mark poulson Posted February 4, 2015 Report Share Posted February 4, 2015 I just posted some pics in the Hard Baits Gallery of a deeper running spybait I made today. I wanted one that got down fast, but wobbled as it fell level. This one does, although it falls slightly nose down. I think, once it has line on the nose, it will fall level. It weighs 3/4 oz. so it should fall fast, and cast like a bullet. Fingers crossed. I really want to share how easy it is to get a bait to wobble, just by moving the ballast up so it's 1/3 above the centerline. Of course, "your results may vary", but it's not that hard, once you commit to playing around with ballast location. I use either 1/4" or 3/16" lead wire for ballasting, so, once I determine how much ballast I need to get the bait to fall at a specific rate, I cut the lead wire to that weight, divide it so it goes into several locations, and measure the length of each piece of wire. I drill holes up from the belly along the centerline until they are deep enough that I can push the ballast wire up 1/3 past the centerline, and that's it. On this bait, I filled the excess hole with paper towel and crazy glue. If I want a really nice finish, I use bondo. Flat sided lure wobble more than rounded baits, I think due to the surfaces involved. Dave, help me out here! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JBlaze Posted February 5, 2015 Report Share Posted February 5, 2015 Just a thought/idea Mark. I know you use a lot of pvc, just wondering if you could fill the excess hole with pvc sawdust from your saw instead of paper towel and drip crazy glue on it. would that work and maybe give a better finish than the towel ? Not criticizing your work, just happen to think of it when I read your post. John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted February 5, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 5, 2015 John, I tried that once, and the sanding dust erupted out of the hole. Scared the crap out of me! Evidently, the crazy glue heats up as it sets, and has some kind of an effect on the PVC sanding dust. I like the paper towel because it's light, and easily mashed into the hole. And it stays put when I drop some crazy glue on it Like I said, when I'm not being lazy and in a rush, I use bondo, and it works great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vodkaman Posted February 5, 2015 Report Share Posted February 5, 2015 (edited) It is an interesting question Mark, the effect of the body cross section shape on the action. If I had a workshop and my tank, I would definitely do a side-by-side experiment for this one. However, I can only theorize for you. If you look at any video of a crank swimming and look closely, you will see that the wiggle action is actually a combination of yaw (side-to-side) and roll. This all makes sense as the forces on the lip are way down below the lures axis. Experiment - hold a crank lightly between finger and thumb at the center and push on the bottom corner of the lip. See how the bait wants to move and how this compares with what is seen on a video. Assume the lip force is the same magnitude and direction on the two test lures. The rounded body is going to permit more of the energy to roll the body, whereas the flat sided body will use more of the energy as yaw. Conclusions - I doubt that the difference will be visible as more or less action, but from a 'head on' shot from my under water video, the difference in roll might have been visible - pity. Certainly that I made for the comparison of square ond round lips, the action looks very side-to-side (yaw), but from 1:30 in the under water sequence, the lure is definitely trying to roll. Try and find a good video of a round bait and see if you notice any difference. Dave Edited February 5, 2015 by Vodkaman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RayburnGuy Posted February 5, 2015 Report Share Posted February 5, 2015 (edited) Hey John, Skeeter was the one that told me about using paper towels to fill a hole and it works great. If you mess up and drill a ballast hole too deep all you have to do is tear off a small piece of paper and stuff it in the bottom of the hole before adding your weight. Then you just test fit the weight to make sure it sets at the level you want. I don't bother gluing the paper in. Once the ballast is set to the appropriate depth I epoxy the weight and paper at the same time. By leaving the epoxy just a wee bit proud of the hole it can be easily sanded flush. Much easier than super glue since the super glue is much harder to sand. Ben Edited February 5, 2015 by RayburnGuy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted February 5, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 5, 2015 Hey John, Skeeter was the one that told me about using paper towels to fill a hole and it works great. If you mess up and drill a ballast hole too deep all you have to do is tear off a small piece of paper and stuff it in the bottom of the hole before adding your weight. Then you just test fit the weight to make sure it sets at the level you want. I don't bother gluing the paper in. Once the ballast is set to the appropriate depth I epoxy the weight and paper at the same time. By leaving the epoxy just a wee bit proud of the hole it can be easily sanded flush. Much easier than super glue since the super glue is much harder to sand. Ben Dang, another "original" idea I guess I stole from someone here! If I have an extra half hour I lock the ballast in with brush-on super glue, and then bondo over the hole. It is much easier to sand, and I use a drop of runny super glue to seal the finished bondo plug before I begin painting, so it is a little stronger. But, like you said Ben, super glue is a bear to sand, so I try not to mound it up, or let it run. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RayburnGuy Posted February 5, 2015 Report Share Posted February 5, 2015 I've just about gotten away from super glue Mark. About all I use it for now is adding a drop under a 3D eye when installing them. And even that's come back to bite me in the rear a couple times when the glue grabbed the eye before it was totally in place. Ben Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JBlaze Posted February 5, 2015 Report Share Posted February 5, 2015 John, I tried that once, and the sanding dust erupted out of the hole. Scared the crap out of me! Evidently, the crazy glue heats up as it sets, and has some kind of an effect on the PVC sanding dust. I like the paper towel because it's light, and easily mashed into the hole. And it stays put when I drop some crazy glue on it Like I said, when I'm not being lazy and in a rush, I use bondo, and it works great. Hey Mark, Thanks for the warning, I have been playing with The PVC trim board off and on for a few years now. This is something I would have done if I screwed up a ballast hole. I don't need this stuff spattering up my glasses, much less getting it in my eyes. A long time go, I had a drop of sweat fall off the end of my nose and into a hot lead pot. It spattered lead everywhere but on me. I was very lucky that I was not burned. But I remember it like it was yesterday and always keep a rag around to wipe my face when it is summer time and I am molding in a non air conditioned garage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JBlaze Posted February 5, 2015 Report Share Posted February 5, 2015 Hey John, Skeeter was the one that told me about using paper towels to fill a hole and it works great. If you mess up and drill a ballast hole too deep all you have to do is tear off a small piece of paper and stuff it in the bottom of the hole before adding your weight. Then you just test fit the weight to make sure it sets at the level you want. I don't bother gluing the paper in. Once the ballast is set to the appropriate depth I epoxy the weight and paper at the same time. By leaving the epoxy just a wee bit proud of the hole it can be easily sanded flush. Much easier than super glue since the super glue is much harder to sand. Ben Thanks Ben, that is a tip That I will remember. John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted February 6, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 6, 2015 Hey Mark, Thanks for the warning, I have been playing with The PVC trim board off and on for a few years now. This is something I would have done if I screwed up a ballast hole. I don't need this stuff spattering up my glasses, much less getting it in my eyes. A long time go, I had a drop of sweat fall off the end of my nose and into a hot lead pot. It spattered lead everywhere but on me. I was very lucky that I was not burned. But I remember it like it was yesterday and always keep a rag around to wipe my face when it is summer time and I am molding in a non air conditioned garage. John, I used to work with a sheet metal guy who had his eyelids soldered shut when a drop of rain water hit a vertical seam he was soldering. They had to cut his eyelashes off to get the solder off. He was lucky. It never reached his eyes, but he had scars on his eyelids for the rest of his life! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
