A Western Renaissance

By the early 1980s, more and more anglers were buying equipment and materials to pour their own baits. By pouring, anglers felt they had an advantage over their competition in that they could make plastics no other anglers had, while also matching colors to specific forage in each lake. Increasing interest in pouring led to an increase in hand-pour companies.

No longer was it just Smitty and the others in the Los Angeles area. Companies like AA (San Diego), CB and Zank’s (West Valley), and Western Plastics (Bakersfield) started popping up all over the Southland. Every reputable tackle shop in Southern California offered hand-poured baits, mostly from local companies.

Although hand-pour companies were growing in number, competition wasn’t a problem. Most small companies supplied a few shops in their areas, and the company owners relied on pouring to pay for their fishing while keeping their day jobs.

The Word Spreads

In contrast to the advertising campaigns of large tackle companies, the hand-pour industry relied on word of mouth. As anglers started traveling from the Southland to fish other parts of the West, they introduced anglers to these special soft plastics. By the late 1980s and early 1990s, hand-poured plastics could be found throughout the western states. While western fishermen were reaping the rewards of these lures, few anglers in the rest of the country had heard of, let alone fished, a hand-poured bait.

It wasn’t until the late 90s that hand-poured baits started to get much national recognition. Touring pros from the West Coast were finishing high in national tournaments, and they revealed some of their secrets. Others heard about the baits in western fishing magazines. Another boost came with the internet. Major companies like Iovino Products, SnakeBite Custom Fishing Tackle, Robo Worms, and Western Plastics opened websites. At first, sales to central, southern, and eastern anglers weren’t as brisk as in the west, but the word was getting out. Now, an Internet search for “Hand Pours” reveals a multitude of companies.

Hand Pouring How-To

Hand pouring differs from injection molding in several ways. Unlike large injection molds with up to 200 cavities, hand-pour molds generally have fewer than four cavities. The cavities are filled one at a time, instead of all at once, increasing the time to make the baits. Increased labor makes hand-poured baits more expensive than their injected cousins, with prices for most hand-poured baits running from $3 to $4 for a pack of ten.

There’s an upside to lower-capacity molds, however. Injection molds have two sides. The molds are filled with plastic under pressure and allowed to cool. Once the plastic has set, the molds are separated and the lures removed.

Because the mold has to be split to remove the baits, the plastic used must be of a harder consistency than what is used for hand-poured baits. Hand-pour molds are open cavity molds, and plastic is poured into the mold without pressure. The plastic is allowed to cool and can be easily pulled without fear of the bait ripping.

Another advantage of hand-poured baits is the ability to produce an infinite array of colors. It’s not uncommon for companies to make a bait with a combination of up to four colors. Most companies also offer custom color options for a minimum order.