No worries Larry as i am catching up to you in my post count.:wavey:

Paul, The tubing in rolls is a great idea. I've been using dowels and the plastic sleeves from a hardware store. In my version of the Wadd needle the 1/4' lead rod is not put in the middle w/the thru wire inside. It's offset approx. 3/16" on center below the wire hole. Becauseof the plug taper the insert hole becomes exposed and this requires a dowel filler. When done inside the blank b/4 turning it eliminates shaping the dowel after the fact.

ah I see. Glad you explained that. 3/16 below center. neat idea. good thinking.

I use wooden plugs to fill the oversize thru hole, the tubing won't give you any bouyancy.
The whole thing is about the difference between the center of bouyancy and the center of gravity?, at least I remember the terms as that. Read a little bit about yatch design and you will find some good explanations. Weight in the ends makes the boat/plug respond slower, weight in the middle makes it quicker. It's not just how much weight it's where you put it. Don Musso is a master of this, look at a superstrikes weight placement.

all very good points but TBO I am not looking for buoyancy if I am using that application and all that weight on such a thin dia. plug. I am looking more for the attitude of the plug as it is reeled in or sinks. If I am going for buoyancy than I am probably using a few small belly wgts.only. This is just my 2 cents . You made a valid observation. Jolly good show.

I'll take a picture of the end of plug.

Hello.......everybody sleeping in this Sun?

This seems a good place to start. I've found that a little tail weight instead of a hook in the butt of a danny gets you a slower but wider action (I think because of momentum) that bass seem to like. Also helps the plug cast better, and balance better (since the lip and snap on the front end pull the face down).

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

That sounds good, I think I'll give that a try. My Danny's have little bit to much roll..need to address that too.
Thanks for the surfster measurements, got one done. I'll take a pic and post in a few minutes.

Roll is a different issue and has more to do with the lip and line tie location than weighting.

But before you get too caught up in roll, my best catching danny/donny style plug is so unstable it will do a barrel roll with a twitch of the rod tip. Forget the eyes, keep your paint scheme subtle, and reel sloooowwwwww (conventional tackle helps).....you may be surprised.

Good Morning all. Have you guys had a chance to clean up the saw dust from the week? I filled a 30gal. garbage pail!! On weighting Dannys; I use a 1/2" diameter belly weight slug low to the belly. I feel the lower the weight the harder it is to pull the belly up. I have a few Bm style dannys I made. they swim extremely well. very little roll w/a nice slow side to side. Pinching up the lip sides a little helps somewhat.

Here's the big surfster and the Nike's.
Now on the Danny's you are just tail weighting, or tail and belly?

George, on the matter of line tie location, what difference would one find with the same lip i.e. Lefty 2 with a mid hole and hi hole? Could the difference of fractions be made up by bending the wire up or down to create the action of a fixed lip hole?

1/2" Belly weight only. Dead center no tail weight.

My Danny spec are; 2.1oz w/o hooks (white cedar), 1 11/32" dia, 7/8" nose, 13/16" tail. Hooks 1 1/4" & 4" from nose

I'm doing 3/8" belly weight in center, Danny low slot lip, cut just above center.

Here one of the Dannys. The weight hole is circled.

Sorry I am late! Yes sleeping in George....Christmas party last night! Didn't drink a thing just tired! Give me a minute to catch up, post a pic and warm my coffee! Nice looking surfster Sgt.!:drool:

Sorry I'm late coach...

Tailweighted dannys, I've done that and do except for the little fat ones. Works well to slow it down.
With pikies, too. slowes them down and make them swim more "S" like.

Go home Fred...we can't play today!:rotf2:

Danny eyes: I made a few and didn't like the way they looked while swimming. Some rolled so much that it looked as tho the eyes were on top of the plug. I imagine that a fish would think "What the H!!" seeing a baitfish with it's eyes bobbing all over the place.

Errahhh, I am home.
But I got as far as the door......:smash:

OK! Here we are.....where I was last week. ProfM gave me the primed Nike body and I turned this copy by hand which I will use as a template! Got a new duplicator coming shortly! I can't wait to get some of these done and ready for paint! I have never swam a Nike before! I am looking forward to making some very small versions for fresh water use!

When they swim, they are a thing of beauty. Never mastered them, came close and actually had fish following. Tagger gave me an unfinished one with all the circles and chechmarks in the appropiate places after my WAG attempts. I may revisit the Nike.

So where is Lou and the Prof?? George you crawl back into bed?

fish also might think...hmmm... EZ dinner...dying baitfish that can't swim right side up...slurp...

:huh:

Karl! Yep that's a good point.:uhuh:

Fred makes this "Dying Danny"......thing swims ugly as hairy ass......but I watched the fish pound this thing one night down the back! Fred got I think his biggest surf bass that night if memory serves?! Went a healthy 30 pounds easy right Fred?:uhuh: Awesome plug....just like Karl said.....floundering, dying baitfish!

His or mine ? and where's the large one :)

Hi guys soory i am late major toothache i can't wait to see the dntist tomorrow.:smash:

That little plug...:love:
I fished it like this:
Cast wait , do absolutely nothing
Big yank, wait
Start slowly cranking
WHAM
Repeat
Best night I ever had. Now the truth, that plug was s**t beginner luck, the first of two swimmers of any kind that I ever built. Larry you have the other in olive.

Nope! I lost that to a bluefish that had good taste Fred! You still have a master I hope?

Ooo Lu toothaches suck. Did that this Spring, missed the best part of June because of it. Hope it gets resolved quick.

Speaking of turds that catch fish i made some small musso darters (used the wrong wood) darted nice then would roll completely over and come across the top of the water smaking a few times then roll back and start darting again.The bass were like piranhas on it and wanted nothing else.A friend fishing next to me could not buy a hit we both were just laughing it was every cast go figure.

The original hangs from the rafters of the ManCave..

You guys should buy stock in anbesol as i am drinking this stuff like water.:uhuh:

Surfster Talk!
 

Sgt. I love surfsters but I tried several before I designed my "Prey" swimmer and hated the action on them! They all rolled 180 degrees and they were just but ugly in the water! I wanted mine to wiggle and actually swim just below the surface. So I simply put a 00 slug of lead in the belly to act as a keel......it swims beautiful and drops below the surface easily without benefit of the sloped head! Try one without the lead in the belly Sgt. and one with a shot of lead....see how you like it?

Hey Lou! Take your Anbesol spam to scuppers......whatcha got for plugs Lou???:rotf2:

But weren't surfsters originally designed for flat water thats why no weight and alot of roll?So when you bring it in slowly it has that wounded baitfish action.

Small polaris poppers:uhuh:Also i am starting to finish up some bannna plugs given to me by the late Al Bentson.

The original after the only night it was ever fished..