vytautas Posted April 21, 2004 Report Share Posted April 21, 2004 At last I've found a place for my workshop All I can say ? getting up, going to my day job, working 8-9 hours, then going home, have an hour to rest, then going to my workshop and working till late night? it is tuff sometimes, but I know, that my dream?s come truth At this moment I am making some wooden crankbaits, but thinking to expand to the new line of plastic crankbaits ? ordered foam from smooth-on, bought other necessary equipment. Now I am stuck on couple of issues ? wire former and painting. Does anybody use any kind of wire former to fasten up the work? It is possible to make wire former? Maybe someone knows, where to find some photos of it? Another issue ? painting. I think of using kind of photo-finish, and now I am searching for any kind of clear film?with no luck unfortunately If someone can provide me with some info, I would be really thankful P.S. yesterday I cut my finger almost till the bone be careful with those sharp knives vytautas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Art Brush Posted April 21, 2004 Report Share Posted April 21, 2004 Vytautas, Here's a link for clear film. It's water slide decal material like the kind you find in model kits. It works in any desktop printer. http://www.ares-server.com/Ares/Ares.asp?MerchantID=RET01229&Action=Catalog&Type=Department&ID=106 For a wire harness form alot of fellas are using a piece of wood with nails in it where the line tie and hook mounts are. Simplest way to make a jig for wire harness is to take a lure lay it on its side on a piece of wood and put nails thru the wire loops. Tap the nails into the board. Trim the nail tops off then remove the lure. You now have a wire jig that you can wrap wire on. I'll post a pic of one later today Tight lines, Shawn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vytautas Posted April 24, 2004 Author Report Share Posted April 24, 2004 Thanks Shawn!!! It is the film that I was looking for!!! No one has it here in Lithuania, but I will order from that site. It is awesome!!!!!! Thanks again!!! As for wire former, I will try to make it One more question - where I can find some kind of registry of lure makers or crankbait brands? I am thinking about to name my crankbaits in English. Lithuanian names, such as ?Bit??, ??la?, ?Sam?? etc., is not very right for US anglers??? Or it is kind of charming, interesting names for the crankbaits? What do you think? Thanks, vytautas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Art Brush Posted April 24, 2004 Report Share Posted April 24, 2004 No Problem Vytautas. I've been a fan of your baits since I seen them in the galleries. A wire jig isn't much more than a piece of wood with the outline of a lure on it with nails at the line tie and hook mount areas. As far as a directory of bait manufacturers or a master list. There isn't one. Closest thing to it is a Google search. Directories like www.Fishhoo.com will have lists that could help ya out. When it comes to naming your baits, they are your babies Vy. Something I've noticed while on walkabout in europe is that alot of europeans want american products. That goes for everything from hair care products to levi jeans and fishing tackle. It's the same over here. We want the special import. That something new to get the leading edge. Alot of euro manufacturers will give their products american names to try to give them a push in sales on the euro market based on the mentality that american products or special imports are better and to make them more apealing to the american consumer. Eg: The polish company Salmo gives their products american names such as Hornet, Fatso and Executor. Also Chubby Darter, which is ok but the name they are using "Giant Chubby" has recently become slang for massive erection. Something is lost in the translation. lol In my humble opinion I think the euro names are charming. Naming your baits in your native language maintains the heritage from which they came. Bit?, ?la, Sam?... Americans will pronounce them best they can. You can also spell the names how they are pronounced without umlauts. Sam? = Samay? Yamamoto maintains heritage with "Senko" japanese for "Ahead of the pack" It's also spelled how it sounds. Either way your lures are kick-ass. Tight lines, Shawn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RiverMan Posted April 25, 2004 Report Share Posted April 25, 2004 Congratulations on your new shop Vytautus! I think Shawn has provided some great advice. I would also mention to you that there is a strong following for wood baits so don't overlook these as part of your business plan. You make some beautiful stuff and even if the wooden baits prove to be more problematic there are a ton of guys out there willing to pay the additional production cost anyway. I have made many lures from molds and featherlite and have found this method of production to be accurate and consistent yes, but it too has its tribulations. Molds are expensive and sometimes become damage/destroyed. Production time is not as fast as you might expect after building the wire form, determining proper weighting, measuring the foam, mixing the foam, providing a release agent, etc. When featherlite has cured, you still have the pouring sprue to deal with and some cleaning and sanding to do before the bait is ready to go to the next stage. Also with featherlite you are working with one density and one buoyancy..with wood your options are huge, more dense wood for sinking and gliding lures, lighter wood for jerkbaits and topwater. Have you looked at cost per bait with the foam? For smaller baits it may be ok, large bodies may be expensive when compared to wood. If you are going to try the photo-finish process, be aware that some glues will chemically react with the foam, another hassle. Virtually any glue will work on wood. And finally, I find dealing with the chemicals the least desirable part of working with the foam, while wood-working is great fun! Anyway, just some things to think about! Jed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vytautas Posted April 27, 2004 Author Report Share Posted April 27, 2004 Hey guys, Thanks for the great advice and kind words!!! You made some things much more clear to me Now I am thinking about the names... most of the Lithuanian words are very long and difficult to say: e?erys (perch), lydeka (pike), up?takis (trout) but I will work something out Thanks again, Vytautas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RiverMan Posted April 27, 2004 Report Share Posted April 27, 2004 I like the name for pike...lydeka, great sound to it! Jed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vytautas Posted April 28, 2004 Author Report Share Posted April 28, 2004 Hey - what about this: bitins (bee) it spells - bitins (like a little bit) vytautas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vytautas Posted May 14, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 14, 2004 hey, I did some progress!!! what can I say - foamIt 15 is wonderfull... when you know how to use it hope to have some baits ready till the end of next week!!! made a molds from epoxy, prototypes from white PVC (I think ) plastic... will post some pics later Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RiverMan Posted May 15, 2004 Report Share Posted May 15, 2004 Vy, Great looking web page and your lures look absolutely awesome as always. You are a very talented lure builder. jed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clemmy Posted May 15, 2004 Report Share Posted May 15, 2004 Congrats on your new shop! I'd be happy with a workbench! I end up usually only able to dream up lures I'm going to make if I ever get time/space money...My wife calls it "plotting one of your lure ideas.." when she sees me staring off into space.. One thing to consider since your short of time, is that there are companies out there that will make wire forms to your specifications. The cost would cut into your profit, but don't forget you need to pay yourself for the time making the forms. Another option would be investing in one of the wire formers, and lastly, unless you really needed the strength, couldn't you simply incorporate places to insert screw eyes into your mold and simply mold them in? clemmy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RiverMan Posted May 16, 2004 Report Share Posted May 16, 2004 Clemmy brings up a good point. You know I have considered incorporating "through wire" design for my wood lures but for now have settled on the screw eyes. I do think "through wire" is the best, and makes the most sense of you are molding the baits. But for wood lures, I find the screw eyes so easy and reliable. I have put a 1/2 inch screw eye in a chunk of wood, then grabbed it with my leatherman....I cannot pull it out of the wood. In fact, the screw eye itself will start to bend out before it pulls out. I use one inch or 1.25 inch heavy screw eyes in my big baits.....I don't anything is going to pull them. The only disadvantage I see from the screw eyes is that they do "look" more bulky than wire...this can be partly compensated for by twisting them in a bit further. Jed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vytautas Posted May 18, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 18, 2004 Thank you guys for the help and kind words!!! Yesterday I made my first plastic crankbait!!! All I can say ? I am really satisfied with the Foam-it 15. It does need to heat enough the room, where you mix and pour your lures. I?ve heated up to 95-104 F (35-40 C) and after half an hour I?ve demoulded my first lure. Surface of the lure is perfect, only the seams need a little sanding Tomorrow will post some pics Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vytautas Posted May 19, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 19, 2004 For this moment I have only two molds for two models, working on other Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Art Brush Posted May 19, 2004 Report Share Posted May 19, 2004 Hey Vy, Those came out great. Looks like they got a solid skin on them. How are you planning the diving lips? I found it best to plan the lip notch in with the mold. First couple of molds I left the lip notch out to allow me to further develope the lures diving action. Then recast fresh prototypes in new molds with the preffered lip angle. Another cool feature to the foams as opposed to featherlite is rattles are louder in the foam. Have you painted any blanks yet? Tight lines, Shawn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vytautas Posted May 20, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 20, 2004 Hey Vy' date='How are you planning the diving lips? I found it best to plan the lip notch in with the mold. First couple of molds I left the lip notch out to allow me to further develope the lures diving action. Then recast fresh prototypes in new molds with the preffered lip angle. Tight lines, Shawn[/quote'] Hey Shawn, it's a great idea!!! But I think I will try to make it a little bit different - I am planning to cut slots after the lure is painted and finished. For that I've made such of lure holder with right lip angle. One problem - where to find a right blade for scroll saw.... because it is difficult to make big cut with the thin blade (for bigger models with bigger diving lips) Another solution is to make a small circular saw and use the same lure holder, for lures with line tie on the nose. For lures with line tie on the lip it is not right decision fufff, it was hard to explain what I meant, but hope you'll understand have to learn English a little more :oops: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Art Brush Posted May 22, 2004 Report Share Posted May 22, 2004 Vy, Your english is good... It's my Lithuanian that isn't the greatest lol I had the same problem getting a lip notch blade so I took a piece of lexan about 1/2 inch wide by 8 inches long and serraded one side with a dremmel wheel. I use the lexan saw blade to make cuts by hand to get a perfect lip notch width. Primative yet effective. Ya might want to give it a try. Tight lines, Shawn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vytautas Posted July 2, 2004 Author Report Share Posted July 2, 2004 Hello fellows, After some time of searching and trying, (was waiting for clear decal paper for awhile) finally I've made couple dozens of these Didn't find a color laser printer, so decal is printed black and white. Just need to be clearcoated and get the lip glued. Thanks again for the help vytautas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Art Brush Posted July 2, 2004 Report Share Posted July 2, 2004 Vy, That's a sweet lookin lure. I keep checking your site to see how your lures are coming along. About printers... There are 2 features that laser has over injet... Laser printers can print white where as injet cannot. Also laser printed decals do not need to be clear coated before applying the decal. You don't really need a laser printer it just gives you a few more options. Keep'em comin buddy they look great!. Tight lines, Shawn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skeeter Posted July 7, 2004 Report Share Posted July 7, 2004 That's a real fine looking lure Vy. You do good work. Skeeter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
