Lindy History
The Lindy Tackle Company was initiated in 1968 by brothers Al and Ron Lindner and Nick Adams in order to manufacture and market the Lindy Rig. Lindy revolutionized walleye fishing in the 1960's by "barnstorming" upper Midwest walleye fisheries with demonstrations and seminars while selling thousands of Lindy Rigs. The Lindy Rig was soon joined by the Dingo Jig and the Spin Rig. When Lindy outgrew the ability of the founders to finance its growth, the company was sold to Ray-O-Vac in 1973. The Lindners left the Fishing Tackle Division of Ray-O-Vac in 1975 to form the In-Fisherman Communication Network, which published In-Fisherman magazine, books, video tapes, and produced the syndicated "In-Fisherman" television show.
Also in 1973, Ray-O-Vac acquired Mille Lacs Mfg. and merged the Mille Lacs Mfg. and Lindy to form their Fishing Tackle Division. Mille Lacs Mfg. was originally founded by Joe Fladebo and had been operating out of Isle, Minnesota since the late 1930's. Mille Lacs Mfg. owned the Little Joe® brand name of fishing tackle and quickly became famous for its Red Devil, Little Joe, and Mity Grip Spinners; Canadian Jig Fly, Lazy Dazy Lures, True-Spin Spinners, and a wide assortment of other lures and accessories.
Lindy-Little Joe Inc. was incorporated in November 1978 to acquire and operate the business of the Fishing Tackle Division of Ray-O-Vac starting in January, 1979. The company purchased specific assets including but not limited to the Lindy® and Little Joe® brand names, inventory, tools and dies, and manufacturing and office equipment.
In 1979 with new direction and a streamlined product line, Lindy-Little Joe began niche marketing to the walleye market. The company is credited with identifying walleye fishing as a market and with developing many of the walleye fishing methods and products which dominate the market today. Lindy's grass roots approach to teaching walleye fishing has created many of the big names in walleye fishing and has spawned millions of walleye anglers.
Noted "walleye" pros like: Al Lindner, Ron Lindner, Gary Roach, Babe Winkelman, Randy Amenrud, Ted Capra, Dan Nelson, Mike McClelland, Bob Propst, and Ted Takasaki…have all gotten their start or a big boost in their careers from the famous Lindy Fishing Team. Lindy Fishing Team members have been invited to many new walleye fisheries in order to teach walleye fishing techniques. On the Western Basin of Lake Erie, jigging is often called "Fuzz-E-Grubbin" after the Lindy Fuzz-E-Grub® Jig. Lindy Riggin' is synonymous with live bait rigs, which would be analogous as Kleenex is to facial tissue.
Since its introduction in 1968, more than 40 million Lindy Rigs have been purchased by walleye fishermen. The Company's Red Devil and Little Joe Spinners, and Fuzz-E-Grub® jigs are three of the most copied lures available to walleye fishermen.
In late 1992, Thill Fishing Tackle was acquired by the company. Thill premium balsa floats are truly of European technology with hundreds of years in its evolution. Thill floats have been adapted from this technology specifically to address North America's unique fish and water conditions.
In April, 1997, Lindy-Little Joe Inc. acquired System Tackle Manufacturing of Sauk Rapids, MN. This acquisition brought forth an exceptional series of ice fishing jigs to complement our product line. This acquisition has resulted in a partnership with Dave Genz, "Mr. Ice Fishing", who is the man behind many of Lindy's ice fishing products. These products have been received enthusiastically by avid ice anglers all across the country.
In January of 2003, Lindy acquired the assets of Old Bayside Fishing Tackle. The Old Bayside product line was designed and developed to market and sell soft plastics lures specifically to the in-shore saltwater angler. These products exhibited exceptional detail and superb action, which triggers redfish, speckled trout and other saltwater species.
2004 brought about the acquisition of another tackle company, Muskie Greats Tackle or M/G. The flagship product of the M/G product line was the M/G Muskie Tandem bucktail spinnerbait. M/G lures are ranked 15th over all for catching fish over 50 inches by Muskie's Inc.
2005 was significant for Lindy as it moved into product lines quite different from its previous roots of fishing tackle. Three high quality brand names - Beckman Nets, Drift Control Drift Socks, and Tamer Fishing Products - were rolled into Lindy's operations in February of 2005.
Today, Lindy is credited with developing many of the lures and methods that dominate the industry today. In addition to its established position in walleye fishing, the company offers a complete line of market-leading terminal fishing tackle, landing nets, drift socks, and accessories for all species of fish. Some of Lindy's well recognized brands include names such as Little Joe, Thill, Old BaySide, Beckman, Drift Control, M/G, and Tamer.
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