Vodkaman

Routers scare me too, but I really like this. My router table is already set-up, so if I need to make a lot of lips, I will probably go this route. DAve

Thanks Vic, yes, I am having great fun, just a pity they won't let me use in the competitions. I have now caught with several of the proto's, some nude the rest white. I have no plans other than to paint plain white, it works well, so why change, plus I am a believer in action over paint, just my opinion.Glad you like the wiring idea. It is not new by any means, the lure turners use the same principle, I just miniaturized it. I haven't done a pull test yet, but will do when the design is finalized. Will probably post a vid too. Dave

I'm building a series of small cranks for the local fish, as the mouth is very small compared to your bass. The bodies being only 1.5" long, there is no room for screw eyes, so I have had to get creative. But I didn't have to split the bait. I did it by fitting a barrel twisted eye 1.25" into the body. I intersected this with the belly eye hole and made an eye with a loop. The barrel twisted tow eye screws through this loop and so all the eyes are linked together and very solid. I have caught several fish with the first unpainted proto, including a 5Lb toothy bawal and the bait handled itself flawlessly. Incidentally, my first fish on my own lures, can you believe it! There are several other ways of through wiring without having to split the bait. One of my favorites is to cut a slot along the spine and drop a through wire harness in and fill with polyester filler. This method leaves enough room to fit ballast from the belly. Normally I would not through wire on lures 3" or larger, as I do not use balsa. Dave

It's a lure making technical term, LOL. Dave

Personally, I think jointed swimbaits are the easiest for consistent success. They just involve a lot of work. As long as the joints are very free moving, they will swim. This is my experience. Good subject. Dave

I gave up with all the fancy bits, never really getting them to work. Now I drill the first hole 3mm (1/8") diameter and gradually increase the diameter in small increments, BUT running the standard twist drills in reverse. This the most success I have had in obtaining clean holes. DAve

Good points Bob. I tried to keep it simple for the first design, but the eye does need dressing after forming. The use of some kind of clamp to help form the eye might work, but would take longer to set up than straightening the eye manually. I did consider a motor drive, even a geared chain drive, but the one to one hand crank is so fast anyway. Once the wire is set up, you can really spin that crank. The rear spool would not work, as you identified the problem, the wire twists with the crank. If I were to design another build, the main problem to address would be the hook, in order to get a better formed eye without dressing. Good to get feedback and ideas. Dave

Great tip, never thought of that. Dave

The twisting wire pulls at the uprights, so the first mod would be to stiffen the uprights, with maybe ply fillets. The second mod would be the pivot plate. As it is, it cuts up my thumb with its sharp edges. I would make it bigger, to get more leverage and round all the edges to protect my thumb. Apart from these changes, I am happy with it. I've only used it in one session, when I made about 150 pieces, still using them. Dave

If you have a workshop of tools, I would cut them yourself. Dave

I use a floor wax. This prevents any air from rising from the first half, but Vaseline does the same job. I mix the powder and water by hand, slowly, to avoid bubbles. This will make your skin dry, so some skin cream when you are done. Do some Google searches, lots of really good expert information out there, well worth reading. Dave

Mine is a low end tabletop saw too. I also have to get the blades made for it. Many of the blades are not welded true, so like Musky Glenn mentioned, any problem ant the joint will strike against the adjuster blocks. You can always see the problem if you unplug the power, open the cover and turn the blade manually, look closely at the adjuster area. Check the blade tension while you are there, pluck the blade opposite adjuster area, it should make a LOW musical tone. If the problem is at the adjuster blocks, it is best to slacken everything off and move everything away until the blade turns perfectly. First adjust the blade so that it is riding on the crown of the top and bottom wheels. Only then, move all the adjusters back to the recommended gaps. If it is a new blade, there may be a settling in period and you may find yourself doing this adjustment a few times at first. DON'T ignore or accept the vibration or the blade WILL snap. If this is your first bandsaw, the main thing to learn, is all the adjustments, There should be 8 altogether. Tension, blade alignment, 4 side blocks (two above and two below the table) and two bearing blocks behind the blade (one above and one below the table). It is easy to miss the bearing blocks as they are hidden. Dave

I have had discussions with Dan about this in the past, but never got around to trying anything. I have all the materials and about 50 un-sanded blanks, so maybe it is time. I need to think some. Great thread. Dave

I fix the top and bottom of the pins with a dab of UHU soft glue. The pins are not under any load that is trying to pull them out. The top coat of epoxy is plenty to hold them in. To remove, simply grind the epoxy, which has to be removed anyway and tap the pins out with an old drill bit. Dave

Hi Dan, Pete and the gang. Unfortunately, the money situation is still dire and I will not be able to make the trip. I really hope the meet goes ahead and I can follow from a distance. Dave

Some great responses here. My thoughts are that you may feel like your time was wasted, just like my first dozen carvings. But I am sure that you learned a lot from the mistakes, so consider it time well spent. Dave

I'm still using PS version 7, which is ancient. Like Sammy said, you do not need the latest and greatest. I haven't looked, but I bet you could download the older versions off the web for free. Dave

I fill slots, gaps and voids with polyester resin. This is the putty stuff used for automotive body filling work. You usually get a small tube of hardener to add a dab and mix in. It hardens fast and can be sanded down in an hour or less. As for sealing, so many alternatives here. Personally, I use super glue also known as CA glue or cyanoacrilate glue, the stuff that dries in seconds. I can get it cheap here, but it may be cost prohibitive in Sweden. I seal before doing any filling. Hopefully more members will jump in here and help you with more alternatives. Dave

All the concerns above are justified, I only add that the cause of the problem is the added pressure that you inadvertently put on the tool with a fixed router arrangement. It may seem that your use of a drill press seems limited, hardly justifying it's purchase, but once you have one, you will gradually find more and more uses for it. The same goes with the other two big machines, the belt sander and the band saw. I would not be without any of them, even it I stopped making lures. Dave

Reaper - interesting solution to the lure holder on the drier. Good share. Dave

I agree with Thunnus64, shoot within the range of the camera and crop. Plenty of pixels in modern cameras. I have developed a rim light for this kind of photography. It is like a ring flash, but just LED lights that you switch on and off. This totally eliminates all the shadows. I primarily use it for insect photography. Dave

You must also consider the tow eye position. This is critical and moves around when you change anything on the lip geometry. The two are integral. Dave

You can easily find an approximate target weight if you have an accurate gram scale. Half fill a beaker with water, place on the scale and zero. Using long nose pliers, hold the segments, one at a time, to just submerge without touching sides or bottom and note the weight. This method is derived from Archimedes principle. I wrote a thread on this a while back, search for Archimedes, the list will be short. Dave

I have made figure 8 links, from brass wire, soldered. It is fiddly, but once you jig up, you can produce a lot, consistently in a short time. The most important part is getting the sizes consistent and for this you have to think about a jig. Brass links are not very pretty though. I am experimenting with hinge plates of polycarbonate in place of the links. Haven't done anything on the project for a while, but will return one day. All my swimbaits are designed to dismantle. The pins are held in place with soft glue and the top coat. So if the bait needs servicing, the topcoat is stripped and the pin tapped out. Dave

I don't cut a V, I cut a U shape, using the Dremel with a drum sander bit. Examine your joint movement. The object is to achieve clearance and hide the joint mechanics to pretty up the construction. If I was doing large numbers, I would consider a jig with an angular mounted router. You have to look at the problem and imagine the solution. The solution may not be what everyone else is doing, but that does not mean that you are wrong. If you cannot see the solution, post pics and a statement of your intent and you will receive a few ideas to choose from or guide you to different ideas. Dave