Kelela

Name: Bob Tang

Origin: Kahaluu, Hawaii

• Popularized the "darter" shape as some would call it. His lures were very intricate in the way the tape/foil was folded and layered. The late Bob Tang is a legend in the lure making community and some of his older heads are sought after by serious collectors. 
• It is widely known that Butch Farm from Hobietat was a good friend of Bob's and Butch had acquired his molds after his passing. This means that Butch carried on Bob's legacy and any Kelela produced after 2013 was made under Butch's control.
• The identification of a Kelela is also fairly simple, he has some pretty distinct shapes and usually put his name/tag in the lure. However, we have seen A LOT of lures over the years with no name or tag so we will explain how to identify a Kelela.

Similar Examples

• Kelela lures are fairly unique, his Malolo shape and the way he folded his foil material was very innovative. The Nehu is also very iconic and we have always believed that his 5" Nehu is the #1 5" ever made. To the untrained eye, Kelela's bullets could be mistaken for other lure maker's bullets, but once you see the way he poured his resin eyes and the labels/tags he has used, they are pretty distinct.
• Although his "darter" shape is extremely unique, we have also come across very similar shapes around the same period of time. Mitsuo has made a few that have a very similar shape, and there are also Futas that also have a similar shape, although Futa seems to have more of a flat surface to their darters, rarely any curves.
• One common example of an extremely similar lure is the Kelela Paniolo. We have seen Yo-ZURI heads with the same exact shape and no tag, so we will be doing a comparison between the two soon.