Is Teak Wood Good For Handcarving Lures?

[yetiman08]

i am just starting to research turning my own lures. I have a free supply of teak pieces that i can get started with. Can anyone tell me the pros and cons of teak? what lure types it works best for? etc...i am looking for as much information as i can. anything is greatly appreciated.

[Matt M]

Teak is very hard.

[mark poulson]

I've done cabinetry and mill work with teak in the past, and found it has a couple of issues.

First of all, the saw dust is very allergic, and so is the oil that's transferred to your fingers.

Second, I found I had to wipe down any glue surfaces with alcohol, and then use epoxy to glue the pieces.  Now this was before urethane glues like Gorilla Glue, so it may no longer be necessary.

Last, the same oil that makes teak so durable and water proof makes it very hard to get any kind of finish to stick to it.

Teak is very hard.

 

And heavy.

[BobP]

Teak has a nominal density of 42 lbs/cu ft, which is about twice that of woods typically used for crankbaits like cedar, basswood, etc.  Water has a density of 62.4 lbs/cu ft.  I think you'll find it hard to build a crankbait that won't sink after you add the hardware.  The lighter woods also have a more lively action when used in crankbaits.

 

Compared to the work you put into them, raw materials for crankbaits are dirt cheap.  The wood is only a few pennies worth and it's one of the most important components of a good crankbait, so no, I wouldn't use teak. 

[diemai]

I have made quite a few flat sided sinking glide baits out of teakwood kitchen boards , these worked pretty well .

 

The containing oil can be an issue in terms of glue , paint and topcoat , as Mark had already mentioned , .......but lately I've accidentally found out , that when I'm soaking teakwood blanks in my thinner propionate , the containig acetone seems to wash out a good share of the oil inside of the wood , ..at least the prop had turned to a dark coffee color after a few teak blanks and I've even had the feeling , that the blanks would come out a little lighter  ???

 

Anyway , ..sinking gliders of teak are OK in my opinion , also bigger crankbaits are still manageable(though their action would be somewhat more sluggish compared to more buoyant timbers , also not so many options for adding ballast) , ....for smaller crankbaits or minnow baits or even topwater lures it is not suited at all ,  unless you want to have these sink like bricks . 

 

Greetz , diemai