mark poulson

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You can also use soft wire to make legs in a master that won't break off, and can be adjusted.

Thanks.

Check in the Hard Baits Gallery, or the Home Made Tool forum. There used to be a picture of a grooved plywood sanding disc that Pete "Hazmail" made, with a half round groove around the perimeter that he glued pieces of sand paper into. It was mounted on the shaft of a stationary motor, and he used it to put the same radiuses on all his baits. Judging by his baits, it works really well.

First a compliment on his inventive mind, and then Rayburn Red wins the Classic. Now there will be no living with him! Hahaha

I'll mention it to the Club. Thanks for the heads up.

Ben and Bob, I use the old lip slot to help hold the lure while I cut the new slow, if possible. I tack in a rectangular piece of lexan temporarily, and use that to hold the lure in a flat faced clamp that I can ride on my bandsaw table. Even if I wind up hitting the lexan with the new cut, once I have that first cut to use as a guide, I can freehand the rest of the cut and glue the new lip up against the first cut, which I know is square and true. What brand of epoxy putty do you guys use?

Sounds good. The only thing holding me back is time and money. Hahaha Our club usually does two two day away tournaments every year, one at Cachuma and one at Margarita. But with both so low, we're thinking of going to Perris for one, and maybe both, this year instead. Sucks when we're in a drought. My youngest is in school back in Toronto, and they have the opposite problem, too much water, although right now it's hard and white. Since the western states, and particularly CA, feed a large part of the country, are a major exporter of food, and contribute a great deal to our national economy, it's time that the Federal Govt. come up with an overarching water plan, like they did with the Interstate Highway System, to deal with this nationally. It's not like it's going away any time soon. Big stuff like that is what they are supposed to deal with. Oops. I just fell off my soap box. Rant over.

I actually had a similar version, with a side draft motor mounted to a plywood top of a trash can, and a spiral made of sheet metal duct inside the barrel on the intake side, that I used for a couple of years. It worked, but I had to keep it outside and run a long hose to whatever machine I was using. I don't have room in my garage shop for a 55 gallon trash can and me, too. One of the advantages of my system is that whatever noise the two fans make, which is minimal, is on the outside, so I can hear myself think while it's on. I own half a dozen shop vacs, and they are all noisey. That was part of the reason I wound up making this system. We installed a couple of in-house vacuum systems in houses we were building, and I was impressed with how quiet the inside part was, since the motor and collector was mounted outside of the house. But, having said all that, if that lid would have been available back then I would have jumped on it like a duck on a junebug, and never looked back!

Dave, That's what I did, using the 6" ducting inside my collection chamber, so the heavier stuff falls into the barrel below, and the lighter stuff is trapped by the washable HVAC filter material. It works great. I wish I had seen that site before I went to the trouble to do it myself, but that was twenty years ago. Time flies when you're having fun.

I love Margarita. Pray for rain!!!

It is dry!!!! Both Castaic and Pyramid have water, but they are only 2000/2500 acres. With Casitas locked down, Cachuma waaaaay down, and Piru contaminated by quagga mussels, both Castaic and Pyramid are getting hammered. It seems like they each have two tourneys every weekend, with the local trails and clubs having no where else to fish.

One more time, those look great!!!

Wow, a fishing chemist! What a find!!! Please post his contact info.

I use my drill press for popper mouths, too. I have an old wooden jawed Jorgenson wood clamp that I use to hold my lures, and go really slow with a 3/4" bit. I finish them up with a dremel and drum sanding sleeve. I made some poppers using the new artificial wine corks (don't ask) and found I can carve the mouths with an exacto knife. A through wire with some lead wire wrapped on the tail wire, between the body and the tail treble, and a Spro swivel for a belly hook hanger, pushed up from the belly so the through wire passes through the top eye of the swivel, and it's good to go. Needs no waterproofing (or paint, if you are in a hurry) and it sands on a belt sander. Just go slow, because the sander will melt the "cork" and grab if you go too fast. I paint mine with nail polish, because I'm always in a hurry, and there's no need for top coat with nail polish.

Nathan, It's still sitting on my work bench, already decanted into a dipping jar. I just haven't remembered to try it. By the time I go out into the garage to do something, poof!!! But I'll give it a try on a sample this week, promise, and let you know how it handles. Stretcher, It does quiet them down. I sprayed on that was already assembled, and it did make it more quiet. I haven't taken one apart and sprayed the individual pieces yet, which would get more material into the joint faces, but that's next for me. It's been such a slow bite this winter that the only swimbaits I've been throwing are soft plastics on the bottom. But I spooked a fish off a bed Sunday, so things should be heating up here now. It's been a looong winter.

But dad, the dog did it! I actually went out and put some crazy glue into the cracked/delaminated spots, and then held them clamped with a pair of needle nose pliers. It seems to be holding fine, at least until I get the new handles. I bought one for the second reel I have from Lew's, so I covered the cost of their shipping. Hahaha

That is slick!!!

I have used both the stabilizer and softener in more or less the same ratios before. The cap I use to measure is the cap that comes on the quart bottles of the materials. Now that you ask, the true variable I introduced is the silica stuff from Caney Creek. Maybe it makes the plastic softer. The reason I added the silica weight stuff was to see if it added enough weight to cut down on the salt, keep the plastic stronger, and make a heavier Ika than store bought. The original Ikas are only good for a couple of fish before they get thrown, or I have to replace them. I wound up adding more salt, almost to the original 2/1 plastic to salt ratio, to get the bodies up to the same weight as the originals. I like the softer bodies, but I'm afraid they won't hold up to more than a couple of fish, just like the originals. I poured up a couple dozen in the 301 green pumpkin/green and purple flake color that looks like either a craw or a bluegill to throw this weekend. Cruisers love the slow fall, and eat that color in clear water.

Hand carving is inherently dangerous, because we invariably slip when we're carving, being only human. If you're not going to use the "chain mail" gloves and protectors OSHAC requires here in CA, having sharp tools and the right tools is really important. A good, sharp carving knife makes it much easier and safer. Most injuries are caused by trying to force a cut with a dull tool. One reason to use a thicker bladed carving knife instead of an exacto or a drywall knife (I use both) is that the blade is more rigid, and you can control the depth of the cut better by varying the angle of the blade. Because it it thicker, you can use the back or shoulder of the blade to help control it, too, and the handle fits your hand better. And the steel in a good carving knife will hold an edge (stay sharp) much longer than a thin exacto or drywall blade. As Nathan said, Gene (Lincoya) is the master carver you should contact for real carving tips. I don't have a contact number for him, but Nathan probably does.

Fun videos to watch. Thanks for sharing.

The quickest topcoat is Solarez UV cured resin. 3 minutes in direct sun or a UV nail light box and it's ready to fish. You should dip it if possible. It goes over water based paints that are well dried just fine. If you use solvent based sharpies for details, you need to seal that with a water based clear coat, like Createx Gloss, before you dip in the Solarez. It adds more weight to a lure than a urethane or lacquer top coat, but it's the same weight+- as epoxy.