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Basswipe's comment says it all and OCM's last post proves him to be a troublemaker and/or a clown. Shame. Danno, OCM's arrogance and malignant narcism should neither dissuade you from asking questions on this site, nor should it stop you from purchasing any and all plugs that, for whatever reason, catch your attention. Be forewarned that plugs are designed to catch fishermen first, then hopefully fish. Your BTW indicates to me that you don’t really know much about the Afterhours plug that you bought, but you didn’t let that stop you from buying it.
I choose to patronize smaller local tackle shops because these are the people who are closest to the action in the area I fish, and they will have a better idea if a specific type of plug, be it a brand name or a certain style, is working in the area, so striking up a relationship with a local owner(s) is important. If they don't stock a certain type of plug it may not work in that area like it works in others.
All plugs, expensive or inexpensive, will more than likely work, but time has to be invested in learning how to make said plug move just right and presenting it in an area that fish, for whatever reason, are attracted to. It took me a couple of years for me to learn how to get the first custom (as you put it, a “professional”) plug that I found success with, George Carlezon’s pencil popper, to dance just right, but once I did... And I’ve had great success with the aforementioned $6 plastic swimmer, the mambo minnow – worked for me straight out of the box. (A shout out to PIEMMA - silver/black still rule out back.)
I specifically use the least expensive plug or tin that I can find success with because I lose a large quantity of lures every year - I believe that if you are not losing tackle you're not doing it right, not putting yourself in a risky but productive situation (in my case, bluefish, seals or snapping it off, but for you it may be pilings, rocks or other structure). With all due respect to all of the craftsmen who sponsor and contribute to this site, it makes little/no sense to me to spend high dollars for a beautiful custom lure that, in my hands, would have an extremely limited life expectancy. But that is just me Danno, you may/will be different. Hopefully you won’t lose as much gear as I.
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