Another Lure Design With Shifting Internal Weights

[bassthumbs]

Great job! Dieter the Pike in hamburg are lickin there chops!

[diemai]

@ woodenfeather

Nope , .........never cast them , Dan , .......but I'm most confident , that this weight shifting system would provide a couple of yards more , especially with these streamlined plugs .

Gonna paint them thru coming winter , ....hopefully ,...... as from January 1st there is closing time , ....... next predators season over here starts as from May 1st , ....guess I should have the painting done by that time !

@ bassthumbs

Welcome on TU , mate , ..........I hope , that the local pike would ,.......surely won't mind catches getting a bit better next year !

Here is another video that I've done just tonite , ........thought that I would show what I think to be the best way to turn down this kinda plugs .

For the unexperienced I'd strongly advise to make a simple sketch before , especially to determine about the final length of the closure plugs reaching into the cental bore on either end , as one needs enough space to run the eyescrews through without hitting the weight chamber , ......might also become important for the lip slot , depending on the style of lip and/or lure one intends to make .

Thanks a lot for your interest in my work , ........greetz , Dieter

[littleriver]

Really great idea Dieter!

Thank you for sharing. Cant wait to try it.

Also like the look of the lure with the sloped nose. Looking forward to seeing it swim.

Vic

[diemai]

Really great idea Dieter!

Thank you for sharing. Cant wait to try it.

Also like the look of the lure with the sloped nose. Looking forward to seeing it swim.

Vic

Thanks , Vic , ........still have some more ideas to try about different lip configurations on these "Wheightshifter" plugs , ....wanna make some different plug styles to test , amongst these a "Pikie" and a "PN-Kid" , ..........only got two hours time down the workshop each day , so it's gonna take a while for first blank bath tub testing , .....and as far for finally painting them , ........God knows !

greetz , Dieter

[diemai]

It has been one year since my last post in here , .......have fished these lures previously introduced and I'm pretty much convinced about them , ........even though I did not catch a single fish .

One smaller pike took one lure by the head without engaging the belly treble , I could clearly see some marks on the virgin topcoat , ......on another bait I had a fat at least 34inch pike follow right to my feet , sadly this particular lure fell victim to a bottom snag just one hour afterwards .

But my goal of design has really been accomplished , ......due to the shifting internal ballast these lures really cast quite a bit further than plugs of comparable size , .....and being a bank fisherman most likely , I really appreciate this .

During past days and week I've been working on some more versions of these "WeightShifter" timber plugs , and I'm still planning for more after I would have tested these actual ones in the tub , ......maybe still room for more improvements ?

Anyway , .......made a little video clip last night , ....really not saying something new compared to the previous videos made about one year ago , .......but at least I'm displaying some sketches now , probably these might help those folks interested in my design and intending to make their own ?

Off course any upcoming questions will be gladly answered , .........cheers , diemai

PS : By the way , ......"HappyThanksgiving" everybody over there across the Great Pond !

Edited November 22, 2012 by diemai

[numbskull]

Diemai

The action of metal lip swimmers is determined primarily by the lip angles and line tie position. Weighting, buoyancy, and body shape and length are secondary factors.

Try eliminating the screw eye line tie, through drill, and use a wire line tie loop (in a horizontal orientation). Bend the eye up to take your plug deeper, down to take your plug shallower. The location of the line tie slot also makes a difference. High slot lips make a deeper diving tighter wiggle more stable plug. The bend angle of the bottom part of the lip is also a factor. The closer to 90 degrees you get the steeper the dive angle of the plug. Finally the height of the vertical portion of the lip matters. The deeper the diving plane is below the line tie, the deeper your plug will go. Conversely, a low slot lip with a vertical angle of the diving plane closer to 180degrees, and a line tie bent down will keep your plug shallower, and produce a wide wobble, particularly if weighted near the middle.

As for weighting, metal lip swimmers tend to pivot around their center of mass. The closer to the head you make this the more the tail wants to wag, but the more water resistance you need to overcome to do this. For surface swimmers where the tail elevates this is no big deal, but as the plug becomes submerged it takes more lip forces to get a bigger wag.

The key point is that the depth that a metal lip swims at is not very dependent on weight position. It is the line tie and metal lip shape that are more important. Buoyancy is also a factor and weighting your plug so it floats just back out of water is good for plugs you want to get deep, floating level with the midline best for plugs that you want to work on top.

These issues have been worked out by saltwater lure builders over decades. RI popper is probably not your best source. Search for pictures/info on plugs built by Pichney, Musso, or Gibbs. Saltwater plug building sites also have plenty of info. A good one is Striped-Bass dot com.

There is also a site called bassdozer dot com that is semi commercial, but has articles including one on surf "plugology". It is long winded but has loads of picture and info about how various classic wooden metal lips performed. You can learn a lot by examining the pictures.

Good Luck

Edited November 22, 2012 by numbskull

[diemai]

@ numbskull

...............at first , welcome to the TackleUnderground" , ......good to have you here , .......and , .....second , ......thank you so much for your extensive reply , ......your write-up concerning the dynamics of such plugs is most helpful to me , ...and probably would also be to other folks in here , ...THANKS A LOT !

But I must tell you , that I would stick to my screw eyes instead of the thru-wire form , that you've suggested and which is certainly common for American striper lures , ......screw eyes are my only option , if I want to install these shifting weights which generate a better casting performance .

If I'd make simple plugs without , I might do a thru-wire harness , as you've suggested , ...also for testing for different swimming actions by altering toweye position a thru-wire might come in handy .

But for our local pike it's not really neccessary as well-epoxied , stainless screw eyes of 1" (belly) to 1 1/2" (front and rear) are really holding up well , ......I have greatest confidence in these .

But your suggestions are still worth as gold , making my to understand the dynamics of such plugs a lot better and are helpful for my designs , ........and I will definately have a look at the sites that you've mentioned .

I like these easy-built plugs for their kinda simplicity and yet their effectiveness(sooner or later I WILL catch pike on my designs ).

Thanks again , ........tight lines , diemai