gat0r

lol great minds.... that google thing is slick. :-)

Dragonfly Lures

It's a Gammy hook. It's a special order hook. You can't get them unless you intend to order 100,000. Only one place I know of gets them and he sells them to everyone else for the public to buy. I sell those heads as well but mine are using the new VMC hook. It's a little stronger hook. There is a national shortage right now on those gammy hooks. So it could be some time before we see those heads again with those hooks.

His site works for me. Call him. He never has time to return emails. He's a busy dude. He's been doing a lot of the work himself on his shop. Good guy. Good prices. And he has some KILLER stuff in the works.

Thanks fatman. Going to work on my pot tomorrow evening!

Thanks Fatman. How do you clean the pot after use? Just pour the lead into something else and clear your hole one final time? Or is there more to it than that?

Thanks again Hawnjigs and Sagacious and others who have contributed ideas. Didn't mean to hijack your thread. Was just learning a lot on in one thread and figured might as well get all my newbie questions out there. To think I've been pouring leadheads for 2 years now and didn't know half this stuff.

Thanks sagacious. Yup. It helps a lot. I will definitely get that bottom pour out and clear it out. I'm guessing like a spinnerbait wire could be used to jar any big pieces out of the pour hole. I'll do that after a healthy flux. You were right. I melted my lead. Cut off a piece of parafin, dropped it into the pot. As soon as I saw smoke, I got my BBQ lighter and poof - FIRE! I felt like Tom Hanks on Castaway! I have made FIRE! Anyway I stirred quickly and vigorously because the fire wasn't going down and I was a bit paniced at first. But 5-10 seconds and it was dark and powdery on top and clean clear lead. And the fire didn't really ever get higher than the pot. It just burned on the sides and across the top of the lead. So I'm anxious to break out the precision pour pot. And see if fluxing was really the root of my problems. I've got 20 pounds of pure lead (From a x-ray vests) that I can play with in that pot. So that brings me to my next point, pouring with pure lead. Will it be too soft you think for a good football jig? Again this might be a nooby question and if I need to do research on old posts just let me know. Usually I would melt that pure lead with some wheel weights or that strip lead you get from BPS. Curious if I need some other "harder" alloy to make my jigs stronger. Thanks again for this great post. I feel like I've learned a lot.

I use a bbq lighter to light my propane torch so there you go, that's what I had for my first bout of fluxing. I was not ready for how large and how long the flame burned. But I stirred the pot with my long handled lee ladel and things went well. I skimmed off the impurities and my pours seemed a bit better but now I have a stupid question. On this fluxing, is this to make better "BOTTOM" pours. I use a Lee Pot and still tilt and pour rather than using the bottom pourer precision pot. I have one that blades loaned to me but the pour hole is clogged and the pours were incosistent and uneven (without fluxing). Should I clean the pour hole with something or will fluxing help fix my former bottom pour problems? I realize my question may be too vague and need more details to answer. So fire away. I'm thick skinned. Also ordered a fluid bed today from TJ's to hopefully help with too much powder on my jigs. Haha - I'm a mess!

I've tried a lot of things to unclump the powders. I have sifted them with a large bakers sifter. When I tilt the sifted powder up to pour it back into the container, it's already clumpy. I've tried putting them in a large bowl and crushing them with the sifter (like reverse sifting). I'm assuming old Rx used a mortar and pestal. IS that how your suggesting crushing this powder? I know the powder has moisture in it. I saw Gloomisman's post about using a dehumidifier. I don't have one unfortunately. I am going to try the silica packets in the powder containers though. See if that helps. My brands are Pro-Tec and CC. Some of both are clumped and some of both are not clumped which is what perplexes me. Seems to be more about color as others have stated in other posts i searched. Watermelon is the worst. I mix Watermelon with brown for a real nice Green Pumpkin. I sometimes do two colors on jigs and I've been double dunking. but some of my second dunks are clumping which leads to dripping in the oven. I think I'm going to try the brush option and sprinkle on. I've used a sifter and "tapped" powder effects on to jigs with good results but it sometimes makes your finish look uneven. Thanks for the assist Cadman. Did a lot of searching last night.

Don't get me wrong Hawnjigs. I went and bought wax last night! Haha! I intend to but I was hiding in the closet still out of embarrasment of not doing this until now. Bladesandbaits advised me to do this in my pouring a couple years ago and I'm ashamed to say I haven't until today. Today will be my first flux. I feel like a virgin again - HAHA! Thanks again guys for all the good information. Thanks for the sources of wax Cadman. Am I going to regret just using chunks of a small votive candle. I'll be the first to admit that I don't know much about candles or wax. I've got a problem with migranes and candle scents are probably my worst trigger for them. So I avoid them like the plague. Haha.

I have powders that are clumping and some that don't clump at all. All stored in the same place (a cabinet inside the house in our utility room). I'm curious what I've done that has caused some of the powder to clump and some not to. And what I can do with the "clumpy" powder to make it useable again. I've sifted a lot of it with a sifter but come back the next day and it's clumpy again. The result is you get paint that melts onto your jig way too thick in places. I to the point of wanting to throw it all out and buy powder again. Problem is I've got a couple pounds of a couple colors doing this. Frustrating so I appreciate any help here. For the record I always seal my paint in either their original bin or in screw tight plastic containers for dipping. I shake vigorously and flip the container just before dipping to get the loosest powder on top. But a few of my colors is just doesn't matter.

Wow.. Best thread/posts I've read in a while. Thank you all for the contributions. I shall go back in my closet of non-fluxing, non-smoking mold pourers now.

Charles is a good guy and has always been much faster than advertised on filling orders. I would just call him. He has no time for email right now. A few minutes on the phone and you'll be squared away I'm sure.

The best remedy is to get the paint out of the eyelet while you're painting. I do this with a small piece of copper wire. Heat the jig, dip in paint, punch any paint out of the eye.

Captain Hook's Discount Warehouse Captain Hook's Discount Warehouse Captain Hook's Discount Warehouse Hope that helps...

If your speaking of rubber fine cut, then what Sixgun said is how most seperate the strands. Just pull it taught and cut. I put my jig in a vise when I wire tie rubber skirts and then I can pull hard and every strand cuts fine. If you're doing it right, it sounds like plucking a guitar string! Hope that helps.

Anyone know where I can find Stanley 1 1/2-inch Wedgetail Crappie Minnows still for sale? Anyone make a crappie minnow similar to that. Needs to have that wedge tail design. Thanks in advance for your time and suggestions.

I have used the naked bait one and love it. I have it mounted on my workbench. It's fast and simple and locks into place. I can get the skirts nice and even before I tighten the band around the layers.

PM sent. Add me to the list of guys wanting one of your swimbaits.

Thanks fellas... I like the suggestions and will let you know how it all turns out.

I'm wanting to modify my football mold further. I took the original do-it football mold and had it modified to accept the flateye hooks. I also tried to modify it to accept basepins. However that has not been working well for me. There is a lot of sprue to work off each jig. Now I'm wanting to try a wire weedguard. My question is: Are you guys pouring casting jigs or football jigs with wire guards? If so are you using the coated wireguards and do you powder paint and bake with those wireguards intact? IF so does the plastic sheeth melt or do you cover it? It will be a slow process so I'm asking the questions now to get some opinions on the best way to modify my mold to make this process effecient. Thanks!

If it doesn't look right, chances are you don't have enough material. But putting a lot of material through those pen type skirt makers is tough. Call Blake at Naked Bait Co and get his Skirt Expander. This will answer both your round rubber question and the question of how to get more through. I often use 2 1/2 pads (two of one color and 1/2 pad of an accent color) sometimes another 1/2 pad of an accented join color (like 2 brown then 1/2 pumpkin barbwire and 1/2 purple.) Blakes website is http://www.nakedbaitco.com/products.html

What is LC? Got any pictures of jigs with watermelon /red flake?

Yeah you always know you're pulling on the jig at the right angle with a flat eye. For some reason it seems like a lot more of my bass are hooked in the roof of their mouth or in the upper lip with flat-eye, which I like. I also like the flateye, because it's a bit stronger, better quality hook than the standard bronze hook. And the flateye seems to be a bit less snaggy.