California Lure Maker Creates Marlin-Catching Legend

A couple of years ago, Vincent Ivicevic cast off from Carlsbad, California, aboard his family’s 34-foot custom-built Blackman, Honey II. It wasn’t so much a fishing trip as it was a voyage to test one of Ivicevic’s prototype lures to see how it ran in the open ocean. “We were by the beach, so I decided to run out a bit further to the cleaner water,” says Ivicevic, a lifelong angler and photographer by profession. First, he trolled the lure at seven to seven-and-a-half knots, then he bumped the speed up to eight knots.

“I’m watching the lure, seeing how it works, when all of a sudden a marlin comes up,” he said. “I’m thinking, ‘Marlin aren’t supposed to be here.’ You don’t usually see them until you’re at least 10 miles off the 14-mile bank or halfway to Catalina.” The marlin’s bill crossed and hit the lure, so Ivicevic turned the boat in a big circle. Sure enough, the fish came around and hit the lure. It took off with the line buzzing. “You could see the line heading to the surface, and right as its bill starts to break the surface, it pops off,” he says. “My daughter was with me, and she was so excited. So, that was my first successful lure, the VI 43.”

The Early Years

A legacy of saltwater fishing flows through Ivicevic’s veins. His grandfather, who immigrated to the San Diego area from the former Yugoslavia, was an offshore commercial fisherman. Ivicevic’s father enjoyed fishing recreationally, first on an 18-foot Reinell and then on a 24-foot Skipjack, named Honey II for his wife’s affectionate nickname.

“My first fishing memory was going out on our boat with my dad and older brother,” said Ivicevic, who was born and raised in Vista, California. “We targeted meat fish like yellowtail, halibut, and calico bass along the shore. It was the mid-1970s, and the movie “Jaws” had just been released. That day, we saw a shark in the water. My brother was fishing and had his hands dangling in the water. Dad reached across, grabbed him, and pulled him fully into the boat. Right at that moment, the shark surfaced and began biting the motor. All I could think was ‘Oh my gosh, what timing!'”

Later, the family started sportfishing and billfishing for fun. They also participated in California tournaments off Catalina Island, such as the Catalina Classic and the Gold Cup Marlin Tournament, both of which became annual traditions. “We spent summers in Cabo San Lucas,” says Ivicevic. “My dad bought one of the first condos there. He’d tow the skipjack down and we’d fish all summer. My little brother and I would have competitions. We’d hook a marlin with live bait. Then my dad would turn the engine off and say, ‘Ok, who can get their fish in first?’ We did the tournaments in Cabo too, like Bisbee’s. We were usually the smallest boat.”

Hawaiian Inspiration

Ivicevic’s first foray into lure-making came at the age of 12. At the time, an older cousin, who was an avid fisherman, moved to Hawaii to work in the construction trade. A strike soon ended this opportunity; however, he didn’t come back empty-handed. Instead, Ivicevic’s cousin brought back a box full of manufactured lure heads, one-off copies of some of what Hawaii’s famous lure makers were crafting at the time.

“I didn’t manufacture anything back then,” says Ivicevic. “Instead, I found material to use as skirts to make the lure heads functional. I remember taking the bright plastic like material used to make woven lounge chairs, unraveling it, and using it for tail parts on a metal jet head lure. It was bright orange and white. I gave it to a friend, and it was when yellowfin tuna were biting about 10 miles off Oceanside Harbor. I told him to run it out as far as he could. He did, and he came home with a 50-pound yellowfin.”

Ivicevic says he’s always been a creative type, but in junior high school, his art teacher pulled him aside one day and asked if he had noticed that none of his work was displayed on the classroom walls. “She told me I get A’s for ideas, but not my artwork,” he says. “She said I needed to find the right medium for me, because I couldn’t paint, I couldn’t draw, and I couldn’t sculpt.”

It’s What’s Inside that Counts First Lure VI 43 Vincent Ivicevic

Ivicevic’s father kept that old box of Hawaiian lure heads. In 2019, he handed the box back to his son, asking him to hang onto it. Ivicevic opened the box, looked at the heads with the eyes of an adult, and that original spark of interest reignited. He decided to start making lures, and to do so, he bought equipment like a small lathe and conducted research both online and in person.

“I went into our local tackle shop and picked out what they told me was the best and hottest lure,” Ivicevic said. “I paid a little over $100 for it, then brought it home and smashed the head with a hammer to see what was on the inside. I knew from talking with other lure makers that the outside shape was one thing, but it’s how much, and where the lead is placed and balanced inside that can make all the difference as to how a lure runs and attracts fish.”

The VI 43 Creation Story

Ivicevic’s first lure, the VI 43, takes its name from the lure maker’s initials and fishing coordinates. “The 43 is for the corner, 43 miles from San Diego, which is at the intersection of the U.S. and Mexico border and the Pacific Ocean, where there’s excellent fishing,” Ivicevic said. To create the VI 43, he first carved the desired shape in wood. Then, he used the wood outline to make the silicone molds and poured the molds with resin. The result was what he called a regular pusher. Not a bullet shape, no curved face, just a straight running lure. One of the signature pieces in the VI 43 and 90 percent of Ivicevic’s lures is Paua shells that he sources from Aqua Blue Maui. That first VI 43 was pink and white.

The Globe-Trotting VI 43

Ivicevic has sent the VI 43 to customers worldwide. They’ve all caught fish.

One VI 43 purchased as a Father’s Day present caught a lucky dad a 300-pound yellowfin tuna while fishing in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. “I woke up one morning and there was a message on Facebook that read: ‘Hey, look at what we got!’ They were the first to send me photos of their catch,” Ivicevic said.

On another occasion, a fisherman who regularly traveled to Australia and New Zealand to fish packed a couple of VI 43s to run and give away on the boats he charters. Ivicevic soon received a message from the charter crew, “How can we get more?” The same thing happened when another customer took a few 43s to charter a fishing boat in Puerto Rico. By the end of the day, the crew had replaced their lures with Ivicevic’s in the spread. VI 43s also went to West Africa. A few years back, Ivicevic sponsored a fishing club in Kenya. He sent lures via another sponsor, which had a shipping company.

Tips to Run a VI 43 Lure for Marlin

How to best run a VI 43 to catch marlin depends on the type of boat and how it runs. “If it’s a heavy boat and with a lot of wake, then run them further back,” Ivicevic said. “That could be at least 50 feet, or further. You want to be sure they’re in clean water. The VI 43 will run pretty much anywhere in the spread. You can run it on your short corner. You can run it on your outriggers. The best trolling speed with the VI 43 is seven-and-a-half to eight knots. Today, purple and black are the most popular colors overall, but this can vary depending on the location where someone is fishing. I know that in Costa Rica, my VI 43 in red, orange, and yellow does best. In New Zealand, it’s a squid color that works best.”

Future of VI Lures

Today, Ivicevic earns half his income from photography and the other half as a lure maker, with his VI Lures numbering 15 different types. “As I get older, I think about retiring from photography,” he said. “But lure-making is something I’m excited about. I’ll be making lures until the day I can’t physically make them anymore.”

Optimal Performance Ideas:

• Trolling speed: 7.5-8 knots
• Position: Anywhere in spread (short corner, outriggers)
• Distance: 50+ feet behind boat in heavy wake conditions
• Popular colors: Purple/black (general), red/orange/yellow (Costa Rica), squid patterns (New Zealand)

Global Success:

• 300-pound yellowfin caught in Cabo San Lucas
• Successful catches in Australia, New Zealand, Puerto Rico
• International distribution to West Africa and Kenya

To learn more about VI lures visit: www.vilures.com

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Originally featured in InTheBite Magazine September 2025 Issue.

Check out more “First Lure” features by InTheBite here.

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