danthefisherman

In

Looks like one of Frank Pconka’s shads from Zonka Customs…at least the carving style does. He also make a bluegill.

Very nice, that rainbow flash is sure to turn some heads!

Thanks brother! The first prototype I paint will be the first one dialed in to my liking (not yet)

Can you share a photo? Might be better off just driving a screw eye in…

Great fish, double congrats!

Really! Glad to hear it, but the real test is if I’m able to consistently replicate it Bluegill profiles (especially short bluegill profiles) inherently do cut and travel through the water well, so I knew from the get go it would be challenging. Changing up the joint and tuning to make it a “chop style” glide that folds in on itself would be easy enough and maybe more appropriate for this shape, but that’s not what I wanted this bait to do. Everything about it from tail shape and hardware placement to the resin ratio and body proportion is thought out to (hopefully) accomplish my design intent. Fun stuff when things go according to plan…until it doesn’t.

A great time to test baits Thank you!

Thanks Roger, good to hear from one of the OG’s… hope you’re still getting time to build every once in awhile

Thanks all! Here’s some quick swim footage from the other day… I still have some adjusting to do to improve stability of the bait, but already this is very promising results for my first try. Dumped a good fish boatside on my third cast while I was fumbling for my lip gripper.

In

All my biggest bass have fallen for the smallest swimbaits I own. It seems counterintuitive to downsize to a conventional-sized bait, but I think the key was being different with my presentation especially in heavily pressured waters.

You can find screw eyes from a variety of online shops such as Lure Parts Online, Janns Netcraft, even eBay. Order the open eye variety for screw eye to screw eye connection or pick up some welding rod, heavy gauge wire, or nails for a screw eye to pin connection.

In! Been wanting a baby wake for years…WOOOOO!

First pour out of the mold! Very happy with how it turned out with minimal cleanup of the blank required. Spent the majority of the day testing resin ratios and weight placement.

First mold fresh off the press…can’t wait to get a blank poured and painted!

Swimbait Culture’s virtual autism fundraiser event is happening March thru April. Also looking forward to Toxic Day 5 as mentioned, hopefully will be able to make it this time.

Who makes the bottom one?

Thanks for the correction, I misread.

Thanks for the correction, I misread.

I’ve personally never fished one of these before, but is there a reason why you have so much wire wrapped around the rear hook? It’s quite possible this is throwing off the balance and causing the bait to nose up. I would try removing the wire or wrapping an equal amount on the front hook.

Too many people worrying about what other people are doing or thinking or succeeding in. It’s true there seems to be a new big shot bait “maker” popping up on Facebook every day, but good for them for stepping forward and taking a stab at it. If consumers determine that their product is worth the price, then they might even last a few years. Otherwise they will soon fade away like many other bandwagon brands that do not put in time for development or investment for sustainable operations. That said all builders have to start somewhere, and it’s quite possible that a few of these new “hype” guys will turn out to be one of the historical greats. If you’ve been around long enough you can pretty easily tell which builders start out with dollar signs in their eyes and which ones start with a passion for fishing, creating, and developing their own path. Neither is really wrong, but typically it’s the latter that lasts. The plethora of bait options these days says a few things about us consumers. For one, we like new things. No matter how many shad glides or gill crankdowns there are, you can guarantee that if a new brand pops up with a great-looking, great-swimming, and/or greatly-priced new offering they are going to sell at least a couple even if no one has ever caught a fish on one before. Next, we like exclusive things. A new brand pops up offering baits that none of our buddies have yet. I’d rather drop $160 on a cool new glide than a bunch of lame but readily available s-wavers. There is no “right reason” for buying baits just like there is no “right reason” for building them. At the end of the day, swimbait fishing and all that it entails is supposed to be enjoyable. Sometimes part of that satisfaction is finally scoring a dream “hype” bait after years of searching and catching on it for the first time. If new bait builders are part of what keeps swimbaiting alive and helps make anglers’ dreams come true, I say keep them coming!

Nice!

Love it!!