Fishing Forum

[cool][font "Verdana,Arial,Helvetica"][black][size 1][#0000ff]I have been using big painted hunks of lead to send bait down to fish both in deep open water and under the ice for over 30 years. It started with my old "perch urchins" and has branched off in many directions.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]All of the different heavy jigs I use are part of my BDS...Bait Delivery System. The jigs add two things to a piece of bait...weight and color. Sometimes I include glow in the painting process.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I began making "plungers" about the same time I was working with early models of the urchins. Urchins were hammered sinker lures to which I affixed a split ring and a hook for the bait. The early plungers were almost any large jig head...with or without "decoration". Some of them I pounded flat and either painted or added prism tape.[/#0000ff]

[#0000ff]A couple of years ago I bought a "spearpoint" mold, with cavities from 1/4 oz. to 1 oz. in size. They are designed to be used for making trolling jigs, and have a collar for tying on hair or feathers. Of course you can also hang a plastic jig on them. I like their balance for use in vertical jigging. They hang in a horizontal attitude. That can be a plus for some species on some days.[/#0000ff]

[#0000ff]Last year I started experimenting with glittering and painting some of the spearpoint heads to be used in my BDS program. When I added a strip of perch meat or a length of crawler, they actually became "articulated" jigs, that wiggled and fluttered when worked vertically. I got some nice fish on them.[/#0000ff]

[#0000ff]Recently, I began making some of them with flattened sides, to be better able to paint some of my better patterns on them and to add a bit of flutter on the drop, when jigging. I simply lay them on their sides, in a flattening tool I use in my vise, and pound them a few times with a hammer until I get the desired thickness. [/#0000ff]

[#0000ff]I have already experimented with them during late summer and fall, on several waters, as the fish go deeper for winter. They have worked well on perch, smallies and several species of trout. They get down fast, in deeper water and the fish seem to be really attracted by the larger lures and bright colors. The strikes are usually pretty solid. The Matzuo sickle hooks I use on most of them bite back and I have a good hookup ratio.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]In the attached pics I show some of the different sizes and colors I have worked with so far. I also include a couple of pics of the flattening tools I use with before and after pics of the flattened jig heads.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]By the way, these heavy heads work great as the sinker part of a "dropshot" setup with a tandem jig rig. They can work to bring in the bigger fish, and you can tie on a smaller jig a ways above for the more finicky ones.[/#0000ff]
[/size][/black][/font] [font "Verdana,Arial,Helvetica"][size 1]Attachments:[/size][/font] [font "Verdana,Arial,Helvetica"][black][size 1][url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=20231;"][#333366] VICE & TOOLS.JPG [/#333366][/url](158 KB) [/size][/black][/font] [font "Verdana,Arial,Helvetica"][black][size 1][url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=20232;"][#333366] SPEARPOINT PLUNGERS.jpg [/#333366][/url](94.7 KB) [/size][/black][/font] [font "Verdana,Arial,Helvetica"][black][size 1][url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=20233;"][#333366] FLATTENED PLUNGERS.jpg [/#333366][/url](99.6 KB) [/size][/black][/font] [font "Verdana,Arial,Helvetica"][black][size 1][url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=20234;"][#333366] GREEN GLOW PLUNGERS.jpg [/#333366][/url](24.6 KB) [/size][/black][/font]
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Good looking jigs....Whenever I mix the Cabelas super glow colors, they all glow green, no matter what color....Do you have the same problem?....If I mix a drop of yellow or orange color for instance, the jig head will remain yellow or orange, but still glow green?
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They really spanked the perch at Jordanelle the 1st time I used them. They also help when trying to get past the smaller fish, and down to the bigguns.
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There are phosphorescent pigments that glo in colors other than green . Most of those pigments are very expensive.
You can however get some of the powder paints in different colors, like pink and orange for example that glo in there true color, they don't seem to have as brite of a glow as the regular glow. Just remember to bake those jigs in the oven before using them or the paint will chip off fairly easy.
James
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[cool][#0000ff]I long ago quit trying to even find good glow colors in anything but green. No matter what the label says, on glow paints, it is almost impossible to get a good glow in anything except green or maybe blue. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I also do not use the glow paints. I make my own glow with a powder from [url "http://extremeglow.com/"]EXTREME GLOW PRODUCTS[/url]. I mix it with clear jig enamel, and paint it over either chartreuse or white paint. It does fade the color a bit, but I offset that with chartreuse glitter or white glitter before finishing with eyes and epoxy.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Even this company sells glow paints in various colors dry to the advertised color, but still glow green. However, they do sell a glow powder that has a great blue glow. It is not as strong and does not last as long as the green though. And, for most species, green is the most attractive glow color...especially under the ice. Don't ask me why.[/#0000ff]
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OK, I'll stick with the white that glows green...I mix mine with clear epoxy and it works ok....I like your glitter...It is much finer than the stuff I use....Is that CDC feather with the flashabou tails on your jigs?
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[cool][#0000ff]I use the super glow powder I get from Extreme Glow. I mix it with clear vinyl, rather than epoxy. The vinyl sets up in less than a minute so you can hold and rotate the jig while it is setting up an you get an even coat...no running. Same for glittering.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Here's a pic of a few of my glitters. I probably have over 50 different types and colors in my arsenal now. I do a lot of mixing and combining to get special effects. Like on my white glitters I combine fine white glitter with "diamond dust" for extra sparkle.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]The fiber included with the Flashabou and Krystal Flash is "CCT Fiber". I buy it from Barlows and it really makes good tails, especially when mixed with Krystal Flash. It has a good color and is "live" in the water. On most of my BDS jigs, the tail is there strictly for color and profile. Tails on bait jigs are usually short so they do not tangle too much with the bait, or get fish nipping at the tail material instead of the business part of the lure (hook). But, I have made flies and jigs with longer tails, using the CCT Fiber and it really "swims" nice in the water. It comes in many colors. [/#0000ff]
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