I will never question the price of swimbaits again :-) This was my 1st attempt at making a wood bait. Lots of time and effort. I know it will get easier as time goes on, but I see what it takes to make a quality bait now.

And no, I won't be offering these for sale. At least no time soon :P This bait is 8" long nose to tail and weighs 3 oz. It shadows all of my other swimbaits in girth.

http://www.calfishing.com/dc/user_files/3133.jpg

I've still got a lot to learn and the baits got a few imperfections, but I'm sure it'll still catch fish
:+

Attachment #1, (.jpg file)

That looks pretty awesome for a first shot a wood bait, Jake. I bet it has some crazy tail action with the big boot tail along with the joint. Great job. I like the par marks in the paint job too.

PS: Jake, it's Jake Wilson. Calicokid is another one of my names on a few websites.

Thanks Jake. Ya I recognize your user name.

I meant to add some red gill marks, but I forgot. I'm gonna try and carve some gills into the next one. It was fun to make, frustrating at the same time. I used spray paint to paint it with cause I don't have an airbrush :+

Nice looking lure! Try making one w/ a flat joint insted of cutting it at an angle I like the action better that way!

Hey let that Bass go I wanna catch her some day
http://www.calfishing.com/gallery/v/members/tmcustoms/

Nice looking bait, theres a big learnig curve when it comes to wood. Sometimes the time invested making it is almost as rewarding as fishing it.

Andrew

http://www.webspawner.com/users/bigdaddybasspimp/index.html

Great looking bait Jake....I'd never guess that was your first one.I bet it kicks real nice...Congrats!!..Nathan
www.Bettencourtbaits.com

Very Nice! You did some great work there.

I assume the concave joint that looks like bare wood is sealed?

Dan

"Drill Here, Drill Now, Pay Less"

Deo Vindice

Thanks guys. That's just a reflection Dan. It's sealed and painted. I know you can't really see it in the pic, but the color on the side is pink over gold, over pink. With a light scale pattern. It's got a nice color change when you rotate it in the light.

I'm working on another right now. My original design has 2 joints and a different hinge. But I thought I'd better take it easy for my 1st :P

Great looking plug. If you don't mind me asking, what size/type of eye screws did you use? I have a plug that I shaped and haven't been able to finish because I can't figure out what eye screws to use. The ones at Lowes/HomeDepot seem so short I am affraid that a fish would pull them out.

________________

Sonny

2004 - 6 Bass 2 Trout $219.20 in Gear

Sonny the hook eye screws are .092 stainless steel 1" from stamina. The line tie is from home depot. It's 3/4" long. I used devcon epoxy with all of them. Used a small wire to put some in the hole, then put a drop on the tip of the threads before I ran them in.

Just wondering, did you lathe your initial blank or hand carve it? Your taper looks really good, which is nearly impossible to get balanced and looking good through straight carving.
Tight lines,
Wade