Vodkaman

Rick. The web site looks great, lots of good information. Congrats on the knot wars, good job. The extra loop through the hook eye may look insignificant, but is far from it. The extra loop spreads the load on the line. So, the apparent small change to a traditional knot well deserves its new name and the accolades that go with it. Good luck with the business. Dave

http://www.tackleunderground.com/forum/hard-baits/15907-another-dicknite-question-problem-3.html Post No29 (page 3) by Dean, covers heat setting quite comprehensively. Read all the thread though, lots of good information. Dave

Welcome to TU Bill. However, not an elegant first post. I hope you did not join TU just to make this point and that you plan to stick around and make more valuable contributions. If a knot is similar, then it is NOT the same, unless you can provide hard evidence of the identical knot, in use before FNF's knot, then he is entitled to claim the knot as his own. Why start a new thread with this nonsense, the content of this thread could have been submitted to either of the two current threads on this subject. 'SORRY', why sorry? Way to go FNF, good luck with the wars, with the Fish-N-Fool knot. Dave

Wishing you all the best Bear. Dave

What you say makes a lot of sense Mark. But the general cencus of TU swimbait builders, is that they prefer a heavier wood than balsa. Does balsa work? Is any one using balsa? I would like to read some opinions. I think it may be relevant to the discussion. Dave

Welcome to TU Romeo D. Man, you have been buzy, you are in such a hurry too. But this is understandable with a hobby such as this. Good post. Lay it out there and let people learn. Keep up the good work. Dave

Gadawgs, agreed. Dave

Salt is good for absorbing moisture. Heat up a pound of salt in the oven, to dry it out. Place the powder and salt (separate containers) in a sealed container (tupawear or similar) for a week or so (just guessing). stir it up twice a day. It should do the job. I think there are other crystals that do the job faster, but cannot remember the name, sodium something. Try a web search. This is from wikipedia: Dave

Excellent link Dramone, just what I was looking for. Thankyou. Dave

Davemyway, thank you for the figures. I did a few calculations with the numbers. Excluding the 10

Please do not get me wrong, I am learning with the rest of TU. I am just applying engineering principles. Also, I am reading everything that has been written, watching every video, making notes and trying to put a theory of operation together that explains everything. I don't expect to br right everytime, if my suggestions don't work out, please let me know, or I don't learn. I promise that when I solve the theory thing, it WILL be published here. Dave

Gadawgs. Moving a centre weight to the front does not move the CoG to the front, it shifts the CoG to the centre of the front section, given that the forward and rear weights are identical. But it does dramatically increase the inertia of the front section. This will reduce the head 'waggle', but not eliminate it. In fact, for the lure to work properly, a certain amount of 'waggle' is required, but barely visible is sufficient. Dave

Heat setting must have been advised a hundred times on this site, no one has come back and said, "it didn't work". When heat setting, you cannot just wave a hair dryer at it for 5 seconds, it has to be done properly. I suggest googling createx and read up on heat setting. It is how the colors are set on TEE shirts, to make them durable and washable. Dave

Me too. I assume the other vids were more of the same. He had some kind of device in his hand. Could have been a chinchilla! Dave

That sounds like a great idea. You can take the idea further by using clay or something similar, as a better base for the signature, by its ability to take a deeper and more controlable depression. Dave

Sorry, I have had a further thought on this problem. Rather than moving the rear weight in the front section, I think it would be better to move the centre weight to the nose position. This would still move the CoG forward slightly, thus helping the leverage problem. But it would also increase the inertia of the front section, reducing its ability to move side to side (waggle). Here is an explanation that I have used before: Sorry for confusion. Dave

First off, their is nothing wrong with posting pics of your lure in this forum, provided it adds to, or clarifies a point in the technical discussion. If you posted a pic of the final result, with no technical discussion invited, merely to gain praise, then you would get a deserved infraction. I am assuming that you moves the nose weight to the tail. This solved the roll. This fits in with my thoughts. But now thee head moves side to side. By removing the nose weight, you have shifted the CoG rearwards. The forces that create the 'S' action apply a slight side force to the nose. By moving the CoG, you have given this force more leverage. I think you need to move the rear weight in the head, to the original nose position, to move the CoG forward. You should percevere with this and achieve the lure that YOU want, not just what you end up with. It may be an idea to post more pics to show where you are upto now. Dave

Correct, silicon is an insulator. But this would create a hot spot, not a cool spot. But I doubt this is affecting the result. What do the 'voids look like? Are the voids in the exact same location each time? A close up pic of the mold and the cast might help. I suspect a tiny amount of air is trapped behind the silicon patch. This being due to the shiny surface of the mold when applying the patch (poor adhesion). When pouring, the air expands, causing a spherical (bubble) void. The bubble is too small to break surface tension. Try tapping the mold immediately after pouring, to shift the bubble. This does not come from first hand knowledge, just applying engineering. Dave

double post, please delete.

I would not have thought that not weighting the tail would cause the roll. So my first question is, are you sure you didn't change anything apart from the tail, such as ballast location, ballast depth etc? Assuming the answer is no, there is a small argument that does explain the roll. While the tail section has one eye hinge, any buoyancy will just raise the tail section and not affect the rest of the lure. But by adding two hinge eyes, the tail section cannot swing up (as you have constrained the motion to side only), it takes the other sections upwards with it. So as the tail swings outwards, the upward force of the buoyancy applies twist to the whole lure, hence roll. I am not convinced by this argument, especially if the body is of a dense material, but if the tail section size was significant and the body material was balsa, then it could happen. Dave

Using the pin method offers an ideal opportunity to assemble after the top coat. True, the pin will be visible, but this is not necessarily a bad thing. You are offering the owner an opportunity to be able to service his bait, should he desire. Use the exposed pin as a selling point, win win all round. Dave

The item will minimise, but not eliminate the problem. As you pour DN, the volume of fluid poured is replaced by air. Having said that, it has to be better than taking the lid off the can and dipping direct. Apart from bloxygen, the best method I have read, was the bottom tap, with a top vent plug. This allows a minimum amount of air into the can (as above). But accepts that a skin will form. This skin prevents further contamination. Dave

Just a thought. Has anyone considered vacuum for protection against curing in the can? It would mean attaching some kind of valve to the lid. After use, simply attach the hose to the lid valve, switch on the vacuum, close the valve, job done. Another idea, a small bag of moisture absorbant crystals attached to the inside of the lid. Dave

Birdman. This sounds interesting. Why not start a new thread and publish your method. Dave

I messed around with clear silicon and molds, black card punch for the pupils. Was not happy with the results. Welcome Palmetto Boy. Lots if info on scales, try a search. This thread should be kept to eyes. Dave