Possible To Use A Rubber Collar On Living Rubber?

[dchance]

I have the simple bic pen style skirt tool to make skirts with silicon tabs. I really like using rubber but hand tying can be a pain. has anybody found a speedy way to use the rubber collars on living rubber skirt material?

[Basseducer]

Your pen applicator will work. There are also various skirt tools on the market. Most of the usual suspects carry them.

[Jig Man]

Derek  I use a lot of living rubber.  The collars are a pita so I wire tie them.  It is way easier and actually faster than trying to use a collar. 

 

I was a big collar fan a few years ago.  I got a new Poison Tail mold and bought several hundred silicone tabs.  Needless to say I made way too many jigs in too many colors.  I pulled one of them out this summer and the band broke after a couple of casts.  So I pulled out all of my jig boxes and tied them with wire.  Now they may last as long as I will.

 

Floral wire in 24 ga will work or you can buy copper.

Edited December 9, 2015 by Jig Man

[dchance]

Your pen applicator will work. There are also various skirt tools on the market. Most of the usual suspects carry them.

How do you do that? Will enough rubber fit?

[Walking Dead]

wire tie or use braid/nylon thread.  plenty of youtube vids to show how that is done.  Small Jaw comes to mind.

[smalljaw]

If you want to use living rubber with the skirt collar it is easy to do. Simply measure the length of rubber you want and cut it off the roll. Then you can hold one end of the rubber in a vise or under your foot and stretch it out and cut the strands free. once the strands are free you can put the ends together with a bread tie or a piece of masking tape and stick it in the end of your tool and slide the skirt collar over it. The skirt collars don't hold the rubber tight enough to cut it on the jig.  I hand tie my jigs but I'll often put some strands of rubber in so I'll have to cut the living rubber free and add the strands loose.

[dchance]

I do wire tie. but it is much more time consuming and was curious about using collars for this. This is where the silicon tabs are nice but the living rubber is so much better in the water.

[Basseducer]

dchance,

I said it could be done, I didn't say it would be easy or better than tieing  . I quit usubg the bands early on because they rot off and slide down the hook shaft on hooksets. I tie with nylon upholstery thread and finish the knots with superglue gel.

[Jeff Hahn]

dchance,

I said it could be done, I didn't say it would be easy or better than tieing  . I quit usubg the bands early on because they rot off and slide down the hook shaft on hooksets. I tie with nylon upholstery thread and finish the knots with superglue gel.

I also quit using the rubber bands.  I got sick and tired of them dry rotting and breaking on a cast and seeing the strands of the skirt exploding like fireworks.  The only time I use  them now is when trying out a new skirt color.  Once I decide I like it, a use tying thread and clear fingernail polish to secure the skirt to the head.

[cadman]

How do you do that? Will enough rubber fit?

 

Derek, this is the tool I use when I use thicker skirting material like Starflash  or other skirting material that is not tabbed. The Starflash material comes with a rubber collar, the round silicone comes in a strip.If I want to add some color strands to one of the existing skirts which has loose ends this is what I do. Take all of your loose strands at one end, and tape them all together in a point including the new strands. Now put another rubber collar onto the tool, separate the jaws, stick the taped end into and through the jaws, roll off the first rubber collar, now you have a completed skirt. take your new skirt, slide on a jig, wire tie and roll off the existing collar. Done and simple. I have two of the original tools I bought about 15 years ago and they still work to this day. Here is the link.

 

http://www.skirtmaster.com/SkirtMasterKit.htm

[mark poulson]

I use this tool http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Naked_Bait_Jig_Spinnerbait_Skirt_Expander/descpage-NBSE.html and an O ring to band my skirts.

Once they are banded, I put them onto my jig or spinnerbait, and then use wire to tie them on.  After they're wired on, I remove and reuse the O ring (thank you to whichever TU member suggested this method).

An added bonus from using wire is that, if you leave long enough tag ends when you twist it on, twist them all the way up and orient it so the twisted tail is facing down toward the bottom or underside on the jig or blade, you can fold down the twisted tag ends toward the hook, and it becomes and additional trailer holder.  

I can throw a spinnerbait with a 3" grub as a trailer all day, and only have to fool with it when a fish bites off the tail, or it gets pulled off in the grass.  Same thing with a jig.

Edited December 10, 2015 by mark poulson