Lure--Prof

David, email or call Dick about any spraying concerns you may have, as he sprays it on his spoons; I doubt anyone has sprayed as much of it as he has!

I will say that most of my larger lures (over 5 inches) are not balsa, but harder woods where I am more likely to simply cut a channel into the bait in which to glue my harness, but I still do that before shaping. I was just going by the bait in your avatar, but even when I build muskie and striper baits, I never find it a problem. By all means do whatever you're most comfortable with, but for the sake of first time thru-wire balsa lure builders who may be influenced by this thread, I felt a responsibility to share what experience has shown me to be the easiest, most straightforward method of building thru-wires. I think you'll find it easier than you think!

I would not have the patience to do it your way or Rofish's method... "how to get all that sanding done having to work around all the hook loops, line etc" There is a line tie, and there are two hook hangers barely protruding from the lure. There is no etc. The ballast is glued inside the bait. There is not really any sanding around any of it, mostly sanding up to them, and is the least time consuming aspect of the whole bait building process. Not only that, but I can glue my halves together in a small woodworking vice, five lures at a time, and would not be able to do that if they were already sanded, without distorting the lure bodies. It is not nearly so problematic as you have imagined. If it were so, I would have found another method several years ago!

I agree about the action you get from balsa pikester: and the thing is, you'll be able to build the toughest balsa baits around, much more so than anything available commercially, with the tips here. You can toughen balsa up a bunch with the CA glue, etc, and still retain that great action. Good luck!

Yes, Pete, as usual you have steered someone right again!

Yes, I've done that, and that method is a keeper also...it makes for a strong bait. One of my personal go-to shallow cranks that I did like that a few years ago, is always on a rod! Dean

Hope it was a happy one Jerry...and as long as we're on the belated subjects, Welcome to Kentucky! Dino

I seal balsa with epoxy, but do not dilute it, as I find epoxies gain plenty of tooth without thinning. I used E-tex for several years almost exclusively because of its impact resistance as opposed to epoxies like Devcon 2-ton which have a greater tendency to crack upon impact. Lately i've been experimenting with different epoxies, including Bob Smith's Finish Coat, which can be found privately labeled by many hobby stores. It has a very slow cure time, not unlike E-tex, so it must be rotated, but cures a bit firmer quicker. It cures very clear, and bubbles release from it easily; and it has a much longer pot life than 2-ton enabling the user to seal several lures from a single mixing. I buy mine at Hobbytown, and have seen it privately labled in various catalogs too. Regardless of the store brand names, the one I'm using is always sub-labled as "Finish Cure". It can also be applied thinner than 2-Ton. I've been pleased so far with the results using it as a seal coat. Some of his other epoxies are also sub-labled as "Quick-Cure", "Mid Cure" , and "Slow Cure". The "Mid Cure" is a good bonding glue, curing faster than 2-Ton, but slower than 5-minute. No doubt, the Finish-Cure is the slowest-curing of the bunch. I also like the strength that epoxies give balsa. CA glue really penetrates balsa and adds a lot of strength, but at the price of some buoyancy, and grain-raising. Epoxy does a better job of sealing the surface airtight than does CA. There are a lot of epoxies on the market with different properties, and many of them are better than Devcon 2-Ton for particular applications. While I think 2-Ton is perfect for gluing in ballast, I prefer U-40's Rod Bond for gluing thru-wired bodies together, because it will flex without cracking.

Most of what I make is balsa thru-wire. After cutting my lure blanks, the first thing I do is install my harness. Next, while the blank is still square, I cut my lip slot and drill my ballast holes, after which I epoxy my ballast in place. Then, I shape my lure, seal it, and finish from there. After sanding, my lures are held by hemostats. I have never considered doing these steps in any other order.

Ain't it the truth! Jed, I know exactly what you mean, & I think we notice it especially through the pm's, but it happens in the forums too, as Dave said. Some people get their problems solved and then vanish, and I think that it is simply a fact of life on many forums that involve problem solving. The core group here are not simply builders, but enthusiasts first when it comes to lure-making, and I'm afraid that the here-today, gone-tomorrow type simply do not share our passion for the creation, but are simply after the quickest means to the end result. Too bad for them, as they are missing out on a great hobby that expands the dimensions of the greatest sport: Fishing! Dean

Try using nothing but Createx on a few baits. I prime with Createx opaque white, and heat-set it (after letting it dry some on its own), then spray a coat of pearl white and repeat the drying & heatsetting procedure. If you're thoroughly heat-setting, and your bait looks good before the DN, there shouldn't be a problem. Could you be applying some paint too thick? That you might think so tells me that perhaps so, and you aren't getting it as thoroughly heat set as you think. Hang in there, you'll figure it out! Dean

I run a Harbor Freight airbrush compressor, 0-40 working pressure, 56 psi maximum. Oiless, tankless, automatic shutoff, Central Pneumatic model # 93657. It comes with a moisture trap, and a nice, easy to adjust regulator with a knob on top. I paint in a spare bedroom, and it is very quiet, can't hear it in the next room. I think I paid $75, and it shows every sign of running forever. Everyone I know who uses one of these loves it. Simple to move, and takes up hardly any space. If you want a shop type compressor, will use it for tire inflation, air tools, or nail guns, and space and noise are not a concern then get a larger compressor. But if I had to replace mine tomorrow, I'd go buy the same unit again, as it is perfect for my usage, and a bargain, as far as airbrush compressors go.

They are made in China, I do know that, as is lots of stuff these days...not sure what they're made of though.

Be sure to Not Use common kitchen paper towels for anything on your lures, unless they're the oil-free kind specifically made for cleaning windows!

Bob, If you'll eliminate a hard epoxy which tends to crack (such as Devcon 2-ton) instead of giving a little, for bonding the two lure halves, you can bend the harder wire, and worry less about the softer wire causing a leak when you bend line ties and hook hangers. I use a urethane glue such as Gorilla Glue; or U-40 brand Rod Bond epoxy. Waterproof wood glues work well also, and there are other epoxies out there that have a bit of give to them when cured that will do the job without cracking under the pressure. There are some CA glues that have some give when cured, and CA penetrates balsa extremely well, and can give it a whole new dimension in strength. A well-done straight-pull wire harness glued between balsa halves with simply a premium exterior grade wood glue, and cured under slight pressure from a vise, is always going to be your strongest link between you and a fish. www.bsi-inc.com is a good source of info about various glues---they private label various glues for many craft and hobby stores. For most of my harnesses I use the same wire that Bob and The Captain use. Harbor Freight sells their one pound spools as Safety Wire. Dean

I did see that the other day...I would have ordered it a few years ago, but don't really need it any longer, as I finally learned to mix epoxy bubble free, and I mostly use it as a seal coat, but seldom for a top coat.

I have a friend of mine who fishes hard and he likes Okuma's round baitcasters very much. I was recently bemused to read a review of one of Garcia's premium "Record" models, and the reviewer stated that he took it apart, only to find plastic gears in the reel. He angrily reassembled the reel and shipped it back for a refund, and publicly denounced Garcia for using plastic gears in what was supposedly a top-of-the-line product. A little knowledge is a dangerous thing, indeed. I began fishing with Ambassadeur Baitcasting Reels in 1962, with one of the red 5000 models, and it had plastic gears also; on the levelwind timing side, just like those reels always have had, and those nylon gears never wear out. There is no load on these gears whatsoever. They simply serve the levelwind (lineguide) system. The right side of the reel, like every right-hand baitcasting reel I've ever opened, and I did commercial reel repair for several years, has metal gears where the reel needs metal gears, as this is the drive (as opposed to the driven) side of the reel. If there is plastic in or on a reputable brand of a premium reel it is there because it is the best material for the job. Word of mouth travels quickly worldwide these days,as you've noticed, and no good manufacturer is going to risk a business plan on an inferior product.

There are often 6 "extra" ball bearings that drive the bearing count, and price up on many baitcasting reels, and these bearings are neither load-bearing, nor are they necessary for a smooth functioning reel. 2 of these bearings are typically at either end of the worm gear, which helps makes the line guide go back and forth, and the other 4 bearings are inside of your handle grips. Shimano, having always been an industry leader with their baitcasters often do not use bearings in these locations, and other manufactures attempt to use this fact as a marketing gimmick, dropping a strong hint that their brand reels are higher quality because they use more bearings and yet cost no more than a particular Shimano model. Having more bearings in non load-bearing locations is not necessarily even a better thing. Using such reels for inshore saltwater fishing, for example, a little lack of lubrication may ruin a handle grip bearing necessitating replacement (same for the levelwind bearings), putting your reel out of commission: whereas a squeaky handle with bushings will be back in action after a quick shot of oil. Having done a lot of brackish and saltwater fishing, and the reel care that goes along with it, I'd much prefer to not have bearings in those locations.