saltwater

robalo01, Thank you, I have thought about posting instructions on the Forum. I will gladly share what I know with you and all of my fellow Members. Like you they are the deserving, helpful and giving heroes here on TU. But, I don't want to give hard earned information to guests and anonymous users who don't give back. In my humble opinion they are undeserving.

I learn something new everyday, thank you.

robalo01, I will give instruction and photos on how to make a hollow fiberglass bait from a mold. The trick will be taking good enough photos but, I will give it a shot...First thing tomorrow.

Check your email and spam folder. I have sent the instructions. Have fun...

robalo01, I have step by step instructions on how to make fiberglass molds and how to make baits from the molds. I will send the instructions to you. PM me with your email address. I will send it to you.

This is all I could find, maybe it will help you... http://www.bassfishin.com/bassfishingforums/showthread.php?t=17486

Beyond Bondo and Talc for lead pouring, there are lots of materials that can be used for general mold making. You can mix polyester or epoxy resin with: Plaster of Paris, Durham's water putty, silica powder, graphite powder, Cabosil glass bubbles, milled glass fiber, thixotropic powder, wood powder, phenolic microballoons or even all purpose flour, among others. It all depends on what your needs are.

dlaery, yes, you can use Talc mixed with polyester resin and catalyzed with MEK as a replacement for Bondo.

mark, WARNING MEK is volatile, explosive, a severe skin irritant and can cause progressive corrosive damage or blindness. Handle with care. A five gallon bucket of MEK was sitting on the dock at the boatyard one afternoon and it just exploded. The heat from the sun ignited it.

Methyl Ethyl Ketone Peroxide MEK and MEKP are the same thing. MEK is short for MEKP

See, they already stole my idea....LOL My bubble hasn't burst, it just proves my point. The dimpled golf ball lure was obviously just for laughs. The irony is; stupid ideas are endemic in the world of fishing lures because most commercial lures are designed to catch fishermen not fish.

OOPS, sorry I didn't answer the question, dlaery is correct. You can use the Bondo hardner to kick-off the thinned with resin Bondo. You can add just a touch more of the Bondo hardener if you mix in a large amount of resin to the Bondo. I don't use Bondo, I make my own from Talc mixed with polyester resin. You can buy Talc from a boating supply store. Use fiberglass MEK catalyst. It is much more economic, you can make it any consistency you desire, it is lighter weight than Bondo and is easier to shape, carve and sand/grind.

More bait builder trivia: Bondo is dried and powdered clay mixed with polyester resin/fiberglass resin. MEK is the hardener/catalyst for both polyester/fiberglass resin and the polyester resin in Bondo. The MEK used for Bondo is in paste form and colored for ease of mixing. So you can use liquid MEK, like that used for fiberglass resin, to harden Bondo and you can use the paste form MEK as a hardener for fiberglass resin. You can choose what is best for you.

Griffond, I make my molds the same way fiberglass boat molds are made and my baits are made like fiberglass boats are made from said molds. I used to make boat molds and fiberglass boats so that is where my experience comes from. I have written step by step instructions on how make fiberglass bait molds and have a series of photos showing how I made this STREEKER mold. I don't care to share my secrets with non members so I won't post instructions on the open FORUM. However, I have sent the instructions to several TU Members and I will be happy to send them to you too, if you want them that is. PM me with your email address and I will send the instructions and photos right away.

Thought you all would like to see my copy of a bait from the past. I made a fiberglass mold of the CREEK CHUB "STREEKER" and made a fiberglass copy of the original. The silver bait is the original and the painted primer grey is the copy. Now I can make a fleet of STREEKER baits and paint them with different themes and see what if any work best.

Years ago my job was coating commercial bar tops with thick pours of epoxy. I mixed equal parts of 5 gallons each of A and B with an electric paint mixer, this produced a consistency close to that of a foam. I used a propane torch to remove the thousands of the tiny bubbles. I assumed it was the heat from the propane torch that removed the bubbles. I was wrong. The distributor of the epoxy told me "The heat from the torch lowered the air pressure above the surface of the liquid epoxy". Like taking the top off of a soda bottle. More trivia for bait builders....

Here it is, the worlds first dimpled and thus farthest casting bait. The "Chatter Caster Bait" ©

smalljaw is probably correct in saying thatsmalljaw is probably correct when he says , "there are people from larger companies that come to this site and lurk to get ideas, there has to be". Hey, I finally put my latest idea to the test and it worked like a charm. You know that the"dimples" in golf balls give them an aeronautical lift in flight so they travel further. So, I put "dimples" in my latest crank bait and when I cast it flies further through the air and when it is in the water the "dimples" give it hydrodynamic lift so it is easier to retrieve. I am a genius and when my patent is granted I will be rich !!!

Additionally: "Vir Prudens Non Contra Ventum Mingit" (A wise man does not urinate up against the wind)

I make both hollow and solid fiberglass baits. As far as screw eyes, I have material, fiberglass or my home-made polyester putty in place to accept/hold the screw eyes. I either drill or insert a pilot hole of the proper size to accommodate the self tapping eye screws. Fiberglass baits are best compared to plastic baits as opposed to wood. Since fiberglass baits are from a mold and not cut, carved or formed by lathe or router. I typically but not exclusively, start with a wood plug/master from which I make the molds from. I have also made molds to copy older commercial baits. Many years ago, when I was living in the Florida Keys, I made copies of the Heddon "VAMP" and Shakespeare "JIM DANDY". They worked well for near shore Red Snapper and Spotted Sea Trout.

Rayburn Guy, the "Big Boys" are selective and also conniving opportunists who will grab what they can from wherever they can. Here's an idea: lets talk about some seemingly cool bait idea that is really dumb and of no value and watch the big boys steal it. We can then watch as they lose a few hundred thousand dollars on our loser con-job... Oh, by the way, did you try the bait I sent you? The one that blinks its eyes? I caught my limit in just a few minutes. Those blinking eye baits are the best and everybody wants more than one. I hope I can keep-up with the demand. MAN, I AM GOING TO BE RICH ! ! ! (wink wink)

cadman, I know you don't condone infringement and I would bet the majority of TU members don't either. Truth is, I never went after anyone who copied my intellectual property. Reason being: my inventions are stupid and not worth copying LOL Curt, yes some people are hypocrites and thieves. All we can do is show everyone who they are...

This is my opinion and I don't want to offend anyone but, I must express my feelings on the subject of patent infringement. I am a patented inventor. It costs $10,000 to $12,000 just to try and get a patent. Additionally you will have to argue with the patent office to show how your idea is different from other similar patents. Keep in mind that you will be up against patents that are registered at this time, from the past and from around the world. Each of these arguments for your case will cost $100-200 for reissuing your patent application. If you are lucky and are granted a patent on your idea it will cost over $1,000 a year for maintenance fees. Typically, a lawyer will charge $500 -$1000 to send out letters of patent violation. Giving away someone's intellectual property is distribution. Even if you do not earn any money from selling a person's intellectual property you can still be sued for distribution of that property. I personally side with the patent holder, be it little guy or big guy. Put yourself in their shoes and then walk the miles. I now ask, what would you do if people were selling or distributing your intellectual property without compensating you or giving you the recognition that you spent hundreds if not thousands of hours and thousands of dollars trying to protect?

The old-time lures with holes claim in their advertising that the holes create vibrations in the water that attract fish...Sounds good on paper...

It would be interesting to see what would happen to a "Disc Spoon" with two treble hooks attached to either side of the disc at the lateral mid-point and still keeping the tail end hook. We see this every now and then with the old lures from the 1920s and 1930s.