NJ Pride......NJ Modern Fishing tackle and gear Manufacturers

[DarkSkies]

Doug "Dr Lures & Supplies"

Man, this guy knows his fishing, and his hot rods, and muskies. If you wanna get an education about any of the above, or just have some laughs BSin, stop by his table when you see him at one of the shows. He's got thousands of stories, ya can't get bored listening to em. :D

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He sells these HD big bass spinnerbaits for $5, can't beat the price. I've been lookin for some spinners that would hold up to brutal saltwater beatings from bigger fish. I got some musky spinners a while back to use for stripers, but they ain't that sturdy. These look like they fit the bill, can't wait to throw one in the surf or rips.
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[DarkSkies]

heres the spinner I got from Doug.
Mick, this and one plug from Ace baits was the only thing I bought all day. I'm amazed I could hold out walking past all that stuff.


1 Giant Spinner 10"!

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[DarkSkies]

Skippy and Hazel, Skip's Custom Lures. This guy makes spoons and jigs up to 32 oz, has been doing it for ages. He and his wife are nice people, look for them. He's mostly a wholesaler to the shops, so your only chance to buy his stuff is at the shows.

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[DarkSkies]

Kugler's lures - met Vinnie and his son, these guys had an avalanche of teasers, flies, tubes, sandeels, jigs, and spoons

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father and son :HappyWave:
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[DarkSkies]

Met Angus from Fish-Tek lures, out of Lebanon, NJ. He decided to start his business 10 years ago, making indestructible plugs out of plastic. Price ranges from $5-10 for his poppers and surface swimmers. He says they don't sink, and are fished on the surface.

He also has a line of large spinnerbaits used for muskies. Nice meetin ya, Angus. :HappyWave:

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[plugcrazy]

I think he might have ramped his business down a notch. The website he was using is no longer in service. You can still find his stuff on e-bay and land big fish.




http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/492636/luring_anglers_middletown_fishermans_twist_has_cau ght_on/

Luring Anglers: Middletown Fisherman's Twist Has Caught On

Posted on: Friday, 5 May 2006, 00:04 CDT
By Dennis P. Carmody, Asbury Park Press, N.J.
May 4--The skies were a little overcast that day four years ago on the water off Sandy Hook, but in Mike Matulonis' eyes, they might as well have been storming. His father and fishing companion, Frank, was reeling in fish after fish, but he wasn't getting a bite, despite trying out the new spoon lure he had tinkered into existence himself.

Out of frustration, he bent the tin baby bunker lure with his own hands, just to see what would happen. He cast it back in the water and noticed right away that the bend gave the lure a darting, swimming action, a very nice mimicking of a little fish.
Apparently that's how the school of bluefish swimming about under their boat viewed it too. "I started catching more and bigger fish than my father," Matulonis said.

"My father said, "You'd better put it back in my tackle box or you'll lose it,"" referring to the risk that it might get bitten off the line and fall to the bottom of the sea.

That little S-shaped bend he made four years ago became the basis of Montauk Mike's Lures, a business that is selling fishing lures in 200 stores and brings in about $50,000 in revenue annually.

And the 51-year-old Middletown resident behind the business has big dreams that see him eventually leaving behind his day job in advertising to focus on the fishing business. "If I could sell 100 lures a year in a thousand stores each, that would be a very nice business," Matulonis said.

Matulonis has been fishing all his life. To him, the thrill is in the pursuit. The solitude of simply being on the quiet water certainly has its charms, but, "I like the challenge of catching fish," Matulonis said.
http://tags.bluekai.com/site/357?rand=77621
In fact, he releases almost all the fish he catches, and usually uses single hooks, which may not be as effective as some triple hooks, but do less damage to the fish.

In addition to being a lifelong fisherman, Matulonis has also spent years tinkering with gadgets, which is what led him to develop his fishing lures. When he found the slight bend in his lure that he made that day while fishing with his father gave a lure a good swimming action, he started thinking that there might be a business to create around it.

Matulonis got a patent on the bend and started Montauk Mike's Lures, naming the business after one of his favorite fishing spots off the end of Long Island. Having worked in marketing for years -- he has owned his own advertising agency, PM Group in Shrewsbury, since 1988 -- he soon submitted a news release to Salt Water Sportsman magazine, hoping to get some feedback from the editors on his idea.

Instead, they ran a brief item on the new business, and he started getting lots of inquiries from potential customers looking to buy his new lure. The problem? He didn't have anything to sell them yet, having not expected that kind of response.

He soon hooked up with a manufacturer -- Lakeland Inc. in Isle, Minn. -- to make his spoon lures (a reference to the lures' concave shape) in a variety of colors and finishes.
His background in advertising helped him come up with professional packaging and marketing efforts that caught the eye of Chris Graham, senior account executive for Maurice Sporting Goods Inc., a distributor based in Northbrook, Ill.

"Every guy that fishes has something in his garage that is the latest and greatest thing," Graham said. But Matulonis knew enough about business that his lures showed good promise as a moneymaker, Graham said.

Graham liked the versatility of Matulonis' lures in that they can be used on a variety of fish in both saltwater and freshwater. Competition is strong and real estate on store shelves is scarce, so stores can't afford to sell lures that are too specific to one task.
Graham suggested a few packaging changes and was impressed with how quickly Matulonis incorporated the ideas. The company took on the lures on a trial basis, and Graham seems pleased with how sales have been going.

"I haven't seen an item yet that's going to make him a million dollars, but he's farther along than 70 percent of the people out there," Graham said.

Matulonis has since added poppers to his line, lightweight lures designed to bounce along the surface of the water.

The lures have been put into about 200 stores in the Northeast, including selected locations of several big retailers such as The Sports Authority, ****'s Sporting Goods, West Marine and Modell's. Representatives for his distributor will be meeting with I IIWal-Mart officials next week, he said.

Matulonis also sells lures for about $3 to $5 through his Web site, and he is now developing a fluke lure that features multiple beads. He also sells T-shirts and hats with the Montauk Mike's logo.
Matulonis is optimistic about the future. He's invested about $25,000 in the creation of his lures and is making a profit off the business. If things take off, operating Montauk Mike's Lures could become a full-time job.

"I've done advertising for a long time," he said.

Doodlebug
sceWMUp7pw4


http://www.landbigfish.com/tacklestore/showcase.cfm?PID=707&SiteID=1498


http://www.landbigfish.com/images/store/MM-BabyBunker.jpg (http://javascript<b></b>:popuptackle(707,486,228);) 4 1/2" Baby Bunker - Hammered Finish, Plain Hook 3" Mondo Mullet - Smooth Finish, Plain Hook "Montauk” Mike’s lures are a NEW line of nickel-plated steel lures that are a sure hit wherever shiny, wide-bodied baitfish abound. The great predators - trout, salmon, walleye, pike, snook, bluefish, striped bass, redfish, and tuna love’em! It’s the “S-bend” that causes the action in “Montauk” Mike’s patented 4 ½” Baby Bunkers. The 3” Mondo Mullet is in the traditional “cupped” style. But our unique hook placement ensures more frequent surer hook ups…a lot less short hits! Troll ‘em, Jig ‘em, Cast ‘em, Buzz ‘em. But make sure you nail your shoes to the deck, the hits are that severe.
Sizes
Baby Bunker: 4 1/2" long - Available in 3 or 1 1/2 ounces
Mondo Mullet: 3" long, Available in 1 1/2 or 3/4 ounces
Style Choices
S: Smooth
H: Hammered Available Accessories
Buck Tail
Tube Tail
Worm Tail LBF Special: Buy any 3, and get one free! Montauk Mike will include a free lure with every three you buy.
http://www.landbigfish.com/images/store/other/magglass.gifEnlarge Photo (http://javascript<b></b>:popuptackle(707,486,228);)</I>
http://www.landbigfish.com/images/store/swatches/MM-BabyBunkers.jpg

[DarkSkies]

Met Mike & Mike from source direct bunker spoons.

They have been doing this about 5 years, local guys from the Middletown area.

Nice to meet ya's, guys. :HappyWave:

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[DarkSkies]

Tom Sweeney the Salt Water Piney

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Got to meet a small jig maker today, Tom Sweeney. He makes a lot of styles and sizes. The difference about this guy is the artwork on the jigs. He paints the jigs and heads unlike any I've ever seen, quite unusual.

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It was interesting to meet a guy who applies this creative talent to such a small thing as a jig head.


Pic of Tom's friend
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He also uses quality hooks and tails for the teasers.

He only hits a few markets a year. If you see him, stop by his table and take a look.
Or give him a call at (609) 493-1875.
Nope, he doesn't have e-mail.

Nice to meet ya Tom. :HappyWave:

[DarkSkies]

I thought this was an interesting story. Rob is 20 and has been making teasers for 6 years with his grandfather, and selling them on his own for a year or 2. He started when he was 14, and is working hard at the flea markets to make a name for himself and get money to pay for school.

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A tribute to the entrepeneurial spirit of early America, it was nice to see a younger person trying to build a business. Good luck Rob, I hope your business grows and prospers. :thumbsup:





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Most of his teasers are $2 each, or 3/$5. Some great prices there.

He wasn't sure if he was going to any more flea markets. If you want to buy from him via mail, hit him up at:
bbrown403@yahoo.com

[DarkSkies]

Joe has been making bucktails for about 4 years now, and fishing a lot longer than that. His favorite fish to fish for is fluke, and his stingers with the double hook help to turn that thump into a catch!

Take a look at some of the nice fluke he caught in the pics.

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He also sells his own teasers. He has been fishin for 60 years, and his next flea market will be the Hightstown one. Nice meetin ya Joe! :HappyWave:

[DarkSkies]

If you can think of a tin profile, and it can be made, Dan can do it!

He had a show special of $2 ea for blem Hopkins tins, around 2 oz, how can you pass on a deal like that? You know you're gonna lose a dozen a year if you fish hard.

He's been doing this for a bunch of years, has great prices, and fishes his products as well as selling them. He also has been fishing for over 50 years in the salt, and has quite a perspective of how things used to be before the Striped bass moratorium in the 80's.

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He also carries Fluke jigs, Avas, Hopkins profiles, Charlie Graves style profiles, and Stingsilver tins.

Nice to meet ya, Dan! :HappyWave:

You can get in touch with Dan at TINMANTACKLE@msn.com

[DarkSkies]

The jigs caught my eye as I walked past. ;)

Got a chance to speak with Jeff, the owner. It's a small company. Right now they're selling at flea markets and some tackle shops in the Atlantic County area. Nice to meet ya Jeff! :HappyWave:

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[DarkSkies]

Jerry Melia runs the Old Man's Tackle Box, which does most of its business at flea markets and area shows.

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I found it interesting how Jerry got into bucktail and sinker making.

He said he used to fish a lot and lost too many bucktails. He eventually realized if he wanted to keep up with his fishing addiction, he needed to make his own lead and bucktails.

Along the way, he met some good people. He and his Dad started doing it, and as it grew he called on the knowledge of his friend John to learn how to tie bucktails.

As he made and sold more, he realized he needed a durable finish. That's where he called his friend Doug of Dr Lures in for advice. Doug ran a powder coating dept for a company and knew the whole process. Doug teamed up to help Jerry, (what are friends for...? ;)) and the rest is history.

Some customers of Jerry's have told him he has the cheapest bucktails around. He had show specials, 8 and 10 oz bucktails, for $5 each. That's a great price for the heavier ones. :thumbsup:

Stop by and say hi to Jerry and Doug. :HappyWave:

[DarkSkies]

Doug is quite a character, with many stories to tell.

One of them is about how do you catch a mermaid? :naughty:

Stop by his table at the Asbury Show today for the answer to that question...;)


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[DarkSkies]

Ryan's Rigs

I noticed Ryan when I was at Billy McFadden's table interviewing Billy. I thought Ryan was related.

I saw this young man excitedly hawking his hand tied rigs. What caught my attention was the way he was doing it. I didn't know how old he was, all I saw was a little kid selling some stuff, no different than any other vendor at the market that day.

But the sales pitch this kid had was amazing. The way he was talking to potential customers, you would think he had been selling his whole life. He had a small crowd gathering around at times as he went into his unrehearsed, perfectly natural, sales presentation. :clapping:

From what I understood, he got space at that table as his father is a member of the Asbury Park fishing club, and I think Billy McFadden graciously agreed to let him sit there, sharing the space. I'll try to fill in the full details later.

We located his parents, Dad Bruce, Mom, and his little brother. Very nice family. :HappyWave:

I got their permission to film Ryan as he was talking about what he does.

I understand he's been doing this since he was 8 years old.
Most kids at 8 would have no idea that this is something that they would like to do, nor would they have the motivation.

Ryan's family seems like a very close family, with everyone involved in fishing. I spied an incredible logo on the back of his Dad Bruce's jacket and thought he might be a charter boat captain. There was a "TightLines" logo with an embroidered pelagic fish. The answer was... "No, we just all love fishing!" :fishing:

Wow, amazing stuff. :thumbsup:

Ryan is a natural as he describes the rigs he makes, how he got started, and some of the good times fishing he has had with his Dad and his family.

At the end he describes a 10lb doormat fluke they caught last year, all with one of Ryan's hand-tied rigs. What better way to promote your product than with a story like that! :clapping::clapping:

It was nice to meet the family. :HappyWave:





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If anyone wants to pick up a few of his rigs, the e-mail address is listed in the video. I wish this young man and his family great success. Ryan likes what he is doing, and it shows. :clapping::clapping:

[DarkSkies]

Interview with Skippy of Skip's Custom Lures :) Nice meeting you folks again! :HappyWave:


http://vimeo.com/21030010

[DarkSkies]

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LN's Sand Eel Teasers....
Ellen and John are friends of Ron Muccie and they fish together all the time...it's possible that Ron or someone else gave Ellen lessons on teaser tying...I'm not sure how she learned, but she is now making some great teasers that are worth looking at....:cool:

You will recognize Ellen at the beach....she's a good rep for the women in Surf Fishing, as she is usually out-fishing all the guys near her....


http://vimeo.com/7821161






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[DarkSkies]

We have a thread here called:

NJ Plug and Tackle Manufacturers - Back in Time...
​http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/showthread.php?5552-NJ-plug-and-tackle-manufacturers-back-in-time&highlight=nj+tackle+manufacturers+back+time


which chronicles NJ's Fishing Tackle manufacturing history...
Throughout the years here I have run into some of the folks who are still doing it in NJ......:fishing:


If you are aware of any that aren't up here, please feel free to post.......:HappyWave:

[storminsteve]

Cool read dark. Had no idea all these were located in Jersey. Support your local people!

[DarkSkies]

Blacky's Tubes, Blackwood, NJ..........
Local S Jersey Wholesaler...may or may not still be in business.



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[J Barbosa]

Andrus Jetty Caster: Andrus Lure Company Millville, NJ


When Rich Andrus started fishing Montauk at the tip of Long Island, most of the local surfcasters were market fishermen, selling their catches to supplement their income. None of the other fishermen wanted anything to do with me, Andrus said, until they saw me catching fish on the Jetty Caster. Then I had a lot of friends.

The Jetty Caster is a style of bucktail made by Rich for his company, Andrus Lures. Based in Millville, New Jersey, Rich has travelled throughout the Northeast sampling the fishing and looking for inspiration for new lures. It might surprise some surfcasters to learn that this favorite bucktail style for the surf originated as a lure for trolling on wire line.

The inspiration for the Jetty Caster came before a trip with Frank Sabatowski, captain of the charter boat, Junebug. Those well-versed in striper fishing lore will recognize this as the very same vessel aboard which Charlie Cinto landed a 73-pound state-record striped bass on Sow and Pigs Reef off Cuttyhunk Island in Massachusetts.

I was fishing out of Sakonnet Point with a captain, and we weren't catching anything, but I could see the boat Junebug catching fish after fish.

After that Rich began to charter the Junebug. One year, Frank asked me to bring some bucktail jigs because he ran out. So I made them, trying to make them close to the ones he'd been using on his boat. Those were the first of the Jetty Casters. Tipped with green pork rind and trolled on wire line, that style of jig that was how Frank caught a lot of his big fish. But he was secretive about it. When he pulled the lure over the side, he cupped it in his hand so the other boats wouldn?t be able to see what he was using.

The lure did eventually migrate to the surf. It took a while to catch on, Rich said. Surf guys would constantly hang it in the boulders under the light at Montauk. But then, we started fishing it the same way we fished them on wire line, keeping them moving. You had to start retrieving them as soon as they hit the water.

The extra hair tied into the Jetty Caster helped keep the lure over the rocks and off the bottom on retrieves slow enough to entice stripers. The hair also gave the lure more action as it pulsed through the water during the retrieve. In addition to the extra hair, the Jetty Caster has a rounded head and a strong Mustad hook.

The Jetty Caster has become the best seller in the Andrus line, displacing bluefish-specific lures like the Ponytail that previously held the top spot. The Ponytail is a very productive bluefish trolling lure, and thanks to the chain used to attach the hook, is resistant to the blues sharp teeth. Rich also makes other styles of bucktails, including another productive surfcasting style, the Rip Splitter. The Andrus Fluke Dart, an oversized shad dart with a bucktail skirt, is downright deadly on shallow-water flatfish when tipped with a strip of bait or scented artificial. Andrus also offers trolling lures like the Parachute Jig and Jigit Eel.

Rich went full time into selling lures on April 15, 1974. The first shop to carry Andrus Lures was Johnny's Tackle Shop on Main Street in Montauk. Johnny Kronuch, whose son now runs the shop, gave Rich some helpful, albeit gruff, advice. I went in there and handed Johnny one of my jigs, and he grabbed the hook, twisted it in his fingers and said, Need bigger hooks. This won't work here.

The hooks available on the Jetty Caster now are about as tough as they come. One of the most popular sizes, the 1-1/2 ounce model, has an 8/0 Mustad.

For colors, the Jetty Caster comes in white, black, yellow, chartreuse, and now, due to increasing demand, a maroon red. A lot of guys seem to want red jigs these days, Rich explained. Rich also offers the lures in two-color combos like orange/black and black/purple.

Though Montauk Point was the proving ground for the Jetty Caster, it works anywhere stripers swim. Jetty Casters are available in 1/2, 3/4, 1 1/4, 1/2, 2, 2 1/2 and 3-ounce sizes. The 1/2-ounce size is popular in backwater areas, while the other end of the spectrum, the 3-ounce is used in deeper water, heavy surf, or high winds. For an all around size, 1 1/2 ounces seems to be the sweet spot. For a relatively small lure, compared to some of the giant plugs and out-sized soft-plastic baits on the market, the Jetty Caster has accounted for an unbelievable number of large striped bass.

While trolling the Jetty Caster on wire line may have faded from the repertoire of most striper anglers, the jig's extra hair and action underwater has made it popular for three-way-rigging and fishing the deep, strong currents of eastern Long Island Sound.

In the surf, Rich has found the most success by keeping the jigs moving. One of the most popular and effective techniques for fishing the Jetty Caster is to swim the jig, retrieving the jig at a steady pace, breaking it up with the occasional twitch of the rod tip. With the extra hair slowing the rate of descent of the jig, anglers can fish them anywhere from just under the surface to just above the bottom just by varying how long they allow the jig to sink.

Where ever you fish them, tip the jigs with some manner of trailer. A Jetty Caster paired with a strip of Uncle Josh number 70 pork rind is tough to beat, but curly-tail grubs will work as well.

Andrus, now 72, surfcasts on Block Island for a week each fall, but does most of his fishing closer to his Millville, New Jersey home, including the Cape May Point jetties, where the smaller-size Jetty Casters are deadly on the local stripers.

Today, under the Montauk Light, you're likely to find a lot of friends tossing an Andrus Jetty Caster bucktail, because this simple, yet superb lure was, is and will continue to be one of the best striped bass catchers ever made.

Article Published in: On The Water, May 29 2012.

[Monty]

Thanks JB, I was going to take some pics the other night, to much going on lately. Will get around to it.

Great article on the Andrus Bucktails.

[porgy75]

Awesome and interesting read guys. Thanks for sharing that.

[fishinmission78]

This isn't fishing gear but a shark repellent company located in a place called Old Bridge. If not the right place feel free to move.

Fishery research: A squid that a shark won't eat
http://www.gannett-cdn.com/-mm-/12e97e8ddff39c3b8038b69940af088c9028e5e7/c=0-0-200-200&r=1024x1024&r=26&c=26x26/local/-/media/NJGroup/USATODAY/2014/07/30/1406745982000-dan-radel.jpg Dan Radel, @DanielRadelAPP
5:30 p.m. EDT October 16, 2014

A New Jersey native is working on a shark repellant that will reduce the by-catch of sharks and rays in the pelagic longline fisheries.
It's called SuperPolyShark and its scent is strong enough to make a shark turn its head.
"We got it as high as a 71 percent reduction in a 4-hour period and up to a 35 percent reduction in sharks in 16-hour period," said Eric Shroud, a managing partner and senior chemist at Shark Defense, an Old Bridge based company.
Stroud, 40, founded Shark Defense Technologies with his wife Jean in 2001, and now has partners helping in develop the product in Key West, Florida.

http://www.app.com/story/sports/outd...-eat/17374909/ (http://www.app.com/story/sports/outdoors/fishing/hook-line-and-sinker/2014/10/16/fishery-research-squid-shark-eat/17374909/)