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Pine Wood

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Pine can be carved, it just needs more care and thought than with other woods. It has a tough grain spaced by softer wood.

 

The density of pine varies depending on type and cut. It would be worth measuring and weighing a piece, to find what density you have:

 

Density = weight (grams) / volume (cm3).

 

Once you know the density, you can do a Google search on 'wood density' and compare the wood with other timbers and understand what you have to work with.

 

Dave

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Pine varies in average density from 22 to 34 lbs/sq ft.  Eastern White Pine is the least dense, comparable to basswood at 23 lbs/sq ft.  The problem you may run into with scrap lumber is the moisture content may vary greatly, which can make big differences in the density of the wood.  Pine also tends to have more grain structure than other woods of similar density, like basswood or white cedar.  My opinion is that it is not ideal for crankbaits, but neither is it a waste of time.  To me, the cost of the wood for a crankbait is usually only a few pennies so you might as well go with the best you can get.  That said, if the pine from your shop looks good and shapes/sands OK, there's no reason not to try some and see how it works for you.  It's all about the end result and how it performs in crankbaits.

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One of my most successful Lunker Punker-type surface glide baits was made from some old pine I had in my garage.  It was very dry, and had pretty even grain.  I had to laminate two pieces of 1X together to get a blank thick and tall enough for what I wanted to make, but it worked really well.  It was very light and buoyant, and held my screw eye hardware just fine.

Best part is it smelled great while I was working with it.

Having said all that, pine has a lot of sap/pitch, so it doesn't take heat without bubbling.  

I painted my pine glide bait with solvent based rattle can paints, so it wasn't an issue.  I never had to heat set my paint.

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I carve with lots of stuff,white pine, red cedar, regular cedar, white cedar, balsa, basswood. I'm even drying some juniper for carving. As long as you let it sit and dry for a good while, it should work great. I enjoy pine. It seems to be a little harder than cedar. I would defiantly give it a try. Good luck, and remember, it's all practice no matter what.

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I am with BobP again on this one...not ideal.  

 

Where have you looked for basswood at?  You guys grow plenty of it in your state.   :wink:    Worst case scenario go get ripped off at Michael's , Hobby Lobby, or Menard's.  I find it on Craigslist frequently when looking for wood and of course plenty of places to buy online.  You can order it from Rockler now (free shipping) and get 20lb box of various 3/4 t hick and up carving stock for 32 bucks.  Local mill is where I would go if looking for some.  I think 1.50 a board foot isn't too hard to find typically.   

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i have a local mill right down the road ..ill try him this week end ..i layed some good pcs of pine on the return air furnance part to see if they will dry more..hobby lobby 25 miles away but didnt know they had basswood..also have a home depot local but the guys dont know what bass wood was and i didnt want to walk around looking...I have a bag of balsa I bought at michaels 15.99 for a few blocks of it maybe 10...but good pcs....thanks for the help.....and mark my whopper ploppers came in..lol...no ice so I had to go down to the lake with it.....cant wait till spring  what a bass bait that thing is....thanks for the tip on that lure..i got 2 because you just never have enough ....4 totes, bass boat filled, 15 rods later...all for a few smallies and largemouths...lol....pike ,muskies .crappies........ect.....

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I use pine, but I'm very careful about moisture. Just picking it up from a work site will get you in trouble in time. That stuff is shipped in anyway, uncovered or whatever. I agree with the others. Pine is hard to work with at times. It tends to break out around hard grains, which took me to using files. Not much troubles now, except for making a starter hole with a awl near the hard grain.

I'm working with poplar now, a little easier considering its a hard wood. I'm using it for musky baits. Creating them for a friend. Yep the soft woods are easier to work with. Good for fish with sand paper teeth.

Honestly I have gotten use to working with these woods.

Dale

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thanks dale ..im looking to make some muskie baits to...with lk.st. clair down the road a few miles why not....we got into them mid summer and been dieing toget back out there ..but hell muskie bait drain your wallet quick like......picking up a used wood lathe so that should help out....just got to get into the painting part...but cant go wrong with black and white....minnow combo...we got them on f-18 rapalas so that shoulded be to hard to copy..just wanting something bigger...

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Pike and muskys should love the Whopper Plopper, too, so upgrade the hooks to at least 2X Mustads, and use heavy braid.  You might even have to use a short wire leader, in case a really big fish just swallow the bait whole.

I've never fished for either pike or muskys, but they look like freshwater barracudas, and I've caught lots of them.  Their teeth scratch steel jigs, so I'm guessing pike and muskys will do the same.  Their teeth look just as lethal.

I hope you get blown up, big time!  All the takes I've had on the Plopper, bass to 6lbs and stripers to 10lbs, were explosive, like they were pissed at the bait.  

Good luck.

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what happens with our toothy critters is normally in the net. the torque created creates havoc. pine and screws don't play well. if a screw loosens it doent re-tighten well. ,and hold. for fish without teeth in warmer climates I would not hesitate. just muskies are extreme gators . can. record 65lbs.

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what happens with our toothy critters is normally in the net. the torque created creates havoc. pine and screws don't play well. if a screw loosens it doent re-tighten well. ,and hold. for fish without teeth in warmer climates I would not hesitate. just muskies are extreme gators . can. record 65lbs.

Through wire and fiberglass!

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