Homegrown in da U.P.

When people think of ice fishing lures, most likely the first lure that comes to mind is the one & only Swedish Pimple.  The Pimple has been around since the late 1950's & anyone who fishes regularly owns a handful of them. I have to beleive that more Walleye/Perch have been caught while jiggin' through a hole in the ice on this lure than any other lure in existence. My limited experience in ice fishing,  I pretty much exclusively fish the pimple. Why not-it catches fish & its made right here!  This lure & many others were designed here in Michigan's U.P. by the Bay De Noc Lure Company.  The lure company sits right in the majestic downtown district of Gladstone-right outside the door is probably the best testing grounds (Little Bay de Noc) one can have to design a lure for ice fishing.  A world class Walleye fishery that people travel to from around the world-quite a perfect laboratory for designing lures!

Last week I was in Gladstone, so I decided to stop by the Pimple factory for a visit-I just missed the afternoon coffee break & all the employees were hard at work in their specific areas.  I was greeted by Dave & Anders Nyberg-owners of the company. Dave was designing new custom color schemes for specific fisheries, a new aspect from the Bay De Noc lure Company.  Anders was filling/taking orders on the phone as it is Winter & this is the busy season for ice fishing.  The guys showed me around the shop & were explaining the process that goes into the lure making.  I was amazed at how many steps were involved in making one of these small lures.  A truly unique factor in this business is that nearly everything in the shop was handmade & designed in house.  Lloyd Nyberg-one of the founding fathers of the Bay De Noc Lure Company was a Tool/Die maker by trade.  He designed  many of these unique dies & other pieces of equipment that are still being used on a daily basis-built to last & one of a kind!

Lloyd, his brother Carl & the Apelgren family of Gladstone designed these lures as a hobby and now a second generation of family is running a phenomenal business distributing these lures across the world.  The Bay de Noc Family of lures- The Swedish Pimple, The Do-Jigger, The Laker Taker, The Flutter Laker Taker & The Vingla.

Swedish Influenced, but Yooper Made!

http://www.riversnorth.net/