Vodkaman

That's the point of this site. Bring on the ideas, no matter how wacky, then we can choose the best that suits us individually. There is rarely one best solution that suits everyone.

I haven't reached the stage of spray templates as yet. But, as an engineer I am big on jigs. I will be making my templates out of acetate sheet as used by overhead projectors. It is very cheap (everyone knows someone who works in an office). A dozen sheets of A4 will give you enough sheets to last a lifetime. They are very easy to cut with a sharp modellers knife. They can be mounted onto curved frames made of stiff cardboard. presumably, the lure is held in the same position each time by a clamp system of some sorts. If the free standing acetate frame has a couple of pointers, one for the nose, another for the tail, then the frame could be positioned in the same location every time, without error or hassle. the pointers don't touch the lure, just position both ends of the lure. Thus you control height, width, depth, distance and angle relative to the lure and gain repeatability without any effort.

You need a metal tube of the correct diameter for your needs. Steel would be best. Sharpen the end on a sander and wet stone. Flatten it slightly to achieve the shape that you want. To finish off, a rod to eject the punched eyes. You could probably punch a dozen and then eject them in one go.

Comming up with a great idea to change the world, then finding out it's already been done.

That's a big hole in i tiny piece of wood. Try clamping the bait in a vice before drilling. surround the wood with material to keep the pressure on over the full length (and to protect the carving). That should work. I would also suggest drilling a hole that size in a scrap piece of similar proportions before committing that amount of time and effort, easy to say in hind sight, probably made you feel worse. I usually drill a test piece because my hand held drilling skills are notoriously bad. I assume you are not using a pillar drill.

Go to 'site announcements. TU apparently have a patents guy on the books, so to speak. I'm sure good advice will be made available without giving too much away. Good luck

Has anyone considered making thier own arrangement by buying a small motor and making a gear box. The plastic gears and motors are available and very cheap. I was looking into the idea for an unrelated project about a year ago, but the need was cancelled just before I started construction.

I use brass, mainly for prototype ballast, I find it easier to keep accurate track of how much weight I have used on a lure. I gave up using it for lips in favour of plastics, easier to work and finish. It's good for prototyping as you can easily try out diferent angles. I get mine from large hardware stores. You pay too much but the amount that you need is fairly small. I use 0.6mm with tin snips. It makes a mess of the edges, but it is not difficult to clean up with the dremmel. A bar of polishing compound with the buffing wheel attachment will shift all the scratches fairly quickly. If you don't have the compound, brasso works, but I wouldn't do it in the kitchen, it would be grounds for divorce. Polishing inside a plastic bag works, although mildly inconvenient. As for using machine tools for the cutting of such small pieces, highly dangerous. Best count your fingers before you start and have a sterilised container full of ice close by. I can't advise you more than that.

mixing epoxy hardener, being distracted and then mixing it with more hardener.

Ledger fishermen setting up 5 metres either side of you. Vodkaman

Reply to longball. No, I'm still here! Happy new year all. Vodkaman