mark poulson Posted August 4, 2013 Report Share Posted August 4, 2013 (edited) with an artificial cork, and having time on my hands, is I fool around with stuff. Oh, yeah, the wine is gone, too. That's always a problem. It weighs 6 grams, is finished in nail polish, has doll eyes, and hangs tail down, thanks to .5 grams of lead wire around the rear hook hanger. I cut the foam with a pair of serrated scissors, and melted it kind of smooth with a flat blade on my soldering gun. I used an exacto to hollow out the mouth, and "refine" the shape. Hahaha Front hook hanger is a Spro swivel that the line tie to rear hanger through wire passes through, so it can't pull out. #6 KVD EWG trebles, #4 split rings. Took about an hour, and it was fun to make. I always told my exes that drinking would pay off someday! Edited August 4, 2013 by mark poulson 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EdL Posted August 4, 2013 Report Share Posted August 4, 2013 The wine is ALL gone. That is a problem. Guess you need to get some more cause the poppers will get swallowed and need to be replaced. Now I've got to save the corks and start whittling too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rowhunter Posted August 4, 2013 Report Share Posted August 4, 2013 Most people seem to improve their skills as time goes by. This is a case going the other direction, well at least in the eye's of this builder, the fish may have another opinion. Keep the cork in the bottle untill you have finished , then enjoy your handywork. All in fun Mark, now ,get yourself another bottle of wine! Douglas 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RayburnGuy Posted August 5, 2013 Report Share Posted August 5, 2013 I like it, but it does seem a little small. Your gonna have to get a bigger bottle of wine that has a larger cork. One of those magnum bottles of champagne seems about right. Have fun. Ben 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted August 5, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 5, 2013 (edited) All right, all right, I'll get (and drink) some more wine. Just as an academic exercise, you understand, to see if I can improve on the cork bait with a red instead of a white. I will also investigate the size of corks in larger bottles of wine. Ah, the things I do for science! It doesn't look any better sober. Drat!!! Edited August 5, 2013 by mark poulson 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A-Mac Posted August 5, 2013 Report Share Posted August 5, 2013 Keep this up Mark, you may wind up with your own gallery topic! Hobby knifes and sandpaper are ok, but I stray away from power tools when the PBR case or rum 'n' coke is cracked. I have a 4 beer limit with airbrushing too, otherwise that just gets ugly in a hurry. When clear coating, it seems I need to be sober for 3 days straight to get that right... and then bust out the hard stuff when the paint wrinkles on that "one of a kind" perfect paint scheme. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RayburnGuy Posted August 6, 2013 Report Share Posted August 6, 2013 With all the chemicals we play with who needs alcohol? A little acetone in your orange juice makes for one heckuva cocktail. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diemai Posted August 12, 2013 Report Share Posted August 12, 2013 @ mark poulson Neat job on this one , Mark , ....cork and also artifical cork is not the very best material for subtle carving work , ..but the head cupping with it's sharp ridge turned out perfect , .....great idea about the heat shaping . Though I've quit on booze for a couple of years now , I've still got a small plastic bag full of bottle corks down the workshop , ...my workmates are doing the drinking part for me , ........some day more cork lure ideas would surely pop up , I reckon . greetz , Dieter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted August 12, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 12, 2013 Dieter, I actually don't drink much anymore, either, but my dog died, and it hit me a lot harder than I thought it would. I wound up toasting him one night, and ended up with an artificial cork as a souvenir. I was just messing around in the garage the next day when the popper bug bit me. It's a little light to throw with a baitcaster, but I know it'll cast fine with spinning gear, as long as there's no wind, or I cast down wind. At first I thought it was butt ugly, compared to some of the frogs I usually throw, but then I thought about all the real life frogs I've caught in my life, and it didn't look that different. Anyway, it was fun to make, and it will remind me of my dog Charlie every time I look at it. Take care, Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nathan Posted August 13, 2013 Report Share Posted August 13, 2013 Mark, I'm sorry about the loss of your family member...I know how rough that can be...Nathan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted August 13, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 13, 2013 Thanks Nathan. Charlie started out being my younger daughter's dog, but he wound up being a part of the family. The house seems empty without him. He was a coon hound with big, sad eyes, floppy ears, and a great personality. He is missed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diemai Posted August 13, 2013 Report Share Posted August 13, 2013 @ mark poulson Sorry about the loss of your dog , Mark...I figure out , that it hurts somehow , though I've never been into pets of any kind . So take good care of your lure , surely you might not want to ever lose it ! Greetz , Dieter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted August 13, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 13, 2013 Thanks Dieter. I've had dogs most of my life, and it never gets easier to lose one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RayburnGuy Posted August 13, 2013 Report Share Posted August 13, 2013 Hate to hear the bad news Mark. You can certainly get attached to a pet and when they die it's almost like losing a member of the family. Ben Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bassrecord Posted August 14, 2013 Report Share Posted August 14, 2013 I am truly sorry for your loss Mark, and especially a dog like a coon hound. Will you be getting another? John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted August 14, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 14, 2013 Thanks John. I will be getting another dog, and it will probably be another coon hound. I have a friend who runs a dog rescue, and she gets coon hounds from people who can't keep them any more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bassrecord Posted August 15, 2013 Report Share Posted August 15, 2013 Just the mention of coon hounds brings back memories of young boys and old men around campfires on Fall nights in the Ozarks listening to the hounds run. The boys are quiet listening to the old men yell, cuss and holler about whose dog has picked up the scent - and whose hasn't. Then one of the young men says, "Let's go boys. He's treed." Off go some boys and young men. The old men won't walk up hill, down hill, through briars and buck brush in the dark, just to see somebody shoot a coon. But some might to get a jug full of awfully good corn squeezings <g> Good luck with your hound, Mark. I love working dogs. John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted August 16, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 16, 2013 Thanks again John. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hazmail Posted August 17, 2013 Report Share Posted August 17, 2013 Really sorry to hear about your dog Mark, we certainly do get attached to them--- Make the most of the corks mate, here it's hard to find one anymore, in the past 5 years most wines have gone to screw caps, corks are just about obsolete. Pete Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted August 17, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 17, 2013 (edited) Thanks Pete. I do miss him. I used to buy screw top jugs, but I found myself drinking too much (if that's even possible). At least with corked bottles, I do have to work at it a little. Most medium priced wines here in SoCal have started using the artificial corks, which are rubbery and durable, so they hold up great for poppers. I use through wire, and a swivel for the belly hanger, and I thread the through wired through the top eye on the swivel, so it's never coming out. I took my Charlie popper out with me today, but I never even tied it on. I think it's going on a shelf over my computer monitor in my office. Edited August 17, 2013 by mark poulson Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...