Sneak Peak

[Agronomist_at_ia]

Yeah the wave worm with the two tail injections will be a game changer for soft plastics. If do it starts to produce more molds like that…..It will be awesome. Simply because it will be such a timesaver and make producing multi color baits and bait tails so easy.

I had a pack of mister twisters that had an orange side and a yellow side on the grub bodies with a white tail that worked great….but trying to produce them in my mold sucks….

[ctom]

Do-It sets the rules, I just play by them. lol

And too, most ice fishing tackle being introduced is finished tackle, not something the crafter can use or sees right away. Honestly there's really isn't much of anything in the tackle world that's "new" any more, just stuff that's been modified from what was available in the past.

I think more innovation has come from the newer components such as tungsten. Anytime heavier can be achieved with a smaller size just changes the whole dynamic of, say, a jig or ice lure. The opposite can be said of tin and lighter.

I do understand where you're coming from though, Agronomist.

[Agronomist_at_ia]

Do-It sets the rules, I just play by them. lol

And too, most ice fishing tackle being introduced is finished tackle, not something the crafter can use or sees right away. Honestly there's really isn't much of anything in the tackle world that's "new" any more, just stuff that's been modified from what was available in the past.

I think more innovation has come from the newer components such as tungsten. Anytime heavier can be achieved with a smaller size just changes the whole dynamic of, say, a jig or ice lure. The opposite can be said of tin and lighter.

I do understand where you're coming from though, Agronomist.

To be totally honest I moved to tungsten a few years ago with panfish jigs. I was fishing some ht mooska jigs that were absolute junk. Absolutely swore by tungsten and was only buying tungsten due to the light weight ht jigs. Well…after shooting plastics and making my own l small lead head jigs with the do it molds for the ice plastics I realized something….the jigs I was fishing weren’t even lead….they were really light weight epoxy type jigs. Since that realization I’ve found lead jigs to work fine to about 15 ft or so….20-30ft tungsten rules. Well 95% of my fishing for panfish is 15 foot or less. So a lead mold would be a game changer….also would LOVE some Small Spoons for panfish.

[ctom]

Here's a little reality for you. Fish live in a water environment, and nothing changes but the water temperature. External forces such as available light and the barometer affect fish to a degree all year long, but the bottom line is about the only significant change to the fish between winter and summer is how aggressive they are when the eat and how long they feed at a time. In the winter sunfish and crappies will take baits [food] very softly. If a heavy jig is used, they may, and will, reject the bait simply because it doesn't come into their mouths as easily or as natural as natural foods do.

Ethically fish deeper than about 15 feet should be avoided due to barotrauma from coming out of the deep water. I understand the weight thing as far as getting back into the fish as quickly as possible but at ethical depths, lead will do the same as tungsten except its less likely to be rejected due to its weight. With today's braids so popular with the tungsten stuff, I'd suggest finding a braid that's smaller diameter and soften rather than jumping up in head size. By far and away the best line for panfish in the winter is 2-pound mono, something along the line of Trilene's xl. Forget ice specific line as its formulation does little to make it limper and like all ice tackle the line is nothing more than a market extension and meant to get you to buy something that has little to do with the fish or their hitting. If a profile is needed to get hit, try a 1/32 Bat Head with the collar nipped off on a #8 or even a #10 plain jig hook. Just do a quick tap with the hook in the mold to form fit it to the cavity. The Minnow Head in the 1/48 size is yet another candidate to use a size 8 or ten hook without any need to make a modification. Even if you do the mod to the Bat head you aren't going to affect using the mold as it was made to be used.

The internet is full of options for ice heads including the tungsten, but from my own personal experience I have never found the need to get all fluffed up over the latest and the greatest ice tackle because the fish can't tell the difference between sumer and winter. Only the anglers get all frustrated. The fish keep on being fish no matter the time of year.

[Agronomist_at_ia]

Here's a little reality for you. Fish live in a water environment, and nothing changes but the water temperature. External forces such as available light and the barometer affect fish to a degree all year long, but the bottom line is about the only significant change to the fish between winter and summer is how aggressive they are when the eat and how long they feed at a time. In the winter sunfish and crappies will take baits [food] very softly. If a heavy jig is used, they may, and will, reject the bait simply because it doesn't come into their mouths as easily or as natural as natural foods do.

Ethically fish deeper than about 15 feet should be avoided due to barotrauma from coming out of the deep water. I understand the weight thing as far as getting back into the fish as quickly as possible but at ethical depths, lead will do the same as tungsten except its less likely to be rejected due to its weight. With today's braids so popular with the tungsten stuff, I'd suggest finding a braid that's smaller diameter and soften rather than jumping up in head size. By far and away the best line for panfish in the winter is 2-pound mono, something along the line of Trilene's xl. Forget ice specific line as its formulation does little to make it limper and like all ice tackle the line is nothing more than a market extension and meant to get you to buy something that has little to do with the fish or their hitting. If a profile is needed to get hit, try a 1/32 Bat Head with the collar nipped off on a #8 or even a #10 plain jig hook. Just do a quick tap with the hook in the mold to form fit it to the cavity. The Minnow Head in the 1/48 size is yet another candidate to use a size 8 or ten hook without any need to make a modification. Even if you do the mod to the Bat head you aren't going to affect using the mold as it was made to be used.

The internet is full of options for ice heads including the tungsten, but from my own personal experience I have never found the need to get all fluffed up over the latest and the greatest ice tackle because the fish can't tell the difference between sumer and winter. Only the anglers get all frustrated. The fish keep on being fish no matter the time of year.

Not a bad post agree wjth 90% of it. The issue is nobody has really made any led molds for small panfish jigs\baits It's not about open water or ice. Its about the water temperatures and panfish really wanting small stuff during a lot of the winter.

I really hate to say it. Do-It has totally dropped the ball on what the market wants. They have gotten better at Ice plastics....but really have ignored the lead molds for Ice.It's sad when a company from Ukraine is more innovative and listens to U.S. consumers and delivers molds for products that the market as been asking for.

I mean......lets looks at just a few mold potentials.

1. Spoons.....Currently the spoon molds are to large/heavy for a lot of ice fishing.....I mean the casting, diamond, and flutter  spoon in a 1\4 ......which is about the heaviest most people go/need.

Why would they not make a 1\16, 1\8, 1\4 sizes/weight in a spoon mold?

Why would they not make a spoon mold with a belly pocket in it for a rattle spot to make a rattle spoon. Or a pin slot that u could put a rattle or glow stick in?

2. Ice jigs for panfish........why would you not have a Mooska, ant, maggot, majmun jig mold? How many people are shooting pan fish plastics......yet have few jig options to put the plastics on. Heck....one of the best combos has been a Mooska with a 1in ice pick or ice tickler. When the fish are neutral. Just blows me away a led mold company sees the potential in plastics for panfish.....but can't see the ked jig mold potential. I mean drive to the biggest lakes in Iowa during winter......they are all panfishing.......all day.

3. Small jigging rap or jigging rap molds. 3 d printed fins or files to print the fins would be Smart.

[ctom]

You already made the argument that the market wants this or that yet the market is already saturated with the jigs. Look at the internet and one can get every knock-off in the world of every jig you mentioned and for dirt cheap. Creating molds for seasonal use are costly to develop and usually call for specialized hooks which further adds to the cost of production. With the Ukraine making molds with no regard to US patent or copyright or trademark and the Chinese doing the same there's little incentive for an American company to go out on a limb and have to compete with a market that respects nothing. As for the Mooska type of jig Do-It has, or is, offering those now. I'm not sure if they actually have gotten the stock in but the catalog has them listed for those who want them.

People having specific requests for specific molds should maybe consider packaging up a few of the baits they are wanting and sending those to the Ukraine so those companies can create the molds and offer the corresponding hooks. Do It has to consider the investment as opposed to pay back when they develop molds. They have to consider machining costs to create inserts and hooks all the way thru development to marketing. If, with such a limited market as what ice fishing offers, given the here today-gone tomorrow mentality of the ice tackle itself, there isn't an assurance that all of their time and money will repay thru sales why would they make it. Face it, making your own tackle does not necessarily save you any money when you conder all of the aspects and your time. Making your own tackle just affords you the choice of colors. The internet today has so much of the same tackle you are wanting out there, use it to satisfy your whims. I'm a life-long panfish/crappie angler and use tons of Do-It molds, both the lead and the plastic. I use a ton of baits and jigs and quite often see ways that they might improve upon a jig or plastic and let them know, but I have zero expectations of them catering to what I think. And to be clear, I do have several Ukrainian molds for baits that the Do-It line-up doesn't cover for my wants. That's what I suggest for you if there isn't anyone in the States making what you think you need. If I wanted/needed something that one company did not offer and it was apparent that they were not going to offer it, but the internet was full of it, I'd be on the internet like a duck on a junebug. Why aren't you?

[Agronomist_at_ia]

You already made the argument that the market wants this or that yet the market is already saturated with the jigs. Look at the internet and one can get every knock-off in the world of every jig you mentioned and for dirt cheap. Creating molds for seasonal use are costly to develop and usually call for specialized hooks which further adds to the cost of production. With the Ukraine making molds with no regard to US patent or copyright or trademark and the Chinese doing the same there's little incentive for an American company to go out on a limb and have to compete with a market that respects nothing. As for the Mooska type of jig Do-It has, or is, offering those now. I'm not sure if they actually have gotten the stock in but the catalog has them listed for those who want them.

People having specific requests for specific molds should maybe consider packaging up a few of the baits they are wanting and sending those to the Ukraine so those companies can create the molds and offer the corresponding hooks. Do It has to consider the investment as opposed to pay back when they develop molds. They have to consider machining costs to create inserts and hooks all the way thru development to marketing. If, with such a limited market as what ice fishing offers, given the here today-gone tomorrow mentality of the ice tackle itself, there isn't an assurance that all of their time and money will repay thru sales why would they make it. Face it, making your own tackle does not necessarily save you any money when you conder all of the aspects and your time. Making your own tackle just affords you the choice of colors. The internet today has so much of the same tackle you are wanting out there, use it to satisfy your whims. I'm a life-long panfish/crappie angler and use tons of Do-It molds, both the lead and the plastic. I use a ton of baits and jigs and quite often see ways that they might improve upon a jig or plastic and let them know, but I have zero expectations of them catering to what I think. And to be clear, I do have several Ukrainian molds for baits that the Do-It line-up doesn't cover for my wants. That's what I suggest for you if there isn't anyone in the States making what you think you need. If I wanted/needed something that one company did not offer and it was apparent that they were not going to offer it, but the internet was full of it, I'd be on the internet like a duck on a junebug. Why aren't you?

I did go to the other companies and did get the service and molds made.

An "ice jig mold" isn't just used for ice fishing. No different then the plastics aren't just used for Ice fishing.

With you logic about the market being saturated with jigs......lmao....every mold they make has that problem. Should they stop selling the round head jig? Sinker weights?

Look you can make all the excuses you want. It doesn't change the fact do it has dropped the ball on hitting the market with molds that the market wants.

[Lamar]

  I'm just saying if you two would just switch over to bass fishing then your problems would be solved. It's a simple solution.

[ctom]

"do it has dropped the ball on hitting the market with molds that the market wants"....

You call it dropping the ball only because they don't have a mold you think you need. I call it prudent business practice by not investing what it takes to create a mold that has a very limited market.

You need to keep in mind that Do-It's "market" are the vendors, like Barlows and Zeiners along with a host of others. What they offer here doesn't go far to pay their bills. If the vendors start asking for a particular jig, things get a lot more notice. Maybe take your issue up with Barlows or Zeiners. I'd bet that Do_it would respond in a more favorable way if one or both of those companies showed an interest in having such a mold made for their stock, based on their customer requests, say a couple hundred molds, at both sites.

You went to the European market to get your mold, so use it and stop fretting over something that isn't happening here right now.

[ctom]

Ba..... Those are not real fish. First cousin to the dogfish.

This discussion would go away if the tackle makers got rid of the so-called ice tackle.

[Les Young]

Ba..... Those are not real fish. First cousin to the dogfish.

This discussion would go away if the tackle makers got rid of the so-called ice tackle.

I understand how he feels personally because i was interested in single weight bullet sinker molds & sort of got the same nonresponse about it. Can't help when somebody wants something that isn't available. Do-it however jumped on the ned rig craze & the new weedless heads too & made molds with the same sizes in the whole mold. I know they knew it would sale, but i still say lead pourers would still buy the molds in the popuylar weight sizes like i'm talking about because if they use a texas rig they're going to use them period. What's the difference & why should you turn what i know was a civilized response to begin with into something to try to end the thread simply because somebody doesn't have the same opinion as you? 

[ctom]

If people have an issue with what a company decides to make, or not make, take it to the company. NOT the company's website with an interactive forum and try to convince people that the company 'dropped the ball" in an open forum. Do-It does what's best in their interests and if doesn't fit in your list of wants, go somewhere else and find it. Simple. Don't go on an open forum and bash the company....you lose all credibility to your argument doing that. THAT'S my opinion.

By the way Les, this guy first posted this request on 11/12 2016. How many calls to the company has he made since then and if he was told things were in the making, he should call back and ask when they hope to fulfill his needs. There isn't a soul on this site that is going to get his damn mold made., so why burden us with all of HIS anxiety and talking down the company? Do It ppays their phone bill so he should be using the phone, NOT a public forum to airing his crap.

[Les Young]

Tom, I'm not a master of the english language   as you can tell. lol   Sorry if i made it sound worse than i meant for  it too.

[Agronomist_at_ia]

If people have an issue with what a company decides to make, or not make, take it to the company. NOT the company's website with an interactive forum and try to convince people that the company 'dropped the ball" in an open forum. Do-It does what's best in their interests and if doesn't fit in your list of wants, go somewhere else and find it. Simple. Don't go on an open forum and bash the company....you lose all credibility to your argument doing that. THAT'S my opinion.

By the way Les, this guy first posted this request on 11/12 2016. How many calls to the company has he made since then and if he was told things were in the making, he should call back and ask when they hope to fulfill his needs. There isn't a soul on this site that is going to get his damn mold made., so why burden us with all of HIS anxiety and talking down the company? Do It ppays their phone bill so he should be using the phone, NOT a public forum to airing his crap.

Dude stick it up your ass. You obviously have a problem you try to back with Bullchit. If saying a company dropped the ball on a market is bashing them get a clue. You bring up talking points you are clueless on. Ice jig molds won't sell bla bla bla....but ice plastic molds will somehow have some magically different market then ice jigs. Yet both get used year round for bluegill which is the most common fish people chase just about evergwhere. If I wanted to bash the company I'd actually bash the company. I get it you are a fan boy. I like do it, and most of the products they have. Posting on some of the missed opportunities they have.....on a forum isn't bashing them. Its constructive criticism they can take or leave. Obviously you are a know it all, and act like a spoiled child that can't take feedback on things from a customer or market place. Put your pride aside and quit being a jerk because someone has a different view......your acting like a snowflake democrat

[BareKnuckleJigs]

Have the ES iCraw on the way along with 100 of the 10777 hooks.

I'll shoot the iCraws in Soft or Stupid-Soft, and use the 10777 in my Tip-up mold.  That should produce a Craw that easily and reliably stands with claws raised, at least in theory.

Since my Tip-up mold has been modified to take a WB400 at the bottom of the hook shank, adding said wire would allow me to throw on a skirt (single color) if desired.

The Smallmouth better be thankful I live too far South.