mark poulson Posted February 18, 2015 Report Share Posted February 18, 2015 Since, for me, this forum is about learning and sharing, I just posted pics. of a 4" rat I made, test swam, and painted yesterday. I hope it helps some of you who still hesitate to make one, because it looks too complicated, to go ahead and take a stab at it. PVC trimboard made it a breeze to build. I'm saying that because I would never have taken the time and effort required to seal and test with wood. I looked at a successful rat on TW, to get the 3/2 ratio of head to tail section, and the rest was just playing with the shape until it looked ratty. I just made a slight V for the joint cut, and then deepened the V on the tail face so it had plenty of room to wiggle. The bait didn't need any ballast. The two trebles, #4 KVD EWG short shanks, and the #4 Spro swivels for hook hangers, plus the lexan bill, were all that was needed. I took it up, unpainted, to my local lake, and threw it a dozen times. It didn't foul once, and it waked really well, with a wide side to side. If I held my rod tip high, it would wake on a fast retrieve without diving at all. Otherwise, it would wake on a med. or slow retrieve, and dive 6" on a fast retrieve. PVC has made the lure building process a joy for me, and I build lures for fun. I hope someone here give it a try. It is a ridiculously easy build. You can PM me if you want more details, but I think I pretty much covered the build in the Gallery description. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ichthus Posted February 18, 2015 Report Share Posted February 18, 2015 Thanks Mark! I'm glad you took the time to post this! It's already got my wheels turning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted February 18, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 18, 2015 (edited) Thanks Mark! I'm glad you took the time to post this! It's already got my wheels turning. Ichthus, I just posted two pics of the finished bait. Lousy pictures, but I hope you can see the 3D eyes. They look really cool in real life. Now, if I can just convince the bass...... I just looked up the definition of Ichthus. I'm glad I didn't call you Icky. Hahaha Edited February 18, 2015 by mark poulson Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cougarftd Posted February 18, 2015 Report Share Posted February 18, 2015 You 'da man! Nice work Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted February 18, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 18, 2015 You 'da man! Nice work Thanks. It was fun to build, and to paint. I hope it's as much fun to fish! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bass100 Posted February 18, 2015 Report Share Posted February 18, 2015 That really turned out great. You nailed it with the eyes, very clever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikePaintsBaits Posted February 19, 2015 Report Share Posted February 19, 2015 Hay Mark I have no clue on how to build a bait , how about gluing some water proof fur on it ? Kinda more life like. My Dumb 2 Cents Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted February 19, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 19, 2015 Hay Mark I have no clue on how to build a bait , how about gluing some water proof fur on it ? Kinda more life like. My Dumb 2 Cents Mike Mike, Nathan is the Fur Master. His rats make my skin crawl, they look so real. I am guessing that it takes a LOT of work to get animal skin/fur to work on a bait, and there is a very steep learning curve. I'll stick with sharpies and paint. At least I know they won't bite me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ichthus Posted February 19, 2015 Report Share Posted February 19, 2015 Icky...hahahahaha! you nailed it on those eyes and ears! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted February 20, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 20, 2015 (edited) Icky...hahahahaha! you nailed it on those eyes and ears! Thanks Ichthus. Glad you can laugh about Icky. Didn't want to step on your toes. I was pretty proud of myself for how the eyes came out. I'd done something similar with some hard body frogs I made, but they didn't bulge anything like these do. I just made another rat, this time in black, with 1/4" diameter eyes, instead of the 3/16" eyes on the grey rat. I'll post a picture tomorrow, after the AC1315 has cured a bit more. Edited February 20, 2015 by mark poulson Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodieb8 Posted February 20, 2015 Report Share Posted February 20, 2015 so cool. as for rats I just set a trap lol. that's an awesome build Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RayburnGuy Posted February 20, 2015 Report Share Posted February 20, 2015 All this talk about rats reminds me of when I was a kid and me and a buddy of mine would go to his granddads barn and have a good old fashioned rat killin'. The danger of swinging machetes, clubs, hatchets, hammers or whatever was available in that small corn crib never once crossed our young minds. Those are some great memories. Ben Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted February 20, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 20, 2015 All this talk about rats reminds me of when I was a kid and me and a buddy of mine would go to his granddads barn and have a good old fashioned rat killin'. The danger of swinging machetes, clubs, hatchets, hammers or whatever was available in that small corn crib never once crossed our young minds. Those are some great memories. Ben Funny how the things we did as kids didn't kill us, but everyone worries about them now. Personally, I think it's because lawyers have figured out a way to sue for everything. We used to go to the swamp, and bring home pollywogs. Because we were dumb, and didn't realize the dirty water held food, we would transfer them to clean water a home, so we could see them grow. I came up with the bright idea of sucking them up with a drinking straw to transfer them. It didn't take me more that two or three swallowed tadpoles to figure out the drawbacks to that method! Hahaha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodieb8 Posted February 20, 2015 Report Share Posted February 20, 2015 mark were you a little froggy the next morning lol..great story 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nathan Posted February 20, 2015 Report Share Posted February 20, 2015 It's a wonder any of us lived through our childhoods..lol..Great Rat Mark..you really nailed the eyes...have you thought about putting a little glow paint over them?...You'd be able to see the bait at night..just follow them eyes!!..Nathan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted February 20, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 20, 2015 (edited) It's a wonder any of us lived through our childhoods..lol..Great Rat Mark..you really nailed the eyes...have you thought about putting a little glow paint over them?...You'd be able to see the bait at night..just follow them eyes!!..Nathan Nathan, You're right, but the truth is life is a lot less dangerous than everyone today believes, or we never would have survived. How did that kind of common sense get so lost on this generation of parents??? The first rat had the red glow powder in the eye socket, but it never really glowed. Red sucks! I'm going to try the white/green glow paint in my next one. That stuff works far better than any of the powders for me. I just posted another 4" rat in the gallery. This one is black, with 1/4" eyes. Edited February 20, 2015 by mark poulson Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nathan Posted February 20, 2015 Report Share Posted February 20, 2015 That Wht/ green paste paint That BobP turned us on to is something else...And your absolutely right about childhood ...common sense has been replaced with litigation..Nathan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted February 20, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 20, 2015 (edited) It is a great paint, no doubt. I put it on a Yozuri trap, over their fire tiger pattern, and caught a 6+ in low light morning conditions. Bob did good! At some point, I hope lawyers figure it out, but I don't hold out much hope. They are so wrapped up in what's legal, they forget what's right. Edited February 20, 2015 by mark poulson Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ichthus Posted February 21, 2015 Report Share Posted February 21, 2015 I just worry that it'll get worse, as I've got a lot of livin left to do. From the looks it might get worse. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted February 23, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 23, 2015 I just worry that it'll get worse, as I've got a lot of livin left to do. From the looks it might get worse. Keep the faith. This country had survived because of the faith of it's people in the system, not because of some sharp lawyer or clever politician. That's why it's so important for young people to become truly informed, so they can make good decisions when they vote. Shari Lewis once told me, when she and I were auditioning architects for her remodel, "Everyone has their own dog and pony show". Of course, she use a show business analogy, but the basic truth is everyone presents their own point of view, in any situation. Be sure and look at all sides before you make up your mind. There is very seldom an issue that doesn't have valid points on both sides, and learning to weigh those points, and make up your mind based on what you think, is what makes an informed person, and a valuable member of society. You don't have to agree with others, but you owe it to them, and to yourself, to be informed before you make up your mind. Sorry for the soap box speech. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nathan Posted February 23, 2015 Report Share Posted February 23, 2015 Well said Mark..Nathan 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ichthus Posted February 23, 2015 Report Share Posted February 23, 2015 Thank you mark. Living in such a mixed area, I really learn to observe the sides before I take one. I've learned to now read both sides of the news and try and figure out what's really happening from a non biased point of view. It's definitely helped me understand a lot more. Sorry for taking this thread on a tangent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted February 24, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 24, 2015 Thank you mark. Living in such a mixed area, I really learn to observe the sides before I take one. I've learned to now read both sides of the news and try and figure out what's really happening from a non biased point of view. It's definitely helped me understand a lot more. Sorry for taking this thread on a tangent. Thanks for sharing what you're thinking. It is how we all learn, and grow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted March 1, 2015 Author Report Share Posted March 1, 2015 I just posted two pictures of two more rats in the HB Gallery. The brown one looks black, but it's not. It's just my poor photography skills. Nathan, I did paint the interior of the 1/4" eye recesses with Bob's green/white glow in the dark paint, and it really does glow! My daughter says it's creepy, and that's a great endorsement. The pictures include a flat sided shad crank with movable ballast that hunts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nathan Posted March 1, 2015 Report Share Posted March 1, 2015 Great looking baits Mark..glad your daughter likes them too !!..lol..Nathan 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
