RiverMan

Last time I saw a pic like that Fat Finger my buddy had just winged a rattle trap over my should at 60 mph. I think all of us on this site must have had a battle at one time with an electrical outlet, thus the propensity toward "strange lure-making behavior". jed

Beautiful bait.

Hey those are nice, beautiful!! Jed

Some time ago on this board we got into the discussion of various plastics for bait-making. After that I did some experimenting with HDPE-high density polyethylene which is probably what you are using...just guessing since I don't know what the product is used for typically. There are a ton of different plastics on the market, many sink, some float. I built several baits from HDPE and they swam fine. I found some advantages with the product also, one being that you can get it in white which eliminates the need for a primer..cool! It also won't take on water which eliminates the need to seal it and it should be more consistent than wood in density/weight. Some disadvantages......somewhat spendy, about the same as a good hardwood. It will melt if it gets too hot while pouring lead for example. It can be difficult to obtain for most of us, and may not provide the "life" that many guys look for in a crank and or floater. The stuff I tried didn't float real high in the water. I was told by a company rep of the stuff that most clearcoats probably wouldn't stick to it but in the limited experiments I ran (2 baits) this didn't seem to be a problem. As far as durability is concerned it may not provide much benefit over wood because a bait is only as strong as the clear coat. Once the water gets past the clear coat it won't matter if you have a body made of steel, wood, or plastic, it will eventually begin to unravel everything. Overall I think tho it's worth a serious look by us bait-builders and I think it's great you are using it fatfingers. If someone finds a reasonably priced source for the stuff please let us know! Jed

Beautiful bait, great job! When you say "plastic", what are you referring to? Jed

FatFingers, After you choose reply and just below the message box is an icon next to the word "options" that says "add an attachment", choose that, then browse for the file. The only problem I have had is for some reason it stores images after you add them and at some point they must be removed. Why this is I have no idea since it seems the images would simply go on to the server space once posted. ?? Jed

Rich is right...too thin, just come back over the top of it with a couple coats and you will have a masterpiece......Devcon will do the same thing by the way if put on too thin. jed

Dean, that it exactly what I use and mostly the pen won't smear if you wait about 10 minutes after mixing the etex before applying it. I have no idea why it makes a difference but it most certainly does. jed

That does look nice, wonder if that is a common writing device or if it's only available by mail. I would be interested in trying one. Thx. jed

Hi Gary, Not exactly sure what you are asking but will try to help. I generally don't use tape. Try to do your painting without any tape if possible. For example you could spray on a yellow body, then come across the top with the black for the back and then the belly with white. If a bit of black or white creeps up the sides that's fine as most fish have a bit of this naturally anyway. If you want to prevent paint from hitting some areas try shielding the area with a piece of cardboard. Hold the cardboard back from the bait several inches and this will keep you from getting a real defined and unnatural looking line. You can add in gills, lines, etc., by cutting shapes out of playing cards or overhead projector material and using these as stencils. Eventually get yourself an airbrush, you will love it. Have fun. Jed

Welcome KB, I use water-based paints because they are the safest. I buy some of my paints at Wal-Mart but most of them are made by Createx. I do know of some very talented lure painters tho that use oil-based paints. Make sure the paint is allowed to dry for a couple days before going to a top coat. Oh, and be sure to use a good white primer first. Have fun. Jed

I like the surgical tubing idea. I spend so much time on my baits getting them to look the best I can and then guys throw em for an hour and they are covered in scratches....ouch. Jed

It's important to "T" your hooks so that when the swing from left to right the damage is reduced. Any finish will scratch and wear if the hooks are slapping the bait left and right at a steady troll or retrieve. Jed

I have tried cleaning brushes and find that I get tiny particles of etex that stay with the brush, maybe it's because I am using so much of the stuff. I generally brush about 25 baits at a time. Anyway, when I tried cleaning the brushes I would find that regardless of how hard I tried to get the brush clean, the next time I used it the bristles were stiff and tiny particles of etex would show up in the finish, yikes! I paid roughly 14 cents for each of these brushes, I just toss em! Jed

I live in a dusty little town and the only place to get brushes for Etex is at Wal-Mart. Anyway, I did some looking around and found these online. For about 21 dollars I got 144 brushes which I use once and throw away. I am very happy with them and the delivery was prompt, thought some of you might be interested. Here is the link: http://www.rsquality.com/productcart/pc/viewPrd.asp?idcategory=654&idproduct=3201 Jed

I had this problem myself several months back and it took me several weeks to figure it out. Turns out that the etex was having a reaction to a new water-based paint that I was using. I would guess this is what's going on for you too. Look at the paint you are using..either the primer or paint is the culprit. I went back to createx and the problems went away. If you are brushing the etex there is no reason to thin it, mix at 1/1, wait five or ten minutes and start brushing. For the baits you have right now go ahead and put etex over the top and it will smooth everything out. The only problem with multiple coats is that some baits, crankbaits for example, will be impacted considerably if you get too heavy on the final coat. jed

I have one guide that I consider "pro staff" that I provide baits to for free. At times I have charged him for postage, particularly when he wants them NOW! It's worked out very well for me thus far. jed

Brock, You might go to yahoo.com, click on "images" and then type in rainbow trout. You will get a hundred pics of a rainbow....great place to start. jed

I run PowerPro for virtually everything now, it's very hard to beat. It does have some nasty habits like wrapping around the rod tip and oh, don't let you bait get tangled with someone else running the same line, a mess! As far as "high test" is concerned we run 100# Power Pro for sturgeon which is the equivalent diameter of 20# mono. We do use a 100 pound front on the PowerPro tho as braids have very poor abrasion resistance by comparison to monos and sturgeon like to rub in the rocks once hooked. jed

Thanks guys, appreciate the kinds words. The baits I am building today are largely a result of the combined knowledge and willingness of so many to share through this forum. You guys are the best and I look forward to learning and sharing bigger and better things as we go along. Jed

My baits are featured in this months issue of the New Jersey Angler. I scanned the article and wanted to share it with you guys. Hey I had to share it with someone.......................my wife said, "yea that's nice", lol. Oh tried to post it as an image in here but can't get it to work for some reason. Keeps saying I have exceed my 600k limit even if the file is considerably smaller than that. Jed

Shawn, No, their eyes are on each side just like most fish but they are not strong swimmers. The current speed in the viewing windows is desinged to "attract" the salmon into the fish ladder. The current speed, however, is such that it requires the lamprey to hold onto the sides and rest. What is really wild about the lamprey is when they come to a vertical wall with water running over it (a waterfall), they will climb it inch by inch with their mouth! Their body and tail just hangs there and they hop along a few inches at a time with their mouth until they go right over it, amazing! A hundred foot rock wall will stop a salmon but not a lamprey, he will go right over it. The downside for lamprey tho have been dams. They are very confused by them and they try to climb through the dams in various cracks and crevices only to meet their demise. Salmon are far better able to locate and move through fish ladders. Tons of shad moving right now in the fish ladder! http://www.nwp.usace.army.mil/op/b/fishcam/fishimage.jpg Jed

Hi Lorne and welcome. If you want to stick with wood, why not have someone cut and shape them for you...then you go from there? Jed

I am sure they do feed on them altho there is likely a fairly narrow window in which the juvenile lamprey are vulnerable. Beyond that the "fecundity" (number of eggs) of lamprey is enormous which means that even under heavy predation there will be strong numbers of eels reaching adulthood. Jed

He is exactly right, Pacific Lamprey which are an anadromous species. Near my home here in Oregon we also have Western Brook Lamprey which are a resident fish and never get very large. Pacific Lamprey are amazing critters and like crocodiles their form and function has not changed since the time of the dinosaurs, you don't fix what ain't broke. Pac. Lamprey actually have a interesting life cycle. The parents spend a period of time in the ocean as parasitic fish that attach to other fish and feed off of them. Generally the host fish does not die as a result of this activity. The adults migrate upstream to spawn but unlike salmon, research at this time indicates that they may not return to their point of birth. Instead they key in on several phermones released by juveniles of their own species that are residing in the stream. The adults build a nest by moving rocks to one side and the eggs are deposited and fertilized. The little ones hatch out and drift in the current until they settle in an area of the river contaning a silt bottom at which time they burrow. Here they will spend 5 or 6 years as plankton feeders with their heads up above the river bottom, mouths open like filters, before going through a metamorphisis that includes growing eyes. At about 5 or 6 inches in length they then head for the ocean and the cycle is repeated. Many of our rivers here were once reported to have literally millions of Lamprey in them and they are a native species unlike the lamprey found in the Great Lakes. The lamprey were extirpated from most systems as a result of inadequate or non-existent screens and passage facilities at various dams and irrigation diversions. The eels are highly prized by native americans as a food source and are thought to help improve survival of juvenile salmonid fishes by providing an alternate food source to predatory fishes. I also know of guys that love to use them as bait for sturgeon. Many are working at this time to reintroduce the Lamprey into river systems and to better understand their habitat needs. I probably told you more than you wanted to know...sorry, I type fast. Jed