Vodkaman

I just did a smoke test with a medium size axial fan. It worked great. The motor was only 38 Watt, 0.22 Amperes, but the smoke was moving horizontal. As long as you are working within a box or cowl, to restrict the airflow, I don't think you need a big motor. If you can only find smaller axial fans, then you could mount two or more. They are cheap and readily available. Check out electronics components stores. They usually have a box of second hand fans. As mentioned previously, beware of solvents and motors. I have no idea if axial fans are spark proof. Dave

It really all depends on the type of lure that you are attempting. I do mainly lipped cranks and like to have the lead in one place, around the centre of gravity (CoG). I find the approximate position by balancing the blank body across a 1/8" drill bit or something close to hand. No need to make a big deal over this, as the rear hook will pull the position aft and the lip will pull it forward. Keep the lead in the lower half of the body, but don't be afraid to experiment. I don't do gliders and jerk baits, but they require a totally different ballast strategy and I will leave that to the experienced builders. The best way to get advice is to tell us what you are planning to build. Dave

Ben, it is definately a good idea and certainly not a waste of time. If we get a comprehensive list done and if Jerry make it easily accessible, preferrably without having to leave the post, it would be invaluable to new members. It will take a long time to compile the list before it is worth incorporating. I have made a start to see how it would work. So far, I am finding that a reference to a particular forum is not necessary, as most of the terms are common across forums. If you only searched words applicable to a particular forum, you are likely to miss what you are looking for. Searching for the term is just a matter of scrolling down an alphabetical list. PM me your email and I will send you what I have got so far. Dave

I think you nailed the only feasible explanation. It makes sense to me. Dave

I think it is a good idea. Lincoya suggested this 30 months ago, but it never got off the ground: http://www.tackleunderground.com/community/topic/13413-lure-making-terminology/page__p__98617__hl__abbreviations__fromsearch__1#entry98617 It would need someone to co-ordinate it (you), to collate the info and badger people into participating. I suggest a spread sheet for adding the entries to, as this can be automatically sorted into alphabetical order. I would certainly take part, easy enough to have a spreadsheet or word document on the desk top, handy for adding to. Good luck with it. Dave

Matt, Thanks for the link. Interesting project, no requirement at the moment, but stored for future reference. Never considered making my own motor before, but do-able. Dave

That'll work. Keep an eye on the motor. You may find that it gets very hot. Some motors just don't like turning slow for long periods, others are fine. If yours gets hot, you could make a pulley wheel, say 10:1 ratio. This would allow your drill to turn faster and happier. I have turned lures directly with a drill before and had no problem. Dave

Excellent writeup Travis, my method is just about the same. The only differences are that I use polyester resin and polyester filler (Bondo), I top coat with D2T epoxy, to get a glossy finish. Just to expand on point No7, no need to worry about making mistakes or removing too much material. You can always add the material back with the fillers. Some of my masters look like patchwork quilts, as I re-work them until I am happy. If I want to try different variations of the master, I will take the master so far, then make a mold. Then I can pour several resin sub-masters and continue the shaping design, a bit like doing a back-up. If I am working with fiddly appendages, legs, antennas etc, I cut them separately and loosely peg them to the body. All my initial design is done on CAD, but that is just because I can. Dave

Pete, same happened to my compressor. I decided to drain the compressor, expecting half a cup. Must have been about 3 or 4 pints of black sludge. I should have known better, as the humidity never drops below 70 and is usually closer to the 90's. Lesson learned. Dave

Like JR stated, all these kind of baits need testing and adjustments. They only work first time if you are lucky. The reasoning behind my 'lower in the water' suggestion is that, when testing cranks in a swimming pool, I have found that once the lure hits the bottom, it loses its action. I think that the proximity to the bottom is stopping the vortices forming. I could be completely wrong, but I am applying the same thinking to the surface. Dropping the lure down a couple of millimeters could make the difference. I also am happy to suggest it because it is non-invasive, quick and easy to do. It makes sense to start with non-invasive tests like weight distribution on hooks, adjusting the tow eye slightly down or up, soft gluing lip extensions. These three tests should reveal a solution, so when you have to incorporate the change, you can do it with more confidence, not total confidence. Dave

Very nice. I think if you lower it in the water slightly more, the action will start. Try adding some lead to the hooks and see what happens in the bath tub. Dave

Who asked for a link? At least now you have learned how to use Google and will not be pestering anyone for links any longer. Dave

I am inclined to agree with you. I know for a fact that large Chinese car manufacturers are using all pirate copies of industry standard CAD software. If large corporations can get away with such flagrant abuse of ownership rights of software, do you think that they would be in the least bit concerned by your little patent? I don't think so. Get your product out there and make what you can as soon as possible. If the lure is very good, you maybe have a year before they have it on the market. Dave

Thanks Cadman and Fatman, too generous. If Ted is doing stuff for the members, I am happy to be part of it. The PDF's look good, but I had to download a newer version of reader. I should have done this long ago. It takes about 30 minutes, but at least it is free. I looked into lase cutting for a project many years ago and this is what I found: Laser cutting or what ever method is employed, involves costs. Setup costs, a nesting file has to be created, manpower and all the other overheads have to be paid for. Regardless of how many blades you order, these charges will be the same. The next charge is for machine time and should not be anything to do with the number of items. There will be a handling charge, as 2000 small parts are more of a problem that 3 big parts, but this should only be small. Also you will be paying for a full sheet, even if you only order 10 blades. So it makes sense to order the maximum number that can be squeezed out of one sheet. Unfortunately, I do not know the sheet sizes, but I do know that the unit cost will be considerably less than the numbers quited on Fatmans post. This will only work as a community sharing thing with someone organizing the order and distribution. I am looking forward to the feedback Ted, as this process has other applications in lure building, such as cutting lip profiles. Dave

Well from what you wrote, it seems to have a good reputation, so that is why I suspect the wire, assuming that you are not doing anything wrong of course. Dave

It sounds like you are getting a lot of spring back with your wire. Maybe you need a softer spec. Of course with a softer spec, the wires will get bent out of shape easier, this is the dilema. Dave

I am very happy that you managed to solve your problem without having to resort to my long winded solution. I have read many times that it is recommended to thoroughly dry molds before removing the master, but this never worked for me either. I too have been using wax, but next time I do some pouring, I will give the petroleum jelly another go. The best solution is to use RTV for hard masters, but unfortunately, I have not managed to find a source locally, so I am stuck with PoP. Thanks for reporting back your findings. Dave

I agree with both Bob and Jims points of view. If you put out a bait that is middle of the road, done a thousand times before, nothing progressive, then you are very unlikely to get any patent comebacks. But if you copy a feature of the latest fad bait, no matter how seemingly insignificant the feature may be, then you could find yourself with problems. That insignificant bump or ridge that identifies with that hot seller is there for a reason, to move water a certain way, achieve a unique movement or simply look cool. You copy it and sell it, you run the risk of litigation. Lots of people talk about a 10% difference get out. Well you can forget about that, utter nonsense. make the frog 10% thinner with the same design feature and see how far you get in court. I have never understood this copy a bait mentality. I can understand customer demands on established lure producers, but if you are starting out as a new company, surely originality will be your strongest selling point. If you want success, you have to come up with something different. It will be hard to sell, but no one should expect this business to be easy. With an original product, you have to get out there and convince people that the product works better than the rest. Sure, you can push out sticks and grubs and make a few dollars to cover the cost of your hobby, nothing wrong with that. True success in this business is not just your original lure design, it is your reputation, which will probably take years to establish, unless you know some very connected people who believe in your product. Design and development is the easy part of the whole process. The hard part is selling and promotion. If you truly come up with an original fish magnet, you then have to decide, big time or small time. Big time is mass production, tooling, packaging, advertising, promotion, patents, lawyers, courts, you have to protect your design. Small time is forget about the patent thing, as you will never be able to afford the protection fees. Cottage industry production, budget packaging, local sales, word of mouth promotion. If this is successful and a big company has not already stolen the idea and you have made some extra cash from the project, you might consider applying for a patent and approach a big company, to buy your idea. But my experience with patent solicitors is that once the design is public knowledge, you are on a loser. The patent has to happen before you start selling. The first stage of the patent application is not too expensive and gives you protection for a year to establish your product, before you have to shell out the big bucks to complete the patent. So if the bait was not as big a hit as you thought it was going to be, then you are not too out of pocket. If you are serious about your intentions and have a great idea, you really need to make an appointment and sit down with a professional. If you are lucky, the first consultation will be free. Taking advice off a forum like this, no matter how well intentioned we are, or how much we want to help you, is not going to get you where you need to be. Dave

What I was working on was a lure that rested on its side (either side). When retrieved, it would right itself and swim normally with a wiggle action. When paused, it would once again lay on its side. This is a 90 degree rotation/cycle. The problem is that the design involves a floating lip, so that the lure will work no matter which side it rests. Then you have to restrict the lip to within certain movements. This makes the build very messy. I am sure I could get it to work, but what is the point, it is just not practical. Design is nearly always a compromise, part of which is the simplicity of build. Marks solution, though not perfect, achieves this goal. With a bit of practice and an understanding of what the lures intention is, Marks solution fits the bill. It is a good lure for someone who understands its function, such as a builder or an informed pro, but it would never make it as a commercial venture because the average angler would just wind it in and expect it to swim. Dave

It seems that quite a few engineers have worked on this one, but not quite cracked it. I would want it to work for asymmetric lures, not lathe turned concentric lures. This would require an 'odd ball' rotation. Jed, sounds like you were on the right track to a solution, but like me, may be you gave in too quick. I would really like more details of your rotation system, maybe a solution can be found. Dave

You are most welcome. I think there is a lot of posibilities here, based on what the Dutchman mentioned, making some kind of holder/support for the cup. The cup material obviously can take the temperatures involved, but gets a bit floppy. A metal frame would be easy, but not microwave friendly. I think there is a lot of room for experiment here for holder frames. I am thinking polyester resin. I have no idea how it would behave in a microwave, but it would be easy to make a mold using the cup and soft modelling clay. I would do it myself, except my m/w packed in and I butchered it for the motor. To find a solution here is a big step forward for microwave pouring and safety. This is a very important thread. Dave

I am starting to think what we are dealing with is crackling rather than cracking. Is the fault after use or while you are doing the work? Maybe a photograph would help. Dave

I don't want to be picky or disturb the thread flow, but you should really be wearing gloves for pouring: http://www.tackleunderground.com/community/topic/21207-gloves-what-typebrand/page__p__158153__hl__gloves__fromsearch__1#entry158153 Dave

That was Frank: http://www.tackleunderground.com/community/topic/20853-two-color-ripper-bait-production-video/page__p__155622__hl__video__fromsearch__1#entry155622 He really seems to have the technique sorted out. Dave

I was thinking one tight layer would do it. If your backing is loose enough to slip, then three layers is not going to make any difference, it will still slip. I think a bit more tension is required on the backing layer. Yes, you could use cement to fix it in place, but isn't that cheating, LOL. It is a long time since I did any tying and I cannot remember whether the sewing thread is a good idea or not, it could be exasperating your slipping problem. What I do remember is that the sewing thread is 'hairy' and had to be laid flat with CA glue to get a nice finish. Do a few experiments. Try more tension, try the cement/glue, try priming the hook shaft with a dab of CA glue. I can't remember having a serious slipping problem. Hair will always move. After a couple of fixing loops, you have to rearrange the hair to your liking, then wind it on. Dave