Eyectcher Posted September 20, 2016 Report Share Posted September 20, 2016 Hey guys I have a couple questions I'm getting ready to carve my first balsa wood crankbait so two questions first is I troll Lake Erie a lot for walleye so the crankbaits have to run staight and true now upon thinking about it what makes the crank run straight the eyelet of the lure or is it the lip I know I use one type of plug which I have to tune and I do that by just slightly bending the eyelet and also I am going to pick up balsa wood but I noticed some guys are useing pvc is there a diffrance between the two thank you guys Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobP Posted September 20, 2016 Report Share Posted September 20, 2016 If your bait's body is symmetrical, if the hardware Is installed accurately on the bait's centerline, and if the lip is centered on the bait and is of a design that is correct for the size of the lure and the fore/aft balance, you have a pretty good chance of the bait performing well. My advice is to pick a commercial bait that you admire and copy it as closely as you can. If successful, you can later modify the design to better satisfy your particular performance targets. Balsa is very light and buoyant and tends to make a bait that is very lively. PVC trim board is a little less buoyant but it is waterproof due to its closed cell structure and it is a harder material so requires less reinforcement and waterproofing. It is a great option for someone starting out in bait building since it requires fewer finish steps. Water intrusion kills trolling baits and PVC avoids that issue completely. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SW Lures Posted September 20, 2016 Report Share Posted September 20, 2016 As Bob states if every part of your bait is correct then the eye can be used to correct "side walking". Different size hooks can change the tuning of a bait, this includes for the good or the bad. Lead Dots can do this also. Filing the leading edge of the lip can do this. My point is you can do a lot of corrections to help with tuning. But first learn to make your bait correctly, this may take some trial and errors. Make your tow eye where a grass won't pull it side ways. Like its been stated many times, anything can change the performance of your lure. Good luck, Dale Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gliders Posted September 20, 2016 Report Share Posted September 20, 2016 Bob p. Spot on, symmetry is key. Whatever you take off one side, take off the other side etc. Making template's of top view, bottom view and side view is a good idea, then make templates of where you will remove material.this promotes good symmetry. Also if you decide on balsa you will have to thru wire for hardware , depending on size of lure you might want to consider cedar as an alternative as you can use screw eyes with cedar. Not used p.v.c personaly . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eyectcher Posted September 21, 2016 Author Report Share Posted September 21, 2016 Guys thank you very much for you help I will use all your advise and I'm sure it should work Thanks again Gino Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
