Hillbilly voodoo Posted May 3, 2019 Report Share Posted May 3, 2019 Most of my designs are lipless and the few lipped baits I have played with were metal. I have a few designs in my head I want to figure out and would like to go Lexan(or maybe another material if there is a suggestion) not metal The first design I want to work out the bugs on is 5-6 inch, line tie to body not lip, and will be use for pike/lakers What thickness of Lexan would you recommend? With the cost of Lexan and the fact I live in no where land and need to order everything I can’t easily get my hands materials to test things. So it would be nice to be on the right track for material thickness before I start experimenting with the size and shape of bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eastman03 Posted May 3, 2019 Report Share Posted May 3, 2019 You could probably go on the mother site, (http://www.lurepartsonline.com/Online-Store/Lure-Lips/Lexan-Lips-Rounded-Style.html) and order a few different ones to see what would work best for yourself? Just an idea. Looks like they sell lexan lips up to 1/8". I'll have to double check at home what thickness I used. I'll let you know. For my 6" lures, I think its around 1/8". Another good option which I do now is track down a local glass/window shop, or plastics manufacturer (this may not work for you obviously depending where you live). I found a shop in my community that does windows, they often deal with lexan for multiple different applications. The guys let me have a bunch of different thickness little scraps that were completely unusable for them. But, I could easily get a bunch of lips out of each piece. They are now my official lexan supplier, (it helps that a few of them fish, so I repay the favor once in a while). 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hillbilly voodoo Posted May 3, 2019 Author Report Share Posted May 3, 2019 Thanks I am looking at just getting a sheet of Lexan so I can just cut multiple lip styles to test. More my style then pre cut lips. I am sucker for doing things the hard way lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobP Posted May 4, 2019 Report Share Posted May 4, 2019 I build bass baits less than 3 1/2” and for those I use 1/16” polycarbonate (aka Lexan) or 1/32” G10 circuit board. You can order either from McMaster-Carr online. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JD_mudbug Posted May 5, 2019 Report Share Posted May 5, 2019 (edited) The big box stores sell small sheets of 0.093 inch thick lexan (8" x 10") for under $6. It is a bit thinner than 1/8, but it's cheap. https://www.homedepot.com/p/LEXAN-10-in-x-8-in-Polycarbonate-Sheet-31-GE-XL-1/202090134 https://www.lowes.com/pd/LEXAN-Clear-Polycarbonate-Sheet/3143465 0.093" may be thick enough for a 6" bait. If the lip will be long, like a deep diving lip, or the lure would be a trolling lure, I would go with 1/8 as the lip will be under extra stress. Pike and lakers can put a lot of stress on a lip with head shakes which would also make me lean to 1/8 thick. I think the weight of the bait is also important as that will determine the impact with the water on casts. If the baits weighs close to 2 ounces or is over 2 ounces, I would definitely go with 1/8th (0.125) lexan which I get from an Ebay supplier that has a bunch of different size sheets in a bunch of thicknesses. A 11.8" by 11.8" sheet of 1/8 thick is $9. https://www.ebay.com/str/sibeautomation https://www.ebay.com/itm/POLYCARBONATE-LEXAN-CLEAR-PLASTIC-SHEET-1-8-VACUUM-FORMING-YOU-PICK-SIZE/281337195022?hash=item418100ea0e:m:mOMkSGJFAGWF0bTPygum3jQ Baits over 4 ounces, I would consider using 3/16th inch . Baits of that size have a jarring impact when they land. I usually cross-pin those thicker lips with a piece of stainless shaft wire or a piece of a small nail. I made a jointed wake rat with a 5" inch body and 4" piece of a zoom trick worm for a tail. It weighed just over 2 oz. The 0.093 thick lip cracked on a cast when the lure hit the water. I make mostly bass and pike lures. I use 1/8 thick lexan on lures 1.75 ounces to 4 ounces. I have yet to break a 1/8 thick lip. Edited May 5, 2019 by JD_mudbug i made a typo 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hillbilly voodoo Posted May 5, 2019 Author Report Share Posted May 5, 2019 I got my hands on some 1/8 lexan for free that is scuffed and ugly but will be good for prototypes. Strength is important when trolling for lakers because they do get smashed off the bottom at times and there is some lakers in the 30lbs+ range here. Biggest my friend caught last year was 54lbs I will try pining with wire and epoxy attaching and 1/8 lip first. If it can survive 8hrs on the down rigger and a few lakers it will pass if not I will need to beef it up thanks again Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
datguy.dev Posted May 6, 2019 Report Share Posted May 6, 2019 (edited) +1 polycarbonate. You can work it like acrylic/plexiglass, not that is has the same properties, but it is considerably more forgiving. Edited May 6, 2019 by datguy.dev 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
