CA Delta Posted March 29, 2008 Report Share Posted March 29, 2008 I tried drilling free hand & the bit ended up wandering. The hole that the pin goes into was a mess. Instead I put 2 screw eyes for the top & bottom w/ a pin going through all 4. I need a strong pin to use. Any ideas? A 6/32 srew fits in the holes but the nut is binding my action. The bait is A four peice, 10" long & weighs 8oz. I made my cuts @ 30 degrees, not enough meet to successfully drill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobP Posted March 29, 2008 Report Share Posted March 29, 2008 A split ring? Honestly, with all that hardware I would have built it with the screw eyes one insde the other. IMO, no sense in adding hardware if you don't have to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
captsully18 Posted March 30, 2008 Report Share Posted March 30, 2008 I have been using bicycle spokes for my pins. This allowed me to go up one size in drill bit and cut down on the wandering. Spokes are stainless and are not that expensive. Hope this helps. David Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jflures Posted March 30, 2008 Report Share Posted March 30, 2008 I've been using finish nails. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MuskyMachine Posted March 30, 2008 Report Share Posted March 30, 2008 I use stainless pop rivet's. I just separate the pin from the body and there i have two pieces to use. The pin for swimbait joints and the body for inserts for the tail section on my musky top water baits (top raider style). I hope that this helps you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted March 30, 2008 Report Share Posted March 30, 2008 Someone on this forum suggested using a drill press, and putting an alignment pin in the drill press base, so you can locate the exact point where the bit is supposed to exit, position the bait with the desired exit hole on the cut off brad that is centered directly beneath the bit, drill half way through from one side, then flip the bait and put the freshly drilled hole over the centering brad and drill down through the second half. Since I've started doing that most of my holes line up the first time, although I do get drift sometimes. When I do get drift, it's not a lot, and I can correct it by re drill the crooked side by hand. If I have a re drilled hole, I put in a temporary pin, and add super glue to the errant hole. The runny stuff, like thin Zap glue, wicks into the bad hole, and, as long as I'm careful inserting the pin again, plugs the hole enough to stop the pin from wandering. It's harder to describe than it is to do. Set your drill press to the height you need, make a temporary plywood base, use a long straight bit to mark the center of the bit path on the plywood, drive a 1" brad or #2 finish nail into the plywood, cut it off with diagonal pliers just above the plywood, and you have an alignment tool. If you make the temporary plywood base smaller than your original base (I made a plywood base when I first go the drill press that stays on it all the time, so I never work on the cast iron base that it covers), and mark the perimeter of the temp. base on the "permanent" base, you can reattach it with minimal adjustments by using the same screw holes to reattach it when you need it again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CA Delta Posted March 31, 2008 Author Report Share Posted March 31, 2008 Thanks for all the feedback. I'm beging to realize I've just seen the tip of the iceberg w/ making swimbaits. I take two steps forward & three steps back. This is quite the learning process. I just painted my swimbait w/ some OSH int. ext. enamal rattle can. Need to spray less next time, Waiting for her to dry so I can sand down & spray some Krylon. I'm sure I'll be buying a compressor & gun soon. This is nuts, LOVE IT- CA Delta. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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