Lightweight jig material

[andrewlamberson]

I fish the slop with swim jigs and a baby berry, swim worm or Flippin' Hog. I have the small Swim Jig mold and just ordered the larger Snookie jig mold.

I want to make the jigs as light as possible so they stay on top of the weeds. Can I use Tin instead of lead?

Will the tin hold the hook as well as lead in the jig head?

And...where in the heck do you buy tin?

Is there any other material you can use to make lightweight jigs?

Thanks,

Andy

[Jerry V]

Sure you can use Tin Andy.  Just know that it doesn't cast in a mold quite like lead.  It has a lower melting temp. so it will freeze a little quicker in the mold than lead which can sometimes lead to wrinkled or incomplete castings.  It is also a little harder and more brittle than lead and more expensive as well.

As far as buying it... You can usually find it in some of the same places that you find lead.  I would check your local listings for metal salvage or scrap yards and inquire for tin ingot.  If they don't sell it chances are they will know where you can pick it up.  Not unlike lead it is one of the more recycled metals around.

[pjmcla]

Pewter is a primarily tin alloy.  Tin will pour and hold hooks well if the temperature is right.  It does have a good bit lower melt point than lead.  A web search will yield a number of sources for tin and tin alloys.  Bismuth is another metal used but is "crankier" to work with than tin or lead.  Bismuth is heavier than tin as well.  Pure tin is shiny and does not easily tarnish easily either.  It was used in a lot of salt water jigs and squids ( and still is to a fair extent ).

[Jason]

Rotometals is where I get my tin for this same thing. Have bismuth as well but last time I looked it is super pricy.