Sonny.Barile

The solvent from the urethane can also be reacting with the mesh itself if it is plastic...........

Thanks Palmetto I am heading Home Depot today..............Hopefully I will be coming back with a saw..............I have made about 10 lures in the past few weeks and am definitely hooked.

Hey guys.....Which airbrush is best?....only kidding........... I do however have a real question. I have been debating between getting a scroll saw and a band saw. I can only fit one in my little walk-in-closet sized work area. Both saws that I have been looking at are table top models. The Scroll saw is a Ryobi 16" and the band saw is a 9" Ryobi. What would be better for cutting flat sided lures about 6" long from 3/4" oak planks? I have no experience with either type saw. I have cut this oak with my jig saw while clamped to the table and it isnt fun. Real noisy too.......... By the way.............I have used the search function to research this and found some good discussions about this topic but havent found one that seals the deal for me in my mind.

Wow.....The best thing on this site is the advice......a very close second is the search option............I have been debating wheather to get a scroll saw or a band saw. I want to cut out lure bodies from the endless supply of 3/4" X 5" oak planks I have. From what Im reading here.....I think I will go with a small band saw. There is a small table top 9" Ryobi at Home Depot and the price is right................I have space in my tiny work area for one more table top tool so I need to make sure I make the right choice........Any comments would be much appreciated...............

I looked through the tutorials lastnight and found a good method for foiling. You basically inkjet print on tissue paper and put it over foil and glue it to the lure body. I gave it a tes shot and was pretty impressed. I found a picture of a real bunker and used it in a test run. This is what I got.

I didnt say that polyacrylic was better or even equal to the epoxy coating. Just that it is good for my situation. I need to do my finishing on the kitchen table. Also, these lures are for Blue Fishing in which on any ordinary day of doing so, I lose about 2 or 3 lures. This is mainly due to the fact that I refuse to use steel leaders. Making them quick and cheap is for economical reasons. I think I explained to the person requesting info on alternate materials that if brushed on it couldnt handle being dragged accross the beach. I have tested only in short term and found that it will be adequate for what I am doing. As far as the lead, I dont have a place to melt it down to work with it. I am using purchased egg sinkers in the lures. I think they are super steel which means I wont mind them rolling around on the table where I need to dine. I do not boast these methods as to say they are superior to the tried and true standard. However, they offer a solution to a minority that may turn away from a really great hobby if left only with traditional materials.

Pikester The lures I described above are the first I have made. Before I got started I researched alternatives to all the toxic materials. I have to do my finishing in the house so I didnt want to be dealing with large quantities of epoxy and lead. I found some posts on this site from a guy who was using the polyacrylic successfully. As for he lead, I bought an alternative material in egg sinker form and am using those. As far as the cold water affecting the coating: The coating feels almost like rubber. The epoxy and other brittle materials are more subject to thermal shock than the polyacrylic. Also, this is not polyurethane. Polyurethane is the stuff that yellows....(and varnish) Infact, All epoxies and varnishes break down from uv. There are uv inhibitors added to the varnishes when finisheing a boat for that very reason. Another thing that is good about it is that you dont have to worry about mixing ratios. Also, if you start finishing and get called away, you can just put the lid on the can. Epoxy ould cure and you woul dhave to mix another batch. Hope this helps

Just get some Minwax Polyacrylic. It is almost oderless and is water based. It is in no way as harmfull as epoxy. I know some folks say it isnt as durable, but if you dip it, it will be thick enough to hold up. I finished two baits lastnight and tried both methods. The first got 2 brushed on coats I can see that it probably wouldnt hold up to being dragged up the sandy beach. The second was dipped twice. It is thick and very clear. I think it will put up with some abuse. Besides, when brushed it dried in about 20 minutes. The dipped however took about an hour. I also learned you can speed up that process with a blowdryer........ This stuff is much cheaper than epoxy and does not need to be thinned with more caustic chemicals. It is acrylic (hence the name) so say goodbye to paint/coating compatabilty issues...........

I did an undercoat and a top coat with Minwax polyacrylic. It goes on nice with a brush and is very compatable with the acrylic paints I used. It is in no way as durable as epoxy, but it is cheap to use during the learning curve. A pint of this stuff is only $3.

Walked over to river to give these a cast or two. I was very happy with the results. I twitched the lipped bait and it dives, wobbles then resurfaces maintaining its balance. I think I got real lucky with that being my first lure. The "Divani No Twitch was wicked. I put it out and cranked it back at various speeds. It has a really tight wobble and can be burned. I can see this being worked on the surface for blues here in Jersey. I am not so happy with my finishing though. I will be reading through all the tutorials tonight to try and better my abilities. It seems ashamed to put in hours and making something that works well only to have it look like some kid fingerpainted it.

Ok.........I finally finished that lure. I sealed it using polyacrylic. The paint is just some art store cheap acrylic paint. I dont think it is good for this sort of thing because it is real thick and doesnt lay up nice. I gave it a top coat of polyacrylic also. All of it was brushed on. I think I did ok with the wood working but my painting skills are just not there yet. The bait is about 5-1/2 inches long at about 1-1/4oz.The bill is not lexan as I didnt have any at the moment. I ended up using a plastic bass guitar pick. It is tortex plastic and not flexible so I thought it might work. It floats like it should in the sink and I will give it a cast in to the river tomorrow evening. Also depicted is an attempt at a Divani No Twitch. I tried foiling it is painted with the same stuff as my other lure. Let me know what you think..............

In my experience, I have found that I can be throwing a white swim bait all day and just burning calories. Switch to a chartreuse and start killing them. I go back the next day and throw the chartreuse and nothing, switch back to white and hammer them. I once fished all day with a friend on his boat where he caugth about 7 fish and I was skunked. The only diference in our baits was that I had a stranded weed gaurd on my lead head. I clipped off the gaurd, and bam....first cast I get one. I also think that scales and other patterns are important in clear water, not so much in murky water. This is just my experinces and oppinions......I could be wrong......my wife tends to think I am wrong most of the time...lol

McMaster-Carr has small stainless steel tubing with a thinwall. You can get the 3/16 dia. with 1/8 inside dia. It is about $7 in 1 foot lengths. I have used it in work. I think it is 304 stainless. Much more dense than aluminum. You could cut it with a hack saw in 5 seconds...or even part it on a lathe.....if your looking for something cheaper than that......use copper refrigerator water/ice maker feed line from the hardware store. It is pretty cheap for a coil of it and is heavy......

Gents I have been messing with Minwax polyacrylic and it seems really tough. It is water based and doesnt make any real odor. I think it is still harmfull if you stick your nose over the can and inhale concentrated amounts.....but no more than your average deoderant.

Hey...I have an alternate idea for the bow sander for folks that only have paper sandpaper onhand. I did this recently and it worked......Get one of your old belts from the closet. Material or leather will do. Cut it up into various sized strips. Maybe 4", 6" 10" and larger if you eat alot. Cut your sandpaper into strips the same length and width. Use two of those spring loaded paper clip thing-a-majigs to secure the paper to the belt on each end. Grip it at each end and use it like a shoe shine rag. You now have a primitive bow sander. Disclaimer: I am not responsible for what happens to you if you obtain the belt without first checking with your wife.

Thanks.....That sounds like it will work for the situation Im in. I found a pattern for a simple flat sided twitch bait. The pattern reccomends using beech but I only had white pine and a peice of scavenged whit oak. I like working with pine cause it is real easy.....but I wanted to try working with the oak to see what it was like. Needles to say I will stick with the pine. I ended up with 2 bodies in oak and 1 in pine. Because I changed the density of the wood the reccomended weight probably wont do the trick. I will have to play with the size of the weight to make them all sit right. Also......The slab of white oak I scavenged was full of staples and it was so old and dry that the edges kept popping out. I had to do some major filling. Anyone know what pallets are made of these days. I have access to a ton of them in work that arent weathered. They look pretty new. I was thinking of scavenging some boards up.

What does a guy without a lead melting pot do to weight hus lures? Does anyone just use egg sinkers or store bought weights? Can you help me out with some ideas? Thanks Sonny

What are you guys using for weight? I dont want to mess with melting lead. Can I use egg sinkers or fill the hole with the little bb sized lead shod I can get at Walmart?

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I bought a clamp on bench vice tonight from Home Depot. ($21.00) I was using a 6" c-clamp which was really hard to work with. However, this thing is super greasy with black industrial machine grease. I am going to have to spend tomorrow evening cleaning it with alcohol and relubing just the threaded areas with some clear "3 n 1". I think it would be immpossible to keep the black grease from transferring to my wood bodies. BTW..........I read just about every thread on paint, sealing, and undercoating. Im going to try the polyacrylic as a sealer and top gloss coat. From what I read, the standard acrylic paints wont have a problem bonding to it. I am going to do brushing for now. I can do it in the kitchen then......and not have to worry about to much mess. ...and I got some marine epoxy to use on the eyelets. Nasty stuff, but I guess the little batches that have to be made for eyelets is livable...........

Anybody know if polyurethane paint will stick to varnish? I want to undercoat the pine body with Helmsman varnish because I have a load of it and I hate mixing and useing epoxy. Also, does Gorilla glue work for the eylets? Also, I have .030" stainless wire for the eylets and plan on making them in twisted fashion. Should the hole for it be tight or loose?

My best personal blooper was from my teen age years. I was walking home from school in the street and saw a really hot older woman walking just a few feet from me. I ended up walking into a 2 foot deep ditch and landed right in front of the construction worker digging it. I startled the hell out of him. He jumped 4 feet back while dropping the shovel. The woman ran over and put her hand out to help me up, I was so embarrassed I didint say a word. My pants were covered in mud. It was awefull. A few weeks later I went to a party with some girl. Turns out the guy whos party it was.....well the woman was his mom...........She took one look at me and started laughing histerically. Again....I got really embarrased and high tailed it out of there.

Im new to this.....but this tip goes for any wood working. Clean the grease off of your vice when you have previously used it to work on car parts. The oils get into your wood and can penetrate so deep that it stops the sealers and epoxies from sticking. ALso.....I learned this one just yesterday. make sure you wear something on your feet when working with sharp tools..............ouch.....

Thats ok..........Im a north eastener.........New Jersey. Wife and I are born and raised here. I am a designer for a medical device company. I go to work in shirt, tie, and polished shoes. I discovered this site about a week ago. I shaped up my first lure body yesterday. I thought it way cool that I was capable of doing it. Brought it in the house to show the little woman. What do I get? My wifes reaction was that she didnt say anything when I started watching Outdoor Life Network. Again she was quiet when I started fishing. She was even quiet when I bought a boat. I carve one wooden lure body and all of a sudden Im a "red neck". I told her that was a compliment to a fisherman and a craftsman..........

Thanks.....I will take you up on that. For starters.....this thing is 5-1/2" long 5/8" wide and 1" tall. I dont want it to sink to much....1 or 2 feet would be great. I modeled it after a lure I have in my tackle box exept that it is about 20% bigger. I can copy the shape, and angle of the lip. However, Im not sure how much weight to put in and where. Can you put all the weight in one spot or does it need to be disributed? The model I copied has a treble about 1/2" from the front and one on the bottom about 1/2" from the rear.