Is making own baits and lures worth it???

Depends on your definition of worth.

Is trapping $3 coon worth it

in my opinion, if you're just starting out trapping, buy your baits and lures from the professionals (Dobbins, Jameson, Night Owl Lures) to name a few. There ARE other good ones!

once you understand animal behaviors a bit better, it's fun to experiment.

Mr. White Marlin is giving you sound advise!....Learn to be a good trapper first! Then as you gain experience and start making catches you can harvest the raw materials from your catches to utilize in building some simple, effective concoctions. At that point if you chose you can purchase some enhancers to add to the raw materials you harvested from the critters you caught. As you learn the characteristics of the critters, you're trapping, you will discover their habits are pretty basic. Capitalize on these habits and characteristics and you will be better able to understand what intrigues and holds their interest and that should go a long way towards helping your thought process when developing a lure or bait formula.

White Marlin and Papabear nailed the advice as best as I have seen.

As you mature as a trapper over time these things will all become more clear and easier as time and experience will show you.

Absolutely. Nothing like seeing an animal in a trap that you made the lure and picked the perfect location.

Do you have any beaver you can trap close by? Good ole castor, anybody can make something work with a beaver. I just make my own beaver lures but still buy different kinds to change it up. After a while, I found myself buying lure I didn’t think I needed. I just ordered 3 more different kinds yesterday…..I think I’m collecting them now, like collecting bullets when I was younger. As I get older, the bullets get bigger…..lol.