Weikko was born on the shores of Lake Saimaa, in the dim heat of a smoke sauna — just like many legends before him. Long before Weikko existed, a group of young trolling enthusiasts gathered in that same sauna each year to compete for the title of the toughest salmon hunter. The contests often ended more in sweating and occasional wrestling than actual fishing, but every now and then even a salmon was carried to the benches as tribute to the gods of steam and deep water.

Those young men founded a fishing crew called Weikkoset and swore in the darkness of the sauna that their tradition would live on. Over the years they crafted lures, spoons, and all sorts of odd fishing contraptions. A ritual emerged: first empty the local store’s nail polish shelf, then spend the night before the competition painting lures until sunrise. Except Markus, who received a lifelong ban from lure-making after accidentally catching a salmon with one of his own creations.

Inspired by tinkering and good catches, the group then moved on to building their own bait holders. Juho began casting epoxy baitholders, which were decorated with glitter and proved surprisingly effective. The holder was christened Epoxy-Weikko. The next version was already 3D-printed. After a couple summers of testing, the team focused on making the swimming style adjustable while trolling. Many prototypes later, they finally split the hood and hinged it—an idea that, after endless testing, truly worked. The finishing touches were made, and the production mold was ordered.

Now Weikko is tuned to perfection and ready for every serious angler out there. Development will continue—who knows, maybe next season Weikko swims backwards. With Juho involved, nothing would surprise us.

And when the autumn cold returns, the smoke sauna will fill once more. There, atop the highest bench, someone will claim the sacred trophy — wearing nothing but steam, pride, and Weikko.