1. How long have you been making lures?
Larry has been making plugs for 4 years
2. What was the biggest help in learning how to make lures?
When he got into plug making, he learned a lot by using the plug building forum on S-B. It was
very informative and there was always people willing and ready to give advice and help. He saw
some of the beautiful plugs people were making through the S-B forum. S-B was an invaluable
resource of help and information in learning to create lures
3. What was your favorite plug to use when fishing?
Larry started out by throwing Gibbs pencils, that was the best part of fishing for him.
4. Have you done anything to encourage others to make plugs?
Larry set up the first MSBA Plug Night when he was the Entertainment Coordinator for other lure
builders to come show and even sell their own plugs if they wanted.
5. How did you benefit from that night?
Larry bought a used lathe and scroll saw that night from and got good at turning lures pretty quick.
6. What was the first lure you ever turned?
It was similar to a Gibbs popper, although he never fished with it, he still has it hanging in his shop.
7. After the popper, what was next lure he started making?
Larry started making needle fish, similar to Habs. He made about a dozen and a half plugs in his
second batch and fished them
8. What was your best memory of fishing with your own lures?
Larry fished with his friend Matt (S-B, Slingah) down the Cape one June night on Ballston Beach.
It was the first night out fishing with his own handmade fishing lures and they pounded the fish all night
long, including 17 keeper sized fish up to 25-pounds on his needlefish. He fished that same lure until
he noticed the split ring had straightened out and he lost a hook. After he retired that lure, he pulled
another one out of his bag and hooked into another 10 fish. What an exciting and awesome feeling!
9. Where were you when you started making your own lures?
Larry started out making lures when he lived in Abington, making them under a carport outside in
the cold, he later moved to an unheated garage. Like with anything, his lures just kept getting better.
10. What is the biggest inspiration you draw from when making your own lures?
Draws his inspiration from other people lures, color schemes, details like layered paints, mimicking
bait fish, action, appearance and motion. It’s hard to come up with a different style, there are so
many variations, but the custom look and action is what makes them unique. He visions the action
in his head that he’d like to see the lure make.
11. What is your favorite pattern to make into lures and how did you come up with it?
Everyone has a bunker pattern lure, Larry went with a more realistic appearance. He saw his first
adult bunker during a bluefish blitz in Rhode Island, the blues were pushing the bunker right up
against the rocks and anglers were snagging them there. Such a beautiful fish, he wanted to copy
it as closely as possible.
12. Who do you look to and try to learn from and why?
Ryan Smith and John Huff aka "Bernzy" from Bernzy Bait Company are two of the best lure makers
and painters, the way they blend their paints and make the transition seamless to make the bait look
more natural.
13. How many test variations do you make for each lure when creating new ones?
When making lures, he’d make 3 or 4 bodies, weight them differently and test fish them to see the
action, some will have belly weights, some will have tail weights, some have no weight. Test fish
them and move the weight around until you get the action you want. He'll mark each lure and keep
notes for each individual action created by his rod movement and decide how best to change things
to get the motion and action he visioned in his head prior to casting.
14. Your lures are so lifelike and brilliantly painted, how long have you been painting?
Larry has only been using an airbrush on his lures for a little under 2-years now. To look at any his lures,
the detail and precision of his painting, you'd think he had been doing it for many years. That's more
a testament to the fanatical side of him when it comes to his lures
15. Not all of the lures have solid colors, how do you paint the scale patterns on the lures?
When asked how he makes the scale pattern, he not only explained how he does it, he took the time
to give me a painting demonstration after all of the questions were done.
16. How long does it take to make an individual plug?
Larry very rarely will make an individual plug, but each plug generally gets handled up to 40 times each.
Between each step, it gets a thorough inspection to make sure that everything is right on it, the paint
has to be perfect, the eyes have to even, the lip has to be straight etc. Basically, from the time he cuts
the plug from the ballaster until he is done hanging the hooks, each plug may take up to 40-minutes
each. After each plug is machined, it goes through several steps including sealing, priming, painting,
clearing, wiring, dressing, packaging and hook protectors attached.
17. What are the general steps in plug making?
Once all the bodies are shaped, they all get drilled out on the drill press, laid on the bench, the chin
weights are installed using lead shot one by one, wood filler is mixed up and used to fill the holes, then
placed back on the lathe and sanded smooth. Larry spends a lot of time hand sanding his lures once
the lip slots are cut, the belly swivel holes are drilled and the ends are cut off. This not only adds a
personal touch to each lure, it also insures that each lure is perfect, further enforcing his fanatical
stance that you may not get from mass produced lures.
18. What kind of wood do you use to make your lures and why?
Larry uses Alaskan Yellow Cedar for his lures because it is soft, easy to turn and has a natural
resistance to water absorption.
19. What do you use to seal your lures and for how long?
All of his lures are sealed in boiled linsead oil and mineral spirits. He has heard that you don't need to
seal this type of wood because of its natural resistance but wanted to test that for himself. He sealed
several different bodies for different lengths of time, varying from 30-seconds to 12-hours and let them
dry for a week. He cut them open to check the penetration level and all were about the same.
20. Why did you get into building lures in the first place? Is it a job you can retire on?
Larry basically builds lures because he enjoys doing it, most lure makers have other jobs to make a
living at. It's more a rewarding feeling that he gets than a financial winfall. He would prefer to have
someone call him and tell him that they just caught a monster fish than be given X-amount of dollars
for his lures. To think that someone did well out fishing on a plug that he made from scratch with his
hands is a feeling that you just can't put a price tag on.
21. Does plug color make a difference with season changes?
Plug color can make a difference in regards to change of season in terms of what type of bait is around
at the time. Plug color or what your choice of plug color should be is most affected by whether its day or
night or by water clarity and conditions. Night colors are most dictated by moon phase. If it is a "new
moon" where there is no moonlight, then a darker color such as black or black and purple might be a
good choice where a night with the moon shining down on you, a white or "lighter" color combination
would work well. During daylight hours any light color combinations would work fine, however, should
the water be murky or cloudy as it might be after a rainstorm, a more vibrant color such as yellow or a
combination of yellow and green may work best.
22. Do certain colors or patterns necessarily catch more fish than others?
Colors and patterns certainly make a difference, but the thing that catches the most fish is confidence.
The fisherman must be confident in what they are throwing out there. The better they feel about what
is being used, the more effort they put into the way they make the lure act and react. Many builders
feel that the paint scheme is more for the fisherman than the fish.
23. How many plugs do you make each year and do you sell them all?
Larry estimated that he makes between 500 and 600 plugs per year. Although most of them get sold
through a limited number of tackle shops he deals with on a regular basis, he also sells them through
his own website (www.bigfishbaitco.com). Larry gives away many of his lures each year, either to
fishermen he talks with on the beach or for different charitable reasons. Earlier this year, he
sponsored a fishing trip for the junior members program of the MSBA, the Striper Swipers. During
that event, Larry not only gave out a free handmade lure to everyone that showed up (which by the
way, was the biggest turn-out I've ever seen), he taught the kids how to cast and retrieve with them. I
know my daughter and every kid that attended was grateful and learned something that day.
24. What do you get out of it by giving your lures away as opposed to selling them all?
I do tend to give quite a few plugs away. Sometimes I think I give away more than I sell. There are a few
reasons I give away some plugs. Perhaps there is a charity function or fundraiser and I will give some
away to help out. The Striper Swiper outing this past July is a good example as we had some 20-25
people come out and they each got a pencil popper. Most of those people were young children and it
was a good way to expose them to fishing with artificial lures, they are fun to fish and kids love getting
anything for free! I also give some away to friends or other fishermen to get them to try them out and
give me some feedback. Its tough to get started in a business such as custom lure building as many
folks have their "favorites" and it can be difficult to get them to try something new. I find once in awhile
if I give someone a free lure, they might try it and like it......then they are hooked! They may even tell a
friend or two about them, especially if they are catching fish and their friends are not and they want to
know what they are catching the fish on. Then they have to have them.
25. Do you fish with any lures other than the ones you make yourself?
I had to laugh when I asked him this question because he referred to it as a Katie Couric question!
To be honest, he said he doesn't, he only fishes with his own lures and for good reason, he is always
looking for his personal best fish and when he finds it, he wants it to be on one of his own lures.
Last year was the first year that he fished with nothing but his own lures and he had the best year of
fishing ever, he was in to more fish than ever before. That has got to be the best feeling ever!!!!!
Larry has been making plugs for 4 years
2. What was the biggest help in learning how to make lures?
When he got into plug making, he learned a lot by using the plug building forum on S-B. It was
very informative and there was always people willing and ready to give advice and help. He saw
some of the beautiful plugs people were making through the S-B forum. S-B was an invaluable
resource of help and information in learning to create lures
3. What was your favorite plug to use when fishing?
Larry started out by throwing Gibbs pencils, that was the best part of fishing for him.
4. Have you done anything to encourage others to make plugs?
Larry set up the first MSBA Plug Night when he was the Entertainment Coordinator for other lure
builders to come show and even sell their own plugs if they wanted.
5. How did you benefit from that night?
Larry bought a used lathe and scroll saw that night from and got good at turning lures pretty quick.
6. What was the first lure you ever turned?
It was similar to a Gibbs popper, although he never fished with it, he still has it hanging in his shop.
7. After the popper, what was next lure he started making?
Larry started making needle fish, similar to Habs. He made about a dozen and a half plugs in his
second batch and fished them
8. What was your best memory of fishing with your own lures?
Larry fished with his friend Matt (S-B, Slingah) down the Cape one June night on Ballston Beach.
It was the first night out fishing with his own handmade fishing lures and they pounded the fish all night
long, including 17 keeper sized fish up to 25-pounds on his needlefish. He fished that same lure until
he noticed the split ring had straightened out and he lost a hook. After he retired that lure, he pulled
another one out of his bag and hooked into another 10 fish. What an exciting and awesome feeling!
9. Where were you when you started making your own lures?
Larry started out making lures when he lived in Abington, making them under a carport outside in
the cold, he later moved to an unheated garage. Like with anything, his lures just kept getting better.
10. What is the biggest inspiration you draw from when making your own lures?
Draws his inspiration from other people lures, color schemes, details like layered paints, mimicking
bait fish, action, appearance and motion. It’s hard to come up with a different style, there are so
many variations, but the custom look and action is what makes them unique. He visions the action
in his head that he’d like to see the lure make.
11. What is your favorite pattern to make into lures and how did you come up with it?
Everyone has a bunker pattern lure, Larry went with a more realistic appearance. He saw his first
adult bunker during a bluefish blitz in Rhode Island, the blues were pushing the bunker right up
against the rocks and anglers were snagging them there. Such a beautiful fish, he wanted to copy
it as closely as possible.
12. Who do you look to and try to learn from and why?
Ryan Smith and John Huff aka "Bernzy" from Bernzy Bait Company are two of the best lure makers
and painters, the way they blend their paints and make the transition seamless to make the bait look
more natural.
13. How many test variations do you make for each lure when creating new ones?
When making lures, he’d make 3 or 4 bodies, weight them differently and test fish them to see the
action, some will have belly weights, some will have tail weights, some have no weight. Test fish
them and move the weight around until you get the action you want. He'll mark each lure and keep
notes for each individual action created by his rod movement and decide how best to change things
to get the motion and action he visioned in his head prior to casting.
14. Your lures are so lifelike and brilliantly painted, how long have you been painting?
Larry has only been using an airbrush on his lures for a little under 2-years now. To look at any his lures,
the detail and precision of his painting, you'd think he had been doing it for many years. That's more
a testament to the fanatical side of him when it comes to his lures
15. Not all of the lures have solid colors, how do you paint the scale patterns on the lures?
When asked how he makes the scale pattern, he not only explained how he does it, he took the time
to give me a painting demonstration after all of the questions were done.
16. How long does it take to make an individual plug?
Larry very rarely will make an individual plug, but each plug generally gets handled up to 40 times each.
Between each step, it gets a thorough inspection to make sure that everything is right on it, the paint
has to be perfect, the eyes have to even, the lip has to be straight etc. Basically, from the time he cuts
the plug from the ballaster until he is done hanging the hooks, each plug may take up to 40-minutes
each. After each plug is machined, it goes through several steps including sealing, priming, painting,
clearing, wiring, dressing, packaging and hook protectors attached.
17. What are the general steps in plug making?
Once all the bodies are shaped, they all get drilled out on the drill press, laid on the bench, the chin
weights are installed using lead shot one by one, wood filler is mixed up and used to fill the holes, then
placed back on the lathe and sanded smooth. Larry spends a lot of time hand sanding his lures once
the lip slots are cut, the belly swivel holes are drilled and the ends are cut off. This not only adds a
personal touch to each lure, it also insures that each lure is perfect, further enforcing his fanatical
stance that you may not get from mass produced lures.
18. What kind of wood do you use to make your lures and why?
Larry uses Alaskan Yellow Cedar for his lures because it is soft, easy to turn and has a natural
resistance to water absorption.
19. What do you use to seal your lures and for how long?
All of his lures are sealed in boiled linsead oil and mineral spirits. He has heard that you don't need to
seal this type of wood because of its natural resistance but wanted to test that for himself. He sealed
several different bodies for different lengths of time, varying from 30-seconds to 12-hours and let them
dry for a week. He cut them open to check the penetration level and all were about the same.
20. Why did you get into building lures in the first place? Is it a job you can retire on?
Larry basically builds lures because he enjoys doing it, most lure makers have other jobs to make a
living at. It's more a rewarding feeling that he gets than a financial winfall. He would prefer to have
someone call him and tell him that they just caught a monster fish than be given X-amount of dollars
for his lures. To think that someone did well out fishing on a plug that he made from scratch with his
hands is a feeling that you just can't put a price tag on.
21. Does plug color make a difference with season changes?
Plug color can make a difference in regards to change of season in terms of what type of bait is around
at the time. Plug color or what your choice of plug color should be is most affected by whether its day or
night or by water clarity and conditions. Night colors are most dictated by moon phase. If it is a "new
moon" where there is no moonlight, then a darker color such as black or black and purple might be a
good choice where a night with the moon shining down on you, a white or "lighter" color combination
would work well. During daylight hours any light color combinations would work fine, however, should
the water be murky or cloudy as it might be after a rainstorm, a more vibrant color such as yellow or a
combination of yellow and green may work best.
22. Do certain colors or patterns necessarily catch more fish than others?
Colors and patterns certainly make a difference, but the thing that catches the most fish is confidence.
The fisherman must be confident in what they are throwing out there. The better they feel about what
is being used, the more effort they put into the way they make the lure act and react. Many builders
feel that the paint scheme is more for the fisherman than the fish.
23. How many plugs do you make each year and do you sell them all?
Larry estimated that he makes between 500 and 600 plugs per year. Although most of them get sold
through a limited number of tackle shops he deals with on a regular basis, he also sells them through
his own website (www.bigfishbaitco.com). Larry gives away many of his lures each year, either to
fishermen he talks with on the beach or for different charitable reasons. Earlier this year, he
sponsored a fishing trip for the junior members program of the MSBA, the Striper Swipers. During
that event, Larry not only gave out a free handmade lure to everyone that showed up (which by the
way, was the biggest turn-out I've ever seen), he taught the kids how to cast and retrieve with them. I
know my daughter and every kid that attended was grateful and learned something that day.
24. What do you get out of it by giving your lures away as opposed to selling them all?
I do tend to give quite a few plugs away. Sometimes I think I give away more than I sell. There are a few
reasons I give away some plugs. Perhaps there is a charity function or fundraiser and I will give some
away to help out. The Striper Swiper outing this past July is a good example as we had some 20-25
people come out and they each got a pencil popper. Most of those people were young children and it
was a good way to expose them to fishing with artificial lures, they are fun to fish and kids love getting
anything for free! I also give some away to friends or other fishermen to get them to try them out and
give me some feedback. Its tough to get started in a business such as custom lure building as many
folks have their "favorites" and it can be difficult to get them to try something new. I find once in awhile
if I give someone a free lure, they might try it and like it......then they are hooked! They may even tell a
friend or two about them, especially if they are catching fish and their friends are not and they want to
know what they are catching the fish on. Then they have to have them.
25. Do you fish with any lures other than the ones you make yourself?
I had to laugh when I asked him this question because he referred to it as a Katie Couric question!
To be honest, he said he doesn't, he only fishes with his own lures and for good reason, he is always
looking for his personal best fish and when he finds it, he wants it to be on one of his own lures.
Last year was the first year that he fished with nothing but his own lures and he had the best year of
fishing ever, he was in to more fish than ever before. That has got to be the best feeling ever!!!!!
| Massachusetts Striped Bass Association Since 1950 |
| FISHING SPOTLIGHT Questions & Answers |
| Here are the answers to several of the questions I asked Larry during my visit... |
| Larry Wentworth BigFish Bait Co. |
| MY OVERVIEW OF MY TIME WITH LARRY It was not only amazing to me but difficult to believe when looking at Larry’s workmanship that he has only been making lures for a few years and using an airbrush for 2 years. I was thoroughly impressed, not only with the talent and patience it takes to create and hand paint the bodies, but the time and effort it takes to make each lure. Learning about the long and tedious steps it takes to create each lure including the attention to detail that goes in to each and every one was just mind boggling. I have a whole new appreciation for what Larry and other lure makers go through after having a chance to see the entire process. Larry is not only a great guy and avid fisherman, he is a true professional that is truly fanatical when it comes to his lures. He will spend endless time on each of his lures to insure it is perfect or he won't be satisfied. That's a good thing for people who use his lures when looking for the big catch. Larry has spent time compiling fishing stories and notes over the past 10-years and hopes to put everything into a format that will be interesting, informative and will represent what type of person and angler he is. It seems that he is his own worst critic when it comes to everything he does, which is understandable since whatever he puts out there will have his name on it and wants it to be perfect. CLICK HERE TO VIEW SOME PICTURES FROM MY INTERVIEW WITH LARRY Be Sure to Visit Larry's Website and Pick Yourself Up A Couple of His Creations and "Put A Big Fish on the End of Your Line" www.bigfishbaitco.com There is always something going on in the BigFish Cave! MSBA HOMEPAGE |
| LARRY'S TIP FOR FISHING HIS LURES Finding and getting into the fish is the first part of landing the trophy catch, but it takes more than that. Above and beyond all else, knowing how to properly fish each lure is what will catch you fish. So Larry's tip is this: "Vary your retrieval speed, find out how the fish like it" |