mark poulson

I would be careful with hot water. Whatever air that's trapped in a two piece hollow lure will expand and put pressure on the glued seam and hardware location. If they didn't leak before you "cooked" them, they might afterward. I would just immerse them with a weight for an hour, and see if they take on any water. If they are already painted, weigh them on a good scale before and after. If they're unpainted, you should be able to see any water that's found it's way in. If they don't take on water after an hour, they probably never will. If you're painting the lures, your paint and top coat will probably seal whatever holes might be there, anyway.

I think you started with the hardest material for a beginner. Balsa, in the hands of someone like BobP, is a thing of beauty. Some of us turn it into a pile of sawdust. That's why I use PVC trimboard instead....much more forgiving of my miscalculations.

I guess we'll never see it in one of the videos on an air brush site...there is too much money to be made in air brush cleaning products.

For me, a centerline on my bait, for shaping and for hardware/ballast locations, and another centerline on my bills, for alignment, makes all the difference. Plus, having a similar, already proven bait to copy doesn't hurt.

Sounds like the modeling clay seals it just fine. Good going!

Man, I hope your rod and reel setup is strong! Pulling 900' of mono or fluoro line will feel like dragging an anchor! And I can't begin to imagine how you'll set the hook with that much line out. It will be like pulling on a rubberband, unless you're using braid. I have visions of you holding a tuna stick. Hahaha I hope you get it to work, so I can copy you!!!!

It works for me. Just be sure to clean/drain any water out that might get into the trigger area when you're done. It won't take the place of the final cleanup when you've finished painting, but it's great for quick between color cleanings.

Jerry, In this version, I can find my gallery photos through my profile. Thanks.

You can always tie your crank on the end of your C-rig, as long as it's a floater, and get down as deep as you like.

My experience with the good silicone mold making stuff (one time because I'm cheap) is that it is really runny. That helps it to get into all the nooks and crannies of the master. Are you saying the weight of the box forms and clamps is enough to get a good seal at the bottom, so the silicone doesn't run out?

I'm guessing lots of TU people do this, but I've never seen it posted, so I have dibs on the idea! I've been air brushing for a few years now, with Createx-type water based paints, and a light bulb finally went on during my last painting session. I always have a tupperware full of water next to my painting station that I use to clean my brushes. I would typically dip a cup full of water out with the air brush, and back flush and clean over another tupperware several times. Then I'd leave the brush in the second tupperware, tip down, to keep the tip wet until I was ready for the next color. Well, the last time I painted, I did something different. I dipped the dirty brush into the big tupperware water tub, and held it underwater in that tub while I back flushed it, instead of dipping water out and doing it over the second tupperware. Wow, is that easy!! Since I change that water after each painting session, so I'd have clean water for the next session, the water never gets dirty enough to not work. And I back flush longer, so it cleans better. As long as I keep both the tip and cup underwater, there is very little backsplash and mess, and I think it really helps me keep the brush cleaner between colors. I keep the trigger assembly out of the water, and just dip the tip and cup into the water when I backflush. It sure makes cleaning between colors fast and easy. My forehead is flatter now. Doh!!!

Hahaha... Ben is sick, I'm just twisted.

I sure didn't mean to discourage anyone here from trying different hinging. I think we've all flirted with different methods, and materials. I know I have. I've tried, over the years, to find stuff that is faster, easier, and that works. I like to build, but I like fishing better. Less time building=more time fishing for me.

A father/son team used to rule tournaments at Lake Casitas doing that. I don't know how deep their DD22's got, but they caught nicer fish than anyone else.

One of the fantastic things about Frank is that he shares. PM him and I'm sure he'll tell you. I don't know where it is, but he posted a video here that show his whole process.

That's a neat idea. I'll have to try that.

We all seem to have the same drive to "reinvent the wheel". I think it was Nathan who came up with hinge that he incorporated in his resin baits, and it worked well. And JR Hopkins uses some kind of kevlar hinging, I think. But I think, for us mere mortals, the screw eye and hinge pin is, by far, the easiest, fastest, and most successful hinging method. Just take a look at the Triple Trout.

Actually, once I shoved that diamond up there, the little bugger just took off, and I haven't been able to get near him since.

You might try mounting two opposing plywood discs, like a ferris wheel, and suspending your bigger lures between them.

Welcome aboard. Since you've been building for a while, we can't be blamed for leading you to the Dark Side...you're already there! Hahaha I hope you enjoy this site as much as I have.