Fishwhittler

Whoa, I didn't say six feet! That bait only goes down six inches at the deepest when you use the top line tie. There's just no way to get a bait that size with that bill angle to run six feet deep, no matter where you put the line tie.

It's not difficult; if you put the hardware in straight there isn't much to adjust. I only had to make tiny adjustments to get both of the line tie's running straight. Now on my earlier baits, I had a ton of problems. That was due in a large part to me not putting the hardware in straight. Now that I've been building baits for a few years I very rarely have a bait that won't run straight. Using PVC has made it easier, because I don't have to contend with the woodgrain while I'm drilling holes.

The weight isn't an issue for me; my old reel weighs 14 1/2 ounces, so the Regal will only be another 1/2 ounce. snoopy2, I've heard that the Cabela's reels are just rebranded Daiwa's. Are you saying the Prodigy is smoother than the Tierra, or the Regal? The Regal has more bearings so I'd think it would be smoother than the Prodigy.

Two different actions. When you use the top line tie, the bait has a tighter action and will dive down to 6". The lower line tie gives a much wider action, and the bait doesn't dive at all.

I'm looking for a new reel (my old one's just about had it), and I'm considering getting a Daiwa Regal 3500XiA or 4000XiA. Is this a good reel for the price? I'm on a low budget, and this reel looks like it would fit my style of fishing pretty well. I noticed the reviews are pretty good on the Cabela's website, but I'd like to get some more feedback. Thanks in advance. Ben

Just some variations on my B51-S crankbait. The chartreuse bluegill suspends almost perfectly, although after about five seconds it starts to sink very slowly. Let me know what you think. Ben

Big_Bass_Man1, I've got a filter already mounted on my compressor, but I'm getting condensation inside the air hose so I need to get another filter to install in the air hose close to the airbrush. What airbrush are you using? I have a Master G22, and I'm not sure that filter would fit my airbrush. Thanks! Ben

Thanks! I'll certainly give your suggestions a try. Drilling holes in the blade would be the easiest, so I'll probably try that first and see if it works. I tested it with a 4" plastic shad as a trailer (no skirt). It might have worked better with a different trailer, but the shad is what I intend to use as a trailer most of the time.

Lately I've been having problems with my airbrush "spitting" water while I'm painting. I've been able to temporarily fix that by removing the nozzle cover and spraying the water out, but that only works for a little while before it starts spitting water again. I'm looking to get a moisture trap (I've got one that's mounted on the compressor, but apparently it's not doing it's job very well), and I was wondering if any of these three moisture traps will fit my brush. I'm using a Master G22 airbrush with an Airbrush Depot TC-20 compressor. Paasche In-Line Drainable Moisture Trap Badger Transparent In-Line Drainable Moisture Trap Iwata Pistol-Grip Filter I think both of the two in-line filters would probably work. The Iwata Filter might be a higher-quality filter, but it may not fit my brush so I think I'm probably better off going with either the Badger or Paasche filter. Does anyone have any suggestions or preferences? Thanks in advance. Ben

The prop doesn't rub against the front wire, although it does look like it in the pic. But you're right, a smaller blade would probably do the trick. Or, I may put two counter-rotating props on. I think that's what I'll try first, and if that doesn't work I'll go to a smaller blade.

Well, I tried it the other day and it doesn't work very well. It looks like the prop is generating too much friction on the shaft so the bait keeps turning and running on its side. So, I'm going to increase the diameter of the prop holes and see if I can find a way to add weight to the head. I'm not sure yet just how I'll add weight to the head, but I'll give it a try. :-/

Those look great! 8-)

Thanks guys. Brushhoggin, that's exactly what I'm planning to do with this bait. I did pretty well the other day with spinnerbaits rigged the same way, so I'm looking forward to trying this one out. B-Dozer, I didn't heat the lexan; I just took a pair of pliers and bent the blade to the shape I wanted. You don't need to heat lexan in order to bend it freehand, and it actually bends with fewer creases if you don't. That's a good idea about the holes. I think I may make some more props to test how they compare, and I'll try some with holes.

I had a spinnerbait without any blades, so I made this. The propellor is 1/16" lexan sheet bent to shape. Let me know what you think. Ben

I get my PVC from Menards. An eight-foot 1x4 costs about $20, and you can get a lot of baits out of one board. It has a shell of some sort on the outside of the board, but I just carve that off of each lure blank. While in theory PVC doesn't need any sealer prior to paint, in practice I find that it works much better if you coat it with epoxy before painting. It is possible to sand PVC smooth enough to paint without epoxying, but it takes a lot of effort and then you still have to worry about the PVC expanding when you heat set your paint. PVC expands when heated, and that can ruin your paint job (been there done that :-X). Epoxy is the best way I've found to protect the PVC from heat and get a smooth surface to paint on. I know that may seem like it defeats the purpose of using PVC, but it doesn't at all. The sealing epoxy is only used to provide a smooth surface to paint on; it's not actually protecting the PVC from water seepage. With PVC baits, a fish can chew right through the finish and the bait will still retain it's structural integrity. Not only that but the bait won't swell and crack the finish due to water absorption, so the finish will last longer. I hope that made sense... Ben

You might try using PVC board for your baits. It's waterproof, and it has no grain so you can cut baits at just about any angle you want in the board. Another nice thing about PVC baits is you can just stick the hardware in the lure and go test it without epoxying anything in place. The lure won't absorb water, and if it doesn't swim you can just pull the hardware out and modify it, or if that doesn't work you can scrap it without wasting any hardware or epoxy.

Those look real good! I like the deep diver. 8-)

I've had no problem spraying fine lines with a .3 needle, although I've never tried to spray a line as fine as a hair (if that's even possible; it might be, but I'm nowhere near good enough to do it). More depends on the ability of the painter than on what the brush is capable of. If you have a .3 needle, practicing with it will enable you to spray finer lines than just getting a .2 needle to start with. With that said, it would be possible to spray finer lines with a .2 needle, no question about it. If you think the three needles are worth the extra price, I'd say go for it. I intend to get the .5 and .2 needles myself sometime, but right now I don't see the need to spend the $20 or so it would cost. Hope this helps. Ben

That doesn't make any sense to me. I certainly haven't noticed that happening on any of my lures painted with fluorescent colors, but then I only started airbrushing this summer. At any rate, if you use a UV-protected topcoat the paint should be fine. BTW I use Createx fluorescent yellow on my baits.

I don't know exactly how long a 2 ounce bottle will last, but if you're using it on all of your lures it won't last very long. I got the 2 ounce bottle of white paint the first time, and I went through it very quickly. You'll be better off getting the 4 ounce bottle; it doesn't cost much more and it lasts twice as long. Black is another color you'll want plenty of (I use it on just about every pattern I paint), but other than that it really depends on the patterns you paint. Hope this helps. Ben

X4 on the splatterbacks. 8-) All of those baits look great!

Very, very nice! Your shad pattern is beautiful. 8-)

That sunfish is awesome. I really like the blue markings on the head. 8-)

Thanks for the detailed how-to. I may have to try something like that on the next catfish I make. I have been using rubber skirt material, but I don't like how stretchy it is; epoxy doesn't stick to it well and so the whiskers might pull out. I've found a method that holds them pretty well, but I'm still not perfectly satisfied with it and I think your method will be the best way to go. I can't wait to see the smaller version. 8-)

That's a very good looking bait. I thought my catfish weren't that bad, but yours is in another league entirely. If you don't mind my asking, how did you make the whiskers? Edit: Never mind, I just saw this bait on TU where you described what you used.