onthewater102

If everyone wants to send them to me along with a prepaid label for a post office small flat-rate box addressed back to themselves I'll sort everything out and get it shipped out the next day after I receive everything - this way we don't need to deal with sending money back and forth too. If this works PM me and I'll get you my mailing info privately.

Dip the eye of the hook in the molten lead and get it hot before you pour the jig. It'll anneal the steel wire enough for you to reform the eye as needed to get the blade on.

One way I've found around this with hooks that tend to rust is to get some black nail polish and paint the shank of the hook that will be buried in the salted plastic before I tie the jig. I'm careful to air out my tackle boxes in front of the dehumidifier in the basement after a trip, so they're not in storage damp. Between the two I haven't had any more issues with gear rusting and it's turned into a lot of $$$ saved over the last few years.

The z-man chatterbait is probably one of the more litigated patents out there, there's a lot of case law on it where they've been very aggressive going after lure makers, to the point they've overstepped their own bounds and ebay caves on it. In one of the biggest cases to date it was noted in the judgement favoring z-man that the hexagonal blade and the direct attachment to the lure body were the key features in identifying their intellectual property - however they recently went after everything on ebay that was a bladed jig, regardless of whether or not they used split ring attachments between the blade and body or if they used a different shaped blade. I'm all for company's owning the rights to their own design, but when they start using their shield as a sword and bully other makers they should lose their patent protection. Your design in the picture above definitely runs afoul of their patent. Here's the link to the bassresource article on the case: https://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_123/z-man-lawsuit-11.html

Technically no (i.e. you're not wrong), but there's only any real risk of getting caught if you're selling them. Plus, there's potential for worthwhile damages to be recovered by pursuing you if you're selling, all they stand to gain by asserting their patent against your personal use is the lost sales for whatever they can somehow prove you made and used personally - hardly worth calling in the bloodsuckers on.

I don't think you're going to get a fish much over 5lbs out of a river because that bulk is drag they have to spend energy constantly fighting the current. I've broken 4lbs but the fish are always very long (21"+) and skinny compared to lake residents. I suppose if you've got a fast water river that dumps into the upstream end of a large reservoir you stand a chance at a 6+ if you found a lake resident that happened to make a run up into the fast water for some reason.

I've made 30+ rods at this point and I'm still searching for that vunder-cure for wraps close to the tip.

Get yourself a pin vise hand drill bit set like this: https://www.amazon.com/Pin-Vise-Precision-Jewelry-0-6-3-0mm/dp/B07FJ6VD2P/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?keywords=hobby+drill&qid=1574872643&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEyNDJUTTI3RzVDWlE4JmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwMTA1MTI0MUdSNkVUQ0FOS1BWVSZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwMzgwODQ2MjFTQk5XV01JVzBGNyZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU= Gives you a lot more control when drilling soft materials so you don't go too far and get into the blank. I use a syringe that I filed the needle tip square. If you want to re-use it be sure to run a healthy amount of alcohol through it to flush out the epoxy. https://www.amazon.com/Pack-Syringe-Applicator-Refilling-Measuring-Dispensing/dp/B07PR27S76/ref=sr_1_2_sspa?keywords=syringe&qid=1574872712&sr=8-2-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEyUFA1V1haNVcxQUpZJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwMjU4NDEzMkRMUklDVlVQUkZWRyZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwNTE5Mzc4MVdVREZVTzVQWU04OSZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=

Mudhole - I really like the LZR series of lightweight guides and the Ringlocks, both come with zirconium insert rings.

What mold is that you're using?

Tying a few hair jigs to get ahead of the rock attrition whenever I finally get back out fishing. I've made several 1/8 jigs using a new (to me) hook I bought in bulk unbranded similar to the owner 5304 only with a 90 degree eye, but it has a much longer hook shank for the 1/0 size compared to the mustad hook I used previously (#32833). I added a bit of bucktail tied onto the shank of the hook below the collar to help conceal it and then built up the body using craft hair atop that - but it got me wondering if anyone's tried mixing body materials I know natural hair (bear/bucktail etc.) seems to be preferred for the real cold, with artificial hair providing marginally more action for when the water is slightly warmer, with marabou/feather material only being used in warmer water when a lot of action is natural - but what about surrounding one material with another to add bulk or restrict movement.

I'll join in if that's ok? 1.Munkin 2.Bluebasser86 3.DomQ - Inline spinners 4.Fishballer06 - Jigs and/or spinnerbaits 5.Davidka5h 6.T.Killian -Jigs and/or Inline Buzzbaits 7.btlyon274 8. Bdnoble -Spinnerbaits and/or HairJigs 9. onthewater102 - chatterbaits

They're a cosmetic item to help make the lure appeal to fisherman so they'll buy them. I only use them on baits I'm selling - my own stuff I don't usually bother. If the fish were that attuned to details in the bait they'd certainly see the huge hook hanging off the backside or the gigantic plastic brush guard and look the other way

If you've found a jig style you like but are turned off because it uses a 90 degree hook you can always modify the mold. It's so easy to change the hook eye position in most molds - as long as the mold doesn't require you to pin the hook eye to keep it clean that is. All you need is a dremel. Of the 20+ molds I have I think only a handful haven't been modified. The extra hook eye positions just fill with a little tab of lead when you pour the jig that you can twist right off. I also mark slots for wires so I can make spinnerbaits with many of my jig molds, though I imagine a tube jig might not be one you'd want to turn into a spinnerbait.

I built mine from a few pieces of PVC. Couldn't have been much more than $20. Same idea as this guy in his youtube video

I only seem to have side profile pictures of bladed jigs I've made using them, though I set the pin so there isn't a detent in the head for the weed guard when I pour them for bladed baits.

There is a company that makes spincast molds for soft plastics - I wonder if they would work on the same turntable setup you've got.

I bought an airbrush on Ebay that I'm able to spray powder paint - so I'm airbrushing & PC at the same time...Saw a youtube video by SmallJaw (I believe) that turned me onto the idea... It's inefficient from a paint-use perspective, but it comes out pretty!

Munkin's right. I've got the 5 cavity mold - makes up to a 5/8 https://www.ebay.com/itm/Freshwater-Flateye-Standup-jig-mold-with-eyes-1-4-5-16-3-8-1-2-5-8-oz-CNC-Bass/113720809319?hash=item1a7a49d767:g:w4YAAOSwzvlW~NjZ Looks like he's got a new one with 4 sizes going up to 3/4 https://www.ebay.com/itm/Freshwater-Flateye-Standup-jig-mold-1-4-3-8-1-2-3-4-oz-CNC-Aluminum/113880216775?hash=item1a83ca34c7:g:R~oAAOSwdU1W~NoJ

I have a drill press and open up the hole size for where the ring attaches to the blade a bit to give it better freedom of movement. Lets me use a heavier split ring. I would think using a oval shaped ring could work too. I found I can bend the eye open far enough on a straight eye hook to slip the blade right in without needing to use a split ring and a flat eyed jighead. You need to anneal the eye first by dipping it in hot lead in your lead pot for 5 or 6 seconds then cleaning it off before you pour the jighead. This will soften the wire material enough that it won't crack when you bend it. This way you can paint the head without the blade in the way and attach the blade later. I use a pair of lineman pliers to bend it.

To achieve a true match to the refraction index of water you need to use fluorocarbon diameters of ~0.008"/.205mm and thinner (7lb test and smaller), thicker than that and the line won't be truly invisible under water, not saying whether it does or doesn't matter to the fish. I think impact on the lure action and durability for your particular application are more important. I always try to get away with the lightest line I can reasonably use for a given situation, but I spool almost every reel with 25lb braid (0.009"/.23mm) and use different leaders based on the lure. As long as my braided line is stronger than the leader the leader remains the weakest point in the connection to the lure. Other than casting umbrella rigs and exceptionally heavy swim baits where shocks from backlashes could break the line I see no point to the super-heavy braids for bass fishing.

Contemplating getting a 6" senko mold, but I've got a choice between a .45" diameter bait (pretty standard size, roughly the same as the Yamamoto ones) measured at the egg sack and a .65" diameter. Works out that the bigger one will likely take more than double the plastic material than the thinner bait for the same length, but while that will definitely displace more water I suspect the extra heft will reduce the fluttering action - so I'm not sure which will have better drawing power. I'm intrigued by the idea of a heftier bait - up north a 6" senko is uncommon - a larger profile still will be even more unique. Wasn't sure if anyone else has tried a more heavy bodied senko compared to one of similar length and compared the actions. Thinking more on the extra mass of the similar sized bait, it might make it easier to skip as it will have more momentum. Flip side, it won't work with my O-Ring tool...

You might be getting an air bubble at the injection inlet end of the senko, causing the tail end to be heavier and lead the fall. Watch when you top the larger cavity that feeds each of the worm cavities, the level of the plastic will fall as it continues to infiltrate the mold cavity. You might need to top it back off with more plastic before the bait cavity draws air into itself.

I've used them on inline spinners and spinnerbaits. They work as they're intended, but make sure you have the open end towards where you tie the line on, otherwise your blades can get kicked off on the cast (learned that the hard way).

I have a mold that makes what you're describing, a skirt with a ring in the center (easily threaded onto a jig) made of soft plastic like any creature bait. Here's a bait I made with the skirting in question attached to the back end of an HD crayfish, but I make the skirt section separate first: Here's another with a ruler in the photo for scale: