muskyslayer96

Hey fellas I use plumbers putty it doesn't shrink and dries fast....a little hard to sand but a dremel tool makes short work of it...its waterproof as well. It will add weight but I figure it into the ballast at. Equation. Happy Holidays MS

After the lure is sealed I never touch again without gloved hands...if you have been handling them without gloves, the natural oils from your skin can cause issues. Wipe down with some denatured alcohol. Also some paints will cause this, I have a pearl orange paint I hand mix and it cause fisheyes if the etex hasn't set up enough. I've also had that happen if my mix wasn't exactly 50/50, are you using syringes to measure? A lot of syringes purchased at stores contain silicone to make them slide better...very bad for etex. Get them from a rod building supply store. Best of luck, etex has ruined many a day for me during the learning curve. Best MS

Hey fellas, My router/table is junk...I hate it. I bought it a few years ago cheap at one of the retail lumber shops and it is at the end of its useful life. Can anyone recommend a quality set up I was hoping to pay less than $250 Thanks in advance for the tips MS

Hey Fellas, I made this a couple of years ago with the help of my mechanically inclined buddy. Purchased an old stereo cabinet off CL for $20 and got to modifin' .......It will heat to ~110 degrees when needed and i can fit a number of large musky sized lures on it. no slipping and with the gear/bearing/tension system it does not need to be balanced so a single large lure can go on with no problems. Happy building! Best, MS

Prayers and positive healing thoughts sent to your wife and family Robbie.... MS

I agree with everything that has be already mentioned regarding the size, wood selections and the value of both screw eyes and thru-wire (including swivels) in "muskie" lure building. I use a number of different wood types depending the style of lure being built, all have there pros/cons. I use mostly 0.92 screw eyes and if properly installed will not fail before the wood does. I use swivels thru-wired in cedar for mu J-bugs and hook rash is definitely part of the equation, but my goal is always to have to retire a bait because of teeth marks rather than hook rash (I'm always trying to increase the space needed for "retired baits" . On proven baits when the hook rash gets bad, a little touch up epoxy thinned down will extend the lures life........musky lures are made to be fished and if we're lucky enough destroyed by some incredibly violent encounters with the "waterwolf" I've attached a couple pics to illustrate the swivel-thru-wire concept and a lure that may touch on the request from joliepa. I'm super excited as yesterday was my first day in the building shop in over a year cutting some J-bug blanks for X-mas presents. Best, MS

Try Rollie and Hellenes Musky shop...I think they have both SS and alum. Good luck MS

Thanks alot fellas for the tips! I'll give them a try I'm with you on the shallow fall bite...I have made some shallower type cranks for trolling and they have worked well. Thanks again, MS

Hey fellas, I'm going to try and get a batch of big trolling baits built for some fall trolling (just starting to give trolling a try). I'm looking for some advice on lip angles for trolling lures. I have the shallow angle I like but was wondering more about deeper stuff. For example what are the angles on some of the popular deep trolling cranks (scuba, deep threat, whishmaster, hose baits' slammer deep diver etc.) Thanks in advance for any advice, I don't own any deeper musky cranks in my arsenal to use as a reference. Best, MS

Gino I saw your posts on the dowel system, I would love to see a tutorial on it. Cool, cool MS

Thanks a lot fellas...great info. I hope to be able to report back with some success. How many are using balsa vs. Cedar vs. PVC. Never used PVC but might be a good time to give it a try. Aztec board at HD? Thanks again MS

Gino Thanks...can you point me in the right direction as to the wood rasps?I have a couple but they are junk. Thanks again. MS

Hey fellas, I'm fairly new to making bass/walleye sized lures (usually make musky sized lures). I'm wondering how everyone is getting the lure taper (from head to tail as well as top to bottom) for a shad rap or flicker shad style lure? I tend to band saw my shape and then router the edgs and not taper them on my 6-12" musky cranks. Just wondering what type of material is being used and a preference for thru wire vs screw eyes and one or two piece baits. Sorry for all the questions Best MS

CLM I don't have a negative control for the effectiveness of the foil, but it did cure in 3 minutes, I rotated the lure in my hand and after 3 min. I checked and it appeared cured so I left it sit in the box while I cleaned up. I paid $12 for both the fixture and bulb on sale at Menards, I used the same model bulb recommended by CLM the bulb is from GE part# 98165, 18" black light. The light box was a direct wire that I added a plug in cord to. Model ST115R8. Hope it helps. Anybody have info on temp when applying? Didn't care for the smell, better done in garage but its cold? Best MS

Hey Fellas, I've read all of the post in this thread and had to give the Solarez a try. I received it yesterday and spent the morning building a foil reflective foil box for the black light (thanks for the idea Cedar Lake Musky). I have attached some pics (I hope they are appropriate, I have read the rules and I hope these will answer some questions and provide usable info for the thread, not showcase my work) I took a before pic of a plug that was sanded and ready to move to the next step. I used an acid brush and brushed the solarez on directly from the container. I placed in the light box and rotated it a few times for about 3 minutes. I noticed there were a couple of spots with thin coverage, so I added a second coat and repeated the light box steps. I took a couple pics of the box and the foil lining as well as the finished plug. It looks pretty good and I will paint a base coat and see how it goes from there. I do have a couple of questions: 1. The smell is not great, smells a lot like sawed styrofoam (reasonable), does anybody know the hazard level? 2. Has anybody used it as a base coat and then etexed for final coat ( I wonder about a harder initial coat and then softer final coat on durabilty for denting on rocks etc.) 3. Have people been using multiple coats? any issues? 4. How many are dipping vs. brushing and what type of brush? I won't dip as most of the lures I make are larger musky sized. 5. Any issues with it setting up from the ambient room light (if brushing a larger musky lure)? Thanks fellas, great thread and I appreciate everyones input. I will play with it some more and report back, but I am interested in others responses to my questions. Best, MS