musky bait help

[spare tire]

I was hoping you guys could give me

some advice. I built this musky bait and

it has no action , it dives nice but no wobble

It's made out of basswood, about 9" long,

weighted just behind the first hook.http://i179.photobucket.com/albums/w311/sparetire2/full1.jpg

I think there might be something wrong with

the shape and size of the

http://i179.photobucket.com/albums/w311/sparetire2/full3.jpg

http://i179.photobucket.com/albums/w311/sparetire2/full2.jpg

http://i179.photobucket.com/albums/w311/sparetire2/full.jpg

[woodieb8]

hi the pull screw is far to high on the lure. move it lower to achieve action. tinkering will give you whats needed for future lures

[Waterlogged]

Those cylindrical baits can be tough to get going side to side. That's why crankbaits are generally thinner stock with a tall profile versus round bodied like you have - it has something to do with the hydro-dynamics and the lip. This is why Grandmas, Jakes, Big Games and Slammers are so good - they all have similar shape and profile. You're paint job and finish sure look nice so keep tinkering with it. Take a look at a Bucher Depth Raider on Rollie and Helen's site - it has a similar body shape to yours. When comparing, look at the lip. Maybe the lip angle/size/position could be adjusted a bit?

Good luck - I know it's heartbreaking to get a bait to this level of finish only to find that it does not work the way you want it to. We've all been there.

If you get it working, let us know what you did.

[Yake Bait]

I've never worked with cylindrical shaped lures so I may not be qualified to comment, but I've screwed up my share of lures so I will share anyway.

I made a twitch bait last winter that did the same thing you describe. Acted more like a suick (chop bait) than a crank. No wobble at all. The lip was too far behind the line tie. Rule of thumb that I learned from that one is that the nose of the lure, the line tie, and the front of the diving lip should roughly line up along the lead edge of the lure. Your lure does line up as described above so I don't know if this is the same problem.

I do agree with Waterlogged that you may need to move the lip forward. I'm thinking of a Cisco Kid type lure where the line tie is part of the lip itself. Moving the line tie down would be more in line with a flat sided twitch lure design. I think the body style is more in line with a deep diving crank.

BTW - you did a really nice job shaping that lure. That one will be a keeper for sure.

[Spike-A-Pike]

It looks great for a first effort so I'd keep working on it. Keep us posted on the results, good luck.

[rjbass]

I would try either changing the line tie and put it closer to the lip beneath the nose, or move the lip closer to the nose. One of those two scenarios should work.

Rod

[diemai]

Hi , spare tire , not to have such troubles on an already finished bait anymore I suggest to pre-assemble them and test them in a bath-tube before painting.

I always do this , so I am always able to alter things like lip angle and size , linetie position , also location of weigths , etc..... in advance , and this way I always have an idea , how about the finished lure would act later .

But you should apply a paint coat of ordinary clear laquer(no epoxy neccessary) before to protect your lure-blank from water sepage , for further painting after testing you just roughen it up with sandpaper for better grip of following paint-coats .

[rofish]

Spare tire,

What happened to you, happened many times to me. I always try the lip before gluing it in. So I can try many of them, to see which one seems to be best for a specific crankbait.

The round body has nothing to do with your problem. In fact, theoretically, a round body should have a better action than a flat body, because the lateral resistance of the water (whent it wobbles) is less.

Your problem lies with the distance between the tow eye and the lip, and also with the angle of the lip. I do not know what really happens there in terms of hydrodynamic flows or levers, but I know that if 2 conditions met (distance from the tow point to the lip and angle of the lip, but it could also have something to do with the size of the lip), you will have a crankbait that goes straight through the water, without any wobble at all. The crankbait reaches an equilibrium point.

In your case you should try one or both of the following:

- shorten the distance between the tow point and the lip

- bend part of the lip downwards. I should try this first, because the lure has a metal lip.

[spare tire]

Thanks everyone, I'll try those things you guys suggested.

The only reason that one is finished is because a customer wanted one with a lip, and One with props like I'm used to making. I told the customer that

I didn't know if it would swim, and that was fine with him, he wanted his name written on the side of it and then to put on a mantle. So I made myself one for future lures, Thats why it is painted. Thanks again for all the replies.

Tim

[Striperknight]

hi the pull screw is far to high on the lure. move it lower to achieve action. tinkering will give you whats needed for future lures

This guy is dead on. Do what he says and it should work better.

[fatfingers]

You might consider doing a search on Google Images for Heddon Vamps. The body style of the vamp is similar to your and that style is inherently problematic in the wiggle department.

In addition to the ideas shown above, you might try cupping the lip on the next one.

I built a few similar to yours last year and noticed the same things. Cupping the lip seems to be a variable with this cylindrical body shape.

[spare tire]

thanks again