Another Another Another Swimbait Page

[jonister]

I hate to start another Swimbait page but all my searches have come up empty in the past hour or so. I'm not saying I didn't get a million more ideas for more lures though!

I'm having some difficulty with my hinge sticking on a large glide bait I have been working on. It is a wooden door frame hinge system. The kind built into the lure, with a pin running down the middle. It swings freely but when it swings as far to one side as it can, it sticks. It is still in the wooden stages so I can modify it however I want. I am not sure if sanding it smooth would help. Right now it has been filed. I might take it down to 2000 grit or something. Any help is welcome, I know there are some swim bait masters on here!

[mark poulson]

It would help if you could post a picture of the bait from the top in the stuck position.

When I've had that happen, it's from a joint that is too tight, and binds when the lure hits the water on a long cast.

[jonister]

I think that was it! Some sanding is all that was needed. It is still trying to bind so I think I will work on it some more. Funny how such a simple fix would cause one so much trouble. These glide/swimbaits are addictive. I'm going to work on the hinge some more tomorrow, then go onto weighting. I'm thinking of weighting it nose up slightly but am not sure. I have never even fished a segmented glider before

Thanks Mark!

Edited March 12, 2016 by jonister

[JRammit]

I havnt built a jointed bait yet, its on the list.... But from the looks, i would think the wood on wood would (that sounds funny if you say it out loud) be causing too much friction

Maybe a coat of epoxy would make 2 hard surfaces and swing more freely... Or even some sort of spacer on the pin between each wood piece

[Vodkaman]

It looks like you have solved your problem.

 

Hinge binding is the biggest problem for this type of bait. Even the most insignificant bind, will stop the bait from working. It is for this reason that I balance my baits so that they float horizontal, to eliminate up/down twisting at the hinge.

 

Dave

[mark poulson]

I use a V shaped joint for my glide baits, because I want the "tabs" on the female side to limit the amount the joint can swing.

For my baits, too much movement in the joint hinders the S shaped retrieve, making it too big for how I want them to glide. 

[jonister]

I'm thinking a good sealer and many coats of epoxy will thicken it at the hinge enough for it to hold up.

Dave, I plan to weight it like that. I never thought about the twisting though!

Mark I have tried the V shape but I never really caught onto it. I might revisit it though, especially if I don't get the right swing I want.

[mark poulson]

I followed Dave's advice, and weighted both sections of my glide bait to fall horizontally, and at the same rate.  That took away any hinge binding, and resulted in a successful build.

Thanks again Dave.

[jonister]

I just did my math to figure out how much lead I will need. I will go for the horizontal sink rate. Thanks again guys!