Vodkaman

Travis - If I was building a lure to sell as a fish catcher, then it would probably be a good idea to test it as such before making extortionate claims, however, I do not sell baits so this becomes a none issue. Most of my lure work is exploring particular features, learning how to control the effects and predict the results. Most of my eight years of lure building was spent on hunting lures, to find the explanation for the zigzag motion and then find a way to build the hunter with 100% success rate. I finally nailed this particular project quite a while back. Another general ongoing project, is to develop a lure dynamics theory, that explains the movements of all types of lures, as there cannot be one rule for cranks and another for swimbaits. This project is almost complete, but I still need to test it against jerks and gliders. I have a lot of work planned for jerks and gliders, as I have not done any work on these baits before. I did a lot of work on jointed swimbaits, to determine the effect of ballast, joint cuts, types of hinges and their effect on the swim action. Most of my time has been on crank features. Although I do not paint baits other than a few early attempts, that does not mean that I do not fish my baits occasionally. I am one of those that believes that action is way more important than color. The last bait that I developed was the Bawal, a shallow hunting crank. This was designed for a specific fish species stocked in a local pond. The lure was too successful and was banned on its first outing, as it took the main prize in a competition which was for largest fish. I am currently developing a new lure that circumvents the rules that were introduced to ban my last lure, mainly that baits must be edible and weighted to sink. This new bait is a paddletail bluegill softbait poured from a jello type material. It is a new type of mold construction, utilizing 3D rapid prototype printing and will be poured by vacuum venting, to eliminate flash in this delicate, easily torn material. I am confident that I have solved the mold problems which have been plentiful and a costly four prototypes. Pouring should start in a couple of weeks and the lure development will continue from there. This lure will obviously be taken through swim tests, durability and fish catching. A lot of projects lined up for the future, not all of them involving catching fish. DAve

WOW! this thread has exploded into lots of deep conversations and subjects, all fascinating and interesting to me. BobP - yes indeed, density variations are an issue. I get around this by weighing the blanks and grading them. Each grade of blanks has a slightly different ballast, so that the final lure density is always the same, or if I was producing lures for sale, this is how I would do it. I gave this issue a lot of thought when I was producing hundreds of lures on my duplicator machines. Custom - I wrote a lengthy article on this most abused word, but I am fairly sure that I never posted it. At the time I was in trouble for upsetting all the sellers of cheap Chinese blanks and I chose to back away from that discussion. Maybe it will be time to invoke the 'Custom' discussion soon. Craftsmen - We have some amazing craftsmen in our midst. There is no need for a definition, we just remember to tip our cap when we pass one in the street. There are different types of lure builders, note I do not say levels or standards, merely different agendas and craftsmen are just one such agenda. I don't need to list the agendas, as this could be broken down to individual. My personal agenda is lure engineering. I rarely take my lures to the paint stage, once swam and learning information noted, I move on. Dave

It is comments like the above that really get people's backs up, certainly mine. If you could tone down the severe delusions of grandeur attitude, then I would certainly be interested in what you had to say and show. There are no superstars on this site, only those that we personally choose to give that status to. I have a few superstars, but I am not going to embarrass them by naming them here. I wish you lots of success with your lures and congratulate you on your prize. I hope you pay attention to the attitude advice that several members have been generous enough to offer you. The correct attitude will serve you well here on TU, but perhaps more importantly, in life. Dave

A well made, home designed and built duplicator will faithfully reproduce the master. Of course, you have to get the master pattern right, but as it is possibly going to be responsible for thousands of bodies, it is worth spending the time to get it perfect, no matter how much time or how many attempts it takes. In future, all my duplicator masters will be printed 3D on a rapid prototype machine, symmetry guaranteed. Dave

I have always trusted my eye plus a centre line. If I wanted to go for more accuracy, i would cut a few different U-shape female templates out of Lexan. The tempates would not have to match the lure section, but they would magnify any difference errors. Dave

Not me, but there are several members who have a great interest and a wealth of knowledge in the antique lures and the stories behind them in some cases. There was a name that lure type thread several years back, that ran for months and had me researching for many hours to marvel at the old ideas and creations. Dave

This is turning into a sales forum. I suggest that you all take a look at the rules.

Ben - I would certainly keep an eye out for suitable tube materials, even brass tube would work for this job. I would drill and mount into a block of wood and mount in the bench vise. Obviously a spring material would be the best wire for the job, but I think it would be worth testing the standard annealed wire that we commonly use, it may well be stiff enough for the purpose, keeping in mind that the act of forming the coils actually work hardens the wire and will improve the stiffness. Dave

Although this thread was intended to bring a little light humour to the arena and perhaps a few ideas of what resources are available around the household. It strikes me that our spouses bring a lot more to the table than we realize and we should celebrate this too. My wife and I are separated, but she is still my best friend. Tessa gives me unwavering support in what ever I decide to do. Her support strengthened when times were very bad. If I ever found a way to make a business, she is ready to take over the responsibilities of general management and all that is entailed; hiring and firing, materials supply, distribution and all the rest. We have already discussed this and she is excited at the prospect of being involved. All the obstacles that got in our way have long since evaporated, but we have both got used to our independent lives and are reluctant to change. It is a strange arrangement, but it works, as we are both here for each other. Dave

Bob - the patent number is 43215509, inventors: Nakamichi; Shigeyuki (Nishiwaki, JP), Assignee: Owner American, Inc. (Costa Mesa, CA). Date Filed: November 8, 2007. This patent is current. Dave

Actually there are several items of value to the lure designer. So many that I have decided to group the items by rooms, where the items are usually located: Kitchen – A quality self-cleaning kitchen is a wealth of invaluable tools and utensils. Pots and pans of various dimensions, well laid out so that it is easy to find one just the right size for your application; mixing plaster of Paris, RTV, jugs for plastisol. Pasta jars for storing dissolved propionate. Various small containers suitable for cleaning paint brushes, stripping and cleaning air brushes. An excellent dust free environment with hyper clean, level work surfaces for those finer jobs. A conveniently placed, drained supply of hot and cold water surrounded by a plethora of cleaning agents and surfactants for every job. A supply of various grades of cloth materials for removing the more stubborn stains. Also several grades of sieves for removing the lumps from plaster, powder paints etc. Various sizes of measuring cups, beakers and jugs. Quality kitchen scales maintained like new. Food mixers are great for rescuing the PVA glue that has been standing for too long or watering down a new batch of PVA which is too thick. Coffee grinder, perfect for making that super fine salt. Moving on to the draws. Mixing utensils of all shapes and sizes, you will always find the perfect tool for the job, butter knives, spatulas and those extra-long tea spoons that never get used. Conveniently placed oven gloves next to the cooker, perfect for that small melt of lead in the ice cream scoop, saving you having to dig out the dirty lead gear and clean a space off your overcrowded work top. Bedroom – A top source of paint and stencil materials. There is invariably a comprehensive supply of brightly coloured, fast drying paints in convenient sized bottles with built in quality brushes, useful for eyes, gills and other small details that make all the difference when looking for a professional finish. There will usually be clears with various glitter colours for those highlights. Close by the paint tray, will be a bottle of paint brush cleaner and stain remover along with a convenient supply of cotton swabs, so should you spill any paint on the highly polished wooden surface, you can mop it up without hardly leaving a trace. An extensive selection of patterned laces and nets will be hidden away in draws, but not too difficult to locate. Perfect for various scale patterns and other details. Then there are more electric tools; the hair dryer for curing water based paints. By allowing a little overs-pray to settle on the handle, this can be an ideal solution to the Xmas present problem. Heated curling tongs, useful for bending Lexan. Bathroom – Not a great deal available here for the lure builder, except for that prized possession, the puffy ball sponge thing which makes an excellent scale pattern material. Very little hope of sneaking out this prized item, but if you get caught cleaning your toes with it, a new one will appear the next day. For any wives reading this article; it is a joke, we love you really. Dave

It would probably be faster and more efficient to hand pour the first half, close the mold and inject the second half. Dave

My jig would be 1/8 SS tube with a slot filed one end. Dave

This is good news. Hope it continues. Dave

MonteSS - good video, very clear. Just like the doctor, expelling the air from the hypo before sticking you. Dave

Further to what BobP wrote - spreading the ballast front to rear will also reduce the width of the action. Dave

Here is a video that I made of , so you can see the difference. You will see that the coffin and the pointed shape give the narrowest action. The speed or period of the action is determined by the width of the lip, keeping everything else constant. The narrower the lip, the faster the action. This indirectly controls the width of the action, as the direction changes before the lure can swim too wide. So in conclusion, for a narrow swim, you need a narrow lip. Dave

Uncustered - thanks for the nice words and happy that you enjoy my posts. I am most definitely in learning mode, a lot of thoughts, arguments and theory. I don't post an idea unless I believe it, but I am entitled to change my mind, should I or anyone else prove the idea incorrect. Dave

Ryan - Like JR, I always twist my own eyes from soft stainless steel wire. Do a TU search on haywire twist and barrel twist. My preference is for barrel twist, but both are very easy to make. Stainless steel is cheap, easy to bend and does not corrode. When shopping, the wire bends without spring back. Wire thickness, do a search on the subject, plenty has been written. Ballast - lots of options here; ball weights, bullet weights, lead sheet, lead strip, even pouring your own. A trip to the hardware store to see what is available. If using lead, read up on lead safety. Hook and ring sizes - if it looks right then it is. Take a body down to your tackle shop and lay a few different sizes out. Ask other customers which they think looks right. Examine other lures in the shop to compare. Take photos and notes for later reference. Lips - if you are fitting a lip, then you need to find a source of polycarbonate sheet (Lexan). Thickness depends on the lure length, again, if it looks right then it is. My lures are small, so 2mm thickness works for me. Again search, lots written on this subject. After this thread, I suggest that you post individual questions for better, more detailed replies. Dave

That will do the job nicely. Before I built my turner, I was balancing clips in magazines on chair arms. It was always an accident waiting to happen - and it did. Dave

Stunning fish. As far as I know, salmon do not feed in fresh water. They have to be goaded or annoyed into striking, triggering their natural response. So, the loud coloring and the movement made the difference. Dave

I fished estuary banks as a boy. A 4oz weight would wash along and be trying to climb up the bank in less than 30 seconds if it weren't for the prongs. We never caught more than the occasional flattie and then we had no clue, more a pleasant surprise when the hook was lifted from the water. As my knowledge of fishing strategy improved, I left my father to continue with the broom stick rods, pronged weights and 50Lb line, and I fished light rods, 5Lb line and 1/2oz leads. Even though I was catching fish all the time, he refused to change his tactics, claiming that he was looking for the monster fish. Neither of us ever succeeded, but at least I had something for supper. Dave

When I shipped some bodies from Indonesia to USA it only took a few days, so I can't see it taking any longer from Japan. Any hold-ups will be at the receiving countries customs department. Dave

Dieter - you do take your water testing to the limits Dave

DaveMc1 - yes, I understand that now, but Bob also mentioned that PVA glue had a chance as a release, and I tried it. The problem I have here is that I am in Indonesia. Most big companies will not deliver to this country because of the problems with returns due to customs interference; they may totally prevent an item coming in or they will charge me such a high fee, much higher than the original cost, that the item has to be returned. Regardless of the above, I will then be investigated, to see if I am working illegally. Taking everything into account, importing is pretty much out of the question unless I really need the item and am prepared to pay double. This means that I must source all my materials locally. PVA mold release is just not going to happen. I am still hopeful of finding plastisol of some kind. It is used in the T-shirt industry. The clothing industry is a major industry for the city of Bandung. One of the big US plastisol companies has already agreed to help me if necessary and I will not let them lose money if the deal goes bad with customs. Dave