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Timbers for gt lures

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Tristo View Drop Down
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    Posted: 19 Jul 2015 at 9:34pm
Hi I'm thinking of giving the lure making a crack , my question is what timbers would you use for gt poppers and stick baits. I was thinking of using either cedar or oregon but not 100% if it's the right choice , I'm also finding it hard to find in Sydney ,does anyone have places I could try thanks
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Fysshe Salmon View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Fysshe Salmon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 19 Jul 2015 at 10:02pm
Tristo, GT's have some serious dentures!! They will make a mess of any soft timber, especially red cedar or pine!! If I was going to make some, I'd use some aged silky oak that I have quite a lot of. It's very tough but still easy to work. They're would be a lot more suitable timbers that others would recommend. Cheers Ian
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote bignanny Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 19 Jul 2015 at 11:28pm
Tristo, try your local dump or timber recycler or used building material dealer. Look for old timber casement windows. They are mostly made of silky oak. They can be usually bought cheap especially from the dump. I paid about $5 each for the last ones i picked up. Strip them back and your in business. Hope this helps regards Chris 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Guests Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Jul 2015 at 12:59pm
Ditto for the Silky Oak.
Normally easy to find and work with and has the extra benefit of being heavier than Cedar's which not only hold ups better to fish with fangs, but also gives you a greater casting distance.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote CaptainCranky Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Jul 2015 at 10:43pm
Cedar for Blooper poppers. (As flotation or Aspect in the water is the key to success) 
A compromise must be had between timber density and flotation and durability.
When I made my large poppers I studied densities in depth so as to ascertain the best possible compromise required.
Balsa or in Australia's north Cottonwood trees is just too week,soft and it's water absorbtion rate too rapid after being munched to bits by GT's,Cuda and Dogtooth.
Tuffness ,durability,flotation as well as availability and price all enter the equation.
Western Red is my favourite due to it's uniformity in density and satisfying the above needs.
Stick baits and high speed poppers are a different story though as the requirements are not so critical as Bloopers.
Hope this helps.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Dynamite lure Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Jul 2015 at 11:05pm
Chris Hurt the maker of the Mack Magnets used HOOP PINE for those,I think if Hoop pine can stand up to Mack,s then they should with GT,S 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Balls Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 21 Jul 2015 at 5:30pm
G'day Tristo/all

Britton timbers may be a source of timber for you in that area, I was given a few lengths of Cellery Top Pine from them years ago, although someone now thinks its a different timber (yet to be confirmed), it was a beautiful stick of timber similar to Poplar Pine, it doesn't have the resin lines in it like Radiata/Hoop etc,turns well on a lathe, straight fine grain, buoyant. You will need to consider if you intend to thru wire & or glue twisted wires in to hold your hooks. If you go for thru wire the resin lines on some timbers make it difficult to drill straight thru from end to end. As Cranky said weight, buoyancy, availability,cost etc will come into play. Also if you thru wire, the timber you choose will have to be able to handle absorbing water unless you can seal the thru wiring & middle hook hanger (usually a swivel), personally I twist my wires, syringe the epoxy in & make sure they are sealed, if weighted I mould the twisted wire into my weight (easy to make mould for this method). As for handling the toothie critters, I personally haven't seen anything that will protect the timber for very long from Dog Tooth Tuna, Macks, Wahoo etc, GT's tend to crunch them a bit more than cut them up. The Doggie lures I make are usually made out of the softer Radiata Pine for the sole reason they have a very short life expectancy in the areas being fished & I'd rather just use that timber then timber I have trouble sourcing in Darwin, so depending the size of the GT's & or other species you are chasing & the location you intend to chase them may also be a consideration, if you think they are going to have a very short life span, just select a reasonable timber easily accessable to you & make them strong & make plenty of them. Everyone will have varying opinions so hopefully you will end up with something your happy with, if you want info on wire etc just give us a hoy & I will get the details of the wire I use for these style of lures, cheers Balls.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Flying Fish Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 21 Aug 2015 at 10:56pm
Hi Tristo,
I use Tassie Oak for my GT lures.
Even though it's quite a heavy and dense wood it still floats well even with heavy terminal tackle and it's not to bad to work with on the lathe.
Here is a stickbait I made for an fishing trip a few years ago.
It's sealed, through wired, painted and coated three times in Etex.
It caught a few GTs, a big red bass and a few mackerel.
Most of the damage is surface scratches but they did manage to make it to the wood in two small spots. The damage would have been much worse with a softer wood.


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