littleriver

Sorry to hear about the spinal fusion. I assume it will make life better than it is now. Surgery and sitting around for months isn't fun either. Hope everything goes according to plan with minimal pain. Sure thing on help with hard baits. Glad to help anytime.

Thank you!

This O ring sounds like a good deal. Anyone have a link to the tool your using and a photo or link of how the O ring and worms are rigged wacky?

Hi Curt Thanks for asking! One thing I would like to see come back is new photo gallery additions on the home page. Not so long this is how the site's homepage was set up. I think Jerry had some virus trouble and this was changed. It was nice because one always knew when new photos were added without having to visit the gallery. It also gave everyone a moment in the sun, so to speak, as their photo is featured on the site's homepage. Good for the site too as new folks found their way to the site they were met with some really cool looking fishing tackle. I am sure it "lured" in a new member or two. For some time now there has been nothing under "TU Nations Creations" heading. Another is the gallery itself. It too is setup different than it used to be. Looking at indiviual photos is not so different but the gallery view under each heading used to be better than it is setup now. Looking at and loading individual photos is great but it is the bigger view or gallery view is much different. Seems to me the makers TU id name used to be displayed under the photos when they were displayed in the larger gallery view. I liked this because I knew whose bait I was looking at before before I selected it. It also enable the user to scan a page of baits and find a bait made by a particular lure maker without having to looking at each one. I know the search works for this purpose too but this information on the gallery view is missed by at least one user. That's about it from me today Curt. I know you can't fill every request but this thread is great step in the right direction. Thank you!

Thank you jrhopkins for the link . A really good find. I feel a bit smarter already, though I doubt the effect will last long.

@fishnart If you decide to give a try, don't hesitate to send me a pm if you have questions. I have seen your work and it deserves a really good coating . I think you'll like it but everyones tastes and needs are different. Vic

Just curious , would you please share the link you found on the subject. I have no idea about shore hardness but sounds relevant and it may fill the ignorance gap I am feeling now on the subject. Thanks

Looking at Hopkins work it is obvious it is money well spent. I just wish my wife felt the same way. I have wanted it ever since I knew about it. Still waiting for the right moment unfortunately. Baby steps........I still have a long ways to go........

Here is a couple of links you may find useful http://www.tackleunderground.com/community/index.php?/topic/23447-painting-with-brushes/ http://www.tackleunderground.com/community/index.php?/topic/24665-paint-job-tips-for-those-who-dont-have-an-air-brush/ http://www.tackleunderground.com/community/index.php?/topic/24330-paintbrush-help/

Hello Griffond Painting with a brush seems a daunting task at first but little by little it gets a bit easier as your confidence grows. I have only been at it a couple years now on and off. I think it is a skilled acquired through practice. Though some knowledgeable instruction would be great. Yet little can be found. I am still a novice when I look at Dieter's and Hopkin's work. They both have thier own unique style and that is one of the things I really like about painting this way. I know a Dieter bait when I see it. Same with Hopkins. if you keep at it, you too will develop your own style. I want to share with you one of the first baits I ever painted with a brush Does that paint scheme look familiar? Blue back rattletraps have caught me many fish over the years and that was what I was after with this top water bait. Your on the right path. Patience, practice and time will take care of the rest. Like you; I made the same mistakes . Dieter is a fantastic teacher and his suggestion of epoxing the bait before painting and after foil is spot on. every wrinkle in the foil is visable if you skip this step. My introduction to this style was through Dieter's work. Later I was introduced to the work by Hans Nordin. Again, I have to thank Dieter . With his help, I have a German copy of Han's book "Wobbler". Though in German, I have been able to translate a great deal. One of the topics he covers is brush painting. All of Han's baits are brush painted and he has been doing it for years. Here is a link with more about Hans . Though the page is in Swedish it may be translated if your using a google chrome browser. Hans is still taking folks on fishing trips and giving seminars to this day on how to build your own baits. His baits are very much in demand. http://www.outdoor.se/nordin/wobbler.htm Now you want to know what brush to use. I prefer small water color brushes. That is what Han's suggests one use in his book and that is exactly what I have been using ever since. Sometimes more successfully than others. If you have more specific questions please don't hesitate to ask . Vic

Thank you Jerry!!! We are all in your gratitude. I know I have enjoyed my time here at TU. What makes TU special is the folks that gather here day after day. I have learned more than I can ever give back but as long Curt and the guys at LPO keep the doors open I'll be coming back. Curt welcome, You have some big shoes to fill. Your optimism has me optimistic. Looking forward to seeing TU grow. Just don't forget what makes TU "TU". Say your a night specialist? I like summertime night fish as well. We use 1/4 ounce jigs tipped with plastic worms in thirty feet of water on rocky points and humps. Newbies call it ghost fishing because at night and at that depth it takes some time and practice for newbies to detect anything. Often missing fish, and swearing it was a ghost bite. How do you guys catch them in the summer heat? Vic

Ben is right on the money on this one. About half way down on the link provided is a big red warning on cold weather usage with this product. It pays to read the directions............

Thank you Dieter for sharing!!! Nice finish as well. The small ones are fun too. I think with the blue bait at the 30 minute mark with self adjusting line tie you confirmed what Dave has said about tuning your way to a hunting bait. In this one you had a blowout bait . Then you shortened the bill and now it swims and hunts a bit just as Dave said it would. Not saying trimming the bill is the answer to ones way from a blowout bait to a Hunter always but it is one when you have all the other elements right. Those unweighted hunting jerkbaits with the finnish bill for example it may not help. As you have learned, with ballast in the right shape, one gets a more stable bait to work with from the very beginning. I have taken such unweighted jerkbaits before that were so unstable that they blew out with the bill trimmed to no more than a nub and it still blew out. Really enjoyed the show thanks again for taking time to share.

The answer to your first question is "yes" . Add heat at any point in the curing process and it will shorten any curing left to do.

Good question I keep mine in the basement too. Summertime is no problem but in winter it is a problem. To overcome the problem, I work in a small room in the basement. When I know I will be top coating, I turn on a small heater to heat the room. I also keep the bulk of the product upstairs in the temperature controlled part of the house during this time of year. This makes refilling my mixing syringe easier and the product is always ready to use. The syringe i use to mix the tabletop is an old devcon 2ton syringe. I simply cleaned out the unused devcon and refilled it with the tabletop. Perfect mix every time no matter how big or small. Perfect for my small projects. It can get a bit messy refilling but not too hard and much easier and less expensive than a trip to the store to buy more devcon. The hardest part is open the syringe when it is empty. I use a flatjhead scewdriver to start the process. Once it is fully extended again a twisting pull is required to remove the plunger. The product cures best in a warm enviroment so if it is cold a heat is a must in one form or another. I know more than you asked for but thought it might be of interest to know more of the process I use.

Welcome to TU I have been thinking about this for some time myself. How could we use the site to link builders with buyers. Many here just make their baits for their own use, while others it is a career. Both I think might be open to selling a few if an opportunity presented itself. Still that leaves the question of how to best put potential buyers with sellers? I think Travis's idea is a good one. One could contact the maker directly with a PM once you see something you like. But I would caution no means no. Another idea would be to place an ad in the classified section of this site. One could present pictures of the types of bait your interested in and makers could contact you this way. Always nice to see a fellow Tennessean, welcome to TU and happy fishing.

Bait expands in heat and devcon, though hard, is brittle and will crack. I suggest a product like etex because it is more flexible and less prone to cracking. I use this tabletop epoxy on all my baits. http://www.tackleunderground.com/community/index.php?/topic/26819-another-epoxy-topcoat/

I agree Mark. One can not be too careful. A local lure builder I met here when I first started had several tumors removed from his body. He said they were due to the paint he was using. I knew then I wanted to be cautious of the products I used. I avoid using harmful products as much as possible and substitute something safer when opportune to do so. Though it is not always possible to avoid such products we can limit our exposure.

@ Skeeter I too liked the results. Something for everyone. I would not have believed it if I had not seen it. Now I have to wonder what the pressures of the deep do to a wood bait, I'll just have to wonder on that point. I have one slight correction to add. The test bait is made of pine ; a wood bait though for sure. @Ben No problem. It was my pleasure. I would have never guessed temperature of the bait had more of an effect on buoyancy that the temperature of the water. Small changes in water displacement of the bait go a long way.

Finally, I got around to do some of those kettle buoyancy tests promised. My plan was to do a thorough scientific study but after seeing the difficulty of trying get a lure to remain neutrally buoyant I quickly decided to wing it. God bless those who make suspending baits. Here is what I did do: The experiment consisted of two pots with 3 1/2 inches of water. One pot was warmed to 87.26 F while the other pot was cooled to 40.1 F. I took this lure and added enough weight till it would slowly rise in the 87 F water. Next I attempted to time how long it took for this small bait to rise from the bottom of the pot and breech the surface. I say attempted to time. The release of the bait, starting and stopping of the timer and identifying the breech was all subject to my interpretation. I did my best and made several attempts to give an average rather than an absolute but still not perfect or scientific by any means. Here are the results 87.26 F 6.36 seconds avg 40.10 F 4.79 seconds avg There was one other caveat of importance noted during the experiment. This goes back to something Bob said about an object shrinking when cold and this effecting it's buoyancy. After doing some testing in the cold water with this small bait, I noticed it did not want to float at all in the warm water. Infact, the same bait that would rise without hesitation would not rise at all after testing in the frigid water. After the bait had had time acclimate to the warmer water( appx 2- 4 minutes) it was once again rising to the surface. I tested this too several times and each time same result. I believe the larger the bait the more of an impact bait temp will have on it. I am equally sure lure composition too will be a factor but in general terms hot baits rise faster than cold ones. Thank you again Skeeter for bringing up this interesting topic. It has been insightful. Thank you!! Questions or comments please..........