Vodkaman

It was only a proto, so never got fished. But I did buy some thicker thread (nylon or terrylene) for the next level, but I moved on to other projects. Choose the right thread and it should be easily strong enough. The main problem is water ingress and epoxy in the thread, killing the flexibility. Same with material hinges. But it can be done. Dave

I think my current belt is 120 grit, but didn't want to take it off to check. I bought a couple of new belts a few weeks ago, they are 80 grit. The 80 doesn't look too brutal, well once it has worn in a bit. I don't think you will need 2 belts, it will soon become a tiresome pain swapping them over. The main thing with balsa, is to look after the grain direction, or you will end up with a ball of fluff and you'll have to get the bic out. Dave

Rob, you are absolutely right. As long as the RTV is framed, no problem. Minimal flash, with a well made mold. You obviously already have experience with RTV, so it is definately the way to go. The only real issue is the cooling time, as RTV is a very good insulator. This is why several molds would be a good idea, it won't speed up the process, but will eliminate any waiting time. As long as your hands are busy the whole time, you are at maximum efficiency, the rest is organisation. Dave

Yes, I think it would not be too difficult. The main problem is getting the hardware inside. You would have to re-think the whole design, especially the hinges. If I were tackling this project, I would go for a cloth hinge, a single hook, possibly hanging off the rear of the front section. You could have started a new thread for this one, but it is done now, never mind. One of my early proto's was 4.5" and had 8 segments (eel), using a thread as a hinge. It swam great. Dave

That is one complete cycle per minute. It is just about do-able. RTV or bondo resin will do the job, but why not PoP? Are you planning on just one mold? I would make several duplicate molds. It would slicken up the process and reduce the panic/rush. Dave

Pete, you probably already figured this out anyway. If the pin was a closer fit inside the hinge, then it would act in shear and not bending, a much stronger situation. A 1/16" brass rod or even 3/32 brass tube might be enough to improve the situation. The tube would be ideal, as it would be easy to swage. The 1/16" rod fits inside the tube, so a short length of rod could be bonded inside, to reinforce the shear points, preventing collapse of the tube. I was messing around with brass rods and tubes about 2 years ago, so not sure of the exact sizes. Dave

I agree Pete, a successful test. Dave

There are a lot of elitist views amongst fisher folk. Many think that if it is not wood then it's not good. Fortunately, TU is blessed with a lot of forward thinking lure designers, who are prepared to go the extra mile, at their own expense and try new things out and share. This is not just about materials, but all aspects of lure design. This is what makes TU such an interesting place to be. Actually, I have just switched back to wood, because I cannot find the density (what Bob said) that my lure requires in other materials, also I have an almost unlimited supply and it is very cheap. Dave

Staring at the cavity in the pic, the image flipped inside out on me. It looked like the alien from the film 'Predator'. I think it would look cool as a clear plastic. But the fish might get scared. Dave

I think Dick should check it out. If it works, he should offer the bag as an alternative or extra. Dave

Wayupnorth's idea of a ziploc bag gave me an idea. The hanging drip bags used in hospitals would be perfect. I doubt that they could be sourced other than a nurse contact. They usually contain nothing more noxious than salty water. Dave

It is a difficult one to prove either way. Dave

Mark, great feedback on the bait and good proto work. It surprised me at first, that the 180 thing stopped when you moved the weight into the head, but I think I can explain it. I do not think there is an inertia thing going on to cause the 180, I believe it is all about vortices. My theory is based around alternating vortices forming over (or under) the nose of the body. As the vortex turns back towards the body, the water

The big problem is that plastic is a poor conductor of heat. Even if you managed to get a good stable heat source, delivering heat evenly all around, without burning the plastic. It would still take a long time before the centre of the plastic volume reached the operating temperature. It would probably take hours just to raise the last 20 degrees. When you heat water in a pan, because the water is thin, it circulates by itself, hot water rising etc. This will not happen with the plastic because of its much thicker consistency, therefore the heat gets isolated around the edges. Constant stirring is required to mix the hot plastic around the heat source with the cooler plastic at the centre. Hope I didn't complicate it too much. Dave

Originally posted by George12182 What you have described is basically a 'hardbait'! Maybe the thread should be moved to the hardbaits forum. Just joking. Interesting read. Dave

It is a pity their isn't a wood that comes inbetween a light cedar and a heavy balsa, something around 0.25 - 0.30gm/cm3. I am fortunate to have such a beastie over here, called albesia. Unfortunately, the density can vary considerably between planks, so I have to continually measure the density and tune the construction accordingly. But by keeping records, I will be able to slicken up this process. Jamie, I get your point. Testing for such would be difficult, so I guess we will just have to use good old common sense. Dave

LP, well we will just have to agree to disagree, as testing those two lures for me would be a waste of time, as the lips are very different. Here is an analogy. Take a plain lead sinker and troll it behind a boat at speed. How deep do you think it will go? My guess is not more than a few feet. The even fluid forces around the concentric weight are neither forcing the weight up or down. The only force affecting the weight is the resistance of the line passing through the water. Another analogy. The fairground centrifugal ride. The faster the drum spins, the less significant the gravity force becomes as the centrifugal forces take over. It is the same with the lip/body fluid forces, they take over. If the lure has a large ballast and sinks like a stone, then of course it will affect the depth. At the slow speeds of cranking, the fluid forces are not strong enough to overcome the gravity force of the ballast. But if you increase the speed, eventually, they will swim at virtually the same depth. But the differences in ballast between a floater and a slow sinker are soon cancelled out by the combination of fluid forces between the lip/body and the speed. The lip/body geometry determines the depth, the faster the lure swims, the less significant the ballast becomes. At 2 cranks per second (1m/s) the ballast becomes insignificant, unless you tie a brick to it. If you want to get deep, the line thickness is more important, dropping 5Lbs off the breaking strain can get you an extra few feet depth. As Diemai posted, the extra weight allows you to fish more of the water column (thanks Dan), by pausing and allowing the bait to sink down again, but that is about it. Also ref Diemai

The reason that I went over to barrel twist, is that I had several haywire twists actually pull out of the resin, instead of the resin plug pulling out of the wood. Since going over to barrel, I have never had this type of failure. All the above are during pull tests. Jamie, pull tests are valid, especially if you are dealing with lighter density woods. As for twisting and torque, these are not going to pull the eye out. The biggest test for an eye is a straight inline axial load. I agree, if you fish for critters that can tear your lure apart, then balsa is not the way to go. Dave

LP, you listed for me a bunch of cranks, but no advantages, but yes you are correct, the statement was rather over stated. My point is, take two identical cranks, one weighted to float, the other weighted to slow sink. Swim one from the surface, let the other sink to the bottom, then swim. They will both eventually end up at the same swimming depth. Apart from casting, the advantage is that by letting the lure sink for say 10 - 15 seconds before retrieving, the lure will reach its natural swim depth sooner. I think there has also been some confusion between the words 'sinker' and 'floater'. The statement 'floater' does not mean it swims on the surface, it just means it starts from the surface, always rising when the retrieve is paused. Mark has covered this plan well in his post. If you add too much weight to sink the lure faster, you will kill the action. Again, this point was covered nicely by Bob. So, what are the advantages, other than the two that I have stated, as I cannot think of any more. Sinyo, never throw away baits that do not work, These are your learning tools. You should percevere with the bait, changing one thing at a time, until you get it to work. Then you stick it on your wall, to remind yourself of the problem/solution. Dave

It is possible, because you were mixing glitter into the D2T, that you took too long over the mixing. Try mixing the glitter into the two halves, separately, then mix together. I cannot think of any other reason why the glitter would make a difference. Dave

I've mixed the microballoons with resin. When you start stirring, it seems impossible that it will mix in, but it does, just keep stirring slowly. Do everything slowly with this stuff, or it will go everywhere. I wear a respirator when transferring the stuff from the 15Kg bag to tuppaware boxes, after that the mask is not essential, as long as you go sloooow. Dave

Hi Sinyo. First question is why would you want to make a sinking crank, there is no advantage to it, other than it may throw further? Post some pics showing the body and the lip, sizes, materials, ballast locations and any other relevant information. Then I am sure someone will be able to help you. Dave

Tally posted a similar problem back in 2003: http://www.tackleunderground.com/forum/wire-baits/1091-buzz-bait-help.html he also found his solution. The thread was resurrected a week ago. I don't know what a clacker is, but it could be disturbing the fluid geometry enough to cause your problem. Read the thread and try out a few adjustments. Report back your results, successful or not. Dave

I used to fish a very small pit, about 40m diameter, regularly for 3 years. It contained small crucian carp and perch, 2 - 4ozs. I invited a friend, to introduce him to fishing. Set him up with all my gear. Sat with him for an hour or so, to get him started. After a couple of hours, he pulled in a 15oz perch. Bigger than any perch I had ever caught and 3 times the size of my biggest in this pit. I was gutted! Dave

I feel guilty on so many levels now! Nice one. Dave