History of the OD Rat, where did it start?
The first OD Rat was designed and made by Whitney Curry in the winter of 2008. At the time, the rat baits on the market were too expensive and too hard to get. So he carved and made his own bait out of necessity. The bait was primarily fished by Whit and a few close friends at Irvine Lake, and Orange County Park Lakes in Southern California. Prior to the current version there was one other, very few were produced and its referred to as the OG.
When did you start fishing the OD Rat?
In 2012 we were introduced by a mutual friend, allowing me to purchase them even though they were very tough to find. I had been fishing other rats for a few years prior and had good success. The OD became my go to wake bait in short order and from there forward, I almost always fished that bait over other rats. The only exceptions would be if I wanted a larger profile or certain wood baits, which have an entirely different style of swim and can be just as effective in the right conditions. For me, personally, the OD had become a staple and fit my style very well and remains that way to this day.
Why did you decide to purchase the company?
Technically, there was no company prior to the forming of OD Baits, LLC., Whit did things more on a hobby scale. I would occasionally purchase a handful of bait blanks from him and paint them for my friends, to get them in other people’s hands. Sometime in 2016 Whit had discussed going in a different direction with his bait making. Since I was actively fishing the baits for several years, at that point for my own selfish reasons, I was concerned about the bait possibly not being available any more. My professional background is in the collision repair industry and I was a painter, fishing was my hobby, but I wasn’t a bait maker. My bait making abilities at this time were limited to hand poured soft baits, which were only made for personal use or close friends. Making baits for profit or as any type of business was never a consideration. Fishing was my passion and the bait making was just to provide me with tools to try and accomplish my goals. Those soft baits laid the groundwork to get beyond the basic principles of mold making and masters, with much trial and error and some help from friends. When Whit had decided for sure he wanted to go in another direction, I purchased the OD brand, original masters, and molds in 2017, and I formed OD Baits, LLC. My idea was to continue to build from the original brand and expand into new things from there. I purchased the OD so it would continue to be available and hopefully other people would have as much success as I did with it.
Changes you’ve made to the baits?
The bait is manufactured the same exact way today, as it was when originally made by Whit. I saw no reason to change a bait that worked so well. The only change is in the finishing work and prepwork/top coats. I try to provide the best finished product to customers that I can. The line has expanded from the original bait since I started making them. For example, the original version of the Little Stinky was known as the Little Guy. There were some baits out there, but not many. I reworked the cosmetics and refined the bait to make them more consistent swimmers and to be known as the Little Stinky as it’s made today. The XL, One Piece and the OD Snake are baits that are all cosmetically based off the Standard size bait. I created the masters and molds and did the testing with the help of some friends. Those baits are part of the expansion and new growth of the company, while trying to stay with the OD brand. The XL was made to fill the spot in my personal baits, where I wanted to fish a larger profile OD and have the signature swim of the original. The One Piece and the OD Snake have their own styles and applications. There are always new projects in the works. Since I’m the only person making baits, I typically have more ideas then time to complete them. Currently there are 5 baits being offered at different times.
Your perspective on the SU x OD Rat GS Collaboration?
The SU x OD GS Collaboration was a fun project and nice to offer to people. This was the second set of SU x OD Baits. A smaller set was done for the SU Japan Tour 2019, but not offered for sale to the public. I typically will do short runs and sets of limited colors or patterns on baits. This keeps things fresh, original, and more personalized for bait owners. There are some staple paint jobs I do consistently, but I am always trying to mix it up. I know most people tend to fish the baits they like, and the response has been good up to this point. People like them, and the baits seem to speak for themselves. This set of baits was done to keep in line with the Golden Shiner Theme of SU baits, without being the typical scaled shiner pattern. These baits, although not a baitfish presentation, have natural gold/brown hues and a silver to gold color-shift and a light color belly that will appeal to bass that eat wake baits everywhere.
It’s been interesting over the years to watch the changes within the swimbait community. SU has evolved and changed with the times and become a premium brand with a global footprint on all social media platforms. As social media and the newer generations expand this culture, SU is the most recognized swimbait brand globally and it’s very cool to have the opportunity to do projects like this. It’s also a little surreal to be offering baits to people that they are willing to spend their hard-earned money on; it’s humbling for me and I am very appreciative of all the support. I like to see people get stoked on baits I made and go out and catch fish with them. The internet has made the world much smaller and has enabled connections for things like this to happen. There is a strong swimbait presence coast to coast. Being someone located in New England and affiliated with the roots of west coast trophy bass fishing where it all started, I can’t imagine this would have been possible 20 years ago prior to the internet exposure. I hope everyone enjoys the SU x OD GS Collaboration baits and puts them to good use, thank you SU for the opportunity.
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