Hillbilly voodoo Posted January 11, 2020 Report Share Posted January 11, 2020 Because I have never really been a top water lure fishermen I have not bothered building a top water. So this winter my goal is the build a top water pike lure After digging into things I am likeing the idea of a surface paddler style bait. They are similar to a jitterbug and give off a lot of commotion. They are not common in North America but seem to be a go to surface bait in Australia. Not looking to mimic a bait but instead build my own in this style Anyone have experience with surface paddlers? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted January 11, 2020 Report Share Posted January 11, 2020 Do you have any pictures of the type of baits you're talking about? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hillbilly voodoo Posted January 11, 2020 Author Report Share Posted January 11, 2020 This is one style but they can be solid or multiple joints. Body shape vary from bait fish, frogs, lizard, birds and whatever else you can think of Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hillbilly voodoo Posted January 11, 2020 Author Report Share Posted January 11, 2020 Also seen a large variety of bibs on the front Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted January 11, 2020 Report Share Posted January 11, 2020 The only lure I've ever fished with that type of bib is a jitterbug. https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/searchresults.html#search=products&searchtext=jitterbug&opt_page=1&opt_sort=alphaAtoZ&opt_perpage=20 I know there are also mid-bait winged lures that walk along the surface on the retrieve. Here's one that I've fished: https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Jackall_Pompadour_Walking_Bait/descpage-JPOMP.html There are others on the TW website, but I've never tried to make one. I've caught small bass with them in the spring, but nothing big, so far. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hillbilly voodoo Posted January 11, 2020 Author Report Share Posted January 11, 2020 Do you have any experience building this style of bait Mark? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted January 11, 2020 Report Share Posted January 11, 2020 3 minutes ago, Hillbilly voodoo said: Do you have any experience building this style of bait Mark? No, I haven't tried yet. If I had stuck a 5 on one, you can bet I'd be all over it, but that hasn't happened yet. The basic shapes are pretty simple, and the hardware is available, so I'm sure it's doable. https://www.lurepartsonline.com/Lure-Making/Shop-By-Product-Category/Crankbaits-Plugs-Hardware/Plug-Hardware/Lure-Lips?page=1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hillbilly voodoo Posted January 11, 2020 Author Report Share Posted January 11, 2020 9 minutes ago, mark poulson said: No, I haven't tried yet. If I had stuck a 5 on one, you can bet I'd be all over it, but that hasn't happened yet. The basic shapes are pretty simple, and the hardware is available, so I'm sure it's doable. https://www.lurepartsonline.com/Lure-Making/Shop-By-Product-Category/Crankbaits-Plugs-Hardware/Plug-Hardware/Lure-Lips?page=1 with what I have in mind I will be bending lexan but not worried hardware wise. Basically I am looking to apply the principals to my own variant Do you happen to know if they float level or slightly nose down? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted January 11, 2020 Report Share Posted January 11, 2020 1 minute ago, Hillbilly voodoo said: with what I have in mind I will be bending lexan but not worried hardware wise. Basically I am looking to apply the principals to my own variant Do you happen to know if they float level or slightly nose down? It's been a while since I threw one, but I'm guessing they'd sit pretty level, or slightly tail down, since pulling on the line would make the nose dive a little anyway. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hillbilly voodoo Posted January 11, 2020 Author Report Share Posted January 11, 2020 Thanks Mark it’s something to start with at least Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
azsouth Posted January 11, 2020 Report Share Posted January 11, 2020 The bait on the right has waddle type action that wakes, same principal of a jitterbug but on steroids. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hillbilly voodoo Posted January 11, 2020 Author Report Share Posted January 11, 2020 The style I am learning towards has a bigger lexan wing but your lure is closer to what I am learning towards then the jitterbug The surface paddlers I am going to biase this off of are the ones used for Murray cod and give a more aggressive wake then a jitterbug as well if one of the Australian lure builders finds this post they will likely know what I am learning towards Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JD_mudbug Posted January 12, 2020 Report Share Posted January 12, 2020 I have an Arbogast musky jitterbug, the Jitterbug XL. I put it in a pan filled with water. It sits slightly nose down. The body is approximately a 1" diameter near the head. It does not start to narrow much until the last third of the body. It tapers down to around 3/8" at the end. It is 4 and 1/2" long. It does not feel like any weight is in the body. It might have a small belly or tail weight but I couldn't tell. It does have two trebles mounted mid-bait, one on each side which may negate the need for weight. It just looks like the wider body up front offsets the weight of the metal lip. I made a creeper type lure inspired by Dieter. It's like a bigger version of the Pompadour without the tail spinner. I bought the large creeper wings from LPO. Dieter's creeper is a work of art. He has some still shots in his video of the lure before it is painted showing the design: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9H3hQGIWwAg I have caught a couple of largemouth and 1 pike on my creeper so far, nothing big. It looks like a tiny person swimming. I have tried to make my own multi-section jitterbug type lure with a lexan lip, but it did not work. It only has a slight wobble when it sits close to flat. Still experimenting with different lip shapes and angles. I use a heat gun and sheet metal bending pliers to bend the lexan. I think my bait at 9" may be too long for a jitterburg type lip. I have also made a globe type lure. It's not really a paddler, more of a churner, sort of like a boat propellor, but it makes a heck of racket on surface. It's more of an old-school type lure, overlooked in the current whopper plopper era. It has a different action with the churning in the front 1/4 of the bait. My lure does work action-wise, but no fish yet. I used a piece of lexan to make blade/wing part. The original used metal. I thought the globe was much easier to make than a jittergbug type lure. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted January 12, 2020 Report Share Posted January 12, 2020 Thank you so much for sharing Dieter's video. I have missed his voice, and his lure making skills. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JD_mudbug Posted January 12, 2020 Report Share Posted January 12, 2020 You're welcome. The thanks really go to Dieter. The wings on Dieter's creeper are amazing. A lot of work went into those. I haven't seen him post anything recently. I find myself re-watching his old videos for motivation to make a new lure. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted January 12, 2020 Report Share Posted January 12, 2020 I subscribed to his You Tube channel (thanks to the link you posted), so, hopefully, I'll get to see and here him more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hillbilly voodoo Posted January 12, 2020 Author Report Share Posted January 12, 2020 @JD_mudbug My plan is a single joint Lexan wing bait between 5-6” to start and if I like the results make a larger one. You mentioned you have be working on a large multi bait version jitterbug. Are you going with a cupped jitterbug style wing or more like the wing style used on Murray cod paddlers?. The Cod paddlers are common in multiple joints and large so definitely worth looking at if you have not all ready That crawler is definitely interesting and may have to attempt one in the future 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JD_mudbug Posted January 12, 2020 Report Share Posted January 12, 2020 I made my jitterbug type lure with the Murray cod type lip. I haven't figured out a good way to make uniform curves in lexan. I might just have to get some heavy gloves and bend heated lexan around a pipe. I did try a cupped lip on my bait by using a big suction cup hanger and carving it into a jitterbug shape. One of these things: I took off the metal hook, carved some off the top and bottom into jitterbug-lip shape with a razor knife, drilled a hole through the center and mounted it to the bait with an eye screw. This did give my bait some action. I get some action at the head of the lure. The action gets less going back. The tail section doesn't move at all. I think your on the right path with your lure size and one joint. I should have started there or even just a non-jointed one at first to get the lip size to body ratio correct. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted January 12, 2020 Report Share Posted January 12, 2020 19 minutes ago, JD_mudbug said: I made my jitterbug type lure with the Murray cod type lip. I haven't figured out a good way to make uniform curves in lexan. I might just have to get some heavy gloves and bend heated lexan around a pipe. I did try a cupped lip on my bait by using a big suction cup hanger and carving it into a jitterbug shape. One of these things: I took off the metal hook, carved some off the top and bottom into jitterbug-lip shape with a razor knife, drilled a hole through the center and mounted it to the bait with an eye screw. This did give my bait some action. I get some action at the head of the lure. The action gets less going back. The tail section doesn't move at all. I think your on the right path with your lure size and one joint. I should have started there or even just a non-jointed one at first to get the lip size to body ratio correct. Clever idea! Bub Tosh sells something similar he calls the Nose Job, that goes in front of swimbaits to impart a more erratic action. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JD_mudbug Posted January 12, 2020 Report Share Posted January 12, 2020 I got the idea from that. I ordered a pack of Nose Jobs from TW to try. Shortly, after I received them I was in the hardware store in the picture hanging hardware aisle. Saw a big 3" diameter suction cup hanger and had deja vu. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hillbilly voodoo Posted January 12, 2020 Author Report Share Posted January 12, 2020 Roughed out the body and will rasp/sand it into shape today so I will see it starts with success or frustration soon enough lol. @JD_mudbug I have found a wide variety of Murray cod style wings that I should be able to make without getting fancy. I have a plan if I need to resort to a curved wing. Talking to a friend who has bent lexan by heating it in boiling water and clamping it in a mold I am going to try this if needed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hillbilly voodoo Posted January 12, 2020 Author Report Share Posted January 12, 2020 Thinking I will go without the joint on this one to test things out Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted January 12, 2020 Report Share Posted January 12, 2020 I've bent Lexan over a wood form, using a heat gun. Just take your time, or you can scorch the Lexan, and it will discolor and become brittle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hillbilly voodoo Posted January 12, 2020 Author Report Share Posted January 12, 2020 1 minute ago, mark poulson said: I've bent Lexan over a wood form, using a heat gun. Just take your time, or you can scorch the Lexan, and it will discolor and become brittle. Sadly I will need to buy a new heat gun if I have to go this route since mine did not make it in my move to my new place Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted January 12, 2020 Report Share Posted January 12, 2020 1 minute ago, Hillbilly voodoo said: Sadly I will need to buy a new heat gun if I have to go this route since mine did not make it in my move to my new place For me, it was so much simpler than boiling, and easier to control. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
