Thunder Bay Lure Company

07/28/2026

Finally finished custom painting 12 spoons for a customer. I spent weeks trying different techniques. Different stripe patterns using different materials. Home made stencils. I wanted a curved S stripe.
Then I wanted a lightning bolt. Then it was a long diamond shape.
In the end I came back to masking with tape and making my arrow. It was pretty frustrating going through my failures. But the thought process in designing each idea was exciting. Took me back to my days spent problem solving construction challenges. I sent a photo to the customer and he absolutely loves them. Now … the next nail biter will be the finish coat. Which finish type do I use and how will I apply it ??? 😂
Wish me luck.
If anyone likes the looks of these I can paint 3” casting. 3 3/4” casting spoons. Or 5” trolling spoons.
I’m going to paint this arrow pattern in red and white, bright green and white, yellow and red. And then I’m going to get into some transparent colors. All for my stock. After that I’ll be doing Colorado blades in powder paint. Multi colors. It’s good to be back in my shop again.

07/25/2026

WHAT IS THE ONE FISHING LURE YOU WILL NEVER USE AGAIN ?

07/24/2026

How many of you eat the Bass you catch ?

07/24/2026

This is my dream. I want to catch one huge Pike before my days are no more

Tim Hicks' dad set a northern pike state record in 1992, and now his own recently caught northern is officially a state record-breaker, too.

07/03/2026

Happy 4th of July Weekend.
Big Matt here from Thunder Bay Lure Company.
If your plans include hitting the water for some Fishing, make a point to head on into Onaway and visit Red Oak Gunsmithing. They have a great selection of Fishing Lures and Tackle. Including my own custom painted lures. I hand paint Lure bodies with airbrush to make color combos you will not find anywhere else. I stocked them up with my hand tied Crawler Harnesses too. Speaking of Crawlers, I also own Harvest Moon Worm Ranch and delivered 20 dozen European Night Crawlers to the guys at Red Oak.
These are a much better breed of Crawler as they are much livelier under water and you don’t refrigerate them. Just keep them out of direct sunlight. So no worries of having to keep them in your cooler on the boat or in the refrigerator at home. Keep them at a temp of between 60 F
and 80 F and they will be happy.
You really got to check them out. So head into Onaway and stop at Red Oak Gunsmithing and get ya some.
TIGHT LINES !!!!

06/20/2026

Here’s a heads up for you Walleye fisherman. I just delivered 40 new Crawler Harnesses to Red Oak Gunsmithing located in Downtown Onaway Mi. Colorado Blade floaters and Regular. And French Blade floaters and Regular. I tie them using 20 # Fluorocarbon fishing line, #4 blood hooks.
I also delivered 20 dozen European Night Crawlers through my Harvest Moon Worm Ranch.
You do not refrigerate these crawlers like you would a Canadian. They can survive it temps of 40°F on the low end and 90° F on the upper end. They like to be kept  65°F to 80°F They are extremely active in the water. keep them out of direct sunlight. Stop in to see Eric or Drew at Red Oak Gunsmithing and check out their large display of fishing items. I have stocked many of my hand painted lures you have got to check out.
TIGHT LINES.

06/11/2026

Good Morning. I want to pass on some new information to you all.
Thunder Bay Lure Company will now be selling European Night Crawlers from Harvest Moon Worm Ranch. These are a great Crawler for fishing.
They can be as big or bigger than Canadian Crawlers. They are more lively under water. The do not have to be refrigerated. Fact is if you do it will kill them. Canadian crawlers must be kept at about an average 40°F. The European nightcrawler can survive in temperatures from 40°F to 85°F, with the sweet spot being 60 to 70°F. That means you don’t have to keep them in your cooler when out on the boat just keep them out of direct sun light. Now if the outside temp on the water is 90°F Perhaps you should use another method to keep them below 80. Another bonus is since you don’t refrigerate them, wifey will be happy not having them in her fridge. lol. Put them on a shelf somewhere. Contact me directly for more information. 231-373-0530. Call or text.

06/07/2026

Here is a little behind the scenes in my lure shop. In these photos it shows lures hanging for 24 hrs after I paint them, next day removing the masking off the lips, the clear side lures have foil inside the lure, I use a cue tip to remove the over spray to let the foil flash brightly, 16 Lures on the turner today. I don’t recall ever doing this many at one time. They will remain turning for another 24 hrs.
I never seem to get over the WOW factor and transformation in brilliance that the epoxy brings out in my painting.
Hope you like them.
If you want me to pain lures for you leave a comment, send I msg. Or call or text 231-373-0530.
If you’re in the area I’ll deliver. If not we can talk about shipping.
TIGHT LINES !!!

06/06/2026

Here is a sneak peek at my next batch of lures.
I painted 12 this morning.
6 of my Black and Silver with clear sides showing the prism foil inside the lure that creates a great flash.
3 of a new pattern I thought up just today. Magenta sides, Plum top, and white bottom. All 3 colors are pearlized paint. With black dots
3 of my Patriot lures. These are hot sellers leading up to the 4th of July.
Red, White,and Blue. All 3 colors are Pearlized paint. I’m not a big fan of painting with pearlized because of the particles in the paint I need to increase my air pressure and dial down the flow rate. It’s a balancing act I have lost more than once. Today came off pretty good.
I’ll take the mask of the lips and add eyes this evening, then brush on the 2 part epoxy and put them on the turner. I have 4 more lures that need a 2nd coat so I’ll put them on the turner too. Gonna be a full load. What could possibly go wrong ? 😂
I’ll post photos of the all when I install hooks
TIGHT LINES !!!

06/05/2026

Just took these off the Turner and ready for split rings and hooks. Then packaging. These are my Big Thunders 30 and 20.