RiverMan

And you ge the mearl where.......?

Is there a place that I can buy the foil Hughesy?

Go to this link, once there scroll down and click on the "aurora black", beautiful! Any idea how they get this look? http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpageHDRLUCKY-LCPT.html#

Thank you.

Hey Chip, I know you have said for your wire ties that you wrap the wire on itself and then epoxy it in. Do you wrap the wire around something to get the loop and then wrap the two ends one over the next weaving them like a rope? I have tried this and find it difficult to get an even wind. I am bit worried about strength with this method too as the lures I'm building are for chinooks and they definitely "tug on superman's cape", lol. Cool tutorial as always. Thanks. Jed

Great looking lure, will be interesting to see how it holds up to "mr. fish". jed

I would sand off the clumps and then redo the finish with Devcon again. And at the risk of having Skeeter strangle me, I too would recommend using the hair dryer next time. I like the mix the Devcon in small Dixie Cups. Mix well, turn the cup and make sure all parts of the glue get mixed. If the stuff sets up too much run it under the HD for a second, stir again, and then paint it on. Once the Devcon is completely covering the bait run the HD over everything again, watch closely and when the bait looks like it's covered in water it's done. If you see bubbles coming to the surface you are going too far with the HD. I then usually turn the bait under a light to look for any missing spots that can be smoothed out with a brush. After that, put the bait on a dryer, if you don't have one you can manually turn the bait while watching tv for 15 minutes or so. Good luck! jed

Interesting design on the old lure. Yea you might try the line tie on top, particularly if the bill isn't going to be that large anyway. I would try to get the tie as close to the front of the bait as possible tho and make sure it is in a place where you can get a good hold with the wire. I hope you are trying the method Shawn (art brush) just outlined for the mold, sounds like you are, looks to be a perfect match for your detailed approach to things. Thanks for the info on the old lure, have fun. Jed

Soup, So the old lure, is the bill shaped to encourage the lure to dive or is the lure made of lead? The pic looks like the bill just comes straight out. I wouldn't cast that thing for anything if I was you until you are able to reproduce it. I love old lures and couldn't imagine losing one to a rock, yikes! Jed

Soup, Very interesting post you have put up. From what you have told me I would love to connect with a huge striper, sound like our salmon. Have you thought about using divers? Here we use them extensively for getting any bait you want down to 50 feet. They slide on the line and can be purchased from 10' to 50', maybe more for all I know. When you hook a fish they just slide, no problem at all to use them. Also, you could use some kind of lead wire splitter set-up with a long leader trailing. Downriggers may be an option too. Finally, there are cranks out there that will get to more than 30 feet with light line. Have you looked at any of the "hotlips" line? Run the 3/4 ounce version on a braided line, 6 or 8 lb diameter, 20-30 lb test respectively. The thin diameter will take you "deep down" in a hurry. The braid is so strong it's scary! I'm curious, what kind of action does the second lure picture you have posted have? The "unknown" lure, very cool looking. Jed

Yea, "roachclips", that's it, lol, haven't heard that word in awhile!

Cody, I am only painting one bait at a time and not into any production. For this I have been using a small pair of needle nose vice grips which I grab the rear screw eye with and this works well. Sometimes I will also use the pliers on my leatherman which works fine too. Jed

Nathan, That really is an ingenius looking critter you have built, the job looks to be excellent and you can tell there is a considerable amount of labor that went into the bait. It might be something that will have to be demonstrated to get people to buy. Best Regards, jed

The "flure" is a cool looking bait. Is the head of the bait wood, lead, foam? Also, is there a body to it the bait or is everying behind the head of the bait, feathers and such? Thanks! Jed

Oh ok, the snake looking thing, that is a really cool looking bait. I have never had my hands on that thing but would love to try to reproduce something like it. Give it a try Nathan, bet you could come up with something close. Jed

I have a pointer (100mm I think) and can't see any difference in it from any other jerkbait, other than an unreal paint job. Looks like it could be reproduced quite easily unless there is something inside that I am missing. Jed

I like the bottom one best, the diamond shaped parr marks are nice. Jed

Hey Soup, Ever tried braided lines? Here I run 30# PowerPro which has an 8 lb diamter and have never lost a chinook or steelhead lure to a fish. You could run 50# PowerPro and still only be at 12# diameter, no stripers are gonna break that I will promise you. Have fun! Jed

Great article! This type of info would be a great addition to the tutorial section of this site.

While searching I found this info on crank-bait bills that Lincoya wrote. I had not seen it until now and thought there would likely be others who would enjoy the reading. Here's the link: http://www.angelfire.com/tn/treetotreasure/lips.html

Great lookin baits!

Would be happy to exchange lures with you as well Soupysayso. I am about where you are with the paint, much to learn. And to answer your question, I live in Northeastern Oregon and make my living working with rivers. Beyond that I spend any free time I can chasing salmon and steelhead on a long list of rivers near my home. Tomorrow is one of those days, will be backing some plugs down the river for steelhead at first light. Best Regards, Jed

Wow, well sounds like you have the ticket then. The last time I melted lead it seemed like it took 20 minutes just to get the stuff into liquid form, could have just been the candle I was using to heat it. Take care. jed

Thanks for the explanation Soupysayso. Each of us finds joy in some part of the lure making process, for you it is in the "details". You made me realize too that I am not as much the spaz I thought I was for perfection, lol. I respect your lure-building process, you have certainly done your homework, and reading different routes to the same ending (a cool lure) is how we learn. I will add though that some of the variation you strive to eliminate is exactly what I find most appealing. Wood is alive, and feeling a lure take shape in your hands is where the fun is at for me. By removing the wood from the center of the lure, you're removing the very "heart" of the critter.....in my humble opinion. The measurements I make while building a lure are done to provide predictability, not certainty. If I were so serious as to want the wall thickness of my lures to be within .001mm, I would take out a bank loan, purchase machined molds, and begin plastic injection molding. Why fool with wood? Sounds like you would very much enjoy the results from molds as they provide repeatability and precision, right down to the fingerprint you left on the prototype. I like them too for production, but for just "good ole traditional lure building fun", wood is impossible to beat. Thank you for the exchange and best regards, Jed

I'm surprised that some of you guys actually take the time to melt lead to pour into the plugs, now that's dedication! I buy pencil lead which comes in rolls, cut off the section I need, drill the hole, and slide the piece in. If I didn't have pencil lead I would probably just use splitshot. Lead is easily shaped, you could take almost any sized weight and quickly hammer or squeeze (I use my leatherman) it into a configuration that meets the hole you have drilled. Jed