mark poulson Posted February 4, 2017 Report Share Posted February 4, 2017 I posted some photos of my copy of the Luhr Jenson speed trap in the hard baits gallery. They work. You have to be careful to follow the shape of the original closely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted February 4, 2017 Author Report Share Posted February 4, 2017 Sorry for the duplicate post. I don't know how to delete it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobP Posted February 4, 2017 Report Share Posted February 4, 2017 That's a very faithful looking copy Mark. Speedtraps are very popular here in the SE. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted February 4, 2017 Author Report Share Posted February 4, 2017 10 hours ago, BobP said: That's a very faithful looking copy Mark. Speedtraps are very popular here in the SE. Thanks Bob. Since the originals are hollow plastic, there was a learning curve for my using PVC trimboard, but a combination of really following all the shaping details, plus adding a 1 gram (2 sst bb) rattle in the right place has produced a bait that swims with a fast, medium Xing that is stable even when I burn it. I can't wait for the water to clear and warm, so I can burn it over the grass. Once I got it figured out, I got cocky and made one from the med balsa that Ben sent me. Wow, what a difference! It is so lively I had to add additional ballast to the belly hanger just to get it to run right. I'm still playing with it to get it more stable at high speeds. Of course, today's project is another one in balsa, but with rattles, to see if that makes it more stable, as soon as it warms up enough to make the trek down to my garage. Hahaha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted February 8, 2017 Author Report Share Posted February 8, 2017 I was able to make one out of balsa with rattles that has a tight wiggle and is stable no matter how fast I retrieve it. Putting the rattles was not hard at all, and seems to make the bait more stable. For a silent bait, I would just glue the rattles so they don't move, but in the same location. Basically, I followed the same design and ballasting as in the design I posted, but used (2) bb's for the rattle that weighed .7 grams total. And I made the bait only 1" tall, because I laminated (2) 1/2" pieces of balsa to make it. I kept the bottom profile the same, and took the 1/8" off the top of the original design, just shallowing and smoothing the curve of the back a little. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pingman08 Posted February 9, 2017 Report Share Posted February 9, 2017 (edited) Mark are you thinking about selling these? I've been trying to find a speed trap in balsa. Or does anyone you know sell a wooden version. Thanks Edited February 9, 2017 by Pingman08 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted February 9, 2017 Author Report Share Posted February 9, 2017 16 minutes ago, Pingman08 said: Mark are you thinking about selling these? I've been trying to find a seed trap in balsa. Or does anyone you know sell a wooden version. Thanks No, I'm not going to sell them, and I don't know of anyone else making them. But you can make your own easily from the plans I posted in the hard baits gallery. I included the link at the top of this thread. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stumpjumper16 Posted February 12, 2017 Report Share Posted February 12, 2017 Mark, I saw the pics and have a question about the way you placed your hook hangers. Did you place them out of preference or is there more room for error in getting the bait to track correctly? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted February 12, 2017 Author Report Share Posted February 12, 2017 I used a actual Speed Trap to locate both my belly hanger and my bill, and the bill angle and size. The closer to the original you can get your bait, the better it will run. I am not proud. I used the hard work of the original bait designers as a template, first. Then, as I tried different copies, I learned what made that particular part of the design work. For instance, the triangular head and front shoulders of the original is what makes it so stable even when it's burned on the retrieve, but it took me four versions to figure that out. I wasn't sharp enough to pick up on that at first. Same with the tail shape and taper, and how the bait is shaped like and arrow head, with the widest part back past the mid point. Because I was building solid PVC and balsa baits, instead of a hollow plastic bait, I had to figure out both the amount of ballast, and the moving rattle ballast location and amount on my own, but I had already learned roughly the right placement from previous cranks I'd made with the same rattle setup. The Speed Trap is a crank in which each little detail truly serves a purpose. I bet the little wrinkle at the top of the tail probably does something, too, but I'm not smart enough to figure that one out. Those guys at Luhr Jensen really nailed it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SW Lures Posted February 12, 2017 Report Share Posted February 12, 2017 Luhr Henson has a few nice baits Mark. I love a Woodchopper that I have but it's a tad bit wore out (tape liner/cover). I'm gonna re-work it. Looks nice buddy, I may borrow it. I'll do it in poplar. Dale Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
