How to Make a Fishing Lure

Between the rods, reels, fishing line, bait, and boat upkeep, fishing can be a pretty expensive hobby. If you’re a fan of fishing, you may want to be able to make your own lure in order to not have to spend money on expensive store-bought fishing gear. Fortunately, whether you opt to make a lure out of wood or out of common household items, making a lure by hand is a task that almost anybody can learn how to do!

EditSteps

EditMaking a Lure out of Wood

1. Cut a block of wood slightly larger than the dimensions of your lure. For example, if you want to make a lure that is long and wide, you should cut the block of wood to be about long and wide. Use a small hand saw to cut the wood to your desired dimensions.^[1]
   
   • For best results, use a softwood, since these are easier to carve and are relatively buoyant. Examples of softwoods to use for making a fish lure include basswood, cedar, poplar, and balsa.
2. Trace the intended design of your lure onto the block of wood. To make a simple lure design, draw long, thin ovals on each of the long sides of the rectangular block, then draw circles on the top and bottom squares of the block. When you go to cut your block of wood along these lines, it will be in the rough shape of a lure.^[2]
   
   • You can also draw a more elaborate design if you have a special one you want to use.
   • You’ll want the shape of your lure to ultimately be long and ovular, so the design you draw on your block of wood should be long and round as well. Don’t worry about having a perfect design just yet; you’ll be able to sand the lure down later.
   • This design will be used to cut away the parts of the wooden block that you won’t use to make your lure.
3. Use a carving knife or a lathe to cut the wood block to fit your design. If you’re using a carving knife, carve off the corners of the block first, then carve along the long sides of the block towards the smaller squares. Continue carving until the wood is roughly shaped like a lure.^[3]
   
   • If you’re using a lathe, simply attach the block to the lathe horizontally and allow it to spin. Then, lay a wood rasp or carving knife along the block to trim away wood until the block comes to resemble the shape of a lure.
4. Sand the lure down to the final shape you want it to be in. Once you’ve created a rough lure shape with the carving knife or lathe, you can now use sandpaper to trim it down to its final intended shape. Start with 80-grit sandpaper to sand down larger areas, then use 150-grit sandpaper to fine tune any areas that just need a small amount of sanding.^[4]
   
   • If you want to sand your lure down even further after all of this, finish with a 220-grit sandpaper.
5. Drill 2 holes on the sides of the lure and 1 on the rear. The 2 side holes should be in the middle of the lure and near its “stomach,” while the rear hole should be on the very end of the lure. These are the holes where you will install your hook hangers. Use a drill with a bit for the best results.^[5]
   
   • You can drill more holes if you intend to hang more than 3 hooks on your lure. However, in most instances, 3 hooks is more than enough.
6. Fill the holes with epoxy and insert an eye screw into each of them. Use a small piping bag to insert clean epoxy resin into the small holes. Don’t worry if some epoxy comes out of the hole when you insert the eye screw; simply use a cloth to wipe it off.^[6]
   
7. Apply epoxy sealer to the lure to make it waterproof. Use a cloth to rub the epoxy into the wood to seal it. Once the epoxy has been applied, leave the lure hanging vertically for 72 hours to allow the epoxy to finish curing.^[7]
   
   • Refrain from using lacquer, enamel, or water-based sealers, since these will not do a good job of actually keeping the lure waterproof.
8. Attach hooks to the eye screws to finish your lure. Use pliers to attach split rings to the eye screws. Then, slide hooks onto these rings, being very careful to not hurt yourself on the sharp hooks.^[8]
   

EditUsing a Spoon or a Piece of Aluminum

1. Cut the bowl end off of a spoon or an ovular piece out of a soda can. Use a hacksaw to cut off the spoon bowl, or use scissors to cut out a piece of a soda can in the shape of an oval. Cut this oval so that it looks like the bowl end of a spoon, if you can.^[9]
   
   • When cutting out a piece of a soda can, aim for the piece to be long for best results.
2. Use a metal file to smooth out the edges of your spoon or aluminum. The edges of these items will be very jagged and sharp, so it’s important to smooth them down as much as possible before working with them. You can also use an emery cloth to sand down the spoon.^[10]
   
   • Use a file with medium cut for best results. You can pick up this type of file at any home improvement store.
3. Drill 2 holes on the 2 opposite ends of the item. These will be the holes you’ll insert your hooks into. For best results, place these holes on the 2 long ends of your spoon or soda can piece. Although some lures have multiple hooks attached to them, lures made out of spoons or soda cans usually shouldn’t have more than 2, so that they maintain the right weight and balance.^[11]
   
4. Use pliers to attach split rings to these holes. Split rings are essentially tiny versions of key rings that are used to fasten hooks and swivels to your lure. For best results, use special split ring pliers to install the rings, since the holes will be quite small. If you can’t find these special pliers, you can also use needle-nose pliers.^[12]
   
   • You’ll probably want to use a size 0 or 1 split ring for this lure.
5. Attach a hook to 1 end of the item and a swivel to the other. Attach the hook on the larger side of the spoon, soda can piece, or piece of cork. Attach the swivel on the smaller end to keep the lure’s movement from twisting the fishing line when you use it.^[13]
   
   • Use needle-nose pliers to attach the hook and swivel to your lure.

EditCrafting a Lure Out of Simple Items

1. Make a lure out of a piece of cork if you have a leftover bottle of wine. Screw eye screws into each of the horizontal ends of the piece of cork, as well as 1 eye screw on its “underbelly.” Then, use needle-nose pliers to attach hooks to the lower eye screw and to 1 end eye screw and attach a swivel to the other to complete your lure.^[14]
   
   • If you like, you can also paint your lure to make it more attractive to fish, although this isn’t strictly necessary.
2. Flatten a penny and turn it into a lure if you have no other use for it. Use a rolling mill to flatten the penny into an ovular shape, then drill 2 holes into the 2 opposite ends of it. Attach split rings to each of these ends, then attach a hook to 1 split ring and a swivel to the other.^[15]
   
   • If you have a heavy sledge hammer and an anvil, you can also repeatedly hammer the penny to flatten it.
   • If you don’t have a rolling mill or a hammer, your best bet will either be to leave the penny on a railroad track and let a passing train flatten it, or take it to an amusement park that has a coin-flattening machine.
   • Use needle-nose pliers to attach the split rings, hook, and swivel.
3. Turn a length of paracord into a simple yet sturdy fishing lure. Pull about of the inner strands out of the paracord, then insert a hook into the paracord length. Use a knife to cut the length of paracord at the top end of the inserted hook. Then, use a blowtorch or lighter to singe the top of the paracord length so that it’s fused together and won’t slip off of the hook.^[16]
   
   • To make sure your paracord lure is secured firmly to the hook, take a piece of inner strand from a separate length of paracord and tie it around the center of your lure.
   • Use your fingers to flush out the inner strands of the paracord after you’re finished to make it more alluring to fish.

EditThings You'll Need

EditMaking a Lure out of Wood

• Wood
• Saw
• Sandpaper
• Drill
• Epoxy resin
• Eye screws
• Hooks

EditUsing a Spoon or a Piece of Aluminum

• Spoon or soda can
• Metal file
• Sandpaper
• Drill
• Pliers
• 2 split rings
• Swivel
• Hook

EditCrafting a Lure Out of Simple Items

• Piece of cork
• Penny
• Length of paracord
• Pliers
• Eye screws
• Rolling mill
• Knife
• Paracord
• Drill
• Split rings
• Hook
• Swivel

EditRelated wikiHows

• Fish With Lures
• Pick Freshwater Fishing Lures
• Choose Lures for Bass Fishing
• Tie a Fishing Knot

EditSources and Citations

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