PLEASE NOTE:

I'm currently not taking orders for a while. Email me at derek@pondbuster.com if you have any questions.

Good luck on the water!

   

 

   

Most of the Pondbuster baits are unique, original and one-of-a-kind designs.  Each one of our original designs was created for anglers that want the advantage of offering pressured bass a different and very effective pattern. Pondbuster original baits can give you a serious edge on pressured waters!

 

Many small bait companies will sell you a variety of baits that are made from stock molds that anybody can buy.  We offer a few baits that can be found elsewhere, but we take pride in the fact that most of our baits are original designs and can only be found here!

 

All of our baits are hand poured one at a time and all of our jigs and weights are hand painted one at a time, with several coats of paint and finish.

 

You buy and try everything else out there... you might as well try Pondbuster!

 

  

 

    

  

  

I get a LOT of questions from people finding my website.  I try to answer emails, but I do get behind, so hopefully I haven't ignored your email for too long before answering you.  I get a lot of hits on my website and sometimes I see what people are searching for when they get here.  This is just some quick answers to some common questions I get a lot.  I will always be adding to this list.

 

 

When will you be selling baits and lures again?

 This is the question I get the most. If I haven't already, I should be selling jerkbaits, custom painted crankbaits, and balsa baits online soon. For now, I've stopped selling soft plastics, jigs and terminal tackle.

  

What happened to all of your plastics and terminal tackle?

I sold hand-poured plastics and some terminal tackle for several years. I have several unique worms, plastic trailers, jigs, and unique terminal tackle items. I'm one guy in a garage pouring, making, and painting each item I sell one at a time. It's almost impossible to keep up with the demand without charging extremely high prices and still have time to do anything else. For now, I'm keeping these items for myself, but eventually I'll return to selling these items. If you ordered anything from me before (I know who you are), shoot me an email at derek@pondbuster.com and I'll see what I can do if you want to re-order something.

    

Do you have some baits on-hand for sale?

Usually the answer to this question is no. Most of the hard baits I'll be selling online will be one-of-a-kind patterns. The photos I will show will be the exact lure for sale. If an item is already sold, I may be able to paint something similar for you if you are seriously interested in purchasing a bait.

   

What do you use to seal and clear coat your lures with?

I've done a lot of experimenting with many different sealing and clear coating products. Devcon 2-Ton Epoxy (D2T) is my go to clear coat.  It's easy to mix and has about a 15 minute pot life, so I can do a few lures at a time before it becomes unworkable. It can be hard to find. I usually find it online or at Westlake Hardware or True Value Hardware.

The D2T is a thick and heavy finish and doesn't work on baits like my 425 Jerkbaits. For those I use a variety of different clear coats. Flex Coat (usually used for a rod finish) works well.  There are a few other clear coats I've tried and some of them are kind of a secret.

As for sealing balsa baits, I've used the D2T to seal them, but lately I've been using propionate pellets mixed with acetone.  I found the pellets on eBay and I have no clue where I found the recipe for mixing. I should have that recipe here soon.  The propionate mix works really good, but does require about 7-8 coats before I prime the balsa baits. It works really good when doing a bunch of baits.

  

Do you sell balsa blanks?

That is an easy question... no.  It takes a long time to get my balsa blanks to the point where they're ready for painting.  If I haven't started selling balsa baits online yet, I can say that they will be very expensive. The reason for that is the time that goes into making the blank.  If I ever sold the blanks, they'd be far to expensive for most people to even consider buying.

   

Where do you get the belly weights for your balsa lures and how much do they weigh?

The belly weights are poured myself.  I've done a lot of experimenting with the size and weight of the belly weight.  It does depend on the quality and weight of the balsa you use, so I've found that it all depends. Usually for the size of the balsa baits I make, the belly weight is about 1/4 oz.  If I had a different quality of balsa or  changed the size of the bait, I'd definitely change the belly weights so the bait would fish the way I want it to fish.

  

How do you keep the screw eyes from ripping out of the balsa baits?

I've made quite a few balsa baits and simply screwed screw eyes into the balsa.  I've caught fish on them and I've also ripped the screw eye out.  I've also built a lot of balsa baits with wire forms (premade and made myself).  The wire form method is far too much work and compromises the amount of balsa in the lure.

The best solution I found was by cutting my balsa, drilling a hole down the center of it, and gluing in a poplar dowel.  After carving, the poplar is down the center, where the front and back screw eyes will be inserted.  The poplar works best because it floats a little less than balsa and it actually makes the bait react in a very cool way. It balances the bait and I've found that it takes a lot less to tune it to get it to swim well.

   

Where do you get the bills for your balsa baits?

My dad is retired and now does stained and fused glass art full time.  He cuts the bills out of 1/8" Lexan, and polishes them to an almost perfect finish.  I've experimented with premade bills and circuit board material, but the clear Lexan definitely works the best in my opinion.

No, I do not sell those either. I feel like I have the best bills there are and made by a true craftsman and artist, so I couldn't charge a ton for them with a clear conscience.

  

Do you have templates for your balsa baits?

No.  My baits have spent years getting to the shape and action they have now. It started as a copy of the profile of a Luckycraft 1.5 crankbait, but flat sided.  It worked it's way into what it is now by lots and lots of trial and error.

The bills are inserted by cutting the slot with a scroll saw.  Each bait is slightly different, so the angle and location of the bill slot depends on the way I feel when I'm cutting the slot. A lot of eyeballing and thinking about how they act goes into where the slot is cut.

    

Where do you get your plastic lure blanks?

I'm not telling... sorry.  They are awesome though.

   

Why is your stuff so expensive?

I actually don't get this question a lot.  I do hear it from some anglers that aren't used to buying expensive lures and baits.  The reason for the balsa bait prices is simple... I've put a LOT of time into making these things awesome and they take a LOT of time to make.  The plastics are expensive because everyone else's plastics have gotten expensive over the past few years.  I don't know if it's the price of plastic or what, but I do know even with my high prices, I'm not making any money doing this.

 

 

             

   

Total Order Amount	Shipping
Up to $50.00	$8.95
$50.01 - $75.00	$10.95
$75.01 - $100.00	$12.95
$100.01 - $150.00	$14.95
Over $150.00	$16.95

      

Please note:  Actual colors and patterns may not be exactly as shown in photos.  Some colors appear darker in thicker baits and more transparent in thinner baits.  Baits with heavy salt may be less transparent than color samples shown. Each bait is hand poured to order one at a time and inspected for quality and appearance.  Please allow additional time for large orders. All prices are in U.S. currency.  Sorry, no international orders at this time.

    

Please email me at derek@pondbuster.com if you have any questions, have additional requests with a particular order, or if you have any problems with placing your order with PayPal.