Food for Thought

**fishhunter775** · 07-09-2015, 04:08 PM

Ok guys I will start with this isn't a bragging post. Now on to the what comes to mind.
I see a lot of new guys come here as well as other sites and get the basics to learn to tie. Some catch on quick as there are alot of talent to be found here and plenty of help for those who will take the time to ask.The first thing you know they think they are jig tiers ready to take on the world, and start a jig business. Well guys stop and think of it before you do.
First off after learning to tie you have to learn the discipline to make your self do it day after day after day and week after week, before you know it, It isn't fun no more. And after you have learned to tie a few you must have a place to get rid of them and that's where it becomes a dog eat dog world as any of the older guys can attest too. But with saying all this you still want to give it as try I will wish you all the best at it.
This is how my average week looks once Ive tied a little. Got this order late last weekend and started if off Monday Am and finished the tying Weds afternoon and spend the day today gluing and packing it up to make it to the shop. There is total of 768 jigs in this one not a big order but a fair one for a ole man like me to handle three eight hour days.
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**Redge** · 07-09-2015, 05:25 PM

Man that's a lot of work!! Nice job.
I run into the same thing in my line of work, it just isn't as simple as it should be to start up a new shop (and make a living).
I have told lots of people that, a few have came back and said I wish I had listened to you!

**lowe175** · 07-09-2015, 06:17 PM

Yea I thought about it for a minute lol. Then I did the math I would make about 3$ and hour,I think I'll keep my day job! You got to be very fast to make money at this.

**DockShootinJack** · 07-09-2015, 07:12 PM

I don't have the discipline to sit at the tying bench that long. I would go stir crazy in no time.

**Fatman** · 07-09-2015, 07:46 PM

I couldn't do it!! Nice mess of jigs!!

**STUMP HUNTER** · 07-10-2015, 07:41 AM

Tim I can't believe you has time to make this post!

Lot of work to roll out and they look great to. Sometimes hobbies should stay as a hobby, just a little word of wisdom.

**Pastor** · 07-10-2015, 08:47 AM

That is one thing you will never have to worry about with me. I'll never be in competition with anyone who make a living selling jigs. I admire those who do, but I'm in it just for the self-satisfaction of catching fish on my own jigs. Now, my deepest concern is what to do with all of the plastic I have in my tackle box to make room for the hair jigs. LOL.

**skiptomylu** · 07-10-2015, 09:34 AM

Only thing wrong fishhunter775 is you didn't tell how hard making any money really is even if they can tie for 8 or more hours each and every day! Then only if you are kind of a fanatic about not buying new materials. I spent every cent I got and quite a bit more out of pocket for quite a few years. Now I was not doing it to make money though and really my main motivation was to have something to do that I could also enjoy. I had lost interest in trading the stock market after my bypass surgery that love just never came back and I had been putting in 8 to 12 hours a day and lots on weekends to. I was always in a certain chart room or some other board looking for info on stocks and doing research. Once I was going to just quit the thought hit me...."what am I going to do with all that time"? Well it ended up learning or teaching my self to tie and there was not all the youtube videos back then or boards like this for jigs so I went on a research being learning everything I could from FAOL and Fly Tying Forum and both were very helpful teaching me to tie, especially FAOL and their lessons which I still say are the best thing to learn from!!!

I would never recommend to do this for a living or really to try and make money unless your just wanting enough to pay for your fishing trips, gas and such and maybe your baits. There is too much competition and not near enough money to really work for and yes lowe175 is close to right and if your very good and lucky maybe you can manage to make a whopping $5 and hour, but most likely never make minimum wage even before they increase it if they do! You can make way more mowing yards!

Skip

**snake River** · 07-10-2015, 05:15 PM

FOR long as I've been making JIGS you will never get rich in like Skip said you'll spend every dime you make putting it back into materials after you spend hours sit in their working so hard to make something to sell to somebody else after a while it gets tiresome but you keep at it until you get your order field believe me I spent many hours tying jigs over the years 55 years and we are still going I believe that I do it as a hobby and not to get rich that is for sure but we enjoy making them FOR the people to enjoy fishing I give away far more than I ever sell anymore I guess that is part of me you will never ever get your labor out of it you must forget about that because if you had to charge for your labor the jigs would be so high that you could not afford them or you wouldn't want to pay the price so if any of you guys are thinking about getting into the business you better get ready to set their hour after hour and not only that but the cost of materials is something else anymore to make it a business you have to buy an big volume it is nothing to make in order or material that will easily go over 500 I have done this several times FOR materials I really needed and course I have made orders for over 1000 in materials something for you to think about if you really going to get into making them for money just to start up is a hobby it could easily run you into 500 bucks to start off with because once you start the hobby you keep adding and adding in adding it is very addictive believe me.

BOB.

**fishhunter775** · 07-10-2015, 07:25 PM

Well guys just wanted to lay out some insights to the new guys on the block so to say. Im lucky as My wife takes care of the books for me and does a lot of my painting. Im lucky to have found one that has been so supportive. Ive been doing some sort of tackle making so far back I cant even remember when I started ha ha. I did go full time a little over ten years ago and will say Ive been fortunate to have kept going. I started with just a few do it molds and built them up as I went. Made everything you could imagine to keep the bills paid. Made a friend up in Carbondale Kansas and went to visit him and that's when it all changed for me. Saw my first spincaster and just knew I had to have one, so scrapped and saved two years till I was able to get one. Was able to go from 2000 a day to 7000 per day by myself man I was in Hog heaven then Ha Ha. We did spinnerbaits, buzzbaits, Bladebaits and jigs from 1/100 to 4 oz with it, sure made life a lot easier to work anyway. Made lots of connections from other guys and have done quiet well with it. Only problem I found was I was always tired and never able to go fishing myself. So went back to my drawing board and decide to downsize in what we made and started just Crappie and other panfish baits and that's where Ive stuck too with very little regrets.
Even with cutting back I still find myself doing around 500,000 jigs a year and tying some where in the area of 30,000 in a lot od patterns and colors. Got a couple of part time guys when it is in the busy season but still find I can do more of it on my own than having help here and having to watch them.
I started getting into carrying other supplies to help guys out a little but believe me I don't get rich in any way from that either. But I do enjoy it. Guys not saying you cant make it but be ready for lots of hours and very little fishing to make any money at it. Ive been very blessed and still enjoy my job more than any other that I have had.

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