ourselves.my 2 cents.


That could be the case as to why some lures are on the uprise price wise. It could also be that since everything involved in making them as gone up as well recently. Yeah the industry knows we anglers will buy products year after year but they're no different in raising some prices than our gas stations,grocery stores,clothing stores,etc,etc that have done the same thing. How many products remain at a constant price all of the time? The answer would be hardly any at all remain the same price year after year.


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## spfldbassguy (Mar 23, 2009)

robertj298 said:


> I wish I could find a lure that will consistently catch fish all the time LOL I think we should end this debate by saying its not so much the lure its the person working that lure


That's what all anglers are searching for,consistent fish catching lures. I think there's a few already on the market though. Rapalas has a few that I believe consistently catch fish. There's a ton of soft plastic worms that do pretty well as well. Plus you just can't beat the good ol' jig n pig setup either. 

I still say it all boils down to the "Confidence Factor" on whether or not we catch fish. Whether we're tossin' $5 cranks or $20 swimbaits it's all in the confidence we have in using that particular lure at that time. I have zero confidence in the traditional spinnerbaits and that's probably why I catch very few on those types of lures. Now give me a jig head with a curly tailed grub and a jig spinner and I have way better results. It's all in the confidence. To each their own,some will only use low cost stuff and some will use only high dollar stuff. Me personally I fall inbetween both of those in that I use $5 cranks,$7 jerkbaits,$10 cranks,$20 swimbaits.


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## sir fishalot (Dec 7, 2010)

alright, how far will we go.i check ebay alot looking for deals on lures and i came across a 3:16 lure company swimbait for auction.this is a large swimbait i"m guessing mainly for targeting trophy bass in california/new mexico.anyway over 20 bids and final price was $187.00.this sparked my interest so i checked 3:16 lure company website and newly priced at $150.00 and sold out.


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## Smead (Feb 26, 2010)

I can almost guarantee that if I bought any of those high end crankbaits, it would be snagged...probably on the first cast.

I'd be forced to toss children into the water after them:

"Come Back With That Bait, Or Don't Come Back!!!"


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## norseangler (Jan 8, 2009)

Some of the high-dollar crankbaits and other lures may be a bit better than the more "common" lures like Bandits, etc., but are they three times better? Not from what I've seen. However, Rapalas also cost more than the "average" lure, but that's always been true. The difference, however, is not excessive (though I don't know how to define that. They have proven, over the last 50 years, that they are worth paying more for. I have exactly one "high-dollar" lure, a Pointer jerkbait that I found hanging in a bush. It's a good lure, but I'll take a Husky Jerk over it anyday. The really high-dollar lures (in the $15 to $20 range) have done one thing they were intended to do and have done it surprisingly well - catch fishermen. I see some articles raving over some of the new lures because of how realistic they appear, but that just takes me back many years to when Lazy Ike came out with their ultra-realistic "Natural Ike" crankbaits. A lot of anglers I knew grabbed some as soon as they came out, but they disappeared almost as fast. Maybe not a fair comparison, but time will tell.


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## spfldbassguy (Mar 23, 2009)

sir fishalot said:


> alright, how far will we go.i check ebay alot looking for deals on lures and i came across a 3:16 lure company swimbait for auction.this is a large swimbait i"m guessing mainly for targeting trophy bass in california/new mexico.anyway over 20 bids and final price was $187.00.this sparked my interest so i checked 3:16 lure company website and newly priced at $150.00 and sold out.


I've heard of that company before,read about it in a book that was about people chasing the world record bass. Can't recall the name of the book but it was a pretty good read. Yeah that lure is way too damn expensive for me and I'd never even think about buying it. Unless you're in the land of giants (Cali,Texas,etc,etc) I see no need in using something that huge. I'm not surprised it's sold out though. It's like that line from the movie "Field of Dreams" only with a slight variation,"If you make it,they will buy it". I don't mind spending a lil extra dough on a lure now and then but I'd have to work 2days just to pay for it and that's not even factoring in the shipping cost.


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## shroomhunter (Aug 6, 2004)

I have 3 Live Pointers and 1 Jackall suspending bait that no longer make the journey to the lakes in the tackle box. Not 1 of the 4 ever, not ever caught a saugeye. I gave them a fair shot, I logged many hours out saugeye fishing at night these last few years and these baits had numerous chances, I'll stick with Rogues and Husky Jerks for suspending stickbaits. 

As far as high dollar crankbaits, I would take an old vintage Bagley's Killer B1 over a Lucky Craft any day of the week, sorry I'm not selling my collection of vintage Bagley's baits. Most of my old Bagley baits were purchased for less than $3 back in the early '80s but today the originals sell for much more due to collector value. I now have other go to crankbaits that are under $5 and consistantly catch bass and eyes and with the stickbait fishing as a factor I see no reason to buy those baits. BUT I will add, there is a lot of credence to the confidence side of fishing, if a guy has confidence in a particular bait he will likely catch more fish with it. I once fished with a guy that had great confidence in the Rico topwater baits, he fished his and I fished the handmade KC Twitcher. At the end of the day, it was dead even his $20 bait versus my $5 bait.

I will gladly part with the above mentioned "high dollar" baits if anyone is interested.


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## Marshall (Apr 11, 2004)

Someone mentioned they got their bass pro catalog and all the prices are up. My problem with bass pro is that they charge for shipping even if you spend a lot of money. There are many other places to buy on line that will give you free shipping on orders over 50 bucks. I just don't see why bass pro cant do this. This year i ordered from 2 online stores for xmas gifts. They were both free shipping and the exact same order at bps was over 100 bucks more because of sales that bps did not offer. Crazy stuff. Bps had everthing i wanted but the problem with the smaller places is sometimes you cant get all you want so you have to use a couple different places and it was still cheaper. So if you choose to buy a high dollar bait there are some ways to help offset the costs like free shipping for example. Although i have some high dollar baits i cannot afford to use them all the time. I still say its all about the presentation 90 percent of the time. Knowing when to throw a certain bait and color and casting to the right spot or angle. Thank god my favorite crankbait is not 15 bucks. Another important factor is having a boat, you will not lose near as many baits cause you can lure retrieve most of them or get them off the stump with your rod. Unless the fish breaks you off then your screwed. Obviously there are some cheap junk lures out there that are not gonna perform well but day in day out the mid range priced baits will catch fish. They may need tuned or hardware upgraded it just depends on the situation and how serious one is about landing a fish.


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## NewbreedFishing (Apr 15, 2004)

i agree with marshall bps and cabelas only offer free shipping at random times and IMO they dont carry alot of the cutting edge lures and color schemes.

its sort of like shopping at kohls...i dont want to be walking down the street wearing the same shirt and shoes that 20 other dudes are (if i can help it) 


tacklewarehouse, tackledirect, landbigfish, fish usa, is by far the way to go.

tacklewarehouse offers 20% discounts regularly and usually anything over 50$ spent=free shipping. there customer service team seems to be ran by fisherman....i have had them call me on my cell phone to verify specifications on my order which i think is awesome!


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## Whaler (Nov 16, 2004)

Yes, all lures are too expensive. I told my buddy not to let me buy any more Muskie lures. I have plenty of them and they didn't cost the money they do now. 
As long as people buy the lures at the prices they charge they'll keep charging them. 
RobertJ298 is right. They make them to attract people more than fish.


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

i also agree that there are cheap lures that work well. i took more offense to the notion that people who buy expensive lures are just simply being "caught". the attitude that anyone who spends 15 or 20 dollars on a crankbait is clearly being duped is offensive.


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## legendaryyaj (Nov 1, 2005)

How many of you posters are actually bass fishermen or fish on a competitive level? These baits are made for the guys who are serious about what they do. If you aren't serious about it and enjoy "consistantly" catching 1#ers then stick to what you got.


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## robertj298 (Feb 23, 2009)

legendaryyaj said:


> How many of you posters are actually bass fishermen or fish on a competitive level? These baits are made for the guys who are serious about what they do. If you aren't serious about it and enjoy "consistantly" catching 1#ers then stick to what you got.


Here you have it from Mr. Professional who only uses $500 combos and $20 lures and anyone else who doesn't is just a novice and only catches small fish LOL. My 13 yr. old nephew with his Zebco 33 and ugly stick throwing an old rooster tail could outfish most Mr. Professionals I've seen LOL


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## legendaryyaj (Nov 1, 2005)

robertj298 said:


> Here you have it from Mr. Professional who only uses $500 combos and $20 lures and anyone else who doesn't is just a novice and only catches small fish LOL. My 13 yr. old nephew with his Zebco 33 and ugly stick throwing an old rooster tail could outfish most Mr. Professionals I've seen LOL


LOL! I never said I was professional now did I? If you want to put your money where your mouth is then I can shut you up too. Like I said, put it on a competitive level and we'll see where you stand.

Learn how to fish so then you can appreciate the lure for what they are instead of being Joe Blow and just thinking they aren't worth it. There are reasons why there are premium things in life.


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## josh617 (Jan 28, 2005)

There is a time and place for every lure. I have had people scratching their head with a vision 110 and i ve had people scratching their heads with $1.25 series 6 from the bargin bin. Its all about knowing when to throw what baits. Some situations call for a crankbait with no rattles and for the longest time there were only a handful of manufactures that produced baits like that and some of them happened to be expensive even bagely's balsa bs are 10 bucks these days and rc s are $15. Companys like strike king have finally got a clue and are making silent versions available to the masses. Megabass and lucky craft jerkbaits in the right hands on clear water or pressured fisheries will make someone throwing a lesser bait look stupid.


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## robertj298 (Feb 23, 2009)

legendaryyaj said:


> How many of you posters are actually bass fishermen or fish on a competitive level? These baits are made for the guys who are serious about what they do. If you aren't serious about it and enjoy "consistantly" catching 1#ers then stick to what you got.


Thats strange because the best professional bass fisherman in the country uses strike king lures which aren't the most expensive. Professionals use what they use because they are paid by the manufacturers to use their lures not because they are the best. Kevin Van Dam uses strike king lures so don't you think that strikes down the argument that bass like the more expensive lures because they don't see them as much?


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## josh617 (Jan 28, 2005)

when van dam throws a jerkbait do u really think he s always using a wild shiner?


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## robertj298 (Feb 23, 2009)

josh617 said:


> when van dam throws a jerkbait do u really think he s always using a wild shiner?


Probably not all the time but I bet he does most of the time. My point is that Kevin Van Dam and the really good bass fishermen catch a lot of bass not because they use $20 lures but because they really know what they're doing. They know what lure to use under current conditions and how to work that lure to get the most from it


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## musikman43155 (May 14, 2008)

Here are two 3:16 lures that recently sold for $729.26.

http://cgi.ebay.com/3-16-Lure-Compa...319?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item1e609322cf


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## sisezz73 (Mar 9, 2007)

If you are buying them, they must not be too expensive.


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## catchin_eyes (Mar 20, 2010)

No No No, its the man working the bait, times half the length of the rod squared, plus the presentation divided by the cos of theta of the angle of the casting arm in relevant to the surface of the water, times the price of the lure times 10 to the eighteenth power...


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## puterdude (Jan 27, 2006)

catchin_eyes said:


> No No No, its the man working the bait, times half the length of the rod squared, plus the presentation divided by the cos of theta of the angle of the casting arm in relevant to the surface of the water, times the price of the lure times 10 to the eighteenth power...



Did that give anyone else a headache


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## streamstalker (Jul 8, 2005)

If I hadn't lost all of mine in a highly unfortunate incident last year, I'd sell all of them to you for 12 bucks a piece and buy Rapalas to replace them.

You are absolutely right on the industry figuring out that cost determines perception of quality. The industry figured that out about the time they found they could charge $5.99 for Chatterbaits. Now, very few people even blink an eye at that price.

I can't catch a cold with Chatterbaits.


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## bjpatrick (Jun 18, 2010)

jshbuckeye said:


> So if what im reading is true all I have to do is run the same bait as my fishing partner and we will catch the same amount of fish. Well Puter no out fishin me this yr it will be a tie all yr long.


Fish are always quite interesting considering who catches more. I remember as a young adult fishing a farm pond with spinner baits. My friend was fishing a Strike King spinner bait with silver blades with a black body and I was fishing an orange blade with a black body in clear water. I just caught everything and anything with my unknown brand spinner bait which was purchased in a discount bin. You never know the little difference that will catch more fish. The same applies with crankbaits. I have been fishing with others and those who possessed the color of the day caught more no matter the brand of crankbait.


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## josh617 (Jan 28, 2005)

> only a legend in your own mind


 that sums up quite a few people i ve met. lol


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## Harbor Hunter (Aug 19, 2007)

Northern Bass Supply has good deals on Lucky Craft lures,and they also have free shipping on orders of a certain price.I fish three major circuits,one in Ohio,one in Michigan,and one in Kentucky.I also fish a couple of Bassmasters opens each year,so I guess you could call me a competitive angler.All of my hardbaits are either Lucky Crafts,or Jackall,and the majority of my plastics are also Jackall.In most of the TX's I fish,most of the top guys are throwing LC's when they're fishing crankbaits.For instance at KY Lake when we're cranking the deep ledges,nothing I've used can compare to the Lucky Craft RC 3.5XD,that lure used with 8# fluoro will consistently scrape bottom in 20' deep water.I know,I know KVD wins big TX's down there with his Strike King series 6XD's.What you don't know is when you purchase one of these,you won't be getting the same lure Kevin is using.Just like the RC series from Lucky Craft,Clunn and Skeet were using prototypes of this lure long before they went to market,sure they had the "public" version out there for sale,but again it wasn't the same.Myself,I even prefer using the Lucky Craft spinnerbaits,and they're also $15.00,but that's just me.I guess I became a convert the day I was fishing in a Bassmaster event on St.Clair.Four boats including myself,(one boat was Timmy Horton)were all working a big weedbed in the Mitchell's Bay area.Everybody was throwing spinnerbaits,but I (doesn't happen often to me)was outfishing them guys to the tune of 4 bass to their 1.Back at the ramp a couple of them asked what I was using,guess they were tossing Terminators and Strike King's,a bait that every smallmouth in LSC has seen dozens of times a day.If you guys are wondering about the high price of baits,you wouldn't want to see my rod and reels! I carry 16 on my boat,starting with my 4 spinning reels,which are all Stella's at $600.00 a pop,then 12 baitcasters that run about $500.00 each,add in the cost of 16 rods which are all high-end G.Loomis',considering all that,the cost of a few crankbaits seems relatively cheap-lol.Lastly,I totally agree with the Gander Mountain slogan "Always buy the best that you can afford,and you'll never be sorry".


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

those redemption spinnerbaits a worth the cost. as far as stuff being too expensive, i guess its all relative and about priorities. i have a friend that is always talking about buying a bassboat but he says he cant afford it. him and his wife admittedly spend $400 a month on cigarettes. thats an insanely nice boat. i dont smoke. i have another friend that cant believe that i buy $20 dollar crankbaits, this same guy spends any where from $50 to $100 a week in bars. i rarely drink. sometimes stuff is too expensive but other times its all about priorities.


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## JignPig Guide (Aug 3, 2007)

lordofthepunks said:


> those redemption spinnerbaits a worth the cost. as far as stuff being too expensive, i guess its all relative and about priorities. i have a friend that is always talking about buying a bassboat but he says he cant afford it. him and his wife admittedly spend $400 a month on cigarettes. thats an insanely nice boat. i dont smoke. i have another friend that cant believe that i buy $20 dollar crankbaits, this same guy spends any where from $50 to $100 a week in bars. i rarely drink. sometimes stuff is too expensive but other times its all about priorities.


Punks gotta point here... "Priorities"

I went tent camping a few years ago with my brother-in-law who didn't want to spend the $40.00 for his camper license. But he spent $10.00 per day (plus the daily gas to go get them) on cigars!!! Naturally, I took the bass boat. But we ended up sleeping in our tents, with nighttime temperatures in the low 20s. It was FRRRREEEEEEEEEEZZZZIIIINNNNGGGG


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## Muskarp (Feb 5, 2007)

They are only too expensive when the lure retreiver fails to free them from their watery grave!


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## Tokugawa (Apr 29, 2008)

robertj298 said:


> Thats strange because the best professional bass fisherman in the country uses strike king lures which aren't the most expensive. Professionals use what they use because they are paid by the manufacturers to use their lures not because they are the best. Kevin Van Dam uses strike king lures so don't you think that strikes down the argument that bass like the more expensive lures because they don't see them as much?


Now that's just an uninformed statement. First of all, KVD will throw whatever the bass are hitting to win. Secondly, he keeps a lot of colors to himself and fishes them for a couple years before they go to production - the Gold Sexy Shad and Sexy Shad colors are great examples of this. He keeps the colors until he wins a huge tournament off them (like the Classic), and then releases them to maximize the hype. You are surely are NOT fishing the same lures KVD is...he's too smart for that. Thirdly, where do you think Strike King got the idea for a fat bodied, silent crank?

Skeet Reese, Gerald Swindle, Brent Ehrler, Omori-san and Gary Dobyns throw Lucky Crafts...Aaron Martens fishes Megabass...Crews and Roland Martin throw Spro cranks. So maybe "the best professional fishermen" don't throw Strike Kings.


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## robertj298 (Feb 23, 2009)

Tokugawa said:


> Now that's just an uninformed statement. First of all, KVD will throw whatever the bass are hitting to win. Secondly, he keeps a lot of colors to himself and fishes them for a couple years before they go to production - the Gold Sexy Shad and Sexy Shad colors are great examples of this. He keeps the colors until he wins a huge tournament off them (like the Classic), and then releases them to maximize the hype. You are surely are NOT fishing the same lures KVD is...he's too smart for that. Thirdly, where do you think Strike King got the idea for a fat bodied, silent crank?
> 
> Skeet Reese, Gerald Swindle, Brent Ehrler, Omori-san and Gary Dobyns throw Lucky Crafts...Aaron Martens fishes Megabass...Crews and Roland Martin throw Spro cranks. So maybe "the best professional fishermen" don't throw Strike Kings.


I said the best professional bass fisherMAN not men. These fishermen you mention, are any of them by happenstance paid by Lucky Craft Megabass and Spro?


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## bjpatrick (Jun 18, 2010)

Tokugawa said:


> Now that's just an uninformed statement. First of all, KVD will throw whatever the bass are hitting to win. Secondly, he keeps a lot of colors to himself and fishes them for a couple years before they go to production - the Gold Sexy Shad and Sexy Shad colors are great examples of this. He keeps the colors until he wins a huge tournament off them (like the Classic), and then releases them to maximize the hype. You are surely are NOT fishing the same lures KVD is...he's too smart for that. Thirdly, where do you think Strike King got the idea for a fat bodied, silent crank?
> 
> Skeet Reese, Gerald Swindle, Brent Ehrler, Omori-san and Gary Dobyns throw Lucky Crafts...Aaron Martens fishes Megabass...Crews and Roland Martin throw Spro cranks. So maybe "the best professional fishermen" don't throw Strike Kings.


The fishing industry is like any other. An example would represent how is the new Playstation 3 motion controls that much different from the Wii? Once a product becomes main steam then everyone tries to offer customers essentially the same item without infringing upon patents. If I was to revert to economics studies at Ohio State. It's all about supply and demand regarding what a consumer is willing to spend upon a product. There are a lot of name brand products that are no better than lesser known products but the name increases demand. Another example would represent the purchase of jeans. Are Levis any better than Lee jeans that cost ten dollars less? My opinion is that Levis possesses a name which sells more products. Now, are designer jeans better than Levis or Lee regarding providing essentially the product? The answer represents that designer jeans are a prestigious name that offers the same product for a lot more dollars. 

When supply and demands prevalent. The question represents what consumers are willing to spend upon a product unless a monopoly is prevalent. We are all lucky that ATT is not in control of all of the telephones or cell phones prevalent. Instead we try to decide which carrier offers the better value which still stinks. I cannot comprehend how an average cell plan can cost fifty dollars a month. 

P.S. If the English in this post is a little tattered. I chose to drink Natural Light tonight instead of Busweiser and still got drunk.


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## ohioiceman (Jul 19, 2004)

I always wondered what the profit margin per bait is on those cranks? I
believe that if you have confidence in a bait you will catch more fish on it, 
does not matter how much it costs. $20 cool or $5 cool. I do have one
request though, could you $20 guys fish Deer Creek or Paint Creek more I 
would like to find some of those at drawdown so I could try em out


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## Harbor Hunter (Aug 19, 2007)

KVD is the best bass fisherman in the game,no question about that.Do you think he got there by just throwing Strike King baits like you see him do on TV? Sure being that Strike King is one of his top sponsors,that's what you're going to see him using when the camera is on him.Kevin will use whatever is in his box on any given day,the same as all of us do.Do you really believe that if Kevin was fishing on Guntersville in a major tournament and the hot bite was on FF Shad BD-6's,he would be throwing something different?Like the other guy said,when Kevin won the classic down in Alabama last year,he was casting a gold redeye shad.Think you could've ran out and bought that bait? No chance.When Alton won the classic,he was using 2 different jigs made by Boo-Yah,the A-Jig,and the pigskin.Both of those jigs at that time were prototypes,neither of them came on the market for several months after the classic.
LOTP,there is no doubt that the LC Redemption spinnerbaits are the best ones out there,the colors are amazing,and I haven't even had one run crooked on me,even after catching several bass,or smacking them on docks or stumps.I still get guys at tournaments say to me "are you kidding,$15.00 for a spinnerbait"? Yeah,if I was a race car driver,I wouldn't be running a Honda Civic either,I would want the product(s)that give me the best chance of winning.BTW,good luck down there at Lake Toho in a couple of weeks,I'll be watching the leaderboard.A buddy of mine has been doing real well there on the new Damiki Hydra's flipping in the shoreline cover,said the watermelon color was hot.My first TX this year is not until early March on the James River in Virginia.


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## Tokugawa (Apr 29, 2008)

robertj298 said:


> I said the best professional bass fisherMAN not men. These fishermen you mention, are any of them by happenstance paid by Lucky Craft Megabass and Spro?


They all are paid by those sponsors, just like KVD is paid by Strike King.

As far as "the best fisherman", Rick Clunn has more Classic wins. Roland Martin has more AOY wins. Hard to pick one that is "better" from those three.

KVD is one of my favorites, but you have to take what the pro's promote with a grain of salt.


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## NewbreedFishing (Apr 15, 2004)

I fished a 1.5 mile long pipeline up @ presque isle this past summer and the lucky crafts were def. outfishing every-other crank(norman/rapala/spro) for both largemouth and walleyes. color really didnt matter. i dont have a whole lot of them but i do believe they cast further and more accurately because of there design. They are more durable and dont foul up.


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

ohioiceman said:


> I always wondered what the profit margin per bait is on those cranks? I
> believe that if you have confidence in a bait you will catch more fish on it,
> does not matter how much it costs. $20 cool or $5 cool. I do have one
> request though, could you $20 guys fish Deer Creek or Paint Creek more I
> would like to find some of those at drawdown so I could try em out


LC cranks are the norm for me at deercreek. search along any of the riprap and im sure you will find a few of mine.


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

Harbor Hunter said:


> LOTP,there is no doubt that the LC Redemption spinnerbaits are the best ones out there,the colors are amazing,and I haven't even had one run crooked on me,even after catching several bass,or smacking them on docks or stumps.I still get guys at tournaments say to me "are you kidding,$15.00 for a spinnerbait"? Yeah,if I was a race car driver,I wouldn't be running a Honda Civic either,I would want the product(s)that give me the best chance of winning.BTW,good luck down there at Lake Toho in a couple of weeks,I'll be watching the leaderboard.A buddy of mine has been doing real well there on the new Damiki Hydra's flipping in the shoreline cover,said the watermelon color was hot.My first TX this year is not until early March on the James River in Virginia.


thanks for the support, im gonna need it! i leave a week from today!


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## NewbreedFishing (Apr 15, 2004)

GOOD Luck and Get at em LOTP :B


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## Whaler (Nov 16, 2004)

Legendaryaya, it's not how good a fisherman you may be or when to use a lure. It's the cost of the lure we're talking about. Large companies who make many lures and sell many don't have to charge so much for them to make a profit. A small time operator may have to though.
Most lures we use today are produced by big tackle companies. They are just like the oil companies out to get as much as they can when they could sell for less and still make a nice profit and take care of their employees. It's all about greed. The more the public will pay the more they will charge.


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## Smead (Feb 26, 2010)

Volume effects price, as does where they are manufactured.

Strike King products are at the least assembled in Costa Rica, I'm not sure if they do the plastics moulding work there too.

Rapalas are made in Estonia, some in Ireland...I'm not sure that they still produce any in Finland itself, they might.

Rebel products are made in China....IIRC, Bomber stuff is as well.

Seems like the misc Heddon/Arbogast stuff is made in China too.


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## robertj298 (Feb 23, 2009)

Smead said:


> Volume effects price, as does where they are manufactured.
> 
> Strike King products are at the least assembled in Costa Rica, I'm not sure if they do the plastics moulding work there too.
> 
> ...


Not all but to a lot of people its the snob appeal. They feel if they are using a $400 reel, a $300 rod and throw a $30 lure they suddenly become a professional fisherman and anyone using less is a novice and can't possibly catch as many or as big of fish as they do. Its kind of like someone buying a $2,000 golf set. Suddenly they are Tiger Woods LOL


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## Harbor Hunter (Aug 19, 2007)

Have you really met somebody like that? To buy rods,reels,lures,or any other tackle you don't really need would be downright stupid.Have you ever been on a bass boat that's prepared for tournament fishing? If so,then I'm sure that you would've noticed that space is at a premium,to load stuff on your boat that you didn't need would be crazy.If you have ever fished big tournaments,you would know that in addition to your own gear,you also have to have room for the non-boater that will be riding with you,and his gear.As far as what you refer to as snob gear,why would anybody have anything like that,who would they be trying to impress?When you fish in tournaments like the ones I fish in,such as the FLW and Bassmaster Opens,everybody in the field is using $500.00 reels and $500.00 rods,we all have $3000.00-$4000.00 worth of electronics on board,and most will have at least a dozen of these rods and reels on board.I'm very sure that most guys have thousands of dollars of lures on board too,so who would we be impressing with our choice of gear? Hell,the last event I fished at KY Lake last fall,my co-angler brought 5 G.Loomis rods and all high-end Shimano reels on my boat,think maybe he was a snob trying to impress me? If Bandits,Rebels,Rapalas or other lower cost lures work for you,by all means keep using them,there's no problem with that.Why do you have a problem with people that want to use the best gear out there? It has nothing whatsoever to do with anyone being a snob,in this business you have to stay competitive with everybody else,if you can't afford to,than you should probably fish in less costly tournament circuits where most of the guys use the type of stuff you've described.


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## Smead (Feb 26, 2010)

Well, if anyone stumbles across a Shimano Stella and is appalled at the flagrant ostentatiousness of such a foul device...immediately PM me and I shall rush to your location...posthaste...and remove the offending item from your sight!!

D)

Actually, I don't see where you can indict anybody for anything. People get what they can afford, most here are most likely on a budget for the most part...some budgets are bigger than others. 

Getting the higher end stuff can mean making sacrifices for many people, sometimes you just can't justify it, at least at the present time.

I like my 3 Avid rods...very noticeable difference to me compared to the other stuff I've had. They were worth digging deep. It's also nice that they are made in the USA and having had to use the warranty once, I must say that I was really taken care of by St. Croix. 

I can't go as high end as some do on my reels, but if you look around, there are deals. I just picked up 2 Penn Affinity spinning reels for $63 each because they are now discontinued...original retail was about $120 each. So I got 2 for what I would have paid for one not too long ago.

People also can get good stuff gently used to stay on budget. Some guys get alot of stuff, some just to try out....they don't keep it gathering dust if it doesn't work for them.

I don't get the high end baits usually, because I end up losing a good bit...and they are expected to be expendable really. Not to say that I would never have any, just not an everyday purchase. I do pay attention to people's personal experiences using them because I might try some of them.

Otherwise, it's nice that people can get the good stuff...I'll probably never have a G. Loomis...but I can't fault anybody in any way for having them.


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## robertj298 (Feb 23, 2009)

Harbor Hunter said:


> Have you really met somebody like that? To buy rods,reels,lures,or any other tackle you don't really need would be downright stupid.Have you ever been on a bass boat that's prepared for tournament fishing? If so,then I'm sure that you would've noticed that space is at a premium,to load stuff on your boat that you didn't need would be crazy.If you have ever fished big tournaments,you would know that in addition to your own gear,you also have to have room for the non-boater that will be riding with you,and his gear.As far as what you refer to as snob gear,why would anybody have anything like that,who would they be trying to impress?When you fish in tournaments like the ones I fish in,such as the FLW and Bassmaster Opens,everybody in the field is using $500.00 reels and $500.00 rods,we all have $3000.00-$4000.00 worth of electronics on board,and most will have at least a dozen of these rods and reels on board.I'm very sure that most guys have thousands of dollars of lures on board too,so who would we be impressing with our choice of gear? Hell,the last event I fished at KY Lake last fall,my co-angler brought 5 G.Loomis rods and all high-end Shimano reels on my boat,think maybe he was a snob trying to impress me? If Bandits,Rebels,Rapalas or other lower cost lures work for you,by all means keep using them,there's no problem with that.Why do you have a problem with people that want to use the best gear out there? It has nothing whatsoever to do with anyone being a snob,in this business you have to stay competitive with everybody else,if you can't afford to,than you should probably fish in less costly tournament circuits where most of the guys use the type of stuff you've described.


I have no problem with fisherman fishing with expensive gear. I just don't think its a prerequisite of someones ability to catch fish. Hank Parker swore by the old Ambassadeur 4600 baitcasters and even back then they weren't top of the line. I would bet on Kevin Van Dam using a $200 outfit and $7 lures over 99% of the fisherman out there. As far as snob appeal we have some legendary fishermen out there that no ones ever heard of saying"How many of you posters are actually bass fishermen or fish on a competitive level? These baits are made for the guys who are serious about what they do. If you aren't serious about it and enjoy "consistantly" catching 1#ers then stick to what you got." Sounds a bit over the top to me LOL


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## creekrock (Oct 28, 2008)

I will give my $.02 on the subject. The way I see it, there are two types of fishermen - those who talk about their equipment and those who talk about the size and numbers of fish they have caught. I would hate to think how much money of I spent over the years on equipment. However, lures in my view are perishable products. They do not last long. Generally speaking you do not own a lure for a long period of time. If you have owned a lure for 2 years then it is not any good. I have bought my fair share of $8.00 Rapalas but I fish them like the cost $.25 because I am more interested in catching fish than having a showy tackle box. I have fished with a lot of guys over the years and fellas with $25,000 bass boats spend more time playing with their boat than fishing when you are on the water with them. I probably spend more money than I should trying to catch fish but I have my limits  no $20.00 lures, $500 rod and reel outfits, or a boat requires a bank loan.


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## Harbor Hunter (Aug 19, 2007)

robertj298 said:


> I have no problem with fisherman fishing with expensive gear. I just don't think its a prerequisite of someones ability to catch fish. Hank Parker swore by the old Ambassadeur 4600 baitcasters and even back then they weren't top of the line. I would bet on Kevin Van Dam using a $200 outfit and $7 lures over 99% of the fisherman out there. As far as snob appeal we have some legendary fishermen out there that no ones ever heard of saying"How many of you posters are actually bass fishermen or fish on a competitive level? These baits are made for the guys who are serious about what they do. If you aren't serious about it and enjoy "consistantly" catching 1#ers then stick to what you got." Sounds a bit over the top to me LOL


 I would bet you won't see KVD using a $200.00 outfit,or fishing $7.00 lures-LMAO! Who ever said you need expensive lures to catch big bass? I catch a very fair share amount of Lake Erie and Lake St.Clair smallies on tubes or drop shot baits that probably wouldn't cost 4 or 5 bucks for a pack of them.I use what works,and what holds up the most.To me,nothing out performs a Lucky Craft crankbait,nothing is as good as a Lucky Craft Redemption spinnerbait,again that's my own opinion.I love my Stella's,not because they're pricey,but because each does the job for me that it's intended to do,and they don't break down.80% of my rods are G.Loomis,the rest are all St.Croix,why? Because they work,they have the feel I'm looking for,and again,they last forever.If you're only consistently catching 1 lb'ers,maybe you should try different tactics,or different waters.


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## Harbor Hunter (Aug 19, 2007)

creekrock said:


> I will give my $.02 on the subject. The way I see it, there are two types of fishermen - those who talk about their equipment and those who talk about the size and numbers of fish they have caught. I would hate to think how much money of I spent over the years on equipment. However, lures in my view are perishable products. They do not last long. Generally speaking you do not own a lure for a long period of time. If you have owned a lure for 2 years then it is not any good. I have bought my fair share of $8.00 Rapalas but I fish them like the cost $.25 because I am more interested in catching fish than having a showy tackle box. I have fished with a lot of guys over the years and fellas with $25,000 bass boats spend more time playing with their boat than fishing when you are on the water with them. I probably spend more money than I should trying to catch fish but I have my limits  no $20.00 lures, $500 rod and reel outfits, or a boat requires a bank loan.


 Generally speaking,I have at least two trays of LC Moonsault crankbaits that I bought at NBS four years ago.When I purchased them I bought 24(12 of one size,and 12 of another).I use these crankbaits along with my Rick Clunn RC 2.5's and 1.5's at tournaments throughout the country.Out of those 24 Moonsaults,know how many are sitting in my boxes right now? 24 dude,and if you would look at them,very few look even used.Same thing with my RC's.The trick is to wipe them down and sharpen the hooks after each days use.After every tournament day,I change all the line on all my reels I used that day,and clean and sharpen the hooks on any baits I use.Invest in a good snagged lure remover and you won't lose as much.I do lose quite a bit of plastics throughout the year,especially drop shot baits,seems like they're good for one smallmouth each,and that's about it.As for the guy with the $25,000 bass boat having to play around with it more than fish,I would tend to agee with you,if I was tooling around in a $25,000 bass boat,I would expect problems too.


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## shroomhunter (Aug 6, 2004)

After reading through this thread and even my own original post a couple things seem clear. Guys like LOTPand Harbor Hunter fish tournaments on a large scale and quite possibly this is their source of income(job). I would tend to believe that they need to have the best equipment possible, regardless of expense. Looking at it this way and comparing it to a self employed tradesman, you need to have equipment that gives you the best performance and dependability. I myself was a self employed pipeline welder and I only bought one brand of welding electrode, it was reliable and provided me the ability to make perfect X-ray welds every time. It was nearly double the cost of any other brand but worth every dime to me. Down time because of re-work or failures cost time which =money. Does a $20 crankbait seem expensive to me? Certainly
Would a $200 box of welding rod seem expensive to a tournament fisherman? Yes
The point I'm making is that whatever you do for a living, tourney fuishing, plumbing, welding etc. it always pays to have the best equipment possible and whatever edge you gain from that is an advantage. I would certainly want to believe that my Doctor or Dentist has the best equipment possible before cutting on me. I have a very good friend that has been making lures for many years, topwater, crankbaits etc. He has a group of circuit fisherman that send him work every winter with specs, color pattern etc. This work is all kept secret and nobody gets to see what he is working on for these guys. These lures work, I am fortunate enough to have a few in my box, not the secret colors but a few that he sells to anyone, there is no doubt why these guys contact him yearly for more baits. I believe most tournament anglers have tools in their box that you cannot get at a store, it gives them an edge at times and sometimes 1 fish can make all the difference in the world between collecting a check and leaving empty handed. As expensive as these lures and tackle can be a tournament angler must have wins, to eat, stay in hotels, buy fuel and more importantly to retain and gain sponsers, without them a guy would go broke. 
I fish for recreation, that's it, do I NEED a $20 crankbait, of course not but I do not begrudge anyone buying the best tools available for the job at hand. Now after reading all of these posts regarding the Lucky Craft crankbaits I would appreciate a PM from one of the tournament guys with some recommendations of which LC crankbait I should buy to catch some nice Smallies at Chautauqua Lake. No tournament fishing for me, I am just planning a trip there when Bass season comes in with my Son so he can catch some fish.


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## robertj298 (Feb 23, 2009)

Harbor Hunter said:


> I would bet you won't see KVD using a $200.00 outfit,or fishing $7.00 lures-LMAO! Who ever said you need expensive lures to catch big bass? I catch a very fair share amount of Lake Erie and Lake St.Clair smallies on tubes or drop shot baits that probably wouldn't cost 4 or 5 bucks for a pack of them.I use what works,and what holds up the most.To me,nothing out performs a Lucky Craft crankbait,nothing is as good as a Lucky Craft Redemption spinnerbait,again that's my own opinion.I love my Stella's,not because they're pricey,but because each does the job for me that it's intended to do,and they don't break down.80% of my rods are G.Loomis,the rest are all St.Croix,why? Because they work,they have the feel I'm looking for,and again,they last forever.If you're only consistently catching 1 lb'ers,maybe you should try different tactics,or different waters.


Your right you won't see KVD using a $200 outfit but then again you won't see KVD spending $700-$1,000 for an outfit, he gets them for free LOL. KVD is good not because of his equipment but because of his knowledge of bass fishing. I'm not saying equipment has nothing to do with success but I believe it has far less to do with it than the person using the equipment.


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

this thread is cracking me up! it reminds me of the guy that works on his 1985 monte carlo in his driveway. it has a bored out 305 with nitrous oxide, a blower(traded a 1976 silverado for the blower) with a muncie 4 spd, air shocks etc. he put all these parts on his monte carlo with his craftsmen tools and the occasional, made in china crescent wrench. then he tells anyone and everyone that craftsmen makes the best tools out there, they are just as good as the high dollar stuff like SNAP ON and MAC tools. he then in the same breath says, "its completely stupid to spend 100k on a zr1 corvette, look at my monte carlo, traded a lawn mower for it, it will run 11 second 1/4 miles just the same as that corvette"! 

to the people that think they can go out and COMPETE(meaning not finish at the bottom of the board every time you go out) in major bass tournaments or even minor bass tournaments with a $10 reel and a $15 dollar rod then you might be the greatest angler ever if you decided to start spending some cash.


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

one more thing, the amount of money, the amount of time a guy spends on anything is a good indicator of how passionate a person is about whatever it is they are doing. the more passionate someone is, the more likely they are to become good at it. if you dont spend the money, if you dont spend the time then chances are you dont care as much and therefore you wont be as good at it.

ive never met a single person that has a bass boat that only bought his boat because it looked cool. ive also never meant anyone that bought expensive tackle just because he is trying to impress the bank fisherman. we buy the stuff we buy because its all that we care about, weve weeded through miles and miles of junk, enough junk to realize that in the end, you get what you pay for and if something works, then its worth whatever it costs.
someone said earlier that people that buy $2000 golf clubs think they are tiger woods. well guess what? tiger woods clubs can cost as much as $32,000. would you pay 30k to shave 2 strokes off your game, tiger would. would i pay $20 for a crankbait to help me catch 2 more bass per week. HELL YES. if those two extra fish dont mean anything to you, then you wouldnt understand.


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## Triton20X (Apr 11, 2008)

I've spent time in two pro's boats on the Bassmaster Elite Series as a marshall in two different tournaments. Big time names who each finished in the top 25 in their event. One caught fish on Lucky Craft and Norman cranks (no "special" colors) and the other caught every fish he weighed on baits you could buy at Wal Mart.

Instead of arguing about how much to pay for a bait or it's effectiveness, you all should spend a little more time worrying about fish location and proper presentation. That's how you fill a livewell!

I will tell you this too, a lot of pros are throwing those $5 baits but they are ones that are out of production, hard to find or with custom paint jobs (Omori at Wylie and KVD at Pittsburgh are two good examples of that trend).


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## robertj298 (Feb 23, 2009)

lordofthepunks said:


> this thread is cracking me up! it reminds me of the guy that works on his 1985 monte carlo in his driveway. it has a bored out 305 with nitrous oxide, a blower(traded a 1976 silverado for the blower) with a muncie 4 spd, air shocks etc. he put all these parts on his monte carlo with his craftsmen tools and the occasional, made in china crescent wrench. then he tells anyone and everyone that craftsmen makes the best tools out there, they are just as good as the high dollar stuff like SNAP ON and MAC tools. he then in the same breath says, "its completely stupid to spend 100k on a zr1 corvette, look at my monte carlo, traded a lawn mower for it, it will run 11 second 1/4 miles just the same as that corvette"!
> 
> to the people that think they can go out and COMPETE(meaning not finish at the bottom of the board every time you go out) in major bass tournaments or even minor bass tournaments with a $10 reel and a $15 dollar rod then you might be the greatest angler ever if you decided to start spending some cash.


Cracks me up too. Reminds me of the guy who has the most expensive tools made and thus thinks he's an auto mechanic when he doesn't know squat about cars. My mechanic has expensive tools but could fix my car with walmart tools if he wanted.

I know people who compete very well using reels under $150 and rods under $100


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## spfldbassguy (Mar 23, 2009)

lordofthepunks said:


> one more thing, the amount of money, the amount of time a guy spends on anything is a good indicator of how passionate a person is about whatever it is they are doing. the more passionate someone is, the more likely they are to become good at it. if you dont spend the money, if you dont spend the time then chances are you dont care as much and therefore you wont be as good at it.
> 
> ive never met a single person that has a bass boat that only bought his boat because it looked cool. ive also never meant anyone that bought expensive tackle just because he is trying to impress the bank fisherman. we buy the stuff we buy because its all that we care about, weve weeded through miles and miles of junk, enough junk to realize that in the end, you get what you pay for and if something works, then its worth whatever it costs.
> someone said earlier that people that buy $2000 golf clubs think they are tiger woods. well guess what? tiger woods clubs can cost as much as $32,000. would you pay 30k to shave 2 strokes off your game, tiger would. would i pay $20 for a crankbait to help me catch 2 more bass per week. HELL YES. if those two extra fish dont mean anything to you, then you wouldnt understand.


Dude me and you seem to disagree alot about things concerning sports but I think your post hit the nail on the head perfectly. You're absolutely correct in saying that how much time someone spends doing something is a good indicator on how passionate they are about it. For example there's great musicians and why are they great? They're great because they spent countless hours practicing to perfect their artform. Anybody think that Hendrix just picked up a guitar and two hours later he became great at playing it? Anyone think that say for instance Neil Young wrote some of his best songs the first day he put pen to paper? Anyone think that Peyton Manning could throw the ball with deadly pin point precision the first day he ever tossed a football? How many hours did Jordan,Bird,Magic spend perfecting their game on the court? I'll probably never enter a bass fishing tournament but I spend a hell of alot of time on the water trying to become the very best angler that I can be. Why do I fish around 165-180 days in a year,because I'm very passionate about it and want to catch more and bigger bass all the time. I don't fish just for bass but a little bit of everything at times because it's what I'm passionate about doing. I've upgraded a few of my rods n reels and have also bought some high end lures and why did I do that. Because I absolutely love fishing and want gear that I can trust to work. Oh yeah if I did fish tournys and wanted to gain a few extra pounds of fish a week by then all means I'd buy the best stuff available. LOTP good luck in your upcoming tourny and I hope you place well.


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## spfldbassguy (Mar 23, 2009)

Anyone think those tubes KVD uses to catch smallies cost over $20 a piece? My guess is that they don't cost nearly that amount. KVD is a great angler and so many other pros are as well. They got to be that good because they learned the right ways to fish first and foremost then they upgraded their gear as they become better and better. Anybody ever heard IKE talk about his "emergency box" that he keeps on board? One of his go to lures if all else isn't working is a Rooster Tail. A Rooster Tail for petes sake. So for those to believe that all the pros use only high end stuff you might want to rethink that. Those guys will use whatever will work on any given day and it doesn't matter if the lure cost $25 or $5.


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## Harbor Hunter (Aug 19, 2007)

Great post,you hit the nail on the head.It doesn't matter what the price of a lure is,or the price of a rod or reel,what matters is how well they perform when you need them too.Yes I have dozens upon dozens of Lucky Craft's,I also have at least that many FF Shads,and Strike King Series crankbaits as well,if I went through all my gear I could probably locate a few Bandits as well.IMO the Lucky Craft's shine on the gin clear waters up north that I fish like Burt/Mullet and Traverse Bay,they have an impeccable finish,with a color scheme that bass just don't see on other cranks.When I'm fishing lakes in KY or TN,I actually prefer using the FF Shads in either Citruse or Citrus Shad,waters on the east coast such as Chesapeake Bay,I've had great success with Redeye shads.The main question was if I thought the top dollar lures were worth the money,yes I most certainly do,same as all the gear I have,but that doesn't mean that I don't think less costly stuff isn't worthwhile also,any lure or any technique can be hot on a given day,it's wise to have a good selection.


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

robertj298 said:


> Cracks me up too. Reminds me of the guy who has the most expensive tools made and thus thinks he's an auto mechanic when he doesn't know squat about cars. My mechanic has expensive tools but could fix my car with walmart tools if he wanted.
> 
> I know people who compete very well using reels under $150 and rods under $100


and again, your making the assumption that people on this forum that have expensive gear dont know how to fish and only think they do because they have expensive gear. the point that we make is people that dont know how to fish dont buy expensive gear. at least ive never known any. just like i dont know anyone working on their monte carlo in their driveway that buy mac tools.


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

spfldbassguy said:


> Dude me and you seem to disagree alot about things concerning sports but I think your post hit the nail on the head perfectly. You're absolutely correct in saying that how much time someone spends doing something is a good indicator on how passionate they are about it. For example there's great musicians and why are they great? They're great because they spent countless hours practicing to perfect their artform. Anybody think that Hendrix just picked up a guitar and two hours later he became great at playing it? Anyone think that say for instance Neil Young wrote some of his best songs the first day he put pen to paper? Anyone think that Peyton Manning could throw the ball with deadly pin point precision the first day he ever tossed a football? How many hours did Jordan,Bird,Magic spend perfecting their game on the court? I'll probably never enter a bass fishing tournament but I spend a hell of alot of time on the water trying to become the very best angler that I can be. Why do I fish around 165-180 days in a year,because I'm very passionate about it and want to catch more and bigger bass all the time. I don't fish just for bass but a little bit of everything at times because it's what I'm passionate about doing. I've upgraded a few of my rods n reels and have also bought some high end lures and why did I do that. Because I absolutely love fishing and want gear that I can trust to work. Oh yeah if I did fish tournys and wanted to gain a few extra pounds of fish a week by then all means I'd buy the best stuff available. LOTP good luck in your upcoming tourny and I hope you place well.


thanks for the support, yeah, we disagree alot on the sports thread but hey, its sports, what do you do. my best freind in the world is a bengals fan... he is always wrong too


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## st.slippy (Oct 3, 2008)

Read through this a number of times throughout the weeks it's been up. Here is my 2 cents. Lures can give you an edge, but you have to present them correctly. So for me, I'll have them all, because they all have there place. Tubes I caught the most fish on I got 50 for $5.00. Whatever you are throwing, learn it inside and out, watch it move in the water, and see what your movements make it do. When you throw a lure, knowing you are presenting it in a way that catches fish, then you will have the confidence in it and will catch more fish. My experience with some higher end lure makers have been mixed. I have gotten some great baits, but some that have not performed to my expectations out of the box. I can deal with a suspending lure that I paid $5.00 for not suspending, but when I drop $20 that thing better freaking suspend. Basically, what I'm saying is that lures in every price range can produce fish, it is the brain behind them that makes them work. Know what your throwing and how to use it. The lures that are expensive are probably that way because of the research and development and quality control that they put into them, and your chances of pulling them out of the box and them working correctly are much higher. Just realize if you go buy a bunch of LC's you are not gonna have fish magically biting or jumping in the boat.


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## Dandrews (Oct 10, 2010)

St. Slippy you stole my thunder
This threads pretty entertaining; I think price is a relative thingprice vs. value. The lures in my box run the price gamut; good or bad some how or another I justified the purchases in my mind. I dont know what LCs mark-up is but theyre not going to get any more than the market will give. Right now the markets giving them about $ 15.00 a piece. I had the lip come off of a couple Flat Raps last year. With what I spent on those I could have bought a Pointer Minnow or something else that might have held up better. To me, that makes $ 7.50 or so for a Flat Rap expensive and $ 15.00 or so for a Pointer Minnow more reasonable but that comes with more expectations than just the lip staying on. On the other end of the scale Ive got a couple Bass Pro XPS Nitro Minnows that Ive been successful with. I dont have a melt down if I lose one and Ive never had one self destruct.


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