thought I would experiment a little
 

I enjoy watching decoy and lure carvers, and I have quite a few pike and walleye come to my bait when Im jigging it on slower days. Thought Id try something different and make a decoy of my own just for fun. I dont want it 100 % realistic, I want the predators to think its a gimp so we shall see. just a chunk of pallet board, see if I can give it some new life. No spearing in Alberta but Im pretty sure i could swap it for a bait pretty darn quick. I sometimes jig a rap or other lure, especially my favourite lure, hookless to draw a fish in on the slow days so I figure if nothing else this will be another gimmick on slow days. Ive had pike take walleye and even pike I had hooked so I have high hopes. :bad_boys_20:
starting out just using hand tools to see how it goes.
going to do the fins out of metal .:shark:

That's really cool!

Am interested in seeing how it turns out!

If you have any issues getting it to glide or any issues odds are I can give some advice

Oh if you want to add an internal rattle it’s fairly easy. Sorry but I see this kinda project and my brain starts turning lol

This reminds me of your metal fish sculptures ...... are you still doing those Wayne?

I love those ..... a true piece of art ....

This would also be pretty cool I think. Can't wait to see how it turns out.

well, I painted a couple of my older ones after my accident. havent really been able to get my head around the steel yet, but its been 3 years so Im going to make the effort now. Starting this wood my hands just took over, my brains really been missing it I know. being an artist and not able to do it can be quite the stress for me at least, that damn third eye needs to be kept open! Smokey I was already thinking of maybe a couple marbles inside, but I think my prototype will be silent til I know whats what. the fins and tail will be adjustable so hopefully without much weight she should confuse the heck out of some hogs. or not, I have fun doing it anyways! :sHa_shakeshout:

Definitely interested in seeing how it turns and from seeing your other projects I know you have talent

Me too....got me thinking of getting into this but got so many other things on the plate.

slowly
 

didnt feel up to fishing this weekend so I plugged away , I made the tail from galvanized so I could adjust the swim, the fins are joiner biscuits, should be strong enough at least for testing, the dorsal I carved from different wood with the wrong orientation so it broke off, I just encapsulated it with JB for now, and got a couple coats of primer on the whole thing for now. I dont care if a fish breaks the fins off, that would be more like a compliment to me :sHa_shakeshout: the next one I do I will do all metal fins. I havent weighted it yet but I will test the swim before I paint it, I know it needs weighting. kinda porky and overfinned for a herring but I want the hogs to feel sorry for it and kill it out of mercy :bad_boys_20: so far Im rather happy with it, and learning more for the next version eventually. not sure how I want it painted, either screaming for attention or maybe closer to natural, see what happens I guess.

how do you plan on weighing it down?

I will just drill a few shallow holes in the belly and add. lead til its right. wont take a lot I want it pretty much weightless just a slow sink but then again its new to me so I will see what the fish like

If you want to get your weighting right you can test weight position and amount by using elastic bands or strips of duct tape to hold it in place for testing. Easy way to dial things in before making things permanent

great minds :bad_boys_20: I was going to test float it this morning then realized I used latex primer so I recoated it with the good stuff, I will paint it then do the weights I guess, I can always recover the spot when its right. still no clue how it will swim with smaller fins but thats part of the learning and fun for me anyways. I have a new carving book waiting for me at the post office and some new carving knives on the way, Im thinking a couple more practice fish then maybe I will do more detailed details , but then again if the mammas like it theres no point getting too fancy Ive seen them chomp down on a 2x4 and it wasnt pretty!. but then again if its a 40 pounder Id be quite happy to hang that decoy on the wall!:sHa_shakeshout:

Adding lead to a fishes belly is cheating….lol

Looking forward to the finished product.


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update on the project
 

I need to touch up the paint, but I have it just enough weighted to sink the way I want it to. Or win a derby :argue2: ! 1 thing I will remember for the next one, I forgot to weigh the fish first, I knew it needed 4 ounces but I had to add some to the first pours to get it.
I painted it first, because Im different. I put 2 eyes on top in case I need to adjust it, can always add another further back if I need to. Im not sure if the fins are big enough to get the proper glide, if not Im thinking maybe just do some oversize out of clear plexi or something and add to the wooden fins. then again Im hoping a big pike will bust it up then I will redo them all of metal. the tail is metal so i can bend it a bit to adjust the swim pattern.
as for the pattern/color , Ive always done great with red and white spoons, so I figured why not. 5 O' Diamonds have never been good to me, 60 years of fishing and I dont think Ive caught 2 pike on that pattern, just the way it goes. then again Im going to paint another one like that just for poops and giggles. My lovely lady got me a bandsaw for Santa day so Im going to try several fish patterns to get better at it then I can do more detailing as I practice. Next one will be a Lake White. didnt realize how much I missed my art the past 3 years but it seems to be coming back :sHa_shakeshout: Its so awesome to be able to merge hobbies and passions, like a good number of members on the forum. A whole lot of talent here folks!!!! not me, them!

soon as I saw the rough shape it started, so many ideas, but it beats watching reruns and crappy tv thats for sure. now I need to do more!!!! damn addictions anyways:bad_boys_20:

maiden voyage
 

of the Red Herring. I think it turned out about how I wanted it, had to bend the tail just a bit to get a tighter swim circle , if Moby grabs it I want to see it happen!! saw a few pike today even 2 at once but only I big fish and Im only 90% sure it was a pike :thinking-006: crappy phone video
https://youtu.be/I5A5d0V6KbA

new project
 

I liked how my pike pizzeroffer turned out, and now I have the itch, had to start another carving this weekend. It wont be a decoy, its going to a special person for Christmas.Im doing all but the original blank with just hand tools for this one, Takes a lot longer but worth it for this piece. best thing to me is the wood is part of my house, leftover lumber so its even more meaningful. the grain in the wood is amazing so its going to be mostly clear coated. maybe, probably, I dont know it just flows as it goes, I love making art!:sHa_shakeshout: keeps my head attached most days. :snapoutofit: Im a lot further along than the first pic but I will post when its finished I still have detailing and fins to do.

decoy
 

dropped it in today for a bit, and had a pike come by full speed at about 20 seconds into the vid to check it out. https://youtu.be/2rnfsFH7-gk

looks like it works! I like the swimming action myself. :happy0034:

girlyfish done
 

paint isnt as good as Id like but it should do. this one isnt a decoy but the next probably will be. Cant show the other side til I give it to my son its a surprise :bad_boys_20:Im looking at trying a slow sinking jigging fish next so I guess I may have to do a few types of fish. smaller than the decoy, just about bite sized for a decent pike I really miss having 2 good eyes!!!!!!!!:angry3: this one was made from a piece of my old porch, hopefully its not as disturbed as the house is. :scared0018:

I like that one - looks good enough to eat !!!! hopefully the big pike will agree with me !!

new start
 

I guess I will just add to this post until people get tired of seeing my experiments. :bad_boys_20: I like the way my bigger decoy works and swims, so Im going to downsize and try an actual suspending lure just for fun. this lake white is about 6 1/2 inches long and I will try carving the fins in 1 piece, if that fails i can add them again. Love my bandsaw for cutting the form out, so much time saved! now as soon as I can find the other half of my thumb I can get started!:scared0018: this piece of wood is from my old futon frame, lots of it for more projects, I dont really want to use too much haunted wood unless it attracts more fish :bad_boys_20:

bit further along
 

still lots of shaping and detailing, then I have to get the weight right to swim the way I want it to, (sink) but its coming along. pectorals will be smaller once the epoxy sets and I can shape them more but they will be a bit oversize to get the action I want. I keep coming up with more ideas, maybe I will get a few built before ice out. :thinking-006: Id love to do a bunch of different types of fish

You have some carving talent Wayne. I think if you keep playing with different designs and weight placements you could come up with something that will really get the pike’s attention

Personally I would go for large peck fins as they will help with the glide. There is a lot of things you can achieve action wise but that all depends on what you are going for. With what you are working on think about how your design catches the water and directs it.

I am looking forward to hearing when a big pike T bones one

ready for destruction
 

I can hope anyways, I got my DVR in the mail today so hopefully I can get some video of this getting destroyed by a 33 pound pike :bad_boys_20: Im hanging a treble under the front of the pectorals and have a mount to hang one behind the tail, or even a twister tail or a spinnerblade. Finally found a use for the *****eral rigs I drag out of the water instead of just tossing them, the wires are perfect for mounting hardware on a plug. have to try it out maybe tomorrow, it took a lot more weight than I thought it would but its got a good nose down dive to it now plus the tail stays off the bottom, so if it gets chased down I can just let them pick it up. or they will all run screaming who knows, I really like doing these wooden creations, Im going to have to do a bunch now in different configurations, this one I dont know what to call it, a diving plug? 6.5 inches long without a tailhook

looking good keep us updated thanks

maiden voyage
 

Took my creation out to the lake this morning, tried bait for a while but it was dead, so i hooked up my little Lake White and tried jigging. Might have just a tiny bit too much weight but I think it worked great anyways. Took all of a couple seconds before a hammerhandle showed up to check it out, then not much longer I had a bigger (not huge) pike come in the check it out. It bit a couple times, even broke one of the fins off which floated right back up into the hole for me. Added some toothmarks and then wandered off. I didnt land any fish today, did have several hanging about but the reaction to my new lure made it an awesome day for me. now whats next, Im thinking maybe a sucker about the same size:thinking-006:
the new DVR worked great, the water is still a bit murky but its clearing up. I posted video to youtube if you want to check it out
https://youtu.be/jEj-6EM_0pg

sorry, new link
 

I had to delete the other video I messed up editing it this is the new vid
sorry aboot that https://youtu.be/zY-VBiVT0yQ

Good job on making the lure. Maybe if you had some bait on the hook the fish may have taken it.

the second pike did take the lure, got toothmarks and scratches on it.:sHa_shakeshout: it didnt want to try hard though because the lure still smelled bad from the fresh varnish and paint, I think a big fish once its cured will likely just inhale it.
I need to change my fin design, Id been curious what wooden pecs would do if it got bit, now I am thinking of soft fins so they can bite down hard and take the hook. I also have a couple ideas on finless lures I want to try. I could hang a minnow or something off the back hook you are right that would have hooked it up. I think a lure with soft fins wouldnt need the tail hook the fish would be able to just eat the whole thing and get the front treble. Im loving this creating something that actually brings in fish its even more satisfying than tying my walleye flies, hopefully the lures will bump up my personal best walleye too! :shark: