JBlaze

Mine were from Hagens. They no longer sell them. Anyway, I would rather make the mini swim. Holos.....holographic tape?

Thanks Bob that is a very good tip, trial and error has wasted more than a few baits for me.

Yes it does, I have made a couple of them, they work but are not even close to the workmanship that this one has. I gave them to a friend who is a fan of another SB that I make. it is my own invention. If you would like to see it, its pic is in the blade baits photo gallery its called a Pivot Point Spinnerbait.

A couple of months ago my wife and I were prowling in a store called "Habitat For Humanity". While she was looking at house goodies and things I went to their back junk room which has things that interest me. I found an old metal tackle box there. It was empty except for this spinnerbait. They sold it to me for 25¢. I have never seen anything like it. It is old enough that the barb has rusted off the hook. I think it is handmade and if so the person did an awfully good job with his wraps, twists and keeping everything symetrical. I wondered if it landed upside down, would it snag the bottom. Answer is NO. Doesn't matter how it lands in the water, it always uprights itselfI.

one more thing, i think it is better to load smaller pics than the large ones like I did 640x480 would probably be a good choice

Ok, I'll try I just learned how to do this yesterday. I went to photobucket.com and opened an account. you will have to make a user name and a password. then if memory serves me right, it will create an account for you. It is free, no charges. after you have went through the steps and got your account, you will have a window on the right side of the page with three browse buttons which you will use to get three pics from your computer. If you want to get more pics, there is a button which says MORE. after you upload the pics, they will have four lines below each pic. I left clicked on the bottom line where it says img. A window flashes that says saved. I then go back to TU quick reply and right click paste. the image loads itself. But I am unable to add text so after I post quick reply and it pops up on the board I go back and hit the edit button and add text. I hope this isn't too confusing, It took me a while to figure it out. Thanks for the compliment on the tool. Its a little crude but it works well. By the way cadman, I think I made a couple of the Mini Swims using your tutorial on powder painting. I really appreciated getting that from you. I continue to be amazed by the information that is freely shared here. this site has helped me a lot and like many others I am signed on to TU anytime I have a free moment. I fear I may have the addiction. Thanks again TU and members.

This doesn't show it well, will get a better pic tomorrow. I call it a mini swim.

Yes, to both questions. Apply your holo after bending otherwise the visegrips will skin it up. I have a nephew who river fishes the French Broad Rver here in Tennessee. He catches a lot of good smallmouth on these. I make a smaller version using a 1/4oz wedge head (snootie) and a spinner bait blade which I cut. It runs about 1to 2ft deep depending on retrieve speed. I have caught more fish on it than I have on the large one. Will post a pic of it if I can find one.

Bterrill, Nice Smallie did you catch it on one of your homemade baits?

Hope this works. Hey thanks for the photo bucket tip. I never knew how add pics to a thread. The next few pics show you the tool and how to do it. It takes me two bends to make a nice curved blade. and you can change the severity of the bend up to a certain point by tightening the thumb screw on the back of the vise grips. Cadman, sure am looking forward to seeing a pic of the tool you mentioned. hope this helps. John

They are very difficult to bend,They are made of .020 or .022 stainless depending on who you got them from. When I first started making these, I tried everything I could think of and finally made a tool to bend them with. It consists of a pair of curved jaw vise grips, some JB weld and a piece of a door hinge. It works very well. If I can figure out how to post a pic in a thread, I will post it for you to see tomorrow after I get home from work.

I use the Barlows Blades but I bend them and I also do not use a split ring. I get very strong vibes and I don't have a problem with them riding up or planing off. Maybe because of being bent, not sure. I will post a pic of it in the gallery under terminal tackle.

Allen, many thanks. I found their web site www.mustangwire.com John

Thanks Bruce, what I am looking for is a higher tensile strength stainless wire than regular stainless wire. Formed or unformed, doesn't matter I can bend them myself if need be. If I can't find it then I will have to use the regular wire forms. I am hoping that someone will know what tensile strength qualifies the wire as super stainless. I ordered some of the reg wire forms just in case I can't find what I am looking for. Thanks John

I have been using Barlows Premium Wire Forms to make my spinnerbaits according to their catalog they are made from Super Stainless Wire. It is stiffer and has a higher tensile strength than regular stainless wire. Today I was informed by Barlows that it was no longer available to them and they didn't know where to get it. McMaster Carr has several different Tensile strengths but doesn't know what qualified it as Super Stainless. I can bend my own wire forms if I can find the wire. My question is, do any of you know where to buy Super Stainless wire or What tensile strength or specs qualify stainless wire to be called Super Stainless? Thanks John

Hey CreekMonster, thanks for asking that question. I too foiled my first bait today. I was also wondering if I need to sand the devcon. I paint with Createx. Can't wait to shoot it when I get off work tomorrow. good luck with yours. John

First effort? very good. Put one or two back to compare with what you will be tying a year from now. You will be amazed at how much your skills will change. To keep the paint out of the hook eye, grip the hook eye with forceps which will keep most of the paint out of the eye. this also works with powder paint.

My name is John, I am 55 years old and I am from East Tennessee. I work in the retail food industry (grocery store). I've been making my own wire baits (Jigs/spinnerbaits and buzzbaits) for years and there is something very satisfying about catching a fish on a lure you have made and painted. A few years ago I started tinkering with my factory molds using a dremel tool and a drill press. Nothing serious, just giving them bulging eyes, making them accept larger hooks and or different hook styles. It made my lures a little different and I actually felt like I got better hook sets with some of them. In the summer of 2005, I started trying to make a better spinnerbait something that was very different (and in MHOP as good if not better) than most ordinary spinnerbaits out there. I was searching for better vibes, and action. After 6 months, many failures and dissapointments, I finally achieved what I was looking for. One of my friends calls it "A Fish Getter" I call it a "Pivot Point Spinnerbait" It's pic is posted in the blade baits gallery. I am in awe of the knowledge, skills, and creativity that is shared with others on TU by its members and very thankful that this site exists. I have been a member of TU now for almost a year. I started attempting to make a crankbait in the fall of 2006. I had no idea how to go about it so I started with an excell knife, a block of balsa wood, some screw eyes, hooks and a metal clatter blade that I thought would suffice for a bill. What I free handed was lopsided and ugly. I had no woodworking skills and no knowledge of patterns and the initial shaping of a lure on a band or scroll saw. I almost gave up then and there but I went on to paint it, sawed a slot for the metal bill, screwed in the hook eyes attached the hooks and took it to the lake. It was a total disaster. It would't sit upright in the water nor would it swim. I also didn't know about ballast. I discovered TU a few months later and thanks to TU, its members and the advice of a couple of friends, JawJacker and Dean. I now have a few crankbaits that look good, run good and catch fish. I have never thought of myself as a taker but as a still learning newbie crankbait maker, I don't feel qualified to give advice on the subject. Blackjack, you and everyone else here are very much appreciated You guys are the GURU's of the crankbait makers. Thanks, John Blazier