Chuck Young

You are right about the flux. Guess I'll put that out of my mind. I have a strong reason for not using tungsten. Smelting releases large amounts of mercury into the atmosphere. That mercury ends up in the fish I eat, resulting in strict dietary guidelines for how much fish I can eat. For anyone to suggest tungsten as a solution to lead poisoning in birds I say: "get your priorities in order!" Poisoning my self, my kids, my grandkids, and many generations to come is no solution I want to advocate. People are worth more than birds in my opinion.

Wow! Love it! So 180 deg is the magic temp - who knew. I love using the search feature. Usually search forums. I have yet to get back to 2008 though.

I have never had one of the sticks or handles fall out. On anything over 5" I use 2 or more brush handles with alligator clips. But I'm not sure whether I really need to. The amount of grip on the clips to the lure is of greater concern. Note the placement of the foam on the binder clips is on the same side as the stick. This pushes the lip against the far side of the clip - holding the lure at an angle. This may help it hold in the foam, but the main reason I do it is so the lure doesn't stick out as far. I marked the position of the cuts in the foam and use the same ones over and over again to no ill effect. If the foam ever does give up the ghost, it takes 23 minutes to replace. 3 minutes to make the repair, and 20 minutes drying time. I attached my sexy ghost shad, sexy french pearl, and atomic pumpkinseed to show how they work.

I was having a little trouble with water putty molds and fragility. Then I remembered the horse hair plaster in my mom's house. I have a cat that sheds like a .. well, like a long haired cat. I saved the stuff that comes out of the brush. after applying a thin coat of pure putty on the lure, I mixed the hair in and applied the rest. It seemed to help a little. I'm sure epoxy will strengthen even more. Just wondering if anyone else has tried this and what your results have been? BTW if you need pet hair and are willing to pay shipping.....

Do you remove the woman first? Or do you do it with the woman still attached? Gives a whole new meaning to hair lip. JK This is another great suggestion.

Check out my post on homebrew tools. It has 3 different lure holders that insert into a foam noodle. You can also insert hooks directly into the foam. http://www.tackleunderground.com/community/topic/31513-high-volume-cheap-lure-turner-lure-holders/

I recently received an order of 3-d eyes from Lisa and Ed's eyes, an advertiser on this site. They have great product and service. The eyes are 3 color adhesive eyes with an oblong 20% pupil. They are priced $1.50 per 100, which is cheaper than you get them from China. Larger eyes are a little more. The three colors and pupil make a noticeable difference, esp when coated with epoxy. Shipping was fast and cheap. I am very happy with the product and will do my business with them from now on..

Great idea Dale!

You got me thinking! How about a bent aluminum blade, applied, tuned, and then nailed with Solarez.?

I have several baits with this type of lip. I believe the bend in the lip focuses the energy into side to side wiggle as opposed to diving. They seem to produce a lot of action relative to size. My question would be how do you duplicate the lip?

Great thread! Thanks to Ace Archer for bringing it up. And thanks to Dale, Mark, JRam, and Kent. The proof of priority concept makes a lot of sense. I was previously unaware of this. Few of us can afford a patent lawyer. It's good to know there is some protection out there for the little guy.

Alumidust colored powder comes in lots of colors. Brush it on and melt it in.

I modify some of the wider brushes I get at Wallmart. They are about 1/2" to 3/4" wide and about 1/8" to 1/16" thick. I cut down the thickness with a pointed pair of scissors. I push one point through and trim off some of the bristles close to the brush handle. Do this on the front and back so you only have a few bristles left. The result is a nice, wide, flexible brush. This brush give you a nice smooth finish. It works a lot faster than the little disposable brushes, allowing the coating of more lures per session. I have made some with plastic and bristle brushes. Both work well. Squeegee out excess epoxy and cleanup with denatured alcohol or acetone. Then wrap tip with paper towel. A good tool is worth cleaning and saving.

That mold looks to good to coat. Maybe dust it with some powder and heat a little to gloss it up? Where did you get these?

The sad part is that hungry cowboys trailed that car for months, being lured in by the smell.

I was wondering how well the twisties worked. Guess I will have ti try some.

As a long time welding supply salesman I can tell you Dale is right about the end results of welding. It really doesn't matter the method used to melt the substrate (base material) - heat, friction, electric arc, high frequency sound, explosives, etc. As long as the substrate(s) are fused without chemical alteration (glues) they are welded and become one contiguous piece. Some industries use different words for for the process (fusion) . Dale is absolutely right. The weld itself is as strong and usually stronger than the material itself. Unfortunately, in the case of plastic lures, the substrate itself has serious, although manageable, limitations.

The laws of physics still apply. The plastic will soften and even melt if it gets hot enough. The Air inside will want to expand and go through the softened plastic at it weakest point. That point won't be the weld. But the bait will still be ruined. I am afraid there is no plastic bait that is impervious to heat. It is just a matter of degree - pun intended. The solution is to take care not to expose baits to high temperatures while fishing or storing.

Glaucus, thanks for the links. Interesting reading. I have done a little casting with lead free solder (95/5), since lead is pretty much banned in NH. I have noticed some slag and it probably is oxidized tin. I think any metal, when molten, can pick up contamination from its surroundings. Most pourers work with lead, some of it from scrap. I can see why it would need more fluxing that a purer metal. I'm brand new at this and could be wrong. But I will probably add some kind of flux.

I have these great jig heads with a wire keeper. they are awesome at holding the bait, but they also tear it up pretty good. http://store.do-itmolds.com/Round-Head-JigbrSz-116-332brHk-570-or-575brCollar-Wire-Holder_p_1138.html

Thanks guys. I appreciate the feedback.

I tried jello pudding, but I ended up eating the worms myself. JK

Clever! Very clever. Might make it a little more weedless too!