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None of this thread is making much sense anymore. Not directing this to anyone in particular, but I don't get why people feel so entitled to getting baits or receiving special attention and treatment from builders. Or if they miss a drop they take it personally like they got cheated out of something that wasn't actually theirs to begin with. A bait drop is just a restock of inventory which is typically a good thing. The fact that baits sell out isn't the builder's fault, it's ours. 1. No one should claim they know how a builder should sell baits and handle operations unless they themselves have built and tried making a living selling baits. 2. If you don't like their practices as a consumer, simply don't support them. There are plenty of builders who keep waiting lists and plenty of builders who do bait drops. There are builders who invest in customer relations and other builders who chase fame and fortune. 3. If you don't like their practices as a rival builder, then you can learn from them and handle business differently. No need to condemn their efforts if nothing that they do concerns you. Customers will gravitate to builders who make great product and whom they have had positive transactions with. They will also be willing to wait and keep trying to get a bait from said builder.

So here it goes, you can buy any bait you want today or tomorrow! it is just how much you want to spend, hence BLACK MARKET. You have access to just about any bait made in the world through the internet and yet you complain about bait drops from bait makers that have actually made their own brand from nothing and hard work. I personally respect the choice of each bait maker to do what he/she feels is the best way for them to do their business in their own way. The way you come off is they need to do it your way or something you think is better. When you make it/fail at building baits remember that you can't make everyone happy. I did read every post before commenting on this and I am guessing one of two things ( or both ) 1. You are 30 or less years old 2. You are fairly new to the swimbait game. Either way quit whining and show some respect for your brotherhood of swimbait builders and what they have done for this style of fishing.

The good news is, 99% of Instagram studies show that people only think bait drops are unfair until they sucessfully get a bait on a drop. Then they don't care.

Dead serious too. Lmao.

Finally hit one and it's riser jacks! No thanks.

The bait markers do what is best for them when selling there baits. Some try to change it up to help with the whining people. No matter what they do there will still be whiners. Most that I have talked with try there best but they are usually a one man shop, so as most of us may know things in life come up and maybe they can't keep what they told everyone. So guess what everyone has a melt down... I have been in this game a long time and probably have owned and fished every bait out there and know many of the makers. I must say that illude is a fair and great guy, it appears that he only made a few baits, so if 1000 guys are trying for 10 baits, there will be 990 whiny ass people. If you didn't get a bait on a drop then get one of the other one million baits that are available. If you dont like how bait maker sell their baits don't buy them. There are many people that to not worry about things you cant control, just get out there and fish. Fish......whats that mean...is't that what this site is all about or is it about baits that most of the time will never be fished. The amout of time people spent on the internet worring about what other people are catching and what baits are dropping, they could actually be on the water learning a lot of stuff.

Got 1 on the Spro rat 40. Nothing special but its my 1st rat fish. Also missed one on the negotiator about 5 feet from me

Picked up today from the man. Damn it looks good up close.

Everybody complaining recently about not hitting drops should go get one. Should be easy

8.7 on the Battles Shad She engulfed it when the moon was directly underfoot. I snagged a fish same place a few years ago and snapped me off and have been making a similar cast for years. Finally started paying attention to the moon and it paid off.

I was recently featured on the Fish North Georgia podcast, talking big baits and big fish. If anyone's interested, here's the link:

Why not share? Why be so secretive? Be the catalyst for the change you think is necessary. Hell, let's get the government involved in regulating swimbait sales!! Swimbaits for all!!!! This entire thread is pointless. Buy the bait or don't. Pretty simple concept really.

Went with the Gomexus and love it! Thanks for the info guys!!!!!!

I clock hours like that in a high stress job. When I get a couple days off I can wait to get my hands on my girl and big bass. I don’t Wast time or energy worrying about what baits I couldn’t get. I wish one of these Illude rats hit the black market yesterday.....heads would be exploding lol.

Hey atleast they are Made in U.S.A. all this crazy talk except for drt is made here! That's pretty awesome!

Everything is cyclical. When I first got on here a deps 250 was about $400 and a Nez rat was $200. 9" Slammers were $30. The other day I bought a foam 250 for $100 and a nez for $80 and see slammers everyday for $100. 2 years ago tackle warehouse had drt in stock all the time. 10 years ago deps 250 were selling for $60. And in another couple years you'll be able to get an illude for retail.

I've been trying not to post on here since this isn't really my place to talk about it. The way I see it is that there is room for improvement in bait drops and the way baits are sold/traded in general. Each bait maker can do whatever the hell they want, it doesn't effect me in the long run, but there is no reason that we, as a consumer base, shouldn't push for things to be the best that they could be for us. Why settle for this method of scrambling for baits from bait drops like medieval peasants fighting for food scraps. I'm not saying that the super high end, custom baits need to be produced in higher quantities, because they don't, their rarity is what makes them special. I understand that to a lot of guys, participating in bait drops is like gambling or buying a lotto ticket, and when you win it's a high. But come on, why are we letting companies like DRT play all of us like this. There is no reason that an injection bait cannot be produced to meet demand, instead they are creating demand by shorting supply and watching people pay upwards of $300 for a bait that took them like $20 to make. I'm gonna leave it like this, the garage guys can do whatever the hell they want to do, they've built their business and that's respectable, although some may have some pretty crappy business practices, the baits speak for themselves. But there's no reason for us not to want to improve the way that things are done. Like @azsouth said, bait drops aren't how things were always done, and they're a huge improvement on past practices, but at some point it will be time to move on to the next better thing

I find this almost HILARIOUS!!! I have been in this game for decades and when it started ( by todays standards ) everyone would not even buy a bait made back then!! but we caught massive fish on those big stupid looking baits with tackle that was not designed for bass fishing. But somehow we did it 1. Grow up. 2. Understand more than just your point of view. 3. Patience. 4. Understanding. 5. Learn how to fish the baits you have, TO PROPERLY TO CATCH FISH! MY .02

This ain’t fair, that ain’t fair, life ain’t fair. The way I see it if someone is doing it to make money and there making money off there baits then good for them. No one has an obligation to buy anyone’s baits and they also arnt a necessity. Now if someone is doing it for purely the love of the game then that’s commendable AF. But either way, if a guy can make a living doing this I think it’s dope.

Here is my vid of the KRR Crawler. Enjoy!

OG Lexa for the win. Still the best big soft bait reel I’ve used with a 5.1 ratio, 22lbs of drag, and holds 700,000 yards of 25# mono Personally, I think you can narrow down your choices drastically with some careful thought. Comfort should be number 1. Which is more comfortable? Round reel or low pro? That rules out a lot. For me, I’ll never fish a round reel again. A Calcutta D could be brand new and cost $10 and I wouldn’t fish it. Line capacity. If you’re ONLY fishing braid, it’s not a big deal. I fish 25# mono with my soft baits so I need a lot of line capacity. I prefer a higher drag if possible. Price. Looks like you’re willing to spend some cash so that’s good. Gear ratio. Bigger soft baits like that, I’d be sure as hell getting a slow ratio, and this does limit you as a lot of reels now don’t come in less than a 6.2. I would be shooting for a 5.4 or lower with a 28” lpt or less. Now this really narrows it down. I would be looking at the toro beast 50, maybe the toro S 50, Lews 300, the new curado k 300 finally is available in a low ratio. Wasn’t a fan of the tranx 300 myself. Don’t think the tatula 300 comes in a low gear. I think you narrow down to those criteria and you’ll find your reel

117 drt wood knobs 117 drt flat knobs

They are just baits.... Buy the ones you like, from the companies you like. Go fishing and smile. Life's too short to worry about the other bull.

I don't waste my time trying for drops, It gives me more time to fish. My baits get fished.

Everything you said is true. Some bait marker flip their own baits under their own name, other give to their cousin to sell at high prices...all true. It will not stop so do not worry about it. Back before swimbaiting wasnt cool, you got baits when, you showed the fish....period.

You forgot to add uphill both ways

i'd rather miss a bait drop than sit through another 2-yr wait list

Take more notes than you think you'll ever need. Can't tell how many times I've referred back to them for one thing or another.

Woke up at 1:45am for work at 2:15, went straight to the lake after work. 1.5hrs each way. Broke off my last OG Mag. Did 13 miles today, and broke my personal best. Weight: 8.86. Length: 22 3/4” Bait: Bacca Burrito Rod: SuperBait Korea Golblin Bat 711XH Reel: Shimano Tranx 300 7.1 Line: CXX 20#

Been out of action since November due to a knee injury. First day back on the water and I got hammered by this 6 pound peacock off a bed on the sludeswimmer 175. When it flared and raised its dorsal fin, one reel twitch that sent the glide into it's face was enough to trigger a bite. Now to track down a deps 250 and try to get a 16 pounder to do the same thing

Never fished a rat but I plan on it this year. So far this winter I have picked up a Stray Rat Rocker, PB 2 piece, Toxic Mink, Nez Medium and a Spro 40. Should be interesting to see which one gets tied on the most.

Spro rats for me 40 and 50 .

Same, I got a ton of extra weight on the front end and it still floats fast. I probably added close to an ounce of weight

But it's the first fish on the first cast of the FOM shad I just got from bassinjordan. Not a bad way to break in a bait

@bassbass Nice explanation.

Pics dont do them justice

I think "dropping" baits on your website when they are complete and ready to ship is the best practice as far as us the customer goes. It also seems like the easiest way for the custom bait makers to do buisness. This is how Sly Guy Lures does it and it works. On the other end pre orders with payment up front is hot garbage in my opinion because someone thats already been paid has less "drive" to complete baits in a timely manner. A wait list where payment is talked about and made when its your turn or when your order is complete is also a great way for both sides as long as projected wait time is acceptable to the customer. Hyping baits and shorting supply to increase demand is common practice in all different types of buisness and will be forever.

If it doesn't affect you since you don't participate in bait drops, and apparently the bait maker doesn't like or respect you, why do you care so much?

What a baby. 1) Some of these guys live off the money from making baits. So even if drops are “just about the $$$” what does that matter? If your boss offered you more money at work would you say “no”...? 2) how else should we be able to get their baits? A drop is merely when inventory hits their site. I only usually try for UFO and Stray drops and I’ve missed on most, but connected on a couple. I don’t feel betrayed when I’m too slow. 3) the bait makers are the craftsmen. If they can get more money for their products (whether hype is inflated or not) then I’d rather it go to them instead of the flippers. 4) assume the makers do pre-orders, what’s the difference between that and a drop? They can still only make so many baits. Whether you pay in advance or buy on a drop it’s still a game of seconds or minutes for the good stuff. sometimes it seems like the makers can’t win at all with some people.