What is best? A wood crankbait or a plastic?

[catfish-logic]

I have been obsessing over the possibility of making my own crankbaits, it is much cheaper for plastics. However, aren't wooden crankbaits better for action that plastic? You know like the bolsa wood?

I'm never gonna make wooden crankbaits cause you have to carve them and all that.

But I'm only curious.
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[lakextackle]

Your asking the Ford vs. Chev question. In my mind there is no "best" material for a crank. They are just tools and each one has its own job. If your cranking a lot of wood or fishing high pressured waters then a wood bait is the best. The will deflect of the cover better, will float when snagged, and are silent. However, they are not as durable as a plastic bait, need a little more tuning from time to time, no two wood baits will run the same, and good ones will cost you a little money.

Plastic baits are more consistent from bait to bait and are much cheaper to produce. Plus they are available in just about any type of lure. Obviously more durable and the finishes are outstanding. I don't know if I would say wood is better than plastic for action, they are just different baits for different applications.

If your looking to make some wood baits there are several places where you can buy the lure building kit for about $5. It comes with everything you need except paint and epoxy. I think you can even buy them with the lip installed [biggest issue when building a wood lure] and a coat of primer for $5-$6.

Many folks offer unfinished plastic baits online for about $2-$3 each. Add paint, epoxy, hooks, and your ready to roll. Its pretty hard to scew one up. But some places have better quality lure blanks than others.

There are lure blanks out there that look just like the high dollar Lucky Crafts and run just as good.

Resin made baits are becoming more and more popular with the custom builders. This requires the builder to carve just one bait and then he is able to duplicate the bait with great consistentacy. The resin mixture can be manipulated to imitate the bouyancy of wood, but yet have the durability of plastic......
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[fishguru73]

A well tuned crank made of either will work equally well in most sitations but plastic is more versatile for holographic effect and internal coloration if it is clear. Plastic is also more durable and doesn't get damaged as easily and can be molded to accomodate goodies such as rattles or internal LED lighting in red to immitate a bleeding fish. However, both are equally deadly when applied correctly and the best attributes that a quality crank posesses is a good and consistent swimming action and good tuning on a heavy wire attachment that will not easily bend and compromise the lure's depth and true in line retrieving action. Tops for me are Rapalas, Yo-Zuri's, Rebels, and Heddon's. If you can find a K-mart lure in the right size, shape, and color, and tune it right, it will work just as effectively but it won't swim true consistently without alot of fiddling. Some generic lures can never be tuned right because they aren't made right. Spend the money and get a well made lure that imitates the kind of bait fish you want for the situation and it really doesn't matter what it's made of. Size and color are the biggest factors to consider.
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