Backstory
Meet Glenn Buttler, Chief Fishing Officer (CFO) of Walkabout Products and discover the story behind the brand.
Glenn Buttler, Chief Fishing Officer of Walkabout Products, spent his childhood outdoors having adventures.
Growing up in the western suburbs of Melbourne in the ‘80’s, at age 10 Glenn and his brother Brett (aged 13) would often be up before dawn to push their tinny 2kms down the road to the Altona boat ramp. There they would spend all day on the water catching snapper, whiting and squid. If they weren’t fishing, they were making fishing rods or camping on the mud flats of Point Cook to go floundering.
School holidays were spent on the Murray catching cod and yellowbelly or the Goulbourn River catching trout.
When Glenn’s brother was finally old enough to drive they hooked up their Cruisecraft and undertook their first fishing road trip to Bermagui and Eden where they caught Marlin, Tuna, Albacore and Kingfish etc.
He caught his first big fish at age 19; a 102kg Striped Marlin off Bermagui on a live slimy mackerel.
Unfortunately, it tail wrapped itself in the line and drowned. Everyone in the fishing the tournament (and a few nursing homes in the area) had feast that night. He had the head mounted which is in his workshop today.
Since then there have been many boats and many more fishing adventures including bi-annual trips to the Gulf of Carpentaria in the NT and Queensland and long weekends along the rivers and lakes in Victoria and NSW, before Glenn decided to relocate to better fishing conditions in North Queensland. He now spends his weekends out chasing everything the north has to offer from creeks to the reef.
Walkabout Products was born from Glenn’s love of fishing and wanting to create a product that was designed for the Australian market using sustainable materials. Utilising his engineering background, Glenn has designed and built a range of locally made products from diving lures, to poppers that are sure to attract any fish.
Designing a Walkabout Products Lure
Each timber lure is uniquely designed to swim and mimic the actions of baitfish. Drawn in CAD to ensure the dimensions and weight are consistent throughout the range, the lures are CNC machined in our Townsville workshop using carefully selected, sustainably sourced, locally milled timber. This is to ensure that the lure produces the action desired.
Whilst our manufacturing is conducted by machine for consistency, each lure is hand painted to give a realistic finish and shine that fish love and is tank tested to ensure the right swimming action.
All products are armed with quality VMC hooks and split rings, while bibs and wire components are designed and manufactured in-house.