Whipped some up today with some work I have been doing to the banana machine. They take just over 7 minutes to do complete.

Believe I've got the fixturing right now I was able to cut these at a 150 feed rate which is pretty decent.
No more chattering and pieces are easily separated with uniform thickness. Hand sanding to flatten complete or done easily on a drill press with a mop or drum sander. I'm wondering what foil would look like over these as is.....

Next up is molds to flip them and route the inside for weight and wire. I have a neat idea to vacuum hold them since every one is exact size I think it will work.

http://www.saltys.co/images/bananas.jpg

:banano:wicked nice profile

They look perfect!, I'll take 2 just the way they are :)

Some things just beg to be plastic.

that I won't disagree with that's why I already made the files for the 2 piece molds :hee:

Scotty, I saw the prototypes 2 weeks ago when I was in your shop. You have come a long way with these.

hand sanding with a foam sanding pad with 100 git wrapped around it works best....foam pad is just soft enough to hold with the contour and unlike a hunk of wood block won't leave flat spots because it has no give.

and those old style stick on eyes look the best..for some reason glass eyes don't look right.

Foam sanding pad is a great idea Steve TU. Old fart trick :kewl:

Truck broke down in Haverhill this morning AGAIN so I cancelled my whole week in Maine now I got more time tomorrow to work on this :hee:

sounds like the truck don't like Haverhill

are you making them in a waffle iron:)


look yummy

Waffle iron is a great idea Paul ;)

I see a bunch of bananas......
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

Had a hiccup on the z axis yesterday that killed part of the day but it's back running better than ever. It's run about 200k lines of code so far this morning and is holding great tolerance.
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

my drawknife draws blood once in awhile too,but i finger it aids in sealin the wood an adds abit of color.:)

Hides the missing fingers Steve ;)
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

Old Fart viagra :wave:

http://www.saltys.co/images/bananas2.jpg


yea yea ok it's not a bunch of bananas it's a pile :hee:

them critters wood work great in the old outhouse..look at all them nooks an crannies:rotf2: cobs r to round.

so now you need to make jigs to cut the 2 weight holes...

nope

First version will use screw eyes with premarked drill points-you glue and drill. I will have a template with each kit. I will give you all the weights etc etc.

Little different on these Chris. These aren't going to be $5 kits either. This is wicked time intensive and I've got alot invested into this machine to do this... this for some will be a chance at having a easy way of making one of these lures. For now your getting a partially sanded symmetrical body, plans are though to give these to you die cut. Because of the programming time I would prefer to do it this way for now. Later on I'll pre-route the back of the pieces for a through wire you bend to fit so when you put the sides together it's all captivated. Thassa lotta work. You messup one thing you trash a buncha stuff :wall:

and ahem if you want to take a dremel tool to the inside of each one you could easily make this through wire right out of the gate.... I didn't tell you that :hee:

and of course seal generously in banana oil :):

Steve what is the diameter of the weights in the nose and belly screw eyes? 1/2 long but nothing shows those diameters anywhere?

I'm doing the visio file for the pictorial :wave:

Banana oil :kewl:
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

belly lead[for the type pine I'm using] is 1/2 dia x 1 3/8 long..tail is 1/4 by an 1 1/4 till it gets sliced off and sanded....nothing in the hook/nose holes but epoxy..floats with about 3/16" of the back out of water...used both long sst screw eyes and brass sinker eyelets..lrg. size....kinda like the brass eyelets best...think their no.2's..lost the tag in the bag.

a note of interest is if your making these from white pine they take on very little sealer which I think is because it's all surface and no through holes at all.....But! if you make them from basswood and seal with oil,be prepared for a long dry out time and the lead size will be different because of all the sealer it takes on....epoxy sealing I know nothing about and won't fuss with.

The original pictorial shows 1.5 x .5 for the belly weight? Also shows a lead slug in the 2 belly and nose holes?
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

I'd be afraid to say any more lead and the thing is headed for the bottom...the ones I've tested had no paint or finish or split rings or hooks....and they floated a hair high and with the add on's came down to level......so if those other three holes had lead too..I'd say it's bottom bound.

Well I looked at the pics again and there's a 1/2" long hole drilled in the nose and 2 belly hook places. Did they fill those with epoxy? There is a crosshatched area in there like the large keel weight on all of them in the pic, it shows a length not a diameter. They look like they could be 1/4x1/2 weights?
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

I've got 4.1 oz unpainted with all weights and Parts using weights as in pic and assuming they are 1/4x1/2 as I think. I got 3.6 with no weights besides the tail and large belly again unpainted
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

I made some from basswood and from pine...after sealing you'd think the basswood was made of lead..weight differnce was alot.

I don't beleive theres any lead in those other holes,just epoxy.

This is the pic I was talking about:

http://www.saltys.co/images/frechbananalayout.jpg

Were those twisted wire originally?

See he showed a screw eye in the back but the screw eye in the front is different. It looks like a weight was put in there? He talks about drilling 1/4" holes and that's it. There is a mention of "sinker eyes" did he glue those weights with sinker eyes in there?

Scott- those cross hatching are epoxy filled with brass wt hangers (Do-it) size 2 as Grapenuts said They are the line tie and hook hangers... I used 2 ton Devco
... stronger than the wood when cured

http://www.striped-bass.com/Stripertalk/plug-building-got-wood/73243-jack-frech-sj.html

1/4 x 1/2 deep hole is for the no. 2 brass eyelet....3/32 x 3/8 hole is for the next size down eyelet..no lead...the screweye in the butt is only for a small tail/flag...just screw it in.

aha ok. Looks like it was leadin the picture. Glad I asked.. So two weights then. Even better. 2" screw eye on front, and 1.5" magnum everywhere else. Brass is good...stainless is better :hee:

These things will through wire alot easier then!

Drilling these by hand is easy as pie with a laser setup.

Made a new pictorial

http://www.saltys.co/kitinstructions\saltyskitinstructionsbananalure.jp g

http://i.imgur.com/6uOYw.jpg

http://imgur.com/vYlT8

http://imgur.com/J0rWm

holy crap what's that like a winters work? Careful old timer don't push that ticker the wife is dyin to cash in that insurance policy :hee:

ahh! that first pic is just the peelins..lotta waste in these critters...sec pic is whats left of aout 60 bodies in the naked stage before they meat mr. drawknife then I skipped the borin stuff an shot the end...tons of fun colors are awaitin for these guys if u get yours up ta steam.

nice!

Damn, everytime I think I have my plug addiction under control, you come out with a new product and I gotta get it.. No wonder my wife is trying to block your website from me.

If doing it by hand it works better to drill everything as the first step, then bandsaw and shape them.

Best sit down and hold on then Johnny cuz theres alot more coming :)

Damn, everytime I think I have my plug addiction under control, you come out with a new product and I gotta get it.. No wonder my wife is trying to block your website from me.
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

Got the solid tail weights done today so will start lifting these later.
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

stoopid iphone speller kitting got made lifting :hee:

Steve I think I just came up with a brilliant idea... another lester lightbulb moment for sure :hee:

Thinking about what you said you used for belly weight vs the original drawings, I got the idea that you could remove one weight...and in place of the missing weight throw a couple of bb's or stainless shot in there...click click tick tick click just like the noise that real bunker make..

You could even hollow out a larger cavity inside....use a rolling weight system like some of the plastic guys do...I like this 2 halves concept alot. Gives you alot of versatility.

still lots of room in the bow for one of those plastic tubes with the beads in it.....lead wood b left as is.

I was thinking big so it'd make some real noise and not be deadened by the thickness of the wood...

Kits ready yet, fish are on the way!!!

Kits have been online since the weekend they're 1/2 or more gone already
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

duh, I guess I was sleeping, order is in....Banana!!

banana! tu that will ship tomorrow.

Banana in the mail today, working on wiring. How does this look??

Very nice!

I'm considering maybe a smaller scale version too :fishin:

75%, comes out to a tad over 5 1/2". Templates are done and I'll cut one out tomorrow. 3/8" dia. weights should work..we shall see.

I see baby bananas
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

Lew I spent some time on the computer today....a 5" lure scales down to .9" thick and something around 1.25" tall. I cut a few out, they take about 3.5 minutes apiece to do.

I'll throw one in the mail to you tomorrow. You can play with it...

I'm thinking a 3/8 slug in the belly and a 1/4x1/2 weight in the tail....

My wife says they're cute. :rotf2:

gona pic up a few of the big boys for man cave work this winter.
Nice though out process, would like to see the machine in person

You should really sand those sides smooth. The bumps are going to make a lot of noise in the water and scare the fish away.
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

Lew I spent some time on the computer today....a 5" lure scales down to .9" thick and something around 1.25" tall. I cut a few out, they take about 3.5 minutes apiece to do.

I'll throw one in the mail to you tomorrow. You can play with it...

I'm thinking a 3/8 slug in the belly and a 1/4x1/2 weight in the tail....

Thanks Scott, big one is getting painted tomorrow. Everyone down here is interested in the plug, many have not seen one before. Most commented they would like a smaller one, so the 5" should go over big. For me BIGGER is better. :uhuh:

You should really sand those sides smooth. The bumps are going to make a lot of noise in the water and scare the fish away.
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

They scream "Foil Job"!!

yea they do! I haven't tried putting foil over one yet but soon :hee:

I sent you two today sgtstriper
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

I sent you two today sgtstriper
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device
Got them, thanks

I will get one ready this weekend

I would go to 5.5"
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

Baby banana float tested today, 3/8" x 1.00" for the keel weight and .25" for the tail ( just shy of the width of plug) Single hook just in front of weight. Finish sand tomorrow and seal, maybe paint on it by Sunday night, but that's a big maybe. Big one is done and will be fished this weekend. I'll get some pic's up.