Travis

They do not have to be baked.

I just don't know how you guys make it with high 30's for the lows. Wool gloves? Ok jokes aside I would prefer my shop to be in the mid 50's or so as that is a comfortable working temperature for me. Yesterday I spent half the day outside in my shop but it was 33 when I started and warmed up to 43 in the shop by the time I finished working up some stock. I have a kerosene heater and can get it up to 80's starting from sub zero if need be. Insulating a space makes a huge difference and can really allow you to use a space year round. My main shop gets used for a lot of woodworking so most stuff gets kept inside with regards to soft plastics. For lures I end up working in a lot of different places. I keep everything organized and portable and will work from different places. I have poured in the past in the house set up with a fan/window, in the garage, then of course out in my shop. I just push my soft plastic "station" wherever I need it. I will set up the microwave and/or presto pot and pour I don't leave stuff out typically and everything goes back in its place. I absolutely hate having to look for something or move stuff to work as it wastes too much time. I initially had an L shaped work bench but it took up way to much space I wanted for tools. It was nice for lure making as had a lot of real estate. I made a more traditional work bench now. I have an area set up with lips, line ties, patterns, rattles, weights, etc... that is easy to get to and keep blanks in containers. Paints are in large tool box along with airbrushes, hoses, etc... I have a compressor and use a box fan with filter set up to spray in (water based). It makes heading out to the shop and making some cranks, topwaters, or pouring plastics very enjoyable and productive. If it is cold out I will topcoat inside and just set up the rotating wheel on the a card table or dining room table. My outside shop has the typical woodworking stuff in it. Table saw, band saw, lathe, router, scroll saw, joiner, planer, spindle/belt sander, and assortment of hand tools. Everything is on rollers so I can move stuff as needed. For lure making it can be set up so that I can get to everything if set up around the wall. I wished the shop was a little larger but I can go from rough cut lumber to finished blanks without moving anything. Makes it nice to resaw on the band saw, then hit the joiner and planer, and cut to blanks on the table saw. Have a second smaller bandsaw to cut lures out, then drill press set up, and sanders. Surprising how easy it is to have baits to paint in short order once you get it worked out. It makes heading out to the shop and making some cranks, topwaters, or pouring plastics very enjoyable and productive. If it is cold out I will topcoat inside and just set up the rotating wheel on the a card table or dining room table. With a box fan and the right filter I can spray water based paints indoors without any over spray.

Are you splintering the piece on initial rounding? To make it easier on newer turners using hexagonal stock is a little more forgiving but really not needed. It will take some time. Are you using traditional gouges, skew chisel, etc... or carbide cutters. With traditional: A, B, C A for anchor tool on the rest before cutting, B for bevel should ride the piece before cutting, and C for cutting lower tip until it just starts to cut. You should then focus on moving the lathe tool across the rest not towards the spindle. Force should basically be directed down onto the rest and across the rest surface. The lathe is spinning the piece into the cutting edge. With carbide a little different (some work a little different than others). But want to anchor the tool to the rest, then slowly (perpendicular to the piece) progress cutter until just makes contact. Then typically you can do just a little side to side swing and work your way down the rest doing this. Once the piece is round gets a little more forgiving but carbide really can grab quick if you aren't careful. If you have a local Woodcraft they have pretty decent classes for around 80 to 100 bucks designed for introduction into turning. Usually 4 to 5 people max so you get actual hands on instruction. One last thing if you haven't already wear safety glasses and pick up face shield (even if cheap harbor freight). A lathe can really whip a piece at you if you aren't careful and not familiar with "danger zones".

Not for sure how experienced of a turner you are but most everything in turning it comes down to tool sharpness, lathe speed, and how aggressive you are in removing wood. I would start with with sharpening the tools and probably work around 1000 to 1300 RPM.

Agree with Mark but those look OK from what I can tell. Appear to be very similar to what I have made in the past with the usual line tie material. I wrapped and crimped over appropriate diameter nail. However I thought the went in way to easy with glue up and decided like usual to do overkill and mainly do the twist line ties to get more surface area.

I have done both over the years. Most everything (besides initial start up) has been paid for profit from selling. I don't sell as much now as I place my time as more valuable than what profits I would make. The market has changed considerably and most guys I get contacted by now are not looking for custom hand poured lures. They are looking for knock off cheap baits in some other companies colors. I still get contacted for this sort of stuff but the market is saturated, in my opinion, and much of the customer base I come across couldn't tell a quality custom hand pour from hack work. As far as personal use I fish only a fraction of the time I used to and to be honest paying for lures is cheaper for me versus the loss of my time. Time is the one asset I can't seam to ever get enough. If I were to do this for money, I wouldn't be making the baits either as I would be in it to make money (stop my job sort of thing). The time it took to make several thousand selling plastics the way most of us do is a huge time sink and not something I would want to upscale (or even could) to approach anything near a decent salary. I would have to contract it out to be honest as the time spent making the baits would be better spent elsewhere in the business.

I get several years of use out of mine also but some guys pour a lot more than others. I hate salt and pretty much keep it to a few cups. I have a had several that get to where you can't peel out the nice plastic plug once cooled. I have had it get difficult because it gets tacky but that usually results from using scents in my experience and some are a lot worse than others. I clean those cups and use rubbing alcohol most of the time for that. Even at normal price cups aren't going to break the bank

I view them as a depleting item over time. I chuck them once they get to a certain point for two reasons. As you mentioned the plastic becomes a pain to clean out as they are getting scratched by the the stirrer, salt, etc... and secondly I view it as good practice, in my day job, to avoid scratched glassware in the lab that is exposed to thermal shock and or vacuum as the integrity diminishes. These cups are cheap enough not to risk an accident over a few bucks. I find pyrex or anchor cups about every year for a buck a piece and just buy a few to replace any I decommission.

Most of my wood cranks have been from basswood and have used poplar, cedar, and palouwina. I saved some big tooth aspen from the last project in the shop and am interested in trying it also as it falls around basswood on the janka scale. None compare to the ease of carving basswood as it doesn't splinter with the grain and cross grain cuts smoothly as well. It can get fuzzy with small detail (like cutting in individual scales) but can be sanded out with ease. Basswood can be found for cheap also, depending on your area of the country and connections. The last timbers I got were free as a lot of the smaller hobby mill guys come across it when doing selective harvest. It is horrible for heating and outside of carvers no real demand for it at the scale these guys deal in. I use basswood for most of my cranks and agree it isn't rock solid but a well built lure out of basswood or balsa will get you years of use out of a bait. Much more likely to lose on a snag than wearing it out. I like wood lures and have made foamies from wood cranks and still prefer actually the process of making the wood cranks. I can churn baits from molds but personally don't get much satisfaction from the process. Sealing the bait and hook hangers is critical and where some have issues with wood baits in general. That is were the alternative PVC, resin, etc.. excel as water penetration becomes a non factor and of course they are more robust in terms of wear. Disclaimer: I make bass cranks things would be different if I fished for something else (not for sure that is fishing at that point but different subject all together )

I started by making all my molds from POP. If you spend the time to do them correctly you will have a product you can sell. With my initial investment of a gallon of plastic, 3 colors, few colors, POP, devcon, etc...everything else was paid for by selling product afterwards. To be fair at that time hand pours brought in decent money (2 to 3x what guys sell now as it is a different game now). I bought several aluminum molds after selling baits from that first gallon of plastic. It really doesn't pay for itself for many guys. They freak out over store prices and decide they will make their own for cheaper. Unless you fish a lot it isn't going to pay for itself. i used to get in over 200 days a year and soft plastic cost would add up during that year. Once you start selling things change but one has to be honest about the time and money they are spending. So many that think they are making money aren't (or would make more pushing carts in at Wally World working a lot less hours). Some that are making money would make a heck of a lot more if they shopped the work out as they aren't making anything custom just stock colors from the same stock molds most have. So many of the tackle shows I have been to over the years that have small guy companies are selling the same readily available molds that everyone has access to and the end product is really a mass produced product in a saturated market...meaning you are selling for cheap to compete (not where I want to be when trying to make money when selling relatively low volumes).

Just cut a few 1/4 ply blanks to work as cauls on the mold. RTV can be clamped this way and POP if needed. As far as safety you aren't exerting any major forces so no real issues. Common sense would tell you if you put 2x the amount of plastic needed and mash it down bad things are going to happen. It takes very little pressure to fill these. Use a glove if needed on the plunger and let the clamps work as the stand (glove hand if you want to hold the mold also). Many of the molds I made would fill on their own with just a reservoir. The plastic doesn't cool nearly as fast as it does with aluminum so you get better flow and need very little pressure to fill small appendages.

It will work but the longevity is not the greatest. On some grubs (two piece) I did as you did and used a large plunger from a plastic syringe to push plastic. Goofing around I messed with vacuum, compressed air, and spun some also to push or pull plastic in and it worked fine but took a lot of clean up with all the vents I had put in the molds. A properly made mold will not have flashing.

Ok... then we eliminate the crank wasn't sealed properly. So that leave that your sealer either has a high water permeability, the clay also contains another component that compromises the sealer, or the RTV reacted with the sealer. I use the clays mentioned above for "sealing" I have used Zillsner bullseye shellac,Krylon H20 laytex spray paint, Johson's paste wax, WD40, vasoline, and a commercial mold release in a pump spray bottle (forgot the name), and Smooth-on Mold Max 30.

If the grain raised I honestly would still say your master wasn't sealed or the sealer has a high water permeability. I have used most the hobby store clays (sculpey, craftsmart, amaco, etc...). Now I just have hodge podge mound of clay I use over and over.

Air drying is fine and coats can be laid over each other with no issues. One just has to let the paint dry before applying topcoat. I honestly believe that most of the troubles people encounter in lure making are self inflicted and mainly center around one just not taking their time. I have no issues with having cranks in various states of completion and no strange need to rush things. I could be wrong as I never have experienced 95% of the issues I see guys having so evidently doing something wrong.

No doubt molding it would be the way to go if that is an option. With a few molds I could pour foamies non stop until running out of weighted inserts.

I have used a few of those styles also for some power carving stuff, mine were very aggressive when it comes to stock removal. http://www.saburr-tooth.com/toolsShank18.htm

Have you tried a different bit. Drill presses RPM are so slow that they don't work well with drill presses. The router bits can be used but really have to go slow. I have used them but find some of the dremel bits better for this type application. The two bits I have used with success are the following. http://www.dremel.com/en-us/Accessories/Pages/ProductDetail.aspx?pid=114 (better performing) http://www.dremel.com/en-us/Accessories/Pages/ProductDetail.aspx?pid=194

https://www.grizzly.com/products/Cross-Sliding-Vise/G1064 Similar to the vise I use. As mentioned just need to mold a holder for the baits.

Still haven't come up with a method? Without shelling out big bucks the easiest way since I don't churn out numbers is just to start with square stock and mark center with a square and lay out the the positions. You should stick with consistent blanks then everything becomes a lot easier as you can generate lay out tools/jigs to speed everything. Trying to clamp a lure shaped body isn't the way to go as Musky Glenn pointed out. Squared stock is by far the best method to start and makes generation of jigs easier and quicker. I then just use my xy vise on the drill press and slot the hinge pin recess. Now a drill press isn't ideal for this application but we aren't really milling any hard stock so stress on the spindle is limited. http://www.tackleunderground.com/community/topic/27901-swimbait-joints/#entry217197 Using a router to route each one will get old quick and increases safety issues. A trim router would really be the only option if doing this frequently as anything larger would get tedious/heavy. Dremel with the router attachment could be used but essentially are a toy and frustrating at best. If doing a lot of numbers then I would look at making a horizontal boring set up and cut both slots at the same time. Something along Mathias Waddell plans. Still the use of square stock the only way to go and you would would set up the table with a stop so the blank registers in the spot at the same time. If you didn't want to work out the dual slot mechanism just lay the spacing so you slot the one hinge point flip the blank over and the slot the second. However the drill press with x/y vise goes quick and if I couldn't cut them both at the same time not worth messing with unless you like this sort of stuff for fun. http://woodgears.ca/slot_mortiser/index.html

I have have used Devcon for most of my cranks. I have used countless other no name epoxies on projects around the house and they all significantly yellow in comparison. Some of the Ace Hardware stuff I used to repair some of the kids (interior used) toys and furniture yellowed in weeks.

I would still try the acetone and just let the test piece set in a dark space for some time and see what happens. Also may look at gently warming the gun stock first before applying product along with the heated product.

MEKp will work but I think you are looking at it in the wrong way in that it isn't really thinning the product. He isn't adding enough to change the viscosity. MEKp works as a catalyst to "drive" the reaction and work as a fail safe if not exposed long enough to UV (will continue to harden). The surfboard is getting flooded with product even when brushing it out a ton of product is left over. If yours isn't leveling could be several issues, UV light exposure during the process, thickness of the coat (too thin potentially), or some catalyzed product present (fresh Solar EZ may work fine). I would more likely approach it by adding a non catalyzing solvent to thin the product so it can lay flat. The issue will be how this will effect the coat when exposed to UV light. Some testing would be in order. Try several of the easily accessible solvents. Based on the video if he is using acetone for clean up that is where I would start. Could contact them and inquire if acetone would be an acceptable additive to decrease viscosity for better surface layering or if they could recommend something else but never sure what type of response you get from companies as they often answer to cover their rears. I guess I should have searched their site: You may thin Solarez very simply by heating it in a paper cup for a few seconds in a microwave oven. (microwave ovens vary widely in strength so check your resin every 5 seconds to see that it doesn't’t get too hot --hotter than drinkable coffee 130°F). This Solarez cannot have any MEKP catalyst in it!!! At this temperature, Solarez will be as thin as water and can instantly wet out fiberglass cloth. As soon as you pour out your resin onto a cool substrate, it will return to normal viscosity. If on the other hand, you want to add a thinning agent, you can add a little styrene monomer. It is not advised to add any more than 3% because adding styrene will soften the surface and cause premature yellowing. The adding of acetone or alcohol should be entirely avoided because these are not reactive diluents i.e. they do not become incorporated into the resin like styrene, they just boil out and cause pinholes.

Guys have experienced the same final observation of "bubbles" but I am almost certain that different reasons exist for the final observations. The real trick is to understand what is going on to create the bubbles (air bubbles or volatilization of one or more components contained in the product, some may be impurity based as not for sure about overall quality control with regards to the product and industry use). Vacuuming, slowly heating, stirring, along with a storage and handling practices will reduce or eliminate the issue in products displaying bubbling. Some methods better than others depending on the real cause of the bubbling. Many hobbyist vacuum systems (shop vac or low cost vacuum pump) will do a poor job of removing water from the system, they would be much more efficient and removing lower boiling components but either would be sufficient to remove small air bubbles that expand when heating. Product can be developed to avoid the issue but no reason to develop as it is a niche market of limited numbers....translated not any real money to be made as we will buy and use whatever is available (and the final decision for many comes down to the cheapest product available in the first place).

That is a good way to square. I usually use a square and eyeball it then cut a curved piece and then check the cut piece with the square relative to the table and make any adjustments if needed. Several methods will get you to the same point. One of those things that it important to do and may be some time before you do it again. I haven't moved mine since initial set up years ago, but don't to a lot of scroll saw work.