Well here it goes I'm sure this topic is going to get me called everything from a cheapskate to just plain stupid but I'm gonna do it anyway.  I think that fishing tackle, baits and lures in particular, have become a mass marketed cash cow for the big companies and are more about catching fishermen's money than they are about catching fish.  I went to Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World this past weekend shopping for a couple new frogs, some swimbaits, and a Rapala jointed shad rap in the baby bass color to replace the one I lost last weekend.  Well as I was going into the fishing section I see a bin in the middle of the main ailse with an assortment of crankbaits, poppers, jerkbaits, and even some jointed baits very similar to the shad rap for $1.99.  They are an off brand, but look good and have a variety of colors available.  I look through the bin then proceed into the fishing department to find what I had really come after.  I get to the section with the Rapalas and the one I'm looking for is $7.49.  My God, $7.49 for a little jointed crank bait!  I'm not gonna pay that!  So I go to the frogs, and the brand names in them are $8.99.  I'm thinking that this is just plain ridiculous so I go on to the swimbaits and I almost faint.  There are swimbaits over $20.00 a peice, not $20.00 + for a pack of 5 or 6, $20.00 for one bait.  At that point I decide that this is just a rip off.  If I pay over $20.00 for one lure it better catch a fish on every cast, swim it back to the boat, pull it out of the water, and drop it in the live well all while I sit comfortably and watch.  So I go back to the $1.99 bin and pick out an assortment of baits.  So here's the part that's gonna upset a few people.  I think that all these high priced name brand lures are just rip offs designed to catch money not fish.  I believe I could take one of the $1.99 lures and catch just as many if not more fish than someone fishing a comparable high priced lure.  I think these over priced lures are more of a status symbol for the fisherman to make him feel better about his fishing, kind of like the man who thinks he has to wear an Armani suit or the woman who thinks she has to carry a Prada handbag when a suit or bag from JC Penny would work just as well.  I hate to break it to you guys the fish can't read the Rapala name on the lip of that crankbait, and they could care less if you paid $20.00 or $2.00.

Hey, Bbrown.  Let us know how they work out.  I have used cheap lures and after the first time or two, they were rusted and unusable.  Also check your hooks.  Make sure they are sharp.  When I buy any Heddon lures, the first thing I do is change the hooks.  They come with dull hooks.

Good luck

Gary

I am hearing what you say about the hooks, Tom!  Ya spend all that money for a lure and the hooks are junk!  I also have spare hooks and a hook sharpener for that reason (not the only reason!).

But the cost of new lures is just a little over the top...Even on eBay, folks bid up the price on a lure even when you can buy it in the store for less!  This is what has prompted me to refinish damaged lures and even making my own such as inline spinners.

Nice to know I'm not alone in thinking that lure prices have got out of control.

Like some of you said I realize there is a difference in some of the cheap lures that you can buy, and yes, some of the cheap stuff just looks like junk.  But for $1.99 you can afford to replace the hooks on a lure, or just replace it if it gets too bad.  What I usually do is hit the clearance sales at the end of the summer and in the late winter when they are trying to git rid of last years styles and colors to make room for the new ones.  As far as the lures running true out of the box and the hooks being sharp, I've had it both ways, cheap lures that run true and more expensive ones that need tuning, the same with hooks.  I just seems to vary with each lure.

If none of you guys are buying those $20 + lures, I wonder who is?? 

This is a good wholesale site.  Realize that the inventory changes on a regular basis...

http://www.gofishin.com/

Maybe I'll start smoking so then I can tell the wife I'll quit if I can spend the money on fishing tackle.  Better not, I'd probably get kicked out of the house.  She has a big sign hanging in our game room that says, "If you're smoking in here you better be on fire!!"

Wow Tom, with $50 a week you could buy a couple of those fancy swimbaits, or 8 - 10 reasonably priced lures.