I have never made one, but looking at the commercial versions, they are nothing but a funnel on a glass or plastic jar...seems one could tape a funnel to the mouth of a plastic or glass jar..you might want to open the funnel up alittle by cutting some of the spout off..depends on the size of minnow you hope to catch. I used to use saltines for bait. If you want to catch crawfish, use a dead fish or the head of fish. Remember the funnel is inside the jar with the large opening toward the outside.