Big Splash

Hi fellows! I'm returning to the site after about a year's absence. I see familiar faces still here.... and a lot of new ones too. I'm operating a charter fishing boat in the summers and making tackle in the winter. I look forward to catching up on what is going on here at TU.

Hey guys, I make good quality plaster molds, both one and two parts for all kinds of baits. Right now I'm kinda done building molds for the season, as I do saltwater charters out of northern B.C., Canada, all summer, but if you need something made you can contact me and get on the list for next fall when I start again. See my website for more details.

I use flashabou because of the awesome action and great colors available. I have never tried lumiflex.

Hey Mat; Try to melt the bulk lead, not in your lee pot, but in a seperate, usually larger container. That gives you an opertunity to skim off the slag and make clean ingots. Clean ingots are then used in the pot.

Hey Corey, welcome to TU. The tackle making get together sounds like a good idea. I think your plans sound reasonable. I've been ordering plastics from the US, send me an email if you need help locating some.

Can someone tell me exactly how a fluid bed works? Also, can someone who uses one let me know how well it will work to do large jigs (2-4oz.)?

I make a 5" swimbait mold. You can send me a PM if you would like to talk about it.

Merry Christmas everyone! Enjoy the holidays! May all have a happy and prosperous new year.

I've had good results painting over the epoxy with all the paints I've tried, water based or enamels.

If you are in Quebec, try the Nu-Lustre-55, like woodie said, it's made there. It should be available from any good hardware, or Co-Op store. If you dont have a drying wheel, you can get away with hanging the freshly coated lure and then turn it end for end each 5-10 minutes, untill it cures enough to stay in place. Once you try it you'll always wonder why you spent your time with thin undercoats. You will want to finish the top-coat with something super tough anyway, or else your gonna have cracked and chipped paintjobs from water getting into the wood. (Muskies have big teeth!) All harware should be installed prior to top-coating. Nu-Lustre-55 is the stuff that they use to finish wooden bar tops with, or those old artsy pictuers in the 70's that look like they have a thick coating of plastic. Sorta like a Rapala from twenty years ago.... nice.

Nice Fish! It's so rewarding to hunt down and stalk fish that you know the location of. I would like to pass on a tip given to me years ago by a senior angler on a salmon stream. He said, " Son, you want to remove that plastic from the grip of your new rod 'cause mold will form on the cork if water gets inside." Besides, you might as well enjoy the classic feel of a nice cork grip. Fish hard!

A good wooden bait takes a lot of time to complete. Forget about the "quickest" way to get it done. I use a good epoxy (NU-Lustre-55) to coat the wood, then it is put on a drying wheel to cure. Scuff sand and paint, then coat with epoxy again using the wheel to cure it. It is like painting a plastic lure. The completed bait is tough! It will survive bouncing off a concrete floor without chipping. If a big musky tooth does penetrate (lucky you!) then it can be patched with a tiny drop of epoxy. Never fish a wounded bait as wet wood will expand, cracking the finish.

Hey B.C.; you can seal the lure with a Canadian product called NU-LUSTER-55. It makes a smooth, stong base for painting. Then top coat the paintjob with another coat of NU-LUSTER-55. You may need to rotate the lure on a drying wheel while the coatings cure. NU-LUSTER-55- www.swingpaints.com

Hi friends! The site has grown while I was away! Hi to all my old friends here on the site and also to all the newcomers. I'm back to the board after a break of about five months. I've been busy living a dream. I spent the season operating a charter boat on the northwest Pacific (YES! I've been getting paid to fish!). The experience was out of this world. I operated out of Prince Rupert B.C., wich has some of the most awesome salmon runs in the Pacific. The area holds feeding salmon gorging themselves before their spawning runs up wold renown rivers like the mighty Skeena, the Nass and the Kitimat. Prince Rupert is also the 'halibut capital of the world'. I will be returning there next season to run the charters all summer. I plan on purchasing a second boat for next year. The fishing has kept me busy all summer, but now, as winter is setting in here in the north, I will be back at the bench building tackle. I will also be updating my web site over the next few weeks, down scaling the custom tackle sales, and adding a new section for custom built molds for pouring plastics. I continue to get requests to build the molds, so in order to meet the demand I will be doing less experimental tackle building this year. I also plan to add a page or two to my website to showcase the charter fishing experience in the north pacific. See ya around the site...I have some reading and photo checkin' to catch up on what's been going on here at TU.

Plaster works great for two part molds because there is no shrinkage when it cures. It's also super easy to work with.