Poppers

[radu]

hi there, nice to be back again.

my question is as following: i am trying to build salt water surface poppers, the kind that is used for fishing giant trevally and similar. i am talking at least 10 inches long and 5-10 oz heavy.

i know that usually they are build out of foam, the kind that is used for making surfboards. but there are a couple of them made of wood.

i was wondering, if anyone of you guys that fishes salt and has any idea what i am talking about could give me any idea about the type of wood used (there are some from balsa, but they are too weak i suppose). i dont have the hardware to pour my own foam therefore the only solution is wood.

did any of you guys build such kind of poppers? i am also interested in the technique used. one obvious solution would be through wire, but to resist a 2-3 feet monster bite, you need some serious glue.

thanks

[Nathan]

Radu,

I've never built lures for the species your talking about,but I have built some big poppers for Stripers,muskie,and peacocks.

As far as wood goes,I've used pine,and it worked great.I've also used .092 eye screws epoxied in place,and have never had one pull loose..Nathan

[banjoman]

Last winter, I made some saltwater lures from various woods- all through-wired. The 5 inch long rangers had 2.5 ounces of lead embedded in them. I could get them to jump out by reeling fast. Otherwise they stayed about 1.5-2 feet deep. I used basswood, maple and some sort of mahogany from motorcycle crates. I also made 2 goofy looking poppers with dressed treble hooks that caught most of my fish. No lead, basswood or maple, through-wired. You don't have to worry about the wood much if you through wire and add some lead. For a 10 inch long bait, I think that 4-5 ounces of lead max. would be enough to sink them in salt water. Do you have a heavy lamiglass rod? I'll e-mail you a picture of the insides of my lures.