An Insight into Halco – a Legendary Company! – By Will Kitching
When it comes to fishing lure and tackle companies, there aren’t many as well-known and successful as Halco! This Australian owned company is based in Fremantle, Western Australia, and can be seen on the shelves of tackle stores all around the country. Anglers in other countries are also realising just how effective these lures are for a range of species across the globe. Personally, I have used Halco lures since I was a kid with my first ever lure-caught fish coming on a Halco ‘Streaker’. To this day, my tackle boxes are filled with Halco lures and they seriously catch so many fish! From mackerel, tuna, and reef fish to flathead, tailor and barramundi – Halco have you covered!
Curtis Waterman (left) and Ben Patrick (right) with a pair of beautiful wahoo taken on Halco Max bibless minnows.
Apart from the fact they make tough, effective, and affordable gear, the team behind Halco are extremely down-to-earth. They are passionate and hard working to ensure the best fishing experiences for us, as anglers. The team consists of three great blokes – Ben Patrick, Tim Carter, and Curtis Waterman. Ben is the owner and managing director, Tim is the sales and marketing manager, and Curtis is the digital marketing coordinator.
I have had the pleasure of meeting Curtis and Tim at the AFTA trade show on the Gold Coast over the last couple of years, who are both a wealth of great fishing knowledge and stories! I learnt that there is a lot that goes on behind the scenes to produce such great quality products and keep the cogs turning at Halco, which we don’t get to see when we simply pick a lure off the shelf and start catching fish with it. When the opportunity arose to ask Ben and Curtis a few questions to get an insight into one of the best tackle companies in the country, I jumped at the chance.
Affordable, simple, and effective – Halco lures are ready to catch fish straight out of the box.
Tim was most likely working hard or busy catching fish when I was doing the interviewing, so we’ll have to catch up with him next time! Ben and Curtis shared some great information on the history, design process, some popular species to chase on their tackle, and a few personal stories from their time working at Halco. I hope you enjoy their answers!
Interviewing Ben Patrick:
Will: G’day Ben, thanks so much for taking the time to answer a few questions for our readers. Firstly, what is it about Halco lures that makes fish love them so much?
Ben: I can’t speak for fish, but I can assure you that we spend a lot of time designing lures with attributes that will maximise the chances of a fish striking the lure. We have variables of action, noise, colour, speed, shape, texture, and buoyancy to play with. I always think it’s important to have some sort of priority list for these variables, then drill down on the important ones.
Tim Carter putting a Halco Madeye Paddle Prawn to good use!
Will: Could you tell us a little bit about Halco’s history, and how the company got to where it is today?
Ben: Halco was established in 1950 by Hal Cooper in the Perth suburb of Mosman Park. Hal wasn’t a fisherman – but he was a very clever engineer. His brother was a keen fisho. I still reckon that’s a great combo – an expert fisherman and an expert designer and manufacturer. It’s still a bit like that today. My father Neil bought the company in 1980 and I bought it off him in 2002. Our head office, Australian distribution, and product development is all run out of our South Fremantle premises. I started a factory from scratch in Indonesia 18 years ago which continues to grow, and I spend one week out of every six in the factory. I firmly believe that if you want to make consistently great products, you need to make them yourself.
Will: I know you put a lot of time and effort into making such good quality products. Could you tell us a little bit about the process of designing and perfecting new lures?
Ben: Design can be a black art. Fortunately, I’ve been doing it for almost 30 years which helps a lot. It is often frustrating, but very rewarding! Swimming lures are tricky to design as you want a stable lure with an inbuilt instability to create the action. It’s not an easy process, especially if you want them to run fast and/or deep. Even after all this time, I’m still learning! There is so much work in the design, then during pre-production there is a lot of fine tuning. It’s one of the reasons why doing manufacturing yourself is so important.
Ben Patrick from Halco hooked up to a fish.
Will: Finally Ben, what is the most rewarding part of your job?
Ben: Running a growing business can be stressful, hectic, rewarding, and sometimes disappointing. There is plenty of stuff that is rewarding, but two things are important to me. The first one is nutting out a new process or a better way of manufacturing lures. It’s an ever-evolving process and every improvement in the production process always gives a great sense of achievement. The other one is when you get a great message from a customer. You may have had a tough and long day, then you’ll receive an email, message, phone call, or letter complimenting the consistent fish catching ability of our lures. This is always appreciated. It’s confirmation we are doing things right – or mostly anyway!
Interviewing Curtis Waterman:
Will: G’day Curtis, it’s great to chat to you again mate. Now tell me, what are some of your favourite species to target on Halco lures?
Curtis: In my opinion the Spanish mackerel is the ultimate all-rounder. You can cast at them, jig for them or of course troll for them, and luckily at Halco we make a lure for all of these different methods. In terms of effectiveness, it’s hard to go past the Laser Pro as a mackerel lure, however if I had to pick, I’d be tying on a Slidog 125 or 150 and watching Spaniards launch into the sky.
Will: That does sound exciting mate! What is your most memorable catch on a Halco lure?
Curtis: That is a very hard question to answer as multiple fish spring to mind. My first mangrove jack on a Roosta popper at the age of 10 would be up there. Also a 20kg Spanish mackerel at Rottnest whilst trolling for salmon with a Laser Pro, or even more recently a monster Maori wrasse at the Rowley Shoals on a Slidog 150. Those three are my favourites, all for slightly different reasons!
Will: If you could go on your dream fishing trip, where would it be and what would be the first few Halco lures you’d pack?
Curtis: It would be hard for me to go past some marlin fishing – maybe Madeira? But if not marlin fishing then I’d probably be going up to Scott Reef to try and catch some monster coral trout or yellowfin tuna. The first lure I’d pack would be a Slidog 150, followed by some Laser Pro 190s. They are both a non-negotiable.
Halco have you covered from flathead and coral trout to Spanish mackerel and wahoo!
Will: Apart from the fantastic range of lures, what are some handy bits of tackle that Halco sell?
Curtis: Outside of our range of lures, I really love our wind on leaders. They make rigging up for game fishing and trolling super easy whether it is on 6kg or 60kg tackle. They’re made with high-quality mono and spectra, and are a must have for me.
Will: Finally, why do you think the readers should go and add a few Halco lures to their tackle box? Mine is already full of them!
Curtis: Above all else, Halcos are bloody tough. Eddy Lawler put it really well in a recent video we filmed with him when he said he uses Halco because you can just “keep casting, keep catching”. They’ll go again over and over and of course fish love them too!
Ben and Curtis, thank you for answering a few questions for us and giving everyone a little bit of insight into what goes on behind the scenes at Halco. This team is passionate about making the best quality products for us anglers, and they love seeing us land fish after fish on them! Go and check out the Halco website (https://halcotackle.com/)to find some lures and gear that will suit you and look for their gear on the wall of your local tackle shop too! I hope you all keep nailing fish on Halco lures and keep supporting this fantastic Australian company. Until next time, tight lines!
