hey folks,
let’s move on to the next stage. in this section, we will be:
- adding details to the lures like eye sockets, gills etc
- creating a lip and a lip slot
- adding counterbalancing weights
- constructing & attaching the hook hangars
- primering the lure with paint and strengthening the wood with epoxy
- adding details.
this portion is for cosmetic purposes. there are numerous debates about lure action vs cosmetics, which i am going to avoid here. here, i am going to touch on only 2 aspects; the eye socket and the gill plates. skip this part if u want to and proceed to the next step!
what size of eyes is ur lure going to have? i love big eyes, as i feel eyes are a vital component in my lures. the usual size i use is the size of a paper puncher, for convenience sake. u may make larger eyes if u manage to find the right puncher. (we’ll have Lapala do that for us heheheh). trace the punched out paper onto the lure head, symmetrically on both sides. with the help of a semilunar carving knife, i gouge out the socket. i also use my trusty snapblade to remove some bulk.
the semilunar carving knife
the eye socket
The Lip & Lip Slot
best material to use for the lip is polycarbonate(trade name is Lexan). the topic of lips is a vast one, and we should let our sifu Lapala (hahaha passing the buck to u sifu) have a go at that one. the one i used here is a simple trapezium-shaped one with an upper width of 10mm, a lower width of 15mm, and a length of 2mm.</font id=“purple”>
a diving lip slot is then cut out based on the thickness of the lip material. just make sure the lip slot is cut at an angle u want(~45 degs) for a shallow floating lure, and most importantly, PERPENDICULAR to the long axis of the lure body!! the lip slot is best when it admits the lip snugly.
as shown in the pic, the gill plates were added by removing small amounts of wood, gently. the mouth design has also been added. use a fine 600 grit sandpaper to smoothen it down. i stress that these steps may not be required, except for the diving lip slot.
Weighing the lure:
again, this is a vast topic. here i am using 2X 3gms lead shots. i gouge out 2 holes in the belly to fit the weights in. u can alter the shape of the weights by hammering them on a flat surface. make sure the holes are centrally placed. after inserting the leads, u may check for position of the lure in water to see if it hangs to one side. correct when necessary.
once it is in position, and u are satisfied with it, epoxy it in place with 5 minute epoxy. wait for it to harden and trim off excess epoxy with a snapblade. smoothen it with 600 grit sandpaper.
hook hangars and line tie
the line tie refers to the part where ur mainline/snap is tied to the lure. it is the main anchoring point. the one at the belly and tail is known as the hook hangars which are used to, well, hang hooks.
here i am showing u a simple method. there are many other ways of doing this, such as ‘Through-wiring’ in which the wires that form the line tie & hook hangars are constructed from 1 continuous loop of wire.
using a small diameter screwdriver or drill bit, make a hole of 1.5 inch deep at 3 points: NOSE, BELLY and TAIL!
here, i use SOFT single strand stainless steel wire</font id=“purple”> of size 22. u may use size 18 for bigger lures. bend the wire around the shaft of an appropriate sized screwdriver/nail, and twist to form. trim excess.
callibrate the length of the hook hangars with the pre-drilled holes on the body. after that, twist the wires into the pre-drilled hole as shown (ignore the painted lure!). check for central position of the wires. this is only temporary as we will fix them permanently later on. remove the hangars and set them aside for now.
Primering the wood
this refers to adding the base coat for the wooden lure. COMMOMLY, white paint is used, if u are adding other colors later. it is good to work with. generally, primer paints are used, however rattle-can sprays can be used as well. for simplicity’s sake, i am using black spray-paint.
after u have drilled a hole in the tail of the lure, insert a s/s wire so that u can hold on to it. u may add some twists to the wire before inserting it in. make sure it fits snugly.
now u have a handle to manipulate the lure. using a matte-black spray paint, cover the lure in thin coats, allowing at least 5 mins in between before going onto the next. keep some distance between lure and paint to avoid big clumps of paint. stop when all areas are well covered. now it has been primed. (the idea of using black paint is, the lure will be black and may be used right away. use white if u are intending to perform multiple layers of other colors)
hardening the wood
i solely use devcon 2 tonne epoxy. setting time is roughly 30 minutes. mix them in equal portions for at least 3 minutes before applying with a brush. mix it gently to prevent bubble formations which may blemish the lure finishing. i use a bent wire (bent into ‘L’ shape) to mix my epoxy, and try not to lift the wire up from the epoxy while mixing as it will create bubbles. do not mix with a brush as the bristles will make tiny bubbles. once properly mixed, apply the epoxy with a soft, flat nylon brush.
starting from the head, i slowly apply the epoxy tail-wards. after covering all areas, rotate the lure slowly to prevent clumping of epoxy in one area.
set it aside for at least 8 hrs before working on them again.
that’s it for now…i’m meeting up with yeapwl, defisho, justjobe & the rest for fishing, hahahhahahahhahah…will get back to this tomorro or sunday. until then, i hope u all have been poisoned.
hahahahhahaha
happy luremaking folks!
FiR3 TiG3R®
- U4 2006 - team member of BBOBs (Bersia Band of Brothers) + undercover(probation) Team Longkang Gang
- U5 2007 - Team Longkang Gang
Looooong Live LongKang Gang!
tight lines, bent rods, spitting lures & singing reels…
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