Crankbait Fishing Lure

myminifactory

This is my first go at designing a full size printed Crankbait. The finished model and results (fish caught) were well worth the effort. The bait was printed in two halves, then glued together using super glue. Three small pieces of 1.75mm filament helped align the halves while joining. A single piece of wire, bent to form loops for tie-on and hook mounts, fit between the halves before gluing them together. I printed this one with a .25 nozzle and .10 layer height for smooth results, so your results may vary. After gluing the halves together, I only sanded the glue seams flush. The lure was airbrushed following the YouTube tutorials by "Lure Me In Custom Painted Crankbaits," which I highly recommend due to their ease of follow. I tried sealing the lure with Miniwax spray on polyurethane but a two part clear epoxy would probably be stronger. The lure floated at first, but sank by the end of the day, leading me to believe it's not waterproof with the polyurethane. It was also easy to scratch. I went back and coated these with EnviroTex Lite Pour-On High Gloss Finish epoxy, which really brought the colors to life. I used #4 Treble Hooks and #3 Split Rings on these. Some initial tuning may be needed if the lure doesn't run true; just bend the front loop the opposite way it runs. The running depth is about 6-8' depending on retrieve speed. A rattle effect can be added by dropping a few BB's or bearings in the float chamber. 8-25-16: I replaced the stencil for airbrushing stripes with a better version, although this one requires supports, it's much easier to airbrush with. It's not a perfect fit but works well enough. If you make one of these and catch something, post your catch in the Makes. Post Printing: Sand seams, paint, seal. Check out "Lure Me In Custom Painted Crankbaits" on YouTube for tutorials on how to airbrush lures. His work is amazing and easy to follow. I followed the two linked below. I didn't do them justice but had to mix a lot of colors due to limited paint options, and was a bit heavy-handed with the paint. Pay attention when he says a little goes a long way. Assembly Instruction Link