SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA (FOUNDED) & KAILUA-KONA, HAWAII — ACTIVE YEARS 2004 – PRESENT

Tantrum is the rare outside brand that earned its way into the Kona fold. It was founded in Sydney, Australia in 2004 by Nick Durham — out of a pure passion for Hawaiian-style lures — and grew from a garage operation into a worldwide favorite.

Durham's start was self-made: as a teenager he saved his supermarket wages to buy a lathe and taught himself by trial and error. Most established makers wouldn't share their secrets, but through an internet forum he struck up a friendship with the late Bart Miller (Black Bart), who mentored him by email, answered his questions, and talked him out of quitting more than once. In 2017 Durham left a marketing career to go all-in on Tantrum, testing in Kona aboard Capt. Jason Holtz's Pursuit, where the lures were an immediate success. Legendary Kona skipper Chip Van Mols became a second mentor, and his meticulous feedback shaped the line.

In late 2019 Durham and his wife, Alex, moved full-time to the Big Island, training a friend to keep Australian production running while Nick ran a custom Kona shop and fished more than 200 days a year. Alex is integral to the brand — from business dealings to pouring lures when Nick is away — and is no stranger to big fish, having once held the women's 130-pound-class Pacific blue record at 958 pounds (2013). Built for function above all, Tantrums have piled up tournament wins (including a biggest-fish at the HIBT) and big numbers aboard Pursuit, and now turn up in spreads around the world.

As a museum and archive, we're honored to document Tantrum Lures and Nick Durham's Australian-born, Kona-proven contribution to the Hawaiian tradition.

Notable shapes: Kaboom (straight runner), Plunger (keel-weighted), JetPack Bullet (4-hole jetted — the original Tantrum bullet), Bandit; sizes from 7" through Large, XL, and XXL 14"

Identification tips:

• Clean, function-first shapes, keel-weighted to balance and run true
• A modern branded maker — markings plus shape help ID

Below, you’ll find our ever-growing digital archive showcasing every lure that has come through our shop. This collection is constantly evolving as new lures arrive, making it a living record of rare, limited-production lures. We will continue updating this database regularly, building what we aim to be the largest digital archive of offshore trolling lures in the world.

If you have any further information or any lures you believe deserve to be showcased, please reach out to us at ren@luremonger.com