About Us

In 1937, our founder Harold LeMaster whittled a jointed crank bait out of a beautiful piece of a walnut tree he picked up while walking home one day. After throwing it around his local lakes, ponds and streams the lure swam incredibly well and caught plenty of fish. The very first L&S bait was born.

After many prototypes and countless hours in his basement with his business parter, Phil Shriner, Harold moved down to Florida around 1951. Harold found a booming fishing industry within the state and tried his hand at creating saltwater lures. He knew he needed an edge. With this, the famous “mirrored insert” was born.

LeMaster found that inserting a small mirror in the body of the bait

created an irresistible flash in the water that attracted fish. The lures looked just like baitfish and were loved by both fishermen and the fish themselves. It was at this time that the famous 52M was invented, as well as our famous name.

The rest was history. More products were produced, more prototypes were created and countless fish were caught. In the beginning, our name grew mainly from word of mouth. It became a key of success for the best fishermen in Florida and influenced the culture of Florida saltwater fishing as a whole.

Fast forward to the 21st century and the company was purchased by Harold’s Grandson, Eric Bachnik, making him a third-generation owner. As the years went on, L&S Bait Co. acquired three other revolutionary and long standing brands: Paul Brown Original Lures, Iland Lures and Drone Spoons. The Bachnik family still works together to continue the tradition as a family.

Though LeMaster has left us, his legacy still lives on to this day in

every lure we make. Harold focused on three major qualities when making his lures: care, quality and fishability. Saltwater fishing would not be the same without the creation of his incredible lures.