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Tracer Trout

danthefisherman

By danthefisherman

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This 8.75" trout glide has been a long time in the making, but I'm finally getting it to where I want it to be after years of testing and weeding through iterations that I wasn't 100% satisfied with. I actually started working on this particular model about a year and a half ago and only now have enough time on the water with it to feel comfortable pushing it into the final phases of prototyping. The master was carved completely by hand out of a block of basswood using only a utility knife, wood chisel, and sandpaper. I made a two-piece silicone mold of the bait so that I could pour duplicates out of resin. The tail was also carved out of wood and molded with silicone. The casting material is a flexible urethane with black glitter to replicate the trout dots on the body.

The bait in the photograph is the first fishable prototype out of my new mold. It was painted with an airbrush and clear coated with KBS Diamond Clear. I did a semi sloppy job with the hand-tied Owner ST-36 feather trebles. Not sure how they will effect the swim, but they add a nice touch. Overall I am very pleased with how this bait came out. I'd love to fish the paint off this thing but will be donating it this week to support the Swimbaits for Autism fundraiser event hosted by Swimbait Culture. Check it out and thanks for looking!

Dan

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Photo Information for Tracer Trout

Taken with Apple iPhone SE (2nd generation)

  • 4 mm
  • 1/60
  • f f/1.8
  • ISO 250
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danthefisherman
  On 4/25/2022 at 1:50 PM, RiverSmallieGuy said:

Did you carve every scale!? Dude, that is SolarBaits level scale carving! The gills are fantastic too! Incredible!

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Thanks! I am hardly on Solar’s level, but I do my best to build baits that I can be proud of ;)

My basswood isn’t a good enough grade to carve every scale with a utility knife I think (I’ve tried and had lots of wood chipping), hence I use a wood chisel. The problem with the chisel is it’s not very sharp so the wood at the surface likes to crack and flake instead of cut. You have to gradually work it in so as to not damage the finish too much but it’s doable with much patience and concentration.

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Big Epp

Great work!  The level of detail on here is impressive!  This is a great build, and the process was a great read on SU.  It was really cool to see the whole process and all the steps that lead to completion.

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danthefisherman
  On 4/25/2022 at 3:16 PM, Big Epp said:

Great work!  The level of detail on here is impressive!  This is a great build, and the process was a great read on SU.  It was really cool to see the whole process and all the steps that lead to completion.

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Thanks brother! It’s been a wild ride getting to where I am now with this bait, but I’ve had fun with it and learned a lot as well!

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