Musky Glenn

I would recommend a good quality safety pin type spinner bait. Just heavy enough to stay off the bottom and when you feel it touch something just keep reeling at the same speed, don't jerk. They will come through a bunch of mess, will climb over limbs if you don't stop reeling when they touch the limb. Man, they catch fish if fish are shallow. Musky Glenn

You might be able to jb weld small disc inside your mold and eliminate a step or two. Haven't tried it but sounds doable. Musky Glenn

FishinFreaks, Like Nathan said, Amazon has it 9 oz. for $9.99 plus about $4.99 for shipping. Get the thirty min. slow set type.The web site below should take you to it. Musky Glenn http://www.amazon.com/Bob-Smith-206-Slow-Cure-Epoxy/dp/B001NI8MNK/ref=aag_m_pw_dp?ie=UTF8&m=A237YVQN58VBR2

Lure parts on line have it, but the choices are about the same. Musky Glenn

FishinFreaks, I have been using Bob Smith's epoxy for a couple of years now and it works just like d2t. I started using it because of the problem of finding d2t and the cost of d2t. I buy the 9oz. size which I believe is two 4.5 ounce bottles of epoxy mix. Cost is like $11-12 bucks plus shipping. For the amount of lures I finish that last me quite a while. I have all the parts to build a turner but the older I get the less I need an extra project. I am satisfied with the results of hanging because 1- I only finish for my self, 2- They look good enough, 3- Muskies don't care and that is where my concern ends. Musky Glenn

For me it's not the head but the ball that you tie the hair around. I want it to be big so that it makes the buck tail flair out. Much more action than a small straight section to tie buck tail over. Musky Glenn

A different take on the same subject, light hooks require less effort to set, but also require a lighter drag to prevent hook problems. Like Clint Eastwood said, "A man has to know his limitations". Then again I could just be completely out of my element. Good luck finding a better hook. Musky Glenn

Great post Clemmy

Looks great!

I brush epoxy on THIN and hang with out problems. Musky Glenn

I tend to agree with Bob. I also believe it has to do with the length of time the finish stays moist before it hardens. It seems that concrete sealer reacts with the paint if it remains wet to long. I would guess cooler temps allows for longer drying times also. I would say the quicker you can get concrete sealer dry the less time it will have to react with the paint. They don't play well together. Musky Glenn

BobP times two. Wood does some strange things. They used to say for air drying lumber that it took one year per one inch of thickness to completely air dry lumber. That would be two years for a 2x4. Then it would only dry it down to about 13% moisture content where kiln drying takes it down to around 5-6 %. If you let that 6% kiln dryed piece of wood lay around exposed to outside air then it will quickly pick moisture from the air and climb back up to what ever the moisture content of the air is in your region. Side Bar- Lumber is cut fairly straight and true. Crooks, twist, bows, cups are the result of removing moisture from the lumber. This allows internal stresses on the cell walls to deform the board. Take a board with 100% moisture content, meaning it can't hold any more moisture, and start drying it. Down to about 29 % it only looses moisture in the cell cavity and no shrinking takes place. From approx. 29% on down to about 6% is where the board starts loosing moisture in the cell WALLS and this causes deformation, twist etc. Sorry for the dry lecture, I slipped back into the classroom for a moment. Musky Glenn

I would recommend top water lures if they are that shallow. Super Spooks or Jack Pot's would be good choices. If you wanted to get down a little, a one ounce spinner bait would be good, just hold the rod tip up a bit. I have caught more muskies on spinner baits than any other class of lure. Good luck. Musky Glenn

You tube probably has a video that covers any phase of rod building you could want. Musky Glenn

I use a Starrett dial caliper then do the math to find what I need. Some times the hard part is understanding what the manufacturer of the rod eye is measuring. Rod tips are usually listed as size 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, which stands for this number over 64 as in 6/64 of an inch. Make sure it is large enough to go over the rod tip because epoxy glue will fill a lot of space. They do offer different size eyes for tips also. Of all the craft stuff I do associated with fishing, building rods is the most fun. Musky Glenn

All good ideas. If you decide to apply a finish, I recommend rattle can lacquer. Spray outdoors and it will probably be dry by the time you get back inside. Musky Glenn

Archery1, You can measure an eye on your rod that is big enough to suit your needs and make sure your new set of eyes are no smaller than that size. Keep in mind they measure on the metric scale which I have to figure out every time I do this. They also measure the ring size by the OUTSIDE of the ceramic ring. I second what Bob said about the Hardloy guides, they are hard to beat and are as cheap as they come in Fuji eyes. If you go to www.mudhole.com you can pick individual eyes of the size you need and build your own set of any size you need.

BobP X 2. When you cut the rod, don't be surprised if there is a difference in wall thickness from one side to the other. This contributes to rod spline. Have fun. Musky Glenn

Jaw, Those pole retrievers do work well as I have used my nephews several times. The fact is I'm just to cheap to buy one!!!! Musky Glenn

With the price of musky lures being what they are I put my plug knocker to good use. I use a Bass Pro Shop model that has the three chains hanging down. I usually get my lure by hanging one of the chains in one of the treble hooks. But what I wanted to share with you is the rope I use to be able to straighten out a musky hook. I use parachute cord and it works great. Give it a try some time. Musky Glenn

Mark, my wife never misses a chance to tell me what I am thinking. lol But it has been good for the both of us. 49 years 11 months and counting. Musky Glenn and Nancy

I throw them on top of a storage container and just pick through the dozen or so that I use.

Mark, that is a slick idea, wish I had thought of it. My idea didn't make it from my head to the keyboard. I was thinking of making two separate lures, one out of heavy wood and one out of lighter wood. Glad someone knows what I should have been thinking. lol Musky Glenn

I have been using a knock off, exacto knife that has 110 volt heat element that heats the blade. When the blade is hot it will cut through anything plastic like a breeze. It's more melting than cutting and you need to move rather fast to keep it neat. I also use it a lot for melting soft plastic tails back together or making my own original hybrid designs. Musky Glenn

I know that through wire has a status attached to it as being indestructable. I can also tell you that an epoxy glued in screw eye won't give any trouble. A lot of lure manufactures use carter pins for bottom hook hangers and bend them over on the back of the lure. One thing to keep in mind about wood weight is the action of the lure during the retrieve. Most crank baits are actually used in a jerking manner. Between each jerk the lure will rise some according to the weight of the lure. A heavier lure may stay down better than a light lure. The same lure built out of two different weight woods is a good idea. Everyone has their own favorite jerk bait and I am no different. A good seven inch long jerk bait that will run about 4-5 feet deep on the cast is ideal for me. I would like the weight to be around 2 ounces when finished. 7 inch Cranes (207) or 7 inch Grand Ma's would be a good pattern to copy. There are a lot of good jerk baits listed on Rollie and Helens Musky Shop ( www.muskyshop.com ) Thickness would probably be 3/8". These are very good bass lures as well. My two favorite colors are firetiger and crappy. Good luck. Musky Glenn