Vodkaman

For complex shapes of a few hundred at a time, I would be looking into copy routers. Probably design and build my own. Dave

Assuming you have the correct light wave frequency for the cure of your product. Distance from your light source is absolutely critical. Cure effectiveness deteriorates at a rate of 8:1. in other words, increase the distance by one inch and the cure effectiveness is reduced massively. Dave

B-Rad - don't take this particular post too seriously. We all flex our ideological muscles occasionally on this site, but it is fairly meaningless. Arrive at your own conclusions. This forum is comprised of lure genius, but we rarely agree on a majority of issues. This is a good thing as you get to make your own decisions. Read, take it all in and decide for yourself. Dave

Actually, I find it unnecessary, but that is a whole new subject, argued through many times on this site Dave

Balsa is a fibrous, hairy wood. You have to fix the fluff hard to be able to sand the body smooth for a professional finish. Also, as Bob pointed out, you need to reinforce this vulnerable, soft hardwood. I like thin CA (super glue) for this job. It soaks into the surface for that reinforcement. It is very hard, enabling the fluff to be removed easily. And, it is fast. The only downside is that if you don't get the application just right, it can be wavy, and then difficult to sand down level again. If I was taking lures to a finished level, I would probably use CA to seal and remove the hairs, then a coat of epoxy to achieve a smooth, level surface for a really professional finish. Just my take. Nothing wrong with any of the suggestions above, they all get the job done. Dave

Sent. 1 - Place a container of water on the gram scale and zero the display. 2 - Insert the lure assembly using long nose pliers or tweezers so that the lure is completely submerged and not touching sides or bottom. 3 - Write down the weight in grams. 4 – Weigh the dry lure assembly in grams, write down the weight. The weight (3) represents the volume of the lure cm³. Density is measured in grams per centimeter cubed (gm/cm³). To calculate the lure assembly density: density = weight(4) ÷ weight(3) Dave

My first thought was to calculate the density of your lure from the sink rate, conversely, to calculate the required density to achieve a specific sink rate. I figured that this information could be useful for lure designers. But alas, there is one significant unknown, the coefficient of drag of the lure. Another variable that would prove problematic is the area of the lure foot print. It would be much simpler to perform water tests – dangit! However, other questions can be answered. 1 – The sink rate will be constant regardless of the depth and the increasing water pressure. 2 – The lure will not stop at a specific depth, given that the initial fall rate was 1ft/s. 3 – If the water pressure actually compresses the lure, which is actually a possibility, then the lure will sink faster. The only way that a lure can suspend at a specific depth is due to the change in water temperature, which we know occurs. Temperature drops with depth. As the temperature drops, the density of the water increases. Because temperature varies from day to day, it is not possible to design a lure to suspend at a specific depth. The only solution is to adjust at the water’s edge on the day. Regardless of the sink rate or float rate, the lure will swim at the same depth. I am not saying that weight does not affect the swim depth, but unless the lure is weighted to the extreme, then the water forces on the lure and the line will far outweigh the effects of gravity. Dave

Custon is a specific design to a particular customer's specifications. If that customer decides to go to mass production for general sale, it is no longer custom. Dave

Adjective: custom - made or done to order for a particular customer. Just about sums it up for me. Dave

If you have a digital scale, you will be able to measure this by using Archimedes. This link will show you the method. Water weighs 1 gram per cm cube. if the volume of your blank is 20cm3 and the weight of the blank is 8gm then it will require more than 12gm to sink. Dave

Old1ncal - sent. Sorry for delay, my internet was down. Dave

Read up on Trachtenberg Dave

The kids are lucky, their math will improve. I do conversion calcs in my head just for fun. In competitions, the big fish weights are called out in kilograms, I convert to pounds. Multiply by 5, divide by 11 Dave

@mark poulson It has happened a few times. Air Canada flight 143 known as the Gimli Glider, ran out of fuel because calculations were done wrong. These problems will continue until we have unification. USA are dragging their feet with this ancient British system. Dave

When I post dimensions or weights, I generally post both, but it doesn't work with density. Dave

@fishordie79 I have been trying to convert our American friends but they are extremely resistant Dave

Check out my post; Archimedes Dunk Test. this will enable you to measure the density of your test pieces. Of course, you need a gram scale for this. My gram scale weighs to two decimal places and up to 0.5Kg, but one decimal place will get the job done. 2DP will allow you to measure the MBs accurately by weight. Keep lots of records for future reference. Dave

From personal experience, your biggest problem is going to be dust, as covered in previous posts. Most electric tools have a dust collection nozzle for use with a shop vac. Just make sure you get the floor sweeping attachments for the vac as dust collection is not 100%. Vacs are noisy, just tell your neighbours that you have OCD and have to vacuum a lot Dave

Resins generally have a specific gravity (SG) of 1.2 were fresh water has an SG of 1.0 and so yes, it sinks rapidly. The more MBs you add the thicker the pour. I managed to get down to an SG 0.64 but I had to inject with an icing syringe. Most use the pre-mixed resin with MBs, consistent and a lot more convenient. Dave

Sent. Dave

Balsa varies in density from 0.07 to 0.2 were water (neutral = 1.0) specific gravity (SG). Resin with micro balloons is 0.65 at very best. A huge difference. The effect of SG is one of those things that you have to gain experience of. Best advice; construct first prototypes as close as possible to your final material SG. This is important stuff. Dave

Your main problem is material density, you will never get the resin bait to swim the same as your balsa prototype. Balsa is extremely light, and with the ballast reasonably centered you can expect a very lively action. With a much denser resin material you will find the waggle a lot more subdued compared to the wide balsa action. For a first attempt, keep it simple, just mold the body, cut the lip slot and holes as with balsa. This will allow you to experiment with positions of holes and slots. Once you have a prototype that you are happy with, then you can then think of refining the mold design for efficiency. Dave

I agree with Mark, successful baits teach you nothing. Well done Dave

The cup washer holder is genius Dave

I have no problem at all. BUT, my current lure is a progressive design, and I am not expecting any success without a lot of further development. As it is, the lip is designed to need trimming back gradually until the swimming action is achieved. It is a shifting weight lure, designed for 1/4" diameter ball bearings, 3 I think. It is designed for ABS material, so no problem there. If you would like to have a play with it, I will put a model together for you over the next week. I am working on another, non-fishing project at the moment. Dave