Vodkaman

JR - great video. I think I have it straight in my head now. I need my test tank so that I can confirm my thoughts. Don't know when that is going to happen though. Dave

Indeed, all these are factors that will have an effect on whether the action works or not. What I am talking about though, is what does the water do to force the action. Vortices drive the lure, but notice how the lure section always stands vertical and swings from side-to-side. Questions: what causes the vertical attitude? How does the lure start? Where do the vortices form? At what point in the cycle do they form? How do the vortices tie together? I can answer the first question and the last question. No2 is the hardest. Once I work out No3 and 4, No2 will follow and then I will be able to see a complete picture. Once I have the picture, I can apply the effect that the plastisol glove has and changing the hook position has. I should then be able to suggest modifications that will re-introduce the waggle. Just had a look and cannot find my bag of old lures. This contained all my early work and I know there were a couple of spoons in there. This is such a shame, there was some weird and wonderful stuff in that bag. I will just have to model it on CAD and use that. Dave

I have no doubt at all of its catching abilities. Also, the soft exterior will no doubt cause the fish to hold on that fraction longer than a hard metal spoon, an advantage that will give a higher percentage of hook-ups. The interchangeable feature of the lure is progressive and original, and I like it very much. I am now going to have to think more about the fluid mechanics of the lure and see if I can work out how the 'S' spoon works, as it has been several years since I last thought about it without success. My knowledge and understanding of lure mechanics has moved on, so I may have enough to crack it. Only understanding the fluid mechanics will lead to the waggle action. This lure has grabbed my interest, hope you don't mind Dave

The 'S' shaped spoon is one of my favorite lures and I have had a lot of success with it, on trout, perch and pike. This is the one swimming lure (as opposed to spinning) that I have not yet figured out the fluid dynamics. Your lure shows a super impersonation of a dying fish, but have you ever managed to get it to swim with the traditional wide waggle. Dave

The second video is very professional. You have obviously put a lot of development into this lure idea. Dave

Much better - thank you. Very nice job on the lure. The swim action is not visible unfortunately. It is very difficult, I know, to work the lure and video at the same time. Next time, hold the camera still and pull the lure past the field of view. Better still, if you can mount the camera on a tripod, but not absolutely necessary for success. Look through other videos like what you want to produce and see how they did it. Dave

You should upload your Video to YouTube, then post a link. This way we don't need to download any large files. Dave

I really thought this thread would have received more replies, so I will step in now with my method for ‘holed’ ballast weights: I pour my own ballast weights, using a drilled hole as the mold. The basic mold is made of a dense wood, cut into a rectangular section/plank. The 90 degree angles are critical for the drilling process. The plate is cut in two halves and placed face-to-face. At this point, it emulates the blank do-it mold. The clamped plates are drilled and pinned. The pin is glued in one half. This pinning enables the plates to be correctly located each time of use. The mold now needs to be drilled, preferably using a drill press for accuracy, but can be done by hand. The hole needs to be exactly down the mating face, otherwise the casting will stick in one half of the mold. To help the drill find the correct center location, with emery, I make a slight chamfer on each plate. This creates a VEE to locate the drill point. Providing the plates are absolutely square, the drill will follow the mating face. It is best to use a smaller, sharp drill to create a pilot hole, to guide the larger drill. Once the larger drill operation has been done, the basic mold is complete. Use the drill stops on the drill press to control the depth or tape the drill if working freehand. To create a hole down the center of the ballast, I insert a brass pin. This pin must be removed as soon as possible, holding the lead and pin with pliers and twisting. Welding rod will work for the pin. If the pilot hole is the correct diameter for the pin, then all you have to do is drill the pilot deeper, so that the pin can be inserted. This same construction can be applied to the Do-it blank mold. Obviously the wood will char and has a limited life, depending on the timber used. But you can drill as many duplicates as you want between the plates. If you want a different sized ballast, simply drill a new hole or drill out an existing hole that was smaller. I haven’t counted, but expect at least 50 casts from the mold. Dave

The super glue or CA glue that I use is already as thin as water and it is dry in less than a minute. Because it is very thin, it soaks in very well. I place a few drops and spread with my finger, trying not to get too attached. Acetone to clean your finger. Because it is so fast, a couple of coats to seal for testing is no bother, even if I have to re-seal 2 or 3 times in the testing process. Do not put the wood in water without sealing. Don't mess about with carving at this stage, save that for when you have figured out your bait. Dave

Mark - it was like that here when I was living in the kampung, which is basically close/crowded housing for poor people. The houses crowd a warren of alley ways, as no one owns a car anyway. The accumulation and careless management of rubbish, low standard drainage, provides plenty of food and shelter for a population of rats. I was stuck in such accommodation for two years and it is such a relief to finally escape. This is the second time I have gone from wealth to poverty, it certainly makes you appreciate the good times. Dave

Yes, peanut butter is a very good bait and I have used it with success. The problem is that the BIG rats are very wary, that is how they became big. They hold back while the younger rats explore the new food source and get trapped. There are plenty of videos on YouTube that demonstrate the wise big rat caution. Man, I could tell you some rat stories that will make your toes curl. Dave

JR - Mark nailed it; 'For some, it's the destination. For others, it's the journey.' But, developing the lure to perfection by carving still leaves you with more setting up work with the casting, as the body density changes. You just have to design your mold so that you can accommodate these changes. For me, it is the journey. Dave

Mark - that is exactly how I do the through drilling. With the correctly positioned plate clamped to my drill press bed, I glued and screwed a couple of batons, so now there is no tedious alignment. I simply push the plate so that the two batons contact the press bed, then a single F or G-clamp to fix in place. Pin alignment is perfect every time, and in only seconds. Dave

Plenty of rats here, but none in my new house so far (rental). In my last house it was a daily battle. I even had to block the toilet, as that is how they were getting in. I am still trying to design the perfect rat trap. The specification is that it must reset itself, choice of humane or kill and sneaky enough to fool the big mommas. If I crack the trap, I could become the official TU supplier of cured rat skins Dave

Mark - those look perfect and the right price too at around $6. Dave

Bbob - 'Post' refers to 'after'. So in this case it means after the molding work. I guess it is short for 'Post Process'. The term gets used a lot in engineering, it just slipped through this time. Dave

Gloves I can see are a problem; they need to be close fitting and thin enough to allow some dexterity, otherwise you are going to remove them just at the point that you need them. I have seen gloves used in industry that fit the above description, used by shop workers that handle metal components. They are ribbed with lines and dots of a rubber like substance that promotes grip. Gloves need testing to validate their effectiveness, preferably without a hand inside. Heavier, loose fitting leather gloves obviously offer excellent heat protection, but difficult to 'feel' the job in hand and probably cause more spills than they protect. DAve

Bob - I remember the Fridge. I watched that game too. DAve

JR - Kids Xmas gift was my first thought too. Dave

You probably won't find one as the lure is patented, US patent number 8,181,382. Dave

I am doing CAD for a swimbait mold for a customer at the moment. He wants it in one piece to cut in post and that is fine. With foam, you will have to pour the foam into each section anyway and each section will require its own venting, so my choice would be to make the sections separate and save a bit of post work. Either will work though. Dave

Fishon-son - noted my friend. The plastic that I currently use is edible, made from agar agar powder, a bit like jello. It is a bit stiffer than plastisol, but still good for prototyping. One day I will be importing a tub of real plastic and then I will get a new, more powerful MW for the shop, this 800 watt is not cutting it with speed. Dave

This guy has done so much for our hobby/industry and does it with so much enthusiasm that is infectious and makes you want to order the gear and get started as soon as possible. My only whinge is that I just wish Larry would promote more, the safety aspects of dealing with hot plastic. When he started sloshing the plastic in the jug to demonstrate how hot it was, it made me cringe. If you read this Mr Dahlberg, just something to think about. Keep up the good work Dave

Ben - I thought that Dotty was just a freak of nature and there was little chance of seeing the like again. But, it seems that I was wrong. Given the right conditions and properly managed water, we will be seeing a lot more monsters. Dave

How cool is that! Dave