jtilley Posted January 18, 2011 Report Share Posted January 18, 2011 Ok, I have made some topwater plugs, poppers, zara spook type , and other various creations. Now I'm expermenting with deep divers, and am wondering about the best material to use for making the lips. Also in weighting the lures ...... is it possible to fill the cavities with hot lead, or will I have trouble with the lure busting?? Thanks Jtilley Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danderson Posted January 18, 2011 Report Share Posted January 18, 2011 (edited) Ok, I have made some topwater plugs, poppers, zara spook type , and other various creations. Now I'm expermenting with deep divers, and am wondering about the best material to use for making the lips. Also in weighting the lures ...... is it possible to fill the cavities with hot lead, or will I have trouble with the lure busting?? Thanks Jtilley The consensus for lip material is usually polycarbonate such as lexan or the other is micarta or garolite or circuit board. They are all the same thing. Well the last three are the same thing. It's fiberglass in resin made into sheets. There are different grades of it but they have all been used by builders and seem to work as far as I know. As far as your other question, I pour my baits with hot lead but a lot of guys on here don't like that because they don't feel it is consistent enough. I just mark my bits so that I get it pretty close every time. Either way is fine if it works for you. I have never had a lure bust or anything but you do have to be careful because it will burn the wood a bit depending on what kind of wood you are using. Just my thoughts on it. Edited January 18, 2011 by danderson Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GDille Posted January 18, 2011 Report Share Posted January 18, 2011 For weights, clamp two pieces of oak together and drill a hole centered on the seam. clamp the halves and pour into the hole. then you can trim the weights to you desired size, and have a large quantity poured up for stock. Also you can just use split shot once and pack it into the hole. George Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jtilley Posted January 18, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 18, 2011 Thanks, guys. Also I'm wondering, has anybody ever used lead shot as counterweight?? Another thing, is there any set idea as far as to how much weight = how deep, or is it just trial and error??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobP Posted January 18, 2011 Report Share Posted January 18, 2011 Polycarbonate if you think clear lips are important. Circuit board if you want a lip that rebounds well off of hard cover. You can pour hot lead into cavities in hard wood baits but it's not ideal in any bait and hot lead will char balsa, making for a very weak ballast installation. Epoxying a cold ballast is stronger and more exact. But no, hot lead will not split a wooden bait in my experience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vodkaman Posted January 18, 2011 Report Share Posted January 18, 2011 Another thing, is there any set idea as far as to how much weight = how deep, or is it just trial and error??? The amount of weight has very little to do with how deep the lure will dive, unless of course you add a silly amount. The depth is all about the lip angle and tow eye location. A 90 degree lip will swim on the top, a 0 degree lip will dive. But the eye position on the zero degree lip is critical. There is an optimum position for maximum depth. You can get a clue to the position by going through the gallery and looking what others have done before you, but at the end of the day, you will have to do your own testing to find the 'sweet spot' for your particular lure. Ballast location will play a part, but mainly the lip and tow eye. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rotorhead Posted January 18, 2011 Report Share Posted January 18, 2011 I don't know how many of you guys have used hollow core lead for the weight but I tried it severay years ago and it seems to work well. It can be purchased from Cabelas in different diameters. I like the 1/4 inch and it also has a hole bored thru the center for your hook holder. I use a 1/4 inch forstner bit to drill the hole in the wooden body, fill it with D2T, insert the lead and let it dry. The screw eye will not pull out with a fifty pound weight attached. I have also used stainless steel wire for the hook hanger. Take a piece of stainless wire about two inches long, bend a 180 degree smooth bend in the middle and push it thru the hole in the lead before you insert it in the lure. Leave enough of the eye exposed to attach a split ring. The wires that extend thru the lead bend one to the left and one to the right and cut them off at the side of the lead. Epoxy the weight into the plug body and you are ready. Cheap and quick and works well. Rotorhead Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danderson Posted January 18, 2011 Report Share Posted January 18, 2011 I should have been a little clearer about the hot lead thing. I use thru wire construction on pretty much all of my baits so I don't need to epoxy in the ballast. I would not pour hot lead into the bait if I was using that as an anchor for a screw eye or something like that. Just thought I should clarify. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jtilley Posted January 19, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 19, 2011 Thanks for all the input .... keep it coming ......... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
