cadman

The Owner 5304 hooks will fit in that mold except the 2 smallest cavities, where the hook shank touches the cavity wall. Heat the hook and put a kink in the shank and it will fit fine. Pic below shows 5/0-1/0 hooks in mold consecutively from biggest to smallest. Mold halves close on all hooks in mold. 2/0 hook will not fit in the 1/8 oz cavity but a 1/0 will. Also if you look around you will find better mold and hook prices along with some reasonable shipping costs.

Tim if the 1st picture and statement is correct above, you can kink the hook shank near the leg by the eye, and the hook shank will pull away from the wall of the mold and collar, which will make it fit fine and pour perfectly. The only thing is you might be trapping air with the larger hook shank in the mold, so I would suggest filing out a little more space, where the hook shank sits by the mold collar.

I can tell you one thing, I find the Arky and Poison Tail, molds about the best multi-purpose molds for other things as well. I do have the brush jig mold, but don't fish it. On the Arky, you can use it to skip under docks and use it in open water for a swim jig. On the Poison Tail you can use that as a swim jig and a hopping jig. It has a somewhat pointed nose and does go through weeds very well.

Wow, this is a tough one. I have seen so many guys use so many different jigs for flipping. I honestly don't know what is the correct jig to use if there is a correct jig. From the people I've talked to and jigs I've made, this is what many of the guys call flipping jigs, however I don't know if one is any better than the other. Maybe someone can explain to me as well on how one is better than the other for a flipping application. Here are the ones I've had requests for. Arky, Poison Tail and Brush jigs.

Sorry, double post.

I know exactly what you want to do, however I don't know if 3 wraps of wire will hold the tinsel down and I don't know if you can put more than 3 wraps of wire and tighten everything. I guess it will, and the only way to know, is try it. So you are going to incorporate the tinsel to the full length(or longer if you want the tinsel to act as a trailer teaser) into the tabs, put one wrap of wire around everything, fold back the tinsel and put on more wraps over the tinsel and the skirt strands, correct? I know this will work in theory, however I don't know if you will get it tight enough to hold the tinsel in. Try it and let us know. I know for sure thread will work and hold.

If you are using tabs, put it with your tabs and then tie it in like you would do the tabs.However if you do it this way, the tinsel or krystal flash will have a tendency to not lay right, it will want to stick out. On these, I like to use thread to tie the tinsel and the tabs. Reason being the thread holds the tinsel better. Also if you decide to tie with thread, you can position it where you want and build the tinsel into your thread wraps. Start wrapping your tabs and skirts like normal and then bend your tinsel down, and over wrap it with thread. To me it makes the tinsel look like part of the skirt instead of sticking out oddly. Does this make sense? Guess I'm too late. Smalljaw already answered this. Can't delete my post, so I'll leave it, just another way to add tinsel. Use what works easier for you.

Hey Guys, Thanks for all the comments. There are many guys on here that help us each and every day. That is why this is such a great site. TU is a learning site and even though many of us learned from each other, someone new comes along and sometimes comes up with an easier way of doing things. Also many new guys reiterate to us doing this for a long time about safety, which many of us start to lax, because everything is second nature. So being reminded regularly helps to put us in focus. I know all the screen names above, and remember speaking to all of you at one time. Just a great bunch of guys. I love talking shop, and most of all I love helping guys achieve what they set out to do. Smalljaw and I go way back, and have become good friends over the years, as our fishing techniques are very similar. Would have never met if it wasn't for TU. He and I have talked outside of TU many, many times, and it's guys like that, that I like to help among others on this site.We've all answered many questions over and over to the newbies, and that is what I like about the guys here. No B.S. just straight all out honest info. Take it and use it or not your choice. If you have a question, someone will always give you an answer, and it is up to you to take it from there.

Hey who you calling an old timer. LOL. Yeah, I know I'm getting old and been on this site awhile. I've been on this site since 2005, same as smalljaw and back then if I recall, about that time I finally got the internet at my house. I can say that prior to that everything I did was very laborious and tedious. You can't learn from anyone if you have no connections. So you had no choice but to learn by trial and error, and maybe if you were lucky, you knew somebody that had a passion for the same thing you did and you could share ideas, however that was rare. Everyone that I knew was out of state, and long distance calls were very expensive. So when I got the internet and started to converse with guys on here that I don't see anymore, I was amazed even back then of all the knowledge these guys had. So after posting question after question, and being annoying, people helped me out. I was a newbie then and the more I learned the hungrier I got for information and it grew into an obsession. It boils down to one thing from all the guys that post threads regularly and reply to posts on this site, this is about a passion for the love of the hobby. Many on here sell their baits myself included, however it goes way beyond that, because we all know that you cannot live on the money you make off of this stuff, at least I can't. So there has to be more and there is. It is about learning, excelling in this hobby and passing along information onto others and many of us still here, do that on a daily basis. Now don't get me wrong, there have been times on this site, that I have gotten PM's from past members saying that I give way too much information about my processes. Guys this isn't rocket science, none of us are going to walk away with millions of dollars with the knowledge we share on here. I look at this whole experience as a learning tool for myself and others, if someone else needs help I am more than willing to help out if I can. I'm not worried about someone stealing my painting schemes or trying to sell from under me. That is all irrelevant. If my info helps you fine if not maybe someone else has some better info. We are all here to help each other and learn from each other and that is what makes this site so wonderful. I too have learned a lot from members on this site. So Thanks to all past and present members for sharing your ideas with me as well.

I honestly can't answer that, as I don't know. To me unless I'm using really light spinnerbaits, weight is of no importance. I can slow roll my spinnerbaits so they barely move on the bottom, or I can really make them lift up and move to the upper third of the water column by reeling faster. My main concern is to have a good ball bearing swivel, so your blade spins freely. If you don't have that and a good sharp hook, might as well not throw a spinnerbait. Yes you can spray over powder coat. You will need to turn down the air, because powder paint is slick, and you will blow the paint off if the air is too high. Yes if you use an air brush with water soluble paint like createx, you will have to clear coat.

I am a powder painter, so I am going to be partial. I have always had success with powder paint. Once cured it is durable and if you put on E-tex or D2T it is the best of the best in my opinion. If you compromise the clearcoat, you will still have the powder coat behind it. Also you can do the finished side in powder paint, and you can leave the back side as is, whether gold or nickle plate. Below are some old pics, that I did of a spinnerbait and its matching blades. So yes it can be done, and it works. BTW, Welcome to TU PS: Putting on the powder paint and the clear coat will add some weight to the spinnerbait, however it did not affect the action.

Mark, That is the first time I have heard of this. JMO, but if that is the case, I believe it will be some kind of snap, and if so it will make the connection weaker and/or cause more debris to catch on it. Only time will tell once it is released. Do you have any pics of this?

That is the same question I was going to ask. So John is that hydro-silk skirting material? If so is it old stock, or did you get it recently. If recent, please PM me with your source.

I have heard that Do-It will have that mold sometime in Sept. or Oct. of this year. But don't hold me to my statement. BTW welcome to TU.

Yes they will, however the 730 hook is a bronze hook and prone to rust quicker. There are better hook options then the 730. Find something in black nickle or black platinum.

Painter, What Do-It mold number is that you are referring to. If I have it I will check fit. Also I will have to see if I have the 32833 hook.

nedyarb, It did it to me as well. See my post under the thread "Modified Ultra Minnow Mold"

John, Wrong verbiage. The words "Plaster of Paris" should read "p o p" instead as in soda. I wish there was an edit button after the allotted 20 minutes or so to correct spelling and grammatical errors. So it wasn't me after all. I guess when you type in a acronym, it automatically puts in the full word. So how do I correct this?

Hey John, Long time no talk. I am surprised you got those hook eyes to open up. There are very few hooks that I know of that will allow that to happen without cracking and breaking off, or when you bend it back it snaps off. At first I thought those were Owner 5304's, and was wondering how you did that as they are very hard. Then I re-read your thread. On the paint job if you want to make a more sexy shad color, I found that less color is better. I only use 4 colors white/pear,silver, ylw chart. and blue on top. It seems softer and I think will really make that jig p0p. But maybe you wanted more bolder colors.

wilderbssmstr, I sent you a PM. As far as why the steel pins don't work as well? It's not that they don't work, because all of us at one time including yourself had no other options. Also the steel metal pins work for what they are intended. The problem with the steel pins are : The problem was that when you poured the jig, with the metal pins, when the lead would cool, it would shrink. What this did was cause the pin to become very tight in the weedguard hole. Well now you have a metal pin in lead and you have friction. There were many times, when I literally had to twist off the metal pin in the jig head, or try to pull it off and either damaging the hook point by accidentally hitting it with the pliers, or worse yet stabbing myself with a hook point. Also back in the day, when powder painting, majority of us would powder paint the jig, and then drill out the weedguard hole from paint, because the paint would fill in. This was very time consuming. So then many tried to put the metal pin back into the weedguard hole when the jigs cooled. That didn't work, because you couldn't get the metal pins back in. The friction thing again. Then we would leave the metal pins in the head and then powder paint, but then if you wanted to pour 200 jigs you needed a lot of pins, also when you painted with the metal pins this way, when you took the pins ,if you could, you chipped the paint. Henceforth the advent of Teflon pins. Easy to put in, easy to take out, reusable for pouring and painting. Currently there is no easier way. Just a bit of history lesson going back to my 10 years of pouring and painting jigs.

Zbass, Your very welcome. I have always tried to help people as much as I can. It's not always about sales, but about talking with people, giving them options, sending samples, informing them of what's available, and trying to help them decide what it is they want for the type of fishing they do. It was nice speaking with you as well last night. Most people normally don't call to let me know what they plan to do. You are a class act.

Joel, Your pours other than the one with the holes are fine. This happens with lead composition. I've had it happen to harder lead. For that reason I don't twist my sprues off, I cut all of my sprue with gate cutters. Yes you will have to file off the little bit of lead left from the gate shears, but that is better than the alternative, as now you have crappy looking jigs, and you have to remelt and re-pour to get good ones, which is time wasted. I have had this happen to me many times, and I don't bother twisting sprues off. Time is money to me, and I rather file a little, then to melt and re-pour. others may have a better solution to solve your dilemma.

Like the guys above said. Teflon Pins. Metal pins are old school and a P.I.T.A. to pull out. I pour my jigs with Teflon pins. I pull them out and then I have a clean set of Teflon pins I stick back in for painting. Powder paint the jig , pull out the Teflon pin immediately put on rack and then bake all at one time. Now you will have a clean hole for your weedguard. Everyone has their way of doing things. There is no right or wrong way except what works for you. However I am a firm believer in baking(curing) powder painted jigs, it hardens the paint. Also I do believe that you get better adhesion whether you use gel superglue or epoxy with a clean weedguard hole. Also I have tried to pour with the weedguard in place, and that works fine, however as you have seen, powder painting does not work well with this process, unless you have your oven temp so low that it doesn't curl the weedguard. You can do that but if you decrease your heat temp, you must increase your heat time. This to me is too time consuming.

There are a lot of answers to a lot of your questions from a lot of guys. So I'll give you my input for what it's worth. Sheet lead is usually very soft and excellent for pouring. Sheet lead is made in sheet for roofers, for aprons that they put on people when they take x-rays and for x-ray rooms. Get all you can if it is free. As far as steel or cast iron, cast irons is better but it is heavy. Also remember, that when you put lead in a cast iron pan. Pouring it to ingots will be a challenge as it is very, very heavy. I would suggest, getting a ladle and use that from your pant to your ingots. Mini muffin pans are the way to go. I have some old black(I assume non-stick) and some aluminum ones. They both work and I don't use any mold release, pam or anything. ladle the lead into the mini-muffin pan, and let cool. Once the lead cools in the muffin pan, turn it over, tap it lightly and they all fall out. Done

Jepuman I have some 28 degree Gamis that were part of a special run. Also the Mustad 91768 (EWG) hooks will fit in that mold. Like Smalljaw mentioned bending heavier or lighter hooks works sometimes, however I have found that you can bend some and some will break. This tells me that they are not all tempered the same and bending them if they break wastes a lot of hooks. My nephew fishes these jigs exclusively and he loves the head profile and the hooks Anyway ask Smalljaw if he would run them for you. If he declines or doesn't have time, I can run them for you. BTW welcome to TU