How To Round The Backs On Baits Help Please

[Rangerboats1]

I have been making lures for about a year and still need help rounding backs and bellies on 1/2 balsa router tearse the wood and hand sand takes to long. i am wanting to produce the baits faster. I thougt of halfing 3/4" pvc and put sand paper inside. it works but still to slow. Any ideas? please help. thanks guys.

[BobP]

Take a look below at the topic "Rounding Crankbait Bodies" and scroll down to the post about the "Aussie Wheel" by Hazmail. It's a custom contoured wheel with sandpaper mounted in a grinder that he uses for rounding over. About the only thing left beyond that is a duplicating lathe, which suppliers of unpainted balsa blanks to online stores like lurepartsonline.com or Janns Netcraft use. Unless you're a "tool freak" or intend to sell crankbaits in volume, the cost of a duplicating lathe may be impractical.

[littleriver]

This is the best and fastest way i know............short of a duplicator.............

http://www.tackleunderground.com/community/topic/22413-hand-carving-your-own-wood-lure/

[mark poulson]

If you're building with a softer wood, a carving knife, or even a sharp exacto knife, should remove enough material quickly to reduce the amount of hand sanding.

I use an oscillating belt sander, which has two different diameter drive wheels at either end, and I can get my lures shaped and rounded pretty quickly with it.

I use a small vibrating sander to do the final smoothing.

I don't worry about exact symmetry. I just check them by eye.

I also don't mass produce lures, or I'd probably make one of Pete's grooved sanding wheels to save time, and increase consistency.

Edited July 1, 2012 by mark poulson