RAVEN Posted April 9, 2017 Report Share Posted April 9, 2017 I want to make musky lures. I have made molds for 6 & 8" shad. Any help telling me how do I get the wire form through the plastic. I would like the wire to go from the head to the belly, also down to the front fins. Had a thought about making the form and putting it in the mold. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Landry Posted April 9, 2017 Report Share Posted April 9, 2017 I make my lead and wire inserts and then position them in the mold and pour. I also use bondcoat from lureworks on the wire and lead and it binds to the plastic. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Landry Posted April 9, 2017 Report Share Posted April 9, 2017 I use this method with top pour and two part molds for swimbaits and dawg style baits 9"-20", 4-10 fluid ounces of plastisol. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fshng2 Posted April 10, 2017 Report Share Posted April 10, 2017 18 hours ago, RAVEN said: I want to make musky lures. I have made molds for 6 & 8" shad. Any help telling me how do I get the wire form through the plastic. I would like the wire to go from the head to the belly, also down to the front fins. Had a thought about making the form and putting it in the mold. I make some wood saltwater thru wire plugs. Tip: For these I have found Annealed 304 Stainless Steel wire to work well as it is easier to bend. I have tried hard SS and while it works it is considerably harder to bend especially for tail wraps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fshng2 Posted April 10, 2017 Report Share Posted April 10, 2017 Stainless Wire Form Watch Paul Adams's videoMaking A Weight Shift Balsa Fishing Lure Part 1. https://youtu.be/1ZBJLt1Rm0Y He shows hand bending the wire. ( 520 on the video) If your planning to make a bunch of lures, a jig can be made. Simply drill holes to accept metal pins in a metal or hardwood block at the proper locations and bend metal around them. Bolts and nails can be used to make pins. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Landry Posted April 11, 2017 Report Share Posted April 11, 2017 I made a jig for each of my baits too. That way each form comes out the same. I have premade wire and lead inserts in three styles - ready for when I feel like pouring Baits. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anglinarcher Posted April 11, 2017 Report Share Posted April 11, 2017 On 4/9/2017 at 3:15 PM, RAVEN said: I want to make musky lures. I have made molds for 6 & 8" shad. Any help telling me how do I get the wire form through the plastic. I would like the wire to go from the head to the belly, also down to the front fins. Had a thought about making the form and putting it in the mold. It might be fun to try to split the poured bait, inbed the wire, then glue it back together, but....... Best to do as implied above; modify your mold to accept the wire and pour as one piece. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RAVEN Posted April 11, 2017 Author Report Share Posted April 11, 2017 14 hours ago, Landry said: I made a jig for each of my baits too. That way each form comes out the same. I have premade wire and lead inserts in three styles - ready for when I feel like pouring Baits. Could you send me a couple pictures, so I got a idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anglinarcher Posted April 11, 2017 Report Share Posted April 11, 2017 http://www.makelure.com/store/pg/54-How-To-Videos.aspx#prettyPhoto/119/ See about 45 seconds into the video for a simple explanation Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fshng2 Posted April 12, 2017 Report Share Posted April 12, 2017 Landry nice work. How well does moldmax 60 silicon hold up to molding lead as you have done? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Landry Posted April 12, 2017 Report Share Posted April 12, 2017 I have done 30 in one of them and it is still fine. I am expecting it to be ok. I will eventually move to a two part aluminum mold once I am 100% happy with my harnesses. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted April 12, 2017 Report Share Posted April 12, 2017 13 hours ago, Landry said: I have done 30 in one of them and it is still fine. I am expecting it to be ok. I will eventually move to a two part aluminum mold once I am 100% happy with my harnesses. What wire do you use? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Landry Posted April 12, 2017 Report Share Posted April 12, 2017 .062 stainless spring wire. It ain't easy to bend but it's necessary for musky. I have also started to use Lureworks bondcoat on the harnesses to grip the plastic and really like that stuff a lot. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fshng2 Posted April 12, 2017 Report Share Posted April 12, 2017 5 minutes ago, Landry said: .062 stainless spring wire. It ain't easy to bend but it's necessary for musky. I have also started to use Lureworks bondcoat on the harnesses to grip the plastic and really like that stuff a lot. .062 Annealed 304 Stainless Steel wire is easier to bend and works well for toothy critters. I have tried hard SS and while it works it is considerably harder to bend. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Landry Posted April 12, 2017 Report Share Posted April 12, 2017 I like the stiffness when they r done but not so much while bending. I think a stiffer wire is better in a soft bait. Hard bait would t matter as much. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted April 12, 2017 Report Share Posted April 12, 2017 Landry, You Dah Man!!! I've used .062 for the shaft on some Whopper Ploppers I built. They were the 12" wires from LPO with one end already having a loop. It was a nightmare for me to bend the tail loop after I'd assembled them. I finally had to put the second loop in a vise so I could barrel wrap back from it with a pair of channel locks. I want back to the .052 wire because of that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Landry Posted April 13, 2017 Report Share Posted April 13, 2017 Hahaha. ^^^^^ its not too bad in the boards I made. I made a a device to twist a loop too cause that was TOUGH to do. Bending open loops or 180* turns is not too bad. I need to over bend it a bit as it springs back which makes it a little more finicky. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XCfranko Posted April 11, 2018 Report Share Posted April 11, 2018 Hey folks, I recently started using the silicon mold for one of my more succesfull resin body lure to make soft plastic baits that are killing in the Gulf of Mexico with trout , redfish and flounder. I made a video of how I developed the wire harness for it and a video on the wire bending tool and jig I designed. I'll post them here ...hope it helps someone. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Apdriver Posted April 14, 2018 Report Share Posted April 14, 2018 Thanks for sharing your techniques, thoughts and design of your bait. Very, very interesting from an engineering standpoint. I also enjoyed seeing how you worked the stainless with your jig to make the homemade harnesses. Great instructional technique and I appreciate the time and effort in its making. Two thumbs up!!! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FishCandy Posted April 15, 2018 Report Share Posted April 15, 2018 Thanks for the videos. How things are made often interests me more than the things, themselves. The soft bait version may also tempt the stripers up here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XCfranko Posted April 15, 2018 Report Share Posted April 15, 2018 Well, I really appreciate the positive feedback. I'm really enjoying making those videos and any suggestions would be appreciated. If you enjoy the videos please be sure to share them with your fishing and lure making buddies, and please subscribe. I don't sell anything and I don't promote any products, I just explore techniques and materials for lure making. Thanks again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tubeman Posted June 12, 2018 Report Share Posted June 12, 2018 I haven't posted TU in a long time but I saw this post and had to put in my two cents. I have always used wire bender in the pictures below. It's designed for .051 wire but I used a dremel tool with a cut off wheel and opened up both dies enough to fit in the .062. I can bend .062 all day long with this set up, it wraps really well. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aulrich Posted June 13, 2018 Report Share Posted June 13, 2018 Or you don't go internal at all, lots of the European pike fisherman run external and just to do the math the lure he is rigging is just about 16" so it's muskie sized 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Landry Posted June 14, 2018 Report Share Posted June 14, 2018 I think external rigs are lame. Most musky guys would agree 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted June 14, 2018 Report Share Posted June 14, 2018 22 minutes ago, Landry said: I think external rigs are lame. Most musky guys would agree If it works for them that's all that really matters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
