Rookie finally getting the hang of it.

[nipideddee]

My lathe has been busy and today I water tested 27 lures I have
made over the past 3 months. 3 were total duds but the rest
acted as expected. Finally getting the tail wrap half way decent
but need to cut down on number of turns. Some went in the trash can that I pulled too tight and caved in the tail. Don't know my own
strength for a couple years shy of 70. If I can get the picture post
to work will try some so don't be shy to tell me what you think as
I am very new at this fantastic hobby
Nip

[ProfessorM]

Look fantastic.

[afterhours]

damned nice lookin' stuff!

[MrHunters]

are you kidding me!
i gotta get a lathe.

[fishaholic18]

Nice work.
Are you using grommets in the tail and nose? That should prevent crushing the plug when wrapping tail wire.
What are you throwing them at down there? I goota bring some of my stuff when I get down there.

[nipideddee]

Yes, I am using grommets but three of the lures were like the
mullet pattern one in the picture and the hole was drilled out
a little bigger than 1/4 inch to accomidate the larger weights.
Since then I went to Ace Hdw and bought some stainless washers
and now no problem as I have cut the wire and re-wrapped.

I am going to use the plugs in the surf down around Sebastian Inlet
and south in Sept and nov when the mullet run draws in all the predators like Snook, Blues, Kingfish,tarpon & of course sharks.

"Terry Parsons" a local surf expert has already started catching
Tarpon and last week a 40 pound Wahoo. Rumor has it on a Atom 40 are look alike. He did hold the state record of 51 LB redfish but since broken. If I am lucky with a big Tarpon will post a Picture
Tight lines
Nip

[JohnR]

Nip - very nice work, looks like you are getting the hang of it Keep up the great work

[Slipknot]

I think this belongs in the plug forum, not the how to and favorites

[stripercrazy]

ain't nothing rookie about them

[winchmaster]

Very nice stuff!!
Every time I see your user name I smile. Even though you spelled it different than I remember. Nipindedee's used to be one of my favorite black bass lures when I was a kid.

[striperondafly]

some of the best first work I've seen - you did a great job!!

[WHITETAIL111]

Nipideddee, what lathe are you using?
Also, nice paint job. What paints are you using to get the nice finish? I've been toying with the idea of trying this, but haven't made the jump yet?

[garyb]

nip those are great . it doesn't look like rookie work to me keep up the good work

[Tagger]

Originally Posted by nipideddee

3 were total duds but the rest
acted as expected.

look good ... wich were duds ? tail hooks look a tad big (might be angle)on swimmers .. If the swimmers are duds try downsizing arse hook .. You ever watch a swimmer come in like its a stick, only to notice you picked up a piece of grass or weed on the tail hook .. Its kinda like that .. alot of these so called duds are really champs

[nipideddee]

Thanks for all the nice comments-- The painting was done with your
Rustoleum rattle cans and for the 2nd coat after a prior dunking in the
same white 1st coat. The only time I used the air brush was with
the netting to get scale patterns on the mullet lures.
A long time ago when I graduated to windows I used AOL and had
a screen name called Nipideddee because the correct spelling was taken.
I caught a lot of bass on those old lures and it is still a
good top water go to bait One of the duds was the tail hook set up
as mentioned on the forum and thanks for the suggestions as it now works good
and the other one was a swimmer that is really a mess.
The mullet run has started on the East Coast in Florida but the seas need some calming
as its full of sea weed and blowing. Hoping for calm weather this week.
I use a small Grizzly lathe that was somewhat over priced but gets the job done.
I bought my lathe turning tools at Harbor freight and a nice set of forstner bits from sears.
I think the forstner bits are something you need of quality and sharp.
One little tid bit you might find of interest is a cheap long 1/8
drill bit.
I wanted a long one and found a set of three sizes at Harbor
freight for a couple bucks and the best I can remember they are 24
inches long. Cit the 1/8 to the length I wanted and it works fine.
Tight lines
Nip

[Gunpowder]

those are really impressive!!! nice work

[Rockfish9]

Those are fine looking pugs,Tagger gave you a good tip on the hooks, did you try bending the pull eye up or down???? how about bending the lip up or down, sometimes a slight adjustment makes a world of differance...Keep up the fine work.