Sonny.Barile

I had assumed balsa would be an easy wood to work with but when carving it has a strange feeling to it. I tried my carving knife for rough chamfering and it dulls my blade easily. I have used that knife to shave poplar and it worked very well. I tried a razor for the balsa with more success but it still makes more of a powder than a chip......The balsa is from hobby lobby so it may not be the best quality. It looks and feels smooth but when you carve with a razor you can start to see how porous it is. I know most of this is a lack of skill and experience but I’m not sure balsa is a good medium for me. It’s not “fun” to carve. At least not like poplar......I like my chips and shavings.........and the smell of wood. Balsa has a strange smell.....hard to describe.....almost like cheap school glue...... It’s very different from what I am accustomed to.....(though it’s limited experience with poplar and pine) I bought a piece of basswood to play with and I like that.........it carves like good clear pine only seems easier on the push to get nice chips....and easier to cut across the grain. I can see why so many people prefer it for carving. It’s kind of satisfying as you do it. Please share your thoughts about balsa and basswood for carving lures....or any other woods...........This isn’t intended for tips or tricks as I can ask specific questions for that. Just your thoughts on what it’s like to carve various species.......What you like about it.....

Bought the Milwaukee and tried it. It doesn’t like balsa.......it’s not aggressive at all.....it is slow and the balsa powders as opposed to cutting. It’s more like grinding. I tried it on some bass wood and it’s a match made in heaven. Works like you would expect it too.

Mix Createx clear medium, a small amount of paint, and some thinner...The medium is nothing but the acrylic paint minus the color......the thinner is to help pigment break down......and to get it to flow on in thinner coats. I would start with 4, 1, 2.....(parts respectively)

That’s a really nice coping saw but as I lose everything......not a good idea for me......also, I don’t really do any wood working. I have made some lures (large poppers and Pike lures for salt water use) from hardwood in the past where all of my shaping was done with a belt sander, wood rasp, and hand sanding, to make mold masters for Urethane casting, but have never touched apiece of balsa other than in the store. I bought some a few days ago and it feels so light.......I just don’t want to tear it up. My goal is to make small cranks and not use any power tools. I bought some knives, punches, fine files, and various grit sanding blocks. It’s a personal challenge for me. The only power I can’t avoid will be the lure turner and UV lights. My topcoat of choice requires UV light to cure and I cant do it in the daylight and keep flipping baits over out in the sun. So that’s the only power I will allow myself. I grew bored with casting lures.....I think I sucked the fun right out if it.

How many teeth per inch is good for a hand saw blade, when cutting 1/4 inch thick balsa sheet? It won’t be the finished cuts....just a rough cut before sanding the blanks to size. Why I ask is that I saw this Milwaukee folding saw and thought it may work well for me........if not I will buy another little coping saw to replace the one I seem to have lost.......It was ok but a little clumsy and slow (or maybe that was me ) for cutting rough blanks that I sanded to the lines. The Milwaukee jab saw comes with an 18 TPI blade that is actually intended for metal and general use but it’s not aggressive like a typical jab saw. Seems more closer to a hack saw..........I have cut balsa and bass with hack saws and it was clean......just too big of a saw for the little job. https://www.homedepot.com/p/Milwaukee-Folding-Jab-Saw-with-6-in-18-TPI-Metal-SAWZALL-Reciprocating-Saw-Blade-48-22-0305/202525764.

It is old stock. That stuff has a shelf life. I bought some a while back and used half. I sealed up the containers and left them for about 6 months. When I opened them up again I had the same thing you described.

Amazing piece of work.

Wow......Nice work! Love the tail.

I tried it and it is great stuff. However, Smooth-on makes a similar product and it is cheaper. You can also get in places like Blick Art Supply stores so you don't need to hip it. They also sell the silicone mold making stuff from Smooth On.

When I was casting lures I let them sit in a warm room for a week before painting. BTW I tried painting the mold to get "preprimed" surfaces and it is terrible. The paint must be brushed on as the oils in the silicone make the sprays bead up. You end up with a lot of paint running to the bottom of the mold cavity. When you pop out the finished casting the bottom surface will be a thick rubbery layer of primer paint.

When using urethane you do not need to worry about a tooth hole because the urethane doesn't absorb water like wood. Same deal with PVC......

Perforation...............

I have some lures I fish in the salt that are 3 years old. They were made with the .041 HB wire. It is definitely stainless. I believe the label (gone now) said it was 316 Stainless lock wire.

I was going to guess that the painted lure was clear coated over the foil, then had the effects added using transparent paints, then cleared again. I guess I would have been wrong.........

If the resin is urethane, try using Gorilla glue. It is urethane also.

I am just guessing at a solution here but have you tried washing it down with da or maybe even Dawn dishwashing liquid just before painting?

No Unless when you ordered, you did so on a page that stated those were for your use only.

The site listed here has a wealth of info on sealing woods with BLO. Hope this helps.... http://www.stripers247.com/phpBB2/

Salt water surf plug builders use BLO all the time. It is an absolutely necessary step for the type of plug that has a hole thru the center and a swivel as the belly hanger. The thru wiring in these plugs is usually done after the lure is painted and top coated. They pass the wire thru the body hole and the swivel and then wrap the ends. Poke around on some eastcoast striper sites and you will see plenty of how to's.............

Cause you dont want all cranks to hunt.

Smooth-on makes some not so costly silicone molding materials that might work for you. Also, if your just gonna sleeve the thing use the silicone caulking/water thing that was discussed here on TU a while back. I think it was brought up by a guy with the name Huskie?????

I have something bad to say....... I think that lure is terrible because it isnt in my tacklebox LOL Nice paint job. I have been doing this for a while and I still cant get close to as good as your first. Sonny

Diemai My generalization was probably too broad. I was thinking about lure theory. It hasnt changed much in 40 years. The few books i have run across were all based on techniques for building old style lures. Therefore I felt they were modern regurgitations of old information. Infact, if the author had learned these techniques from reading old books, there is probably going to be a percentage of lost or misunderstood information. I think it better to find where it originally came from so it has the original flavor the author intended. Keep in mind my above statements were a rant because I am angry that the videos I paid for are all now online for free. ......I was unaware of the existence of the first book you reviewed above and it certainly does look interesting. I am going to see if it is still available. Sonny

No arms.....but she does have breasts. Someone got their priorities in order! LOL Sonny