Dumb lure question

I'm new to making my own baits, how do you make lure? What do you add to make it a liquid?

I'm kind of the other way. I'm trying to figure out what to add to make them thicker and not dilute or change the odor. Think a lot of it starts with the base you use for your lure.

Depends. If you have rotted down meat, you could add rain water to thin it. Or you could add glycerine or lanolin to make it thicker.

A check to a professional lure maker is what I add to that problem. For what you get, lure is your least expensive and most important item in my opinion. I have tried baits and lures myself and now the most I do is some meat bait with caster added backed up by a quality lure....

first decide what you want your lure to do

Bullox - There are books written on subject and it can be learned; however, beyond researching books and talking to other lure makers that might help you it takes hands on experience and as Strike2x notes a check to a professional lure maker is the way to go for some.

Wish you luck on your lure making and watch for post by Bob Jameson, Paul Dobbins and Asa Lenon both past and future these guys are the best of the best.

Absolutely John. I have picked up so much info from Asa and Paul. Bob and John Graham also are very informative when they comment. Asa by far has been the most generous to me. I have picked up much information from him since I was a teenager.

How to make a lure?
The first thing you do is don't rush. Lure making is a very long process typically. Things need time to age and blend together. Go thru the archives on this site. There's more information from veteran trappers from all over north America. More info than one can comprehend all at once. Better than any book out there is the info in the archives on this website.

TigerLand, I mentioned a few and obviously there are many more as you mention John Graham. Mr Graham was always so busy when I ran into him in the past I never got to have a conversation in person. One of these days I'll have to go to a show in his neck of the woods.

Lure is made from rotted glands or it's tincture, then adding essential oils, and/or urines....or not.

The combinations are unlimited.

You'd also be wise to look in our Archives.

Here's THE MEMO:
Get a few catalogs from large suppliers, circle ALL books on lure/bait making........but maybe only 1 or 2 in each catalog....give catalogs to loved ones who give you Christmas, birthday, anniversary, gifts..explaining that you'd like the books for gifts.

Then their money is spent on stuff you need/want........the next year, ask for glands/urines/oils.

Surely I am not the only guy whose wife bought me bobcat glands and fox urine for Christmas?

When I started to try making baits and lures back in the mid 80's I could not get any info. It was a very kept secret on the how to's. I would smell and try to figure out and listen to conversations at the conventions. I would pick up little things, and put them in my memory bank. Some books and articles would come out and I would grab them. After a few years of blown up glass jugs and stuff that worked for 2 weeks then change and not work at 4 weeks, I started to see things and learn things. The things that didn't work taught me more than things that did. Just very expensive learning LOL.

How to make a lure? Very first thing I learned was figure out what you want the lure to do from the start!!!! This is where the less experienced trapper may have some problems, as they may not even really know what the different types lures do in the first place. do you want a food lure? territory? matrix? curiosity? Combination? Call? Where do you want it to work. Dirt hole, flat, hanging in the air, cages and DP. that is the starting points. Every thing else works off that starting points. Can you just throw things together and get something to work? YEP I did but it took 3 years and a lot of money to come up with 2 that worked LOL

Jonesie's post above is spot on info..

I would start with a bait instead of a lure walk before you run!

If you want a sure thing,use animal parts to catch animals.The food chain effect.

Agreed. Glands/urine/blood and meat are the best.