mark poulson

I'm still playing around with all the bill size/line tie variables. It's a challenge. If your bait is slow sink, use strong enough line to pull it free if it gets hung up, or maybe some of those line strength rated split rings, that open up before your line breaks. You don't want to lose a lure you made!

Ravenlures and EdL, Thanks for the clarification, and for the heads up. I wound up with pterygium growths in both eyes from working and playing outside for too many years without UV protecting sun glasses. I had one removed, and it was so painful I have resisted doing the other eye for 20 years. Now, with lasers, I'm thinking about getting the other one done, but I'm not very enthusiastic about the prospect at this point. I definitely don't want any more UV exposure than is unavoidable, and this sounds avoidable to me. If I wind up trying Solarez, a strong possibility, I'll be sure to wear my UV protecting Costa Del Mar sun glasses when I use the UV light.

I agree Bob. Balsa is the gold standard for responsive cranks. And, like AMac said, when you get one that hunts, it's worth it's weight in gold. But, for me, the PVC trimboard is a close second, and much easier to use, especially for us semi-builders, who are just learning.

It looks to me like you have two line ties. I've found that, for me, with shallow runner, having the line tie right where the bill meets the lure seems to work best. I used the RC 1.5 as a model. You might want to play around with line tie location as one of the variables you play around with. I am constantly surprised how little things can have such huge consequences in a lure's action. One of the things I like about PVC is that it is consistent, so I remove varying buoyancies of different woods from the equation.

Fortunately, here at TU, we seem to be quite capable of doing that for ourselves. It must be our independent, self-reliant streak.

That looks good. How does it swim?

Hahaha. No wonder my feet hurt. I have my shoes on wrong, too!

BaZ, The photoshop link doesn't show anything.

I'm pretty sure Frank has a video here that shows how he does it. Do a search for Frank's stuff in the search feature on the upper right of the forum page.

I'm a little confused, too. Are you talking about dipping in clear after applying your eyes? I don't make that kind of a bait, but I've seen some of Frank's videos here that show how he does it. Do a search for dipping.

I think it all depends on your original bait, and how much defect you're willing to accept. I only build for myself, so, as long as the fish like it, I'm easy to please. I keep some Sally Hansen clear nail polish, and solvent based sharpies in my boat for on the water touch ups. At the bench, if I'm inspired, I'll reshoot the damaged area with whatever I used originally, and then either redip the whole bait in my urethane top coat, or just go over the repainted area with the clear nail polish.

I wear a dust mask whenever I dremel or sand it. The dust is nasty for my sinuses. Carving with hand tools and drilling, or even cutting it with a bandsaw, isn't a problem.

Just remember to wear a dust mask!

Welcome to TU. It is a great collection of accomplished, generous builders who readily share their hard earned knowledge with us beginners. I'm just a novice here, but for the football jigs I powder coat, and usually lose before the paint ever fails, I add glitter by mixing some into clear nail polish, and top coating my finished jigs with that.

Cool!!! Thanks.

Baz, I am a carpenter, so I love wood. When I first started making hard baits, I used wood. I love building hard baits, but hate the time the individual steps take. I build baits to fish them, and am very impatient, so I am always looking for ways to do things faster. My process with wooden baits, which I still build occasionally, is shape and seal one day, add hardware and test float for ballasting the next, then paint and topcoat. That is a four day process minimum, with the extra day for letting the top coat cure out. I struggled with finding a sealer that would make my baits, especially my jointed swim baits, waterproof, without having to soak them in linseed oil for a week, and then letting them dry out for another two or three weeks. So when one of the most accomplished builders on this site, J.R. Hopkins, read my posts about my sealing struggles and recommended that I try PVC decking for building my baits, I gave it a try. It has been truly revolutionary for me in my lure building. It has cut my lure building process down to shape, add hardware, float test and ballast one day, and if it's early enough or I have the time, paint and top coat the same day. Then let the bait hang to cure a day, and I can fish it. In fact, because the trim board is white, I usually take the unpainted baits up to a local pond to test swim without paint or topcoat, and have caught fish on the unpainted baits. I would never do that with an unpainted wooden bait. PVC has no sealing issues. It is completely waterproof, buoyant, and hard. So even an encounter with a sharp rock that damages the top coat doesn't result in a swollen, ruined lure. It just requires a touchup, ususally right there on the water with some clear nail polish. The PVC I use, AZEK, had both decking and trim board. The decking is a little stronger and less buoyant, and it is great for swimbaits and larger cranks and gliders. But for my cranks and walking baits, I mostly use the trim board, because it approaches balsa wood (the best wood for building by far) in it's buoyancy, but is much harder and stronger. PVC machines and carves like wood. Just be sure your tools are sharp. PVC melts when it gets hot. Dull saw blades will raise a wispy tail of melted PVC when you cut it. And applying too much pressure when you use a belt sander for shaping will make it sticky from melting the surface a little, so don't push too hard. And wear a dust mask when you machine and sand PVC. The saw/sanding dust is fine, and clings. It raises hell with my sinuses. I hope this helps cut down on your learning curve. I wish I'd known about PVC when I first started. I would have never even tried wood.

Mike, Can you mix the paint to get different colors, like a green pumpkin from green and brown?

Thanks for the link Ed.

How about lining the inside of your box with aluminum foil, to reflect the UV light back onto your lures?

Gene, Do you use some kind of off hand protection when you carve?

How about just buying some 1oz. slip sinkers like we use for Texas rigging?

A drop of crazy glue will lock the pins in place.

Quickdraw, Which flashlight did you buy?

Tony, The Venom hooks are exactly what I was looking for. They came Friday, and I tried them Saturday. They fit the 3" swimbaits I use perfectly. Thank you.