Travis

Lack of posts doesn't equate to guys not building.... I still build lures from wood and may use PVC or pour some lures in a mold every now and then. I just skim over a couple of the topics daily to see if anything catches my interest and move on.

Water only helps the reaction proceed faster and anything above the needed amount has no impact on strength. Most materials contain enough water on their surface to start the polymerization reaction and of course we have the ambient humidity. The majority of strength is gained within minutes. Then up to 24 hours is need for full cure. Most wooden baits, depending on the area of the country are going to have moisture content of 6 to 12% (for most 10 to 12% would be safe bet) and more than sufficient for the needed polymerization reaction. Where most encounter issues is they use too much superglue. Only need a thin coating on the surface. Wetting the surface will make the reaction go faster initially but too much water and you negatively impact the bonding ability of the superglue to the intended substrate. Plenty of information on cyanoacrylate glue and performance out there. Superglue is fine for hook ties, thru wire, undercoat on balsa cranks etc....

Short arm spinnerbaits never left.... some anglers just have blinders on and only focus on whatever is new and shiny. Stan Sloan Short Arm Aggravators have been a staple in my spinnerbait arsenal for as long as I can remember and still readily available.

Typically forums use a badge function as a social ranking system. Points are awarded for posts, likes, posted pictures, essentially participation. Points are accumulated towards receiving badges/ranks. At some forums the user gains extra perks such as increased photo rights, longer edit times for posts, adding a signature below your post, additional emoticons, GIF use age, etc. as rankings increase. Just a way known to increase participation. It also feeds off a segment of the members as a way to show how "established" and "knowledgeable" they are as they will work towards reaching titles as for some it validates some need or goal they want to reach. At one time new members on forums would also see this as a seasoned individual giving information and could likely find the information shared to be overall true.

After 17 years of using Createx and various other paints never have used a hair dryer as part of the routine. About the only time I have found a hair dryer useful is painting a single lure, in a hurry, and wanting to use tulle for scale detail.

Every time I use epoxy there is waste. A scrap of wood and one can test glitter, mica powders, various paints, talc, various pigments, dyes, titanium dioxide, brillo pad, 320 grit sand paper, and countless other additives or treatments. Asking for help is great but often just doing is of greater value.

PPE is great but is always the last line of defense.. engineering controls are first and foremost. Vent with proper CFM and enjoy.

My cranks came out fairly well to be honest. The negative was I was using a Testor's Model Airbrush with canned air. I had to the float the cans in hot water in my dorm room sink and they used an "anti-huffing" agent in the cans so it didn't take long for the nasty bitter foul taste to develop.

I think the first cranks I painted were somewhere around 1995. My use of the internet was absolutely zero at that point. Just get to spraying....

Sure, a lot of guys still making wood lures just most on this site don't post pictures or discuss it unless an issue is encountered. One reaches a level that issues become less and less and more importantly the ability to fix those issues becomes second nature.

Seams many times the answer is just to stir more frequently and shorten heating times between the mixing until you dial the method down. Material viscosity and density play a roll in heating via microwave. Viscosity will determine how heat flow by convection through the product. Very likely getting hot spots in the thicker plastic you are trying to use now. Microwaves can also overlap and effectively cancel each other creating cold zones (likely worse in older or cheap microwaves), thus the easy solution of rotation of the product to try and minimize the occurrence. Between the two can really create some issues if you don't mix. Some products are just perform better heated in microwaves than others from my past experiences but haven't bought any new plastic in many years as still have a few gallons of Calhoun's to use.

Has been my experience also. Keep trimming the tail and maybe thin the area from the main body to the tail. Typically if too thick it starts to create too much drag and will cause a bait to start to roll on the few I made initially. Good thing about soft plastics easy to trim and change shape. A lighter can be used to thin the tail section on the water and let the melted plastic drip back on the tail paddle.

How are you rigging the bait?

Not for sure? But thinking maybe you should be demoted from your current Level Rookie ranking for not knowing.

Just hover over the clapping hands icon and you can see the ranks. A few Rookies have posted on this thread. You can also see how close to your next rank if you click on your profile name. Only 14 points to go....

Seams like at one point we had "fish" rankings... minnow, bass, pike, etc.... That had its issues also as you could get bumped up to some inferior fish.

The funny thing about the badges, reputation, etc... stuff it serves no real purpose. Well I guess there are some that get into post count and statistics so it might increase overall site participation. Another site I frequent has some members that really put emphasis on it to the point a small group of guys really end up driving people away based on the lack of "forum cred" because they have low post count, don't post projects, don't win some sort of badge/banner, etc...

Zoom worm pictured. Several ways to go about it depending on experience and ability. Lurecraft Kudzu isn't too far off to start and will need to play around with the glitter content to get the look you desire. Depending on the bait you are trying to match will need to alter the drop count or tweak with other colorants as a fluke will be different "color" than a trick worm due to the thickness and difference in light passing. Watermelon, watermelon green, avocado, green moss whatever color name the different places use to describe that hue or something close will be fine for the base color then tweak with brown, yellow, etc.. to get the correct hue. Color matching is one of the things that really separates lure makers into skill sets in my opinion.

Well I guess we all have something to strive to reach... I often wonder about who comes up with all the "bells and whistles" on sites. The strange thing is some individuals really find this to be very important. There are few sites I visit and it is very common for some of the old white guys to really get upset if one comments about something if they don't have projects posted, or haven't hit certain post counts, or participated in some sort of forum "event". Added: Hmmm... probably should have made a separate post instead of editing but maybe I will get an editing badge... The initial post racked up a few badges. If these badges come too frequently I will have to disable notifications as will fill up in no time.

If you are using the exact saw you linked it isn't going to be aggressive as the blade is intended to cut non ferrous metals, pvc pipe etc... You can buy a different sawzall blade more intended for wood but simply just better options. For 1/4 inch balsa you will find very commonly model builders and such use an exacto knife for the work. Many different reasons why guys use certain tools: 1) what they have on hand 2) ease of use 3) comfort level of tool 4) performance etc.... Doesn't matter as in the end many different ways one can go about a task.

Balsa can be enjoyable to carve but typically more when you start to use the more dense varieties. Balsa density covers a broad range 60 to 380 kg/m3. You also can have some very different grain orientation resulting in A grade, B grade, and C grade. I use balsa some but much more rough cutting then sanding to final dimensions. The typical big box hobby stuff simply is not enjoyable to carve in comparison to basswood. For ease of use, availability, and price one is going to be hard pressed to find a better wood than basswood.

Go with the coping saw. A coping saw would be a much better option than the saw listed. Teamed up with a 12 to 14 tooth blade would be best. Something cheap will do just fine. Cutting 1/4 balsa crank would be honestly seconds to do. Now if you do additional woodworking and appreciate a quality tool... Knew Concepts Coping saw is a pleasure to use teamed up with Pegas blades or similar. I use mine frequently for cleaning waste on dovetails and intricate cuts and shapes but definitely not needed.

Lure templates as a search will pop up what you are looking for. Most lures have side profile pictures so can just copy and paste into paint and resize as needed. Can then make a template for top down. Honestly pretty easy to just draw something up with a ruler, French curve, and circle template. I have also just free hand a lot lures. Just start whittling away what shouldn't be there. A couple links to solid preforming baits below. http://learnhowtomakefishinglures.blogspot.com/2014/03/free-fishing-lure-templates.html

Dipping is how I applied it many years ago. It was essentially like dipping in water but was using to fill small pin holes/voids. I would dip about 3 times and be good to go on the baits I was molding at the time.