Hunting Cranks Revisited

[mark poulson]

I make PVC cranks for myself.

I have found a reliable way to make cranks that hunt, that veer off direction in an irregular fashion.

The side to side ballast ball method works.

I drill a hole from side to side in the belly of my cranks, just behind the belly hook hanger, and insert a sst ball or two into it.

I drill a counter sink hole of 5/16" first, just past the lure's side, and then my 1/4" thru hole, which I drill half way from each side, following a small pilot thru hole I drill while my black is still rectangular.

Then I press a 5/16" aluminum disc, from a soda or beer can, into one side, glue it in place with brush on crazy glue and accelerator, and then add the ballast ball(s) and press in and glue the sealing disc on the other side.

I have found that the shape of the lure's belly, which limits the amount of side to side travel of the moving ballast ball(s) is critical. I'm still trying to determine what's the ideal distance.

Basically, the ballast moves across the bait's center of gravity, throwing that center first to one side of the bait and then to the other.

So far, the bait that had the most pronounced hunting motion, switching back and forth 2' every 4' of travel, was with 2 1/8"+ bb's that moved only enough to have one bb stay centered, while the outer bb move past the centerline, and then back the other way.

I've tried bigger sst bearings, 3/16" and 15/64", in an effort to see whether one ball can make a bait hunt, and to increase that moving ballast weight.

I've found that the bigger balls do work, but have enough inertia to actually dent the aluminum can discs I use to seal the chamber at each end. That could also be due to the fact that I made those shallow running square bills wider at the belly to give the ballast more travel distance, so the ball(s) build up enough speed to really whack the side discs.

And the bigger, heavier balls seem to add to the Xing of the bait, because my square bills with those balls wobble in a big X motion.

Fortunately, while the discs bulge out from being hit by the moving ballast, they stay glued in place.

I've been able to just add a drop of thick crazy glue back onto the bulged disc to restore the smooth side of the lure. So far, once the aluminum has been bulged out by the ballast, it doesn't bend any more and the lure sides stay smooth.

I think I got carried away with widening the belly to get the most movement possible, and that lets the ballast ball build up a lot of momentum.

I'm still playing around with narrowing the belly to get a single 15/64" ball to just barely move past the centerline, which is what the Strike King KVD squarebill I used as a model does.

I'm hoping to reach a point where the bait moves off line more erratically, but still swims well.

Of course, another variable is how high up from the belly I drill the thru hole, but I'm not ready to tackle that yet. Hahaha

Anyway, this is another fun thing to try.

Like we all need more insanity in our lure making lives!

[BobP]

That's an interesting solution, Mark. An unobtrusive internal mechanism instead of the external ones used on the Wobble Bat (fan shaped external blade) and the "hang a weight on the tail treble" one shown in recent videos from Japan. Thanks for the report!

[bassguy]

I like the concept Mark.

[crankbaits]

Mark,

I think the single large ball is the way to go.I build my baits with a hollow

belly for rattles.Sometimes I use lead shot for the rattle,sometimes a

single large split shot.The baits with the single split shot tend to hunt.

All of my work is free hand so I don't know for sure if it is the large single rattle

or just a fluke.

[mark poulson]

Mark,

I think the single large ball is the way to go.I build my baits with a hollow

belly for rattles.Sometimes I use lead shot for the rattle,sometimes a

single large split shot.The baits with the single split shot tend to hunt.

All of my work is free hand so I don't know for sure if it is the large single rattle

or just a fluke.

I used sst ball bearings because that is what I had, and I never thought about using lead split shots.

That would make a duller rattle, plus it might move more slowly, and enhance the hunting action.

Hmmmm......

[A-Mac]

Very interesting! Thanks for sharing! I'm anxious to try this on some of my resin cranks. Perhaps drilling 2 holes into an angled "V" shape into the bait would still allow the ball to move, but not hit the sides with such momentum. I presume a "U" shape may be even better, but I have no idea how you could drill a curve hole.

However, it sounds like you've got this figured out pretty darn good already!

[hazmail]

Only you would have the time, patience and persistance to try this Mark- I like the two balls with one always off center, great lateral thinking.

Thanks for shareing.

Pete

[diemai]

Interesting concept , Mark , .......if a rattle effect is not that important , you might also use leadballs instead of steel BBs , .........not talking 'bout split shot though , as these are not evenly round , but maybe blackpowder arms ammo in smaller calibers , .....if these should still be too large , maybe round airgun pellets of .177 or .22 cal. ?

The other day I was fortunate to find such leadballs(no firearm or airgun ammo , though)on a local site and ordered for 1 kilogram each in 5,1mm and 7mm dia , ......I need these for my lures holding lengthwise shifting weights for an enhanced casting performance .

You could also enhance the function of these crosswise weight chambers by placing them as far upward towards the back of the lureblank as possible , .......as far as the general shape of it allows for this , off course .

The further upward from the lengthwise center of gravity the ballast is located , the easier it would take the lure out of balance , ...which would be your goal of design , I assume .

For example , ....this way you could use smaller weights still retaining the effect of bigger ones placed lower in the body , I guess .

Good luck , ....cheers , Dieter

[mark poulson]

Pete,

It's good to hear from you again.

I still don't have the persistance to heat bend my lexan bills into the beautiful curves you do, or to come up with the unique painting methods and schemes like you did. I'm still amazed at the lures you make.

I actually have work now, and that seems to stimulate my lure making more than sitting around on my hands.

Funny how that works. Plus having a material that is easy to work and that yields instant gratification makes my lure making spur of the moment ideas easy to execute.

Did I mention I'm lazy? Hahaha

Dieter,

That's interesting. I hadn't considered that higher weights could be lighter and still work.

Thanks for the idea.

I have a gun shop near me. I'll stop and see if they have some lead shot.

Mark

[diemai]

Dieter,

That's interesting. I hadn't considered that higher weights could be lighter and still work.

Thanks for the idea.

I have a gun shop near me. I'll stop and see if they have some lead shot.

Mark

Actually I remembered a 6" balsa blank that had been given to me many years ago , ...mounted a big lip to make up for a deep diver .

That most buoyant thing would not go down too far and popped back up just like a missile launched from a submarine !

Taped a lot of lead ballast to the belly only to find out that the reamaining buoancy was OK , but the lure would not wiggle anymore , just dig straight down .

I remembered to have read , that ballast placed in the back of a lure would enhance the wiggle , ....so , ...in a nutshell , ....after having placed about 1/3 of the entire ballast into the back , it swum very nice , steep and deep dive with a good wobble to it , too !

Remembering this made me to think that ballast placed higher in the body might work on your project as well .

Good luck , Dieter

PS : I did not consider about shotgun shot sold for reloading , ...should be available in different diametres , I suppose .

[nova]

Mark;

You did yourself proud on this one. Take a dollar out of petty cash. lol

[Nathan]

Great stuff Mark..Thanks for posting!...really get a guy thinking..In my case that can be really dangerous !!..Nathan

[mark poulson]

Thanks guys.

Like I said in my first post, I copied the idea from the Strike King KVD square bill.

It is still tricky to get it right, but at least it's not VooDoo any more.

[jakesmith1979z]

Mark thanks for this post! I've been trying several methods that haven't done what I want, but I will try some a version of your method and see how it goes. Good info!

[martbaz]

Awesome mark! Been wanting to try making a hunter for a while this just opens it up!!!

[sammy01007]

Very interesting! Thanks for sharing! I'm anxious to try this on some of my resin cranks. Perhaps drilling 2 holes into an angled "V" shape into the bait would still allow the ball to move, but not hit the sides with such momentum. I presume a "U" shape may be even better, but I have no idea how you could drill a curve hole.

However, it sounds like you've got this figured out pretty darn good already!

A-Mac,

Could you use some of this soft brass tubing and mold pour your resins around it to get your "U" shape?

http://shop.hobbylobby.com/products/soft-bendable-brass-tubes-151977/

Just a thought

[A-Mac]

A-Mac,

Could you use some of this soft brass tubing and mold pour your resins around it to get your "U" shape?

http://shop.hobbylob...s-tubes-151977/

Just a thought

Probably, but I'm not that good! I've had bad luck by over-complicating molds. It seems the simpler I make them, the better the turnout, even if I have to drill a few extra holes. In a couple of swimbaits I tried a brass tube rattle chamber, but between the resin/filler being pretty dense to begin with and the weight of the tube, I had troubles being able to add any weight without sinking the lure like a rock.