01/29/2026
We haven't posted on social media in quite some time. We've heard wild speculation recently with gossip of our demise and are happy to inform you those speculations are greatly exaggerated. In fact, during our absence from social media, trade shows etc. over the past few years, the business has continued to slowly and steadily grow. You can still find us and all our products at www.purepoisonjigstore.com
We like to be transparent with all our loyal customers which now includes die hard anglers across the globe. So we have to keep you informed of industry changes when they arise to in part educate you, to allow you to make informed decisions and choose the best products for your money. So please forgive the length of the following post.
Since 2020 global trade between the United States and overseas suppliers of many products have experienced wide ranging and often unpredictable fluctuations in supply, demand, and access to various materials driven by a combination of factors. Those include global energy costs, economic conditions abroad, the long term impacts of a global pandemic, various regional conflicts, in Eastern Europe, Africa, The Middle East, diplomatic disputes, and global trade polices and tariffs imposed by the United States in 2025 on most imported materials from virtually every nation who sells anything to the United States, enacted by the current administration.
This recent profound change in trade policy has resulted in significant shifts in international trade alliances, retaliatory tariffs, outright import and export restrictions or bans on sale of certain materials to United States Companies enacted by foreign governments in response, along with global inflationary trends related to advancing manufacturing technology, population shifts and labor cost management. It is not a simple problem. There is no single factor or person to blame. Though some bear more blame than others.
So leave your politics aside if you choose to comment after the next part.
Due to these myriad factors, global demand for Tungsten and other rare earth minerals, and the scarcity of them, (which are usually mostly found in the northern or extreme southern ranges of our planet, in places like Russia, China, Greenland, the Nordic States of Europe or in lesser quantity in extreme southern regions) has caused costs of the raw tungsten ore and other rare minerals to skyrocket. Market prices on these commodities were once priced month to month. Now they are bought and sold on margins that often fluctuate daily. You buy them like you buy fresh fish at a high end restaurant...at market price.
The #1 use for Tungsten globally is military applications, (think rockets, manpads, air to air missiles, torpedoes, anything that flies at supersonic or hypersonic speeds, artillery warheads, and other mu*****ns). Everybody wants it, because everybody needs it.
It is also used in many heavy industries such as oil production, where drilling rigs use bits made of tungsten alloy to drill through rock to find oil and gas. It is used in many heavy industrial settings such as heavy machinery and mining equipment. Automotive companies also utilize it. In short if it needs to made to endure high heat, resist wear, and be hard enough to endure ungodly amounts of physics...tungsten is a global metal of choice.
Fishing lures are made of the left over waste powder generated in Tungsten refining. As are many other small things made of it. Tungsten lures also contain very complex resins, copolymers etc. They are not melted and poured like lead jigs people. You aren't going to make them yourselves.
Tungsten fishing products are manufactured using a complex process involving advanced chemistry, materials science, physics, and computer controlled injection molding. It requires tens of millions of dollars of extremely advanced equipment, multiple environmental and safety controls, and a metric s**t ton of electricity to make a tungsten fishing product factory run.
90 percent of those tungsten fishing components no matter whose label is on them, no matter where you purchase them from, no matter what price point you pay for them, are made in one place. In less than 4 locations. 2 of which are owned by one parent company. They make nearly every tungsten weight, every ice jig, ball jig, and half the jig heads you find in the big box stores. They also make some of ours. Because they are damned good at what they do, and everybody uses them. My friend they are located in China.
Another 5 to 8 percent of your tungsten lures are born in Japan. Japan keeps most of their stuff in Japan, or the Asia Pacific Region. Because it's logistically easier to sell over there, than it is here and they sell lots of cool stuff over there you and I will rarely ever see. They earn most of their money at home. But guess what, they too outsource some production to wanna guess where? That's right, because it's cheaper there than Japan, so Japanese companies own manufacturing assets there, the same way they own car plants here.
The rest comes from Northern Europe, most of which is sold in the EU only.
The harsh reality is simple. Large scale Tungsten manufacturing of fishing products in terms of jigs, weights, spinner baits, crankbait weights, etc. isn't done here. It's never been here, It will never be done here, no matter how hard you wish it to happen, no matter how many slogans you recite, campaigns you wage, or taxes you impose. Yes, tariffs are taxes...like it or not.
Because the costs of prospecting, mining, transporting raw ore, then refining the ore to powder form, then transporting the refined materials to production facilities, all the way across the damned planet, by cargo ship (because the s**t is heavy and air transport of it costs even more money, and last I checked there are no rail roads in the Atlantic or Pacific Oceans) then manufacturing tungsten lures with the leftovers here, is as unrealistic as it is unaffordable.
That being said, as of yesterday, PPJ's cost of tungsten components purchased yesterday, rose 136 percent over what was paid in October 2025. 100 percent of that 136 percent increase were directly attributable to Tariffs and related export fees, and shipping costs. That will not include another 15 percent in state state level taxes, and compliance costs incurred by PPJ to produce these products. The producer of those raw components reports they anticipate another 15 percent rise by Friday, and after that where the price will eventually top out due to cost so high it kills demand is unknown.
Effective Feb 6th 2026 at midnight, PPJ will be adjusting Tungsten Jig Product Prices upward over 2 to 3 stages ,each spaced 45 days apart to reflect the increased costs of production. We will likely reduce quantities sold per pack to keep end point prices down for the users, and we will reduce regular inventory levels kept on hand as our inventory is taxed on it's value every year. Some PPJ tungsten products on the site now, will be replaced. Some will be discontinued outright. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause our customers. But at PPJ we don't carry inventory for it to set unsold or make lures to lose money.
We are currently exploring some alternative alloys for future product development and will make every effort to control costs to our customers.
Now you are an informed customer, and there will be no reason to suffer sticker shock or get mad at us when you purchase a tungsten fishing product later this spring and summer. ff you wish, we can tell you who to call and bitch at about it, but you probably have an idea about that already now don't ya?
Mike Cole Owner and Founder
Pure Poison Jig Company LLC
Pure Poison Jigs in Lenoir City, Tenn makes custom bass jigs used by professional bass anglers and amateur hobby fisherman.
