Making Giant Baits

[Muskiefool]

WARNING

Do Not Attempt without training and proper attire, this can be very dangerous.

Ive been asked allot of questions about how I make the baits I slap together over the past few years and thought I would share some info I learned from some of the best bait makers on the planet like J.P. (Out2llunge), George Unis, Blair Harrington the Late master Rolf Who showed the how to play with glitter and top coat mastery and from many hard knocks of my own.

I'm not going to bore you with the shape of the bait, the angle of the lip or the lip cutting, you'll figure that out on your own, that's all of the fun.

So you got your hunk of Ceder or any wood of your doing and a Lexan Lip, now mark your lip into 1/4's and 1/3's; 1/3 to a 1/2 from the rear of the lip is approximately the first 1/16th hole for the Deep setting line tie then 1/4 to 1/3'd from the front is your first hole for the shallow setting.

This will of course vary depending on the angle of the lip and what it takes to get the desired effect, that will change bait to bait, now drill holes 1/4 inch apart and in 1/4 to 3/16th inch increments depending on how many line ties you desire.

1/16th bit with .051 wire is a great fit now mark out your anchoring screw holes or if its just one through the middle of the head mark your locality on the paper, now you'll need a few anchoring holes for epoxy toad here from the top of the notch to the bottom, I also chamfer the holes for the epoxy so I get the added structural strength of a plinth and chapiter of the epoxy column at this time you want to countersink your anchor screw holes as well and just start the 1/16th holes for your line ties.

Cut the outline of the body of the bait out of the lips paper protector but leave on the excess to protect it when working on the install and roughing up the surface which brings me to roughing up the surface use a dremel and a drum sander to scuff up the surfaces that will be in the body and mark the center line on the baits body also at this time predrill your screw holes you don't want to break a great piece of wood at this point.

Mix up some Devcon 2 ton without diluting with denatured alcohol let it sit for a coupla mins and spread it on the wooden surfaces now set it back down upright and wait till the epoxy in the container is like jelly consistency then spread it on the lips surface, if you go to fast it just runs through the holes and wont provide the coulomb effect.

Now place then together and don't panic just get the screw or screws started and tight then clean off the excess material with a scraper making it all nice and such, peel off the protective paper and there she is sure now take a shot of Crown or the equivalent you earned it.

Next you'll want to drill the line tie holes all the way through now this is were my baits are a bit different than most I run the body under the lip for one reason only to reduce the amount of drag you feel in the rod these baits pull much less than similar baits with giant lips.

Now I take the Dremel with a carbide drum and grind a channel into the bottom of the bait under the line ties and continue to my weight hole, this way I can bend the wire right into the lead.

Now bend some .051 wire 12 inches long around a screwdriver shaft or if you have a wire bender by all means, then make 3 more out of 1-12inch piece.

Also drill your lip anchor hole, for this use a bit that is the size of the screws shaft, not the threads, drill through the body and lip then switch to a smaller pilot bit, now finish off the hole with a counter bit to recess the screw head, get a small piece of wire with some epoxy and apply it deep into the hole them smear some on the threads of the screw and drive her home.

The short loops cut so they are about an inch long and sorta look like wire staples, it helps to cut the wire at a 45 deg angle as well, now push the wire through so that the long strands hang out the bottom and the loops are pulled tight down to the lip, with a needle nose bend them over as short as you can this will leave enough room for the loops to move up and create your line tie.

Bend them down into the wight hole and take your staples and lash down the wire into the channel.

Now you can take a bit of epoxy and pour around the wire then take enough epoxy to fill the channel and the countersunk hole for your lip anchor, mixing this epoxy is done just as you would any 50/50 but you want to add enough wood shavings from all of your drilling before so its a paste of wood and epoxy, the epoxy impregnates the wood particles and chips and forms a water proof hard as a rock filler that can be sanded easily, fill the channel and around the lead hole to form the cylindrical hole back to shape.

"LET THIS DRY 24-30 HRS MIN FOR YOUR SAFETY"

During this time of waiting once it sets up put an eye screw into the bottom of the lead hole and form a loop with a J on one end and a 45 deg angle on the other so you can snap it around the eye screw down in the bottom of the hole, this may take some trail and error or a measuring tool HAHA.

Now you've waited the time and are ready to melt lead, this is very dangerous and should be done using eye protection, the proper clothing, gloves and a respirator; suspend a wire from the ceiling with a hook about waist high, ITS A MUST that no moisture is present or BOOM LEAD EXPLOSION not cool at all.

Pour the lead as soon as it melts into the hole hanging your hook hanger from the wire suspended from the ceiling for support and to keep the hook hanger straight leaving room to fill with your epoxy wood mixture at the top.

Now fill that with epoxy and sand the entire area to your like.

Now the bait has another step that will change the harmonics of the bait and give it some real durability, this is actually the last step in this process and I should be shot for giving up the secret but we need to spread the knowledge around.

I use just Devcon 2 ton for this and the building process if you want to use other stuff for the clear coat that's fine but nothing works like devcon when it comes to the build up.

When the shape is made and your happy with your work mix how ever much you think you need to cover the entire bait, probably 1/2 a tube or so, mix it up good take and equal amount of Denatured Alcohol (CAREFUL HIGHLY FLAMMABLE) and add it to the mix and stir till its all incorporated it will be like water, now brush it on the bait this epoxy will soak into the wood deep, well less for Maple more for ceder it relative to the type of wood and density, keep brushing it on until it wont suck up any more solution.

This is the state the bait will be in for construction till you do the base coat, for the base coat you have everything installed and ready to go, now use the same amount of epoxy as the first coat or a bit more (better to mix to much than have to scramble in the middle for more) mix it thoroughly then add 20% denatured alcohol and mix till incorporated, brush on, this is a helluva base and with a bit of sanding and steel wool you are ready for XIM bonding primer(don't get cheap junk) or foil.

Just to test the difference this makes in the harmonic characteristics of the wood get 2 blanks and tap the one with the first treatment then the one without any treatment its amazing as well as it turns a soft wood into another creature all together.

Paint and cover with anything you want then hook up with a piggy and go fishing.

I hope this helps you maybe even fix a old bait or two, I haven't ever seen a reaction from dissimilar epoxy's but it could be possible so test a small part before you attempt any repairs.

Edited September 10, 2008 by Muskiefool

[hazmail]

muskyfool - thank you for posting this, a great, informative tute. I really do appreciate how much time you must have spent, putting it all together. Thanks again, very nice result too. pete

[woodieb8]

great job john. theres a lotta work into building big baits. your tutorial gives great ideas.

[Wayupnorth36]

Really great, thorough tutorial. Thanks for sharing some of your secrets.

Alex

[MTfishingrods]

Hey Spike, Maybe this one should be added to the tutorials???? Nice Paint job also. kinda Christmasy but yet neat in its own way.

[Snax]

Thanks for sharing! That's what's so great about this site.

[Muskiefool]

Thanks guys, I do feel like a fool for not including the guys here at TU that were very helpful along the way as well, this is the place to go with a question, and I had many and still have more to come.

Thank You.

John