DIY tungsten jigs. Home production of tungsten baits for “reelless” production of tungsten jigs

The active use of “reelless” baits on fishing trips last year pushed me to the conclusion that it was time to make tungsten baits myself. After all, previous experiments with lead were partially disappointing - for example, the fact emerged that even the high-quality lead jigs I made when fishing in the wind are noticeably inferior to their tungsten counterparts.

The active use of “reelless” baits on fishing trips last year pushed me to the conclusion that it was time to make tungsten baits myself. After all, previous experiments with lead were partially disappointing - for example, the fact emerged that even the high-quality lead jigs I made when fishing in the wind are noticeably inferior to their tungsten counterparts. And although there seems to be a selection of tungsten on store shelves, this is only at first glance, and as you master the nuances of reelless fishing, you come to the realization that the range of commercial baits is still not enough. And in principle, expanding your tungsten arsenal using purchased products is problematic, there are four completely objective reasons for this.

Firstly, recently the price of tungsten jigs has increased significantly, and it is not so rare that they are, in fact, consumables. Secondly, the possibilities of retrofitting purchased products due to their design features are noticeably limited. And quite often, especially during intensive fishing, all attachments are destroyed - and the jig stops working.

Thirdly, a product made with your own hands can be made of any, even the smallest dimensions and, which is very important for such sizes, relatively large mass, which makes such baits all-weather. And finally, fourthly, many technical solutions can be incorporated into your own designs, which will make the bait more durable and suitable for any fishing conditions.

Therefore, when the winter season came to an end, I began to collect elements and components of baits in order to realize all the ideas that arose on the ice and were actively discussed in our fishing company. This was followed by sketches on paper, prototypes and their tests, again discussions - and now we can say that the preparation of the first batch of baits for baitless fishing has been completed. How this was all created will be discussed.

Maybe someone has already gone through all the stages of such creativity, I don’t know, but unfortunately, you can read about how all this was done by someone - with all the details and with “pitfalls” - nowhere, not in the press, nor on the Internet, it was not possible. Everywhere there is only the most scattered information. Somewhere there was information about how tungsten can be processed, but only in a workshop with machines. Somewhere - how to galvanize it, but using such chemicals at home, without good ventilation, is simply dangerous.

And even now it’s rare that anyone has free access to such equipment. And collecting and manufacturing such equipment, if you do not plan to establish serial production of baits as a source of your income, is not feasible from a financial point of view. In general, in the conditions of an average city apartment, I would like something simpler. That’s why I’ll tell you about my “rake” and successful steps in how you can make bait, as they say, “on your knees,” in an evening in the kitchen.

I decided to add three main types of baits for reelless fishing to my arsenal - “Devil”, “Goat” and a regular jig with one hook. Some of them have already been tested during ice fishing, some have been tested in the summer when fishing from a boat, and some are waiting for the new winter to come.

I'll start with "Devils"

Perhaps the simplest technological option for making a “Devil” is to select a tee of a suitable size, so as not to deal with soldering, and then make a bait based on it. When I was looking for suitable tees, I was faced with the fact that tees in sizes 14 and 16 (according to the Western European classification) and with a long forend cannot be found on store shelves. Short please, or there are larger sizes available. And suitable tees with a long shank (photo 1) I found it only at retail stores from old stocks - probably still Soviet ones.

I made “devils” from them using tungsten wire VA-1-A with a diameter of 0.3 mm. If you hold the tee in the screwdriver chuck by the hooks and leave the forend outside, you can very carefully, slowly, lay down two layers of wire.

I started from the hook and moved towards the eye (photo 2). When passing the first layer, it climbed a little onto the ear (photo 3) so that the first layer of wire is more securely fixed on the tee fore-end, does not jump down and does not rotate when laying the second layer. The second layer was also carefully passed, turn to turn, just below the beginning of the tungsten helix (photo 4). In this case, the result is a design without sharp elements sticking out in different directions and with a ready-made eyelet. The mass of such a “Devil” on hooks No. 14 and 16 is in the range of 0.4 - 0.45 g without suspension (photo 5). If you want to have a bait of the same size, but heavier, you need one or two additional layers of tungsten.

This is where the first “rakes” appeared. Nothing good came of trying to wind the third layer of tungsten wire on top: it cannot be laid flat, and a lot of voids appear in the winding due to the high elasticity of tungsten. How did I get out of this situation? On one of the “Devils” I measured the outer diameter of the already laid two layers of wire - and made a kind of jig from the rod of a blind rivet purchased at a hardware store. And then, holding this conductor in the screwdriver chuck, I wound a very neat spiral on it (photo 6).

Then, having precisely selected the length of this spiral, he placed it on top of two layers (photo 7). To securely fasten this prefabricated structure, I initially used Moment-gel glue, but in subsequent installations I switched to Finnish polyester resin Norpol. (photo 8). The resin seemed more technologically advanced to me, because I immediately introduced black dye into it. This could be nail polish or ballpoint pen paste. And after polymerization, the “Devil” obtained a very neat body, which did not require any additional work other than equipping it with decorative elements.

But this technology also has one, in my opinion, important drawback: such a “Devil” can be equipped by putting on all the accessories only through the hooks. And in order to somehow fix the “body kit”, you have to fix it with pieces of silicone cambric. And in the process of intensive fishing, such equipment, unfortunately, does not last long. Well, without equipment in our waters it has not yet been possible to catch “Devils”.

And one more exciting moment: how will the fish react to the thick wire from which the tee is made? And there the diameter of the hooks is more than 0.8 mm. When I experimented with different hooks for jigs, I came across the following: jigs on which hooks made of wire more than 0.7 mm thick were placed did not have a special arrangement for the perch. I can’t say that they were completely ignored, no, but there were noticeably fewer bites on them. Maybe "Damn" is a little different? Winter perch will dot all the i's.

The second option for making “Devil” is to assemble a tee from single hooks. Although such an assembly turns out to be much more labor-intensive, this option has one important, in my understanding, plus. On two hooks that do not have an eye, beads can be placed through the shank, choosing them so that they do not slip through the sting. What will make such a “Devil” much more “long-lasting”.

To assemble such a tee, I tried several options. Attempts to assemble a tee with two already equipped hooks in various jigs were a fiasco. Therefore, I assembled the structure in stages. For tees I took fly fishing hooks Saikyo Nos. 12 and 14 and Kamasan Nos. 14 and 16, they were made of wire with a diameter of 0.4 to 0.65 mm. To increase the strength of the solder joint, I first scratched the shank of each hook a little using a strip of sandpaper. (photo 9) and simply making a few rotational movements with it.

Having put multi-colored beads through the forend, I first assembled the double on the board, inserting the hooks into the end so that there was approximately 120° between them (photo 10). I moistened them with soldering acid and soldered them with PIC solder. Got a double. A third hook and eye has already been applied to this double. For preliminary fixation, I made a winding with thin copper wire from stranded wire (photo 11). And after that, having adjusted the corners more precisely, I soldered the entire assembly (photo 12). Using a diamond file, I slightly smoothed the ends of the hooks without loops, which slightly extended beyond the winding.

Simply holding the tee in your hands and carefully winding the tungsten will not work. Needs good fixation. But clamping the assembly in this form into a screwdriver chuck is already problematic, so I fixed it using round nose pliers in a vice (photo 13).

And I wound the tungsten wire by analogy with the above winding method. If the soldering was carried out without sagging, then the tungsten can be laid very evenly, turn to turn. But, again, one, maximum - two layers with one piece of wire. I pre-wound the third and subsequent layers on the conductor (photo 14), put it on, glued it - and this is the result (photo 15).

Next on the list is “Goat”

I also tried using hooks of different shapes and sizes, made from wire of different diameters. Last season I experimented a lot with this, but to form the body I used lead wire winding. And I came to the following conclusions. The thicker the wire of the hook, the easier it is to work with it, the lower the risk of its breakage during various manipulations during its manufacture. But at the same time as the thickness of the wire increases, the catchability of the bait also decreases.

You lower such a “fat girl” into the hole - and there is silence. I even used an Aqua-Vu underwater camera to make sure there were fish - the bass were swimming calmly. But it doesn’t react to thick hooks, and if it does, the hook rate is also lower.

I don’t rule out an explanation for this phenomenon: beads strung on a thick wire move more poorly along it, thereby not making the jig attractive. Therefore, all subsequent baits were made only on hooks No. 12 and 14, which have thin wire, in the range of 0.4 - 0.65 mm. True, I slightly changed the shape of the hooks so that the hook section had a slightly smaller radius of curvature. Regular round nose pliers are excellent for this operation. And the only thing that needs to be taken into account is that you need to bend it very carefully, gradually moving along the hook - excessive load leads to breakage.

To make the “Goat” I used two hooks of the same size. On one of them I broke off the loop. And on an abrasive stone I slightly rounded all the edges on the fracture surface. And in order to give the required angle of rotation of the loop on the other hook, I slightly released the metal in this place, heating it in the flame of a match. And after that, it turned around the longitudinal axis by about 30 - 40° (photo 16) so that after assembling the “Goat” the loop looks in the middle between the points of the hooks.

Before soldering, using an abrasive (both a block and sandpaper will work here), I made marks on the forends of both hooks - extra burrs on the metal strengthen the soldering. However, during this processing, damage to the sharpening of the tip and, especially, the surface of the loop should not be allowed. Otherwise, microgrooves will cause the line to break.

After bending work and estimating the general shape, I clamped both hooks in a vice to very carefully make one layer of copper wire winding from stranded wire, lightly soldered (photo 17). After this, I turned the hooks with force, setting the desired angle between them. (photo 18). To accurately fix this desired angle, I stuck both hooks into the end of the block on which I soldered. Soldered with acid and regular POS type solder. Then he fixed the workpiece in pliers, which, in turn, were clamped in a vice. And only having securely fixed everything, I made the winding with a piece of tungsten wire (photo 19).

If the copper pre-winding and soldering were done carefully, then the tungsten winding could also be done carefully. But again, only in two layers (photo 20). The third layer, as on the “Devils”, was done first on the conductor, and then fixed it on the bait with resin (photo 21).

I also tried this option for making the “Goat”, when at the preliminary stage I strung a bead or ball onto a hook without an eye. And with such equipment he carried out all the stages outlined above. True, such a half-assembled “Goat” is quite difficult to work with - especially problems arise during fixation, when you wind the tungsten wire.

To simplify manufacturing, I did not bend the section of the fore-end. And winding with tungsten wire gives the body of the bait the appearance of an elongated cylinder.

Last year I tried a couple of variants of the “Goat” while fishing - with a body of exactly this type and with one where, after assembly, this cylinder is slightly curved. I didn’t find any difference in the catchability of these two baits. Therefore, in the next batches the bodies of my “Goats” are only in the form of a column with minimal bending (photo 22).

Winding with tungsten wire can be started from any side of the double, this is not important. On all the baits I reeled from the trend (that’s what anchors call the place where the lower ends of the horns and the lower part of the spindle meet), and not from the very beginning, but slightly retreating. And already near the loop I made a neat transition to the second layer. The second layer was lowered a couple of turns lower, to the trend itself, in order to remove the beginning of the winding and, most importantly, the protruding tip under it.

Last year, an acquaintance who also decided to take up the “mothless” thing found one very interesting thing on the vast expanses of the Internet. Probably, those who themselves are engaged in tying fly fishing “flies” know about it, but for us, non-reelers, it was a revelation.

We are talking about tungsten blanks “shrimp” or “caterpillar”. They are these forms (photo 23). They already have a groove for placing a hook. (photo 24), which can be pasted there. But, as it turned out, tungsten is already coated with something and can be easily soldered with acid without any additional processing (photo 25). These "caterpillars" are sold in two colors and four different weights. After some thought, I took only the three largest ones - and with their help I made several experimental baits, the first of which was “Goat” (photo 26). You could say that I succumbed to the completely natural temptation to make the bait as small as possible and as heavy as possible.

But here the following dilemma immediately arose. On photo 27 A cross-section of this load is schematically shown. The width of the groove is such that only two thin hooks fit there normally - with a wire diameter of no more than 0.35 mm. I bought a small bag of similar hooks to try. And I was disappointed - the steel was very overheated. I tried to release it very pointwise in order to give it a normal shape, and at the same time carefully place it in the groove. Outwardly everything turned out well. But the very first tests on perch led to a fiasco. Out of three jigs made, three broken hooks after only five to ten bites. As a result, I abandoned hooks made of thin wire. And he took a simpler path. The hook, on which the loop remains, was placed in the groove. And the one without a loop was already attached nearby.

I also had to solve the second dilemma: what kind of jigs should I make, with or without a body kit? I did both options. The first is simplified, this is when the “Goat” is simply assembled without a “body kit” - in order to paint the finished bait and then equip it. Option two - immediately put beads or a ball on a hook without an eye (photo 28). This made the assembly process somewhat more complicated, but quite tolerable. But I received a non-removable body kit.

To secure the load, I made a V-shaped recess in the block with a knife, into which I inserted and lightly pressed the “caterpillar” blank with a hammer. Next is applying soldering acid, tinning the surface and filling the groove with tin. For this batch, “Koz” chose one medium load and three minimum loads. I really wanted little “Goats”.

I also chose hooks of minimal sizes. I made a couple of sets with No. 12, and all the rest with No. 14. Of course, working with them is quite difficult, given their miniature size. This time I almost didn’t bend the hooks, except that I slightly tightened the loop, and on one of them I changed the angle of the hooking section so that the bead wouldn’t come off. I was wondering about the possibility of using hooks of different sizes in one “Goat” to compensate for the fact that they are buried differently. But I decided that this would be unnecessary. You can successfully animate such a bait.

I placed sequin washers on a couple of blanks to secure the beads. (photo 29), but in the end I managed to avoid frying only one with a soldering iron. The work is too delicate, and my soldering iron is powerful, but the tungsten heats up quite quickly.

When making an empty “Goat”, a hook with an eye was fixed on one side with a piece of tungsten wire, threading it through the eye, and on the other, a pair of needles was placed to limit the angle of the hooks. (see photo 25). After soldering, the main thing is not to rush: tungsten has a very high heat capacity - and tin cools very slowly.

When it came to the “Goat” equipped, the hook with the eye was also fixed with wire, but the second hook with beads or a ball was put on a toothpick - and so it was soldered (photo 30). Such hard contact turned out to be the most technologically advanced. In principle, the work is not difficult, but it requires good eyesight and some soldering iron skills. But I think any needleworker can easily master it.

I also worked out another option for making the “Goat” from ready-made doubles. Two models No. 14 Kamasan were used, they are also from the salmon-trout series for fly fishing (photo 31).

One type of hook just fit perfectly, but on the second I had to bend the eye. Everything worked with it only after heating it over a gas stove. From these hooks I have so far made four experimental “Goats” of different weights - from 0.56 (photo 32) up to 1.13 g (photo 33). For one I used tungsten wire winding, and for the other three I used different tungsten “caterpillars” (photo 34). This option for making baits seemed to me the simplest.

Single hook lures

While exploring the practice of making tungsten jigs on the Internet, I came across a method for wrapping a hook with wire. In an article about making jigs using this technology, the author called them “Lesotki”. First, of course, words of gratitude to the author of the idea “Lesotok”. But it was not really possible to repeat his idea with tungsten wire with a diameter of 0.5 mm. In fact, it is very tough, this tungsten wire, and in order to carefully lay it on the hook, you need to press it very hard with your fingers. And the force is such that a single hook, even made of relatively thick wire - about 0.65 mm - simply broke on the second or third turn. And when I tried to wind it on a tee to make a “Devil”, the turns turned out to be not very even. And in the end, the mass of the bait turned out to be almost the same as its lead counterpart, which is much simpler to make. Therefore, I abandoned the 0.5 mm wire and switched to 0.3 mm.

With her, everything turned out much easier, but, to be honest, it was not elementary. The wire is very springy, so all winding has to be done under tension, constantly squeezing with your fingers and not allowing it to unwind so that the diameter of the winding does not increase. At the same time, in order to avoid kinks, the wire cannot be held rigidly; it must unwind around its center. For this reason, it was not possible to wind wire onto a workpiece from a common reel. Having estimated the length of the piece needed for two layers, I immediately cut it off from the reel - of course, with some margin.

Particular precision cannot be achieved in this process; it is inconvenient to work with a short end, so you have to put up with the fact that somewhere around 10–15, if not more, percent of the wire goes to waste. But we can say that the resulting products are quite aesthetic (photo 35). And with a relatively small size, they have good mass, which allows them to be used even in windy conditions. This is the first bait that I tried to make on my own, from scratch, after reading how its author did it. Therefore, I made several jigs, again on hooks Nos. 10 and 12 for fly fishing “flies,” from 0.3 mm wire. The hooks themselves, depending on the size and model, are made of wire from 0.45 to 0.63 mm.

If there were no problems when winding on thicker hooks, then I had to work very carefully with thin ones. This is the only way I got two suitable layers of wire (photo 36). Depending on the size of the hook, you can make a jig from three layers of wire. I wound the third layer separately, on a jig in a screwdriver. And then, as I wrote above, I secured everything with Moment-gel glue or Norpol-type polyester resin with the addition of dye.

To prevent the first layer of winding from dangling or rotating on the fore-end, you need to do the following. Remember how Saikyo hooks have an eye bend? So, I wound the first layer of winding onto the bent part of the hook (photo 37). And from there he began laying the second layer. It turned out to be a kind of castle. The coil does not rotate and cannot move anywhere, even when you apply significant force to the body of the jig when releasing it from the perch’s mouth.

I read somewhere that it is recommended to bend the resulting body a little to bring the shape closer to the average “Banana”. I tried both options: I left it in the form of a nail, and I bent it, but I didn’t find any significant changes in the perch’s reaction to them. He willingly eats both. The main thing is to get into the theme with the color of the beads.

Soldering jigs based on Chinese tungsten weight

This, in my opinion, is one of the simplest ways to make jigs of the highest quality, because these loads were originally created for such operations. The tungsten blank has a very interesting shape. There are notches on its outer surface (photo 38), which, when moving in the water, create additional vibrations, undoubtedly caught by fish. And I think the radius of acoustic coverage of such a bait can be noticeably larger than that of a jig, the body of which has a smooth surface.

And on the flat side of the workpiece there is a groove for placing a hook. The manufacturer of these cargoes offers two color options - something vaguely reminiscent of coal, and the color of gold. I chose black for my installations because I plan to use mainly three color options: leaving the surface unchanged, this is one, covering it with black, this is two, and finally, covering it with dark burgundy manicure varnish. I tried soldering similar jigs in two ways.

Option one is using one hook. As with all other lures, I use the Saikyo trout series in sizes No. 10, 12 and 14 or Kamasan No. 14. As a rule, hooks No. 10 are intended for greater depths, since the jigs with them weigh more than a gram and size 16 - 17 mm (photo 39), which, in my experience, is close to the limit - larger lures very often do not attract perch. But Nos. 12 and 14 are the most popular and in demand. Therefore, most of my soldering is done on these hooks.

When making a jig from one hook, it is quite possible to assemble the bait with a “body kit”. Some samples of beads and small beads, as well as metal balls that are gaining popularity among Ladoga perch, have holes of a fairly large diameter through which a relatively small loop of hooks Nos. 12 and 14 easily passes, thereby significantly simplifying the task for the lure creator (photo 40).

As a result, there is only one operation left - soldering - and everything is ready. True, you need to check how the moving element on the hook behaves. Doesn't it fly off the hook? And as a last resort, all that remains is to slightly bend the hook, creating a bend with a smaller radius on the underhook (photo 41). The soldering operation begins by coating all workpieces with soldering acid.

To increase the soldering strength, the hook fore-end can be pre-treated by applying transverse marks using an abrasive block, coarse sandpaper or a diamond file. I placed the tungsten blank in a groove sawn in a wooden block so that it rose slightly above the surface. To make it easier to fix the hook with a bead or ball on it, I used a regular toothpick. If a hook is soldered without equipment, it can be fixed to the workpiece by inserting a tailor's pin or thin steel wire into the eye (photo 42).

Another way to make jigs is to use two hooks. On one, the loop is broken off and the equipment is put on the fore-end in advance, and the second hook serves as a “donor” of the loop, i.e. it breaks off entirely by hooking (photo 43). Only the length of the fore-end on both hooks should be slightly less than the length of the tungsten blank. Before soldering I use an abrasive (photo 44) I ground the metal from both hooks onto a cone, or rather, a little with a wedge. So that there is some semblance of overlap. And this allows you to place this part of the forend in the technological groove and cover it with solder on top (photo 45).

Bringing the “mothless” machines to working conditions

Next, I worked on the artistic finishing of the baits. Firstly, these are coatings of various colors applied directly to the body of the jig. There are several options. I didn’t paint some baits, but simply left them in the color of the “native” metal, but this only affected those made from Chinese weights. At the initial stage of mastering the “reelless”, when I fished exclusively with purchased jigs and “Devils,” I noticed that blackened metal attracts fish much better than those with a white or yellowish coating. And only on some days, dark red baits, closer to burgundy, caught fish on equal terms with black ones. Therefore, when I started making my own baits, I covered all their bodies with dark dyes.

How can I color it? Alcohol markers, nitro varnishes and polyester resin with dye added to it are also quite suitable. But alcohol markers wear off quite quickly during intensive fishing, leaving bald spots. Therefore, I apply nitro manicure varnishes to my baits where no additional fixation of the elements is required. All baits made using wire are coated on top with Norpol polyester resin, into which a black dye has been introduced. At first I tried to tint with ballpoint pen paste, and then prepared a solution with a few drops of nitro varnish. In both cases, a very resistant and durable coating is obtained.

At the very beginning of winter, when ice has formed and there is already snow on it, given that these days there is very little light and there is constant twilight under the ice, sometimes baits turn out to be working, part of the body of which is covered with a layer of phosphorescent composition (photo 46). I coated my jigs for catching smelt with this composition. But even when there were several trips to roach, these baits turned out to be catchy.

The easiest way to make a jig is from tungsten-nickel-iron (TNI) and tungsten-nickel-copper (TNM) alloys. These alloys have a specific gravity of about 15 g/cc, which is already significantly higher than that of lead or tin. At the initial stage of manufacturing waste electrical stamps and current collector brushes, tetrahedral columns must be cut using a hacksaw with a fine tooth or a disk cutter. The side of the workpiece should be 0.5-1 mm larger than the size of the jig. Next, you can clamp the post into the chuck of an electric drill, use a needle file to give the end of the workpiece the shape of a jig, leaving a jumper between the workpiece and the post (Fig.1). Then a hole for the hook is drilled from the end of the workpiece, and a hole for the fishing line is drilled on the side (Fig.2). After this, the jig blank is cut off from the post. To drill holes, you can use drills with a diameter of 0.7 to 1.5 mm; during drilling, it is useful to use a lubricating emulsion (for example, you can use milk at home). Drill speed: 300-500 rpm. In this way it is quite easy to make any jig that has the shape of a rotation. If you have access to a lathe, then it is easier to grind the posts, turning them into cylindrical blanks, then use a cutter to give the jig the desired shape. It is better to use cutters of brands VK3-VK8, and drills R13-R18, but R6M5 are also suitable.

However, it is more interesting to make an irregularly shaped jig (Fig.3). Then you need to be patient and use a needle file (not a diamond one) to cut out the workpiece, drill it and cut it off from the post. Abrasive stones can also be used for rough processing of the workpiece. It is better to process tungsten alloys with conventional needle files, since when using a diamond tool, tungsten carbide may form, which will make manual processing very difficult. Also, don’t be surprised if one needle file is used to make one or three jigs.

The heaviest jigs are obtained if tungsten electrodes are used as the starting material. Such electrodes are used when welding in argon. On an emery machine, the end of the electrode is shaped into the body of a jig. Then, using a diamond-coated disk with a thickness of 0.27 to 0.80 mm, a groove is cut into the workpiece to such a depth that its end is located at the location of the future hole for the fishing line (Fig.4). The disk rotation speed must be at least 3000 rpm. The workpiece is broken off from the electrode and the end is cleaned.

Jig blanks are copper-plated using any galvanic method described in the literature, for example, in the book “300 Practical Tips”, or any other. After copper plating, nichrome, or even better, tungsten wire is inserted into the slot or hole for the fishing line, a hook is inserted into the workpiece, and the whole assembly is soldered with tin solder. During soldering, it is important not to overheat the workpiece, otherwise the copper coating may peel off from the workpiece and the hook may become loose. After the jig has cooled, the wire is pulled out and the jig is ready.

Vladislav Andrianov

Of course, the shelves of any fishing store are absolutely bursting with tungsten during the season. But each of us has probably encountered a situation when the store has “everything except what we need,” and we just can’t find the kind of jig we would like. So why not make it yourself? And here we have to face the fact that tungsten, as a material for processing, has not so many advantages as disadvantages.

I’ll make a reservation right away that I won’t specify whether we will be dealing with “real” tungsten or some kind of “VRP” alloy - for us, fishermen, and especially for fish, this is unimportant. We will be talking about rods with a diameter of 2-5 mm made of very hard, heavy metal with a dark surface. As a rule, these are “bits” of welding electrodes. I don’t know where to get it. Ask welders you know from “serious” industries. However, I once saw such a rod sold “by the centimeter” in a fishing store. The price was decent.

So, this material is bad in that it is very hard and fragile, and besides, it cannot be soldered at all with ordinary low-melting tin-lead solders.

To really cut something out of a tungsten rod, we need an electric sharpener. Better - double-sided. We put a “regular” sharpening wheel on one end, but on the other - a very thin, 1-1.5 mm thick, cutting wheel. These days you can easily find them in hardware stores. The main operations will be performed with a thin circle. In general, you can get by with just this, but sometimes the “regular” one is more convenient. I admit that the sharpener can be replaced with a well-attached “grinder”, but I must admit, I haven’t tried it myself. And don’t forget about safety: it is advisable to wear special glasses.

There are 2 methods for soldering a hook (or anything at all) to tungsten. The first is an electroplated coating, usually copper, which can already be soldered to in the “normal” way. The technology for applying such a coating has been described quite well and repeatedly, but I personally have not done this. The second method is to “tin” tungsten with hard solder with a melting point approximately corresponding to “red-heating” the workpiece. Then the hook is soldered to the layer of hard solder again in the “usual” way.

The most well-known of the hard solders is probably the silver-containing “PSR” of various brands, but I myself prefer to use a certain one recommended to me as “silver-free”. It looks like a hard wire about 2 mm thick, dark brown in color. Freshly applied - resembles light brass. It still fits better than PSRA.

Solder is applied using special fluxes consisting of salts. Regarding fluxes, unfortunately, I cannot give particularly competent and specific recommendations. I will only say that any drill, quite suitable for “hard” soldering of copper and steel, will not work on tungsten. I was once lucky enough to scoop from a jar labeled “Flux 209” (by the way, they soldered ordinary copper there) - I use it with success, fortunately I need mere milligrams for one soldering.

As an example, I can give a recipe for flux for tungsten "F-100" taken from reference literature: potassium borofluoride - 46, anhydrous borax - 36, tungsten trioxide - 14 and cobalt oxide - 4. But somehow I doubt that anyone or will undertake to independently extract and mix these exotic substances.

If you have the appropriate components, the process can be carried out on the burner of a conventional gas stove. You will need a steel or tungsten knitting needle 2-3 mm thick in one hand and a clamp for the workpiece itself (I use a medical one, the same as for removing hooks from a pike mouth) in the other.

The workpiece and the spoke are heated to the required temperature (usually the beginning of redness), then flux is applied. The tip of the heated knitting needle is dipped in salt, and the adhering flux is spread over the workpiece. Solder is also applied immediately. Usually it is in the form of a wire, the end of which is melted and remains on the workpiece. The solder is rubbed over the surface of the workpiece using a knitting needle. The excess remains on the spoke, which is later used to apply solder. I think there is no need to remind you that the entire procedure is performed above the flame of the burner (even, rather, in the flame). It is extremely undesirable to overheat - the flux burns out, and the finished coating also deteriorates. If the solder does not adhere well, flux is added. Upon completion of the operation, it is better to wash off the flux from the workpiece in hot, even boiling water.

Now let's move directly to the jigs. The simplest one can be called “droplet” or “grain”. In shape, it really resembles a drop, sanded along about 1/4-1/3 of the thickness.

To make such “drops”, it is advisable to go along the rod with a sharpener in advance, and then tin the resulting ground flat edge. The manufacturing process and shape are shown in the figure.

It is better to make jigs in pairs, alternately choosing material between the “droplets”, either for the flat or for the “steep” sides. Moreover, it is faster and more convenient to make “flat” samples with the angle of an ordinary thick circle.

A suitable hook with a ring bent inward is soldered to the tinned edge of the “droplet”. It is convenient to solder on a block of soft wood (for example, linden), into which the jig blank is pressed. A rectangle made of hard rubber with a vertical slot is good as a holder for a hook: for example, a regular eraser.

If you wish and have some skill, you can solder a crown made of thin brass, copper or silver on top of the hook. The final processing of the finished jig can be done with a diamond needle file.

I prefer to paint all my jigs black, leaving only the top edge where the hook is soldered light. However, I will not undertake to say that unpainted ones will work worse. It must be said that paint on tungsten holds up somewhat better than on lead, but no paint can withstand prolonged exposure to perch teeth.

One of the most durable coatings, in my opinion, is obtained from celluloid dissolved in acetone. You can also darken the jig by strongly heating the tinned, flux-free workpiece. This coating turns out to be very durable, but not “radically black”. In addition, it is important not to overdo it with heating, so as not to spoil the already applied layer of hard solder.

Large “droplets” made from a rod 4-5 mm in diameter are suitable for fishing at fairly large depths or in small currents, and also as a lower jig in a “steam locomotive”. It is better to use them with a nozzle. Small ones, 2-3 mm thick, being decorated with beads, work perfectly as nozzles at shallow depths of up to 4 meters.

The jig, which I call the “tungsten uralka,” is somewhat more difficult to manufacture.

The rod is turned as shown in the photo.

The concave edge intended for soldering the hook has to be tinned separately for each jig.

The hook itself also has to be bent a little before soldering, achieving a perfect fit to the body of the jig.

For me, this “Uralka” has remained the most frequently used jig for many years. It works great at medium depths, up to 6 meters, both with and without bait for perch, roach, and other fish. The characteristic bend provides excellent cutting ability.

Not so long ago, I discovered with some surprise that a baitless "Uralka" fishes perfectly with a "decoration" in the form of a rather large bead - a "watermelon". So, according to the last fishing trip in 2008, a 600 g perch, a decent roach and quite a lot of large white salmon were caught using this option. The “experimental version” with an additional hanging hook has also proven itself quite well.

And finally, my third “signature” jig is the tungsten “devil” with a suspended tee.

There are two manufacturing methods. The first one is more wasteful, but the “devils” are more accurate. From a pre-tinned rod, as for a “drop”, 2 halves of the future “devil” are cut out. One of them is pressed into a wooden block, and a double-sided loop of thin, preferably stainless or nichrome, wire with a pre-inserted tee of number 16-18 is soldered on top. Then the second half is placed on top, and the structure is connected with one touch of the soldering iron.

The second method is more economical. A monolithic blank of the devil is immediately cut out, small areas are tinned at the top and bottom, to which the loops are soldered. The lower one has a tee.

The “devil” body shape, in general, can be any, but personally I prefer - at least for small models - spherical. Such “devils”, unlike elongated ones, are practically not subject to tangles with the fishing line.

"Tungsten devil" is used exclusively without an attachment. At the beginning of winter, perch, including large ones, readily grab it, and during the last ice, it happened that the sorog clearly preferred the “devil” to other jigs. The small bream is also partial to this bait.

We all know that there is no absolutely universal jig that bites everywhere and always, and better than all the others. The attractiveness of fishing, in my opinion, lies precisely in its unpredictability. What will be most effective today? - a riddle that the fisherman must solve. One thing I know for sure: the jigs described here catch fish, and with each of them there have been cases where they catch better than “everyone else around”, and, therefore, have the right to exist. I can also add that I practically haven’t bought jigs for 10-15 years now. I do it myself.

Topics: Soldering.

Tungsten is widely used in modern technology as an alloying and strengthening element in alloys. It belongs to the less common elements. The melting point of tungsten is 3380 ±10°C.

Tungsten soldering.

Other pages on the topic Tungsten Soldering:

A study of the kinetics of compact tungsten oxidation up to 500°C showed that this process occurs at a low rate, and in the range of 500...1000°C the oxidation rate increases rapidly. Two-layer oxide film. Hydrogen does not interact with tungsten until its melting point. Nitrogen reacts with compact tungsten, forming nitrides WN, W 2 N, WN 2, etc. only at temperatures > 1500°C. In carbon monoxide (CO), tungsten is stable up to T = 1400°C; with increasing temperature, carburization occurs with the formation of carbides. Since tungsten oxidizes and the oxide film is very stable, the tungsten surface is prepared either mechanically or by etching in acids. It is possible to clean tungsten in a solution of caustic soda or by the electrolytic method. After cleaning, in some cases the tungsten surface is coated with nickel or copper by any known method. These coatings are allowed when soldering with nickel-copper, copper-silver, manganese-nickel-cobalt solders, etc. Tungsten is soldered in a vacuum; nitrogen, hydrogen and carbon monoxide can be used as protection.

When using refractory solders, for example V-Nb+Ta; V-Nb-Ti, etc., tungsten surfaces are mechanically cleaned and degreased. Tungsten soldering carried out with refractory solders in a vacuum ≥10 -4 mm Hg. Art.

Tungsten soldering

porous (or molybdenum) with copper alloy)

Along with tungsten in industry, for example, in a number of cases tantalum or an alloy of tantalum and tungsten is used. In soldered structures, which are a mixing head operating at temperatures >1000°C, parts are made from the following materials: an alloy of composition 95% (wt.) Ta, the rest tungsten; less often from pure tantalum. The soldered design of the mixing head consists of a massive disk and thin-walled tubes with a diameter of 0.8 mm and a wall thickness of 0.15. ..0.2 mm. To ensure the operability of the structure, soldering must be carried out with high-temperature solders and with a certain combination of elements in it. These limitations are associated with possible erosion of the thin walls of the tubes. To prevent it, it is recommended to use solders of the following composition: vanadium + tantalum + titanium + silicon + hafnium + zirconium or tantalum + aluminum + iron + vanadium + silicon. These two solders are optimal and not deficient in chemical composition. Soldering tungsten in a vacuum ensures the tightness of soldered joints without erosion of tubes and the functionality of mixing heads. To avoid oxidation of the mixing head material, it is not advisable to carry out soldering in other protective environments.

In some cases, due to the specific characteristics of the product, soldered structures are made from a combination of the following materials: the outer shell is bronze (copper base), the inner shell is porous powder tungsten (or molybdenum). During the manufacturing process, parts made from the specified refractory metals are processed by mechanical grinding (at soldering points). It is carried out in such a way that part of the removed powder is introduced into the pores of tungsten (molybdenum). After grinding, the surface is polished until the pores are completely closed at a depth of 0.1. . .0.2 mm. It is recommended to control the presence or absence of pores by blowing the parts with air.

Before soldering, the parts are degreased (see page Preparing surfaces for soldering), and then a layer of nickel (10 ... 15 μm) and copper (10 ... 15 μm) is applied to the compacted (by grinding and polishing) tungsten (molybdenum) surface. Coatings are deposited from the gas phase, using the ion-plasma method and other methods.

A 5 µm layer of silver (calculated value) is applied to the surface of the bronze in contact with tungsten or molybdenum. To avoid pores from melting, it is recommended to regulate the dosage of solder. In this case, the solder is coatings of silver and copper, forming a liquid metal eutectic at T = 779°C. Shell soldering is carried out at T = 970°C with a holding time of 30 minutes. The protective medium is vacuum; it is also possible to use argon as a protective medium. After soldering, it is recommended to control the permeability of parts in the soldered structure with air or argon. In addition to checking permeability, it is necessary to cut samples from a certain batch for micro-X-ray spectral and metallographic and analyzes to assess the density of solder seams, permeability and junction.

Repair of tungsten jigs

Due to the design features of tungsten jigs, it is almost impossible to damage the metal body itself, with the exception of galvanic coating or paint, without special zeal. Simply because the hardness of tungsten is comparable to the hardness of hardened steel. Let's talk about the main element of any fishing bait - the hook. It is its durability that directly determines the durability of the bait if the angler cannot change the hook without changing the performance characteristics of the bait. Unlike jigs made of fusible metals, in which replacing the hook without special tricks is almost impossible, tungsten makes it easy to change the hook without changing the shape or even the weight of the jig. True, this is “easy” only possible with well-selected and adjusted tools, which allow an operation that is quite problematic for many to be completed in a minute or two. Otherwise, soldering and re-soldering the hook is a very serious problem unless one has strong fine soldering skills.

Specifics of hook soldering

The design of different tungsten jigs can differ very significantly.

- There are drilled jigs made of solderless tungsten and its alloys, on the body of which a galvanic coating is applied to allow the hook to be soldered (photo 1). This is perhaps the most capricious and demanding option.

photo 1

A noticeably easier case is the exact same baits, which have the same drilled hole for the fishing line, but the material used is a lighter tungsten alloy, which is already more or less soldered with standard tin-lead solder.

- The next option is a jig made of solderless tungsten or an alloy with a groove, which I first coat with a galvanic layer of metal, and then a hook is soldered into the groove (photo 2).

photo 2

The fourth option is the most reliable and trouble-free option from the point of view of soldering - a groove in tungsten, which is first sealed with a copper alloy, and then a cut is made there for the hook.

The design features of each type significantly affect the technology and ease of soldering. What do we need for resoldering? In the simplest and most primitive case, a wooden block, a needle, a solder-free wire of a diameter suitable for the hole for the fishing line, POS-60 solder, liquid (this is more convenient to use) flux and a soldering iron with a power of 10 to 40 W, depending on the size of the jigs, may be sufficient. . If you are using hooks with a non-solder or poorly soldered anti-corrosion coating, you will need a good fine-grained needle file. Many people like diamond ones, but I prefer the standard one - made of high-speed steel. Yes, it does not wear off the coating so easily, but there is less chance of overzealousness stripping the shank of a thin hook so that it will quickly and easily break.

"Underwater rocks"

You should be aware of the difficulties that sometimes arise in the process of sealing or resoldering a hook in a jig of one design or another. They can not only change the features of performing various actions, but also make it difficult or almost impossible. Electroplated coatings, due to the physical properties of the metals they contain and differences from those of tungsten, can be very capricious in relation to excessive or prolonged heating.

Overheating often leads to the peeling off of that thin film of metal from the tungsten, which ensures that the hook is firmly held in the bait. A hook or a fragment of a hook falls out, and a new one stubbornly cannot be soldered, since the solder flatly refuses to flow into the hole for the fore-end, no matter how much flux and solder is applied. These are signs of peeling of the galvanic coating.

This defect cannot be corrected using “standard” soldering. More refractory solders with a noticeable content of silver and copper, intended for soldering tungsten and similar metals, flux selected for them and more serious soldering equipment can save you. I’ll be honest: I have never tried to solve this problem in this way, because... I make do with the existing equipment for making jigs - and simply apply the galvanization again. This option involves two difficulties: it is necessary to clear the area for applying a new layer of galvanic coating from contaminants and oxides - and only after that apply a fresh layer of soldered metal to the entire body of the jig. There are two ways to clean the tungsten surface: either re-drill with a drill, risking breaking it when passing through the old hole, or make a short groove with a diamond disc. After this operation, the jig is sent to the “plating shop” - and, upon returning from there, it is completely ready for soldering the hook.

Another common complication is the large amount of solder that often occurs during soldering on the front of the jig. Its formation can be explained very simply, but for several reasons. This may be a soldering iron tip that is unsuitable in shape and size, which inevitably results in a large contact spot with the body of the jig, where an influx of solder then remains. To avoid this, you need to get a soldering iron that has a very thin needle-shaped or at least a sharp-conical tip - the contact point will be minimal. At the same time, such a soldering iron will significantly protect against the second possible cause of a large influx - excess solder at the tip of the soldering iron. Ideally, on the soldering iron we need to have a portion of spread solder that is only 2 - 3 times greater than the minimum amount for one jig. Visually, such a tip will be only slightly thicker than a clean one - and the soldering area will take exactly as much solder as it needs (photo 3).

photo 3

The third and very insidious reason for the appearance of “bloopers” and sagging is excess flux. Some people advise applying liquid flux almost separately and with a reserve into the soldering hole, on the shank of the hook, etc. In this case, after heating, the flux spreads very strongly over the surface of the jig - and pulls with it excess solder from the soldering iron. After something like this, you either have to struggle with a soldering iron to take the excess back, risking overheating or staining the jig even more. Or try to remove the excess mechanically, but here you can easily tear off the galvanic coating from the tip of the bait. The latter can be quite dangerous, because... Damage to the integrity of the surface metal affects strength and durability. Therefore, it is much easier to show moderation in soldering than to regret later about a “killed” jig.

Often, acids and mixtures of them with some salts are used as flux - for example, hydrochloric and orthophosphoric. Such reagents have a drawback - after soldering, it is necessary to carefully remove excess, otherwise corrosion of the hook at the very base is very likely. It is even more dangerous if before soldering we diligently processed the fore-end with a file - after tinning there could be areas not covered with solder.

Soldering

Sealing and resoldering a hook are not very different, although they have their own nuances. I’ll start with a description of the initial soldering, since when resoldering we simply add a couple of not very complex operations. There is no fundamental difference between slotted and drilled jigs, but these same slotted jigs are a little more troublesome to fix, because a wire in an empty groove, as well as in one filled with liquid solder, can move quite strongly in one plane, changing the angle of the hole for the fishing line relative to the axis of the jig body. This problem is dealt with by sticking a wire into a flat wooden surface at the desired angle so that the bottom of the jig rests on a solid support. If desired, I think you can make stationary devices by pouring the wire into plaster or fireproof plastic. A drilled jig does not have this problem, since the needle or tapered wire perfectly holds the bait, coinciding along the axis with the hole for the fishing line.

By the way, when soldering, some “craftsmen” hold the body of the jig suspended on a wire with their hand. The second hand works with a soldering iron. This is possible, but the hand inevitably shakes, moves, and with it the body of the jig moves relative to the soldering iron and hook. The second option for “keeping both hands busy” is to fix the body of the bait on some kind of device, and the hand free from the soldering iron holds the hook with fingers or tweezers. The disadvantages here are exactly the same. In both cases, the accuracy and alignment of the installation of the hook and body relative to each other suffers, which requires additional time and effort for adjustments during reheating, since both hands are already occupied at the time of soldering.

That is why I use primitive, but very convenient devices that allow me to fix both the hook and the body of the jig. An ordinary steel needle with a diameter exceeding the diameter of the hole for the fishing line is quite suitable for this, so that the jig is clearly fixed to the tip. The needle is inserted into a wide eraser or something similar in a vertical position (photo 4).

photo 4

The result is a complete and effective “hand substitute” that does not tremble, is not afraid of getting burned, etc. The hook is attached to tweezers, fixed in a pattern or miniature bench vice at the same level as the jig located at the tip of the needle (photo 5).

photo 5

We unscrew the vice a little so that the jaws of the tweezers unclench, and insert the bend of the hook between them, after which we again clamp the tweezers with the handle of the vice.

We do this so that the shank of the hook is located in space exactly along the axis of the hole of the jig into which it needs to be soldered. The surface of the forend must be completely prepared for soldering. Now it’s just a matter of putting a tiny drop of flux on the fore-end so that after combining, part or all of the drop is located at the very nose of the jig. This is where you need to touch the soldering iron with moistened solder (photo 6).

photo 6

The forend will begin to heat up quickly, the flux will begin to spread - and will crawl into the hole itself, and solder will flow through it, if the soldering iron is not too far from the tip of the jig body and it has enough power to warm up the body in this way. You can carefully move the tip of the tip so that it heats the tungsten directly, but in this case you need to be very careful and prevent overheating at the point of contact. You should not chase the power of a soldering iron for the sake of imaginary speed - the chance of “burning” a thin galvanic film is too great. For soldering jigs up to 5 mm inclusive, a power of 20 W is sufficient. At the same time, for small jigs it is necessary to further extend the tip so that it does not overheat excessively, and for large jigs, on the contrary, it is necessary to retract it inside the body in order to improve the heating of the large metal blank. But you don’t have to worry about such manipulations by acquiring a soldering station that allows you to make adjustments using the handle on the power supply.

While working with a soldering iron, the free hand performs auxiliary functions as needed: moves the jig towards the hook, holds the fixture in place, turns if necessary, etc. And after soldering is completed, it is necessary for several seconds to clearly record the immobility of the hook and the body of the jig relative to each other, because

The solder remains liquid for some time after the soldering iron is removed - and this is longer, the larger the bait.

Resoldering

Based on what was described above, the difference between primary soldering and hook re-soldering is clear. To install a new hook, you must first remove the old one, and then heat up the solder in the hole for the hook. That is, we first need to install the jig on a needle (if we are talking about a drilled one) or on a device similar to the one I described above (if we are talking about a bait with a groove). And, holding the old hook or a fragment of it with the same tweezers installed in a vice, gently heat it, as during primary sealing, until the solder melts. Then we immediately move the needle and jig away until the solder hardens again. After this, you need to let the jig cool. This is a very important point that is worth remembering when soldering a jig with galvanization: it is better, instead of one long heating, to make two shorter ones with complete cooling between them. This way we will avoid the risk of the previously described detachment. The same should be done if the amount of flux or solder was insufficient - and the soldering area was soldered poorly. First you need to cool the bait and only then add flux or solder during another heating.

With this in mind, we pause after removing the old hook. Then everything is done exactly as described above for the initial sealing - with the only difference that at first the hook only rests against the filled hole, and after heating and melting the solder, the left hand moves the device with the body of the jig so that the fore-end fits into the hole. If everything went well, the bait is left alone until it hardens, and then removed to remove residual flux, install a cambric or tie it to a fishing line.

By the way, if there is an urgent need to change the hook in a lead jig, this can be done using a drill with a cutting disc, a weak soldering iron and tin. First, use a disk to make a short groove exactly through the fore-end remaining in the body of the bait. And then, using a soldering iron, we carefully heat the fore-end near the jig according to the scheme described above. The only difference is that in this case we solder with pure tin. It has a noticeably lower melting point than lead, which means that with proper skill it is quite possible to solder the hook before the bait itself melts.

I would also like to warn those who use various dyes and varnishes for jigs. When resoldering hooks, you need to be very careful with them. It may be tempting to peel off heat-warped plastic. This risks the fact that along with the paint and varnish, we will peel off the galvanic coating with all the corresponding consequences. Therefore, it is still better to wash off dyes thoroughly with a solvent to avoid unwanted side effects.

Correction of hook defects

You often read or hear how fishermen try to make handicraft “modifications” of the hook in a jig. Some try to bend the tip at a certain angle relative to the body of the jig, citing the interests of grip. With such manipulation, they usually try to change the bend by bending the sting upward. It seems to me that this is not the best solution. Firstly, such a very rough deformation of heat-treated steel creates additional stresses and microdefects in it due to metal stretching on one side and compression on the other. This inevitably reduces reliability and durability. Likewise, the damage to the protective anti-corrosion coating that occurs during such manipulations also leads to damage, which tears, warps and ceases to protect against the effects of water. At the same time, the same effect of changing the position of the tip can be easily achieved at the stage of selecting the hook model and actually sealing it. If, however, it is necessary to bend the tip somewhat, then it will be more gentle not to have a sharp deformation of the bend, but to have a more or less smooth bend of the straight fore-end - due to the smaller angular deformation, the described negative effects will not be so strong.

Pointing the hook

I’ll immediately make a reservation that sharpening the hook point is rather a forced and emergency measure, since in the vast majority of cases the result will be inferior to the factory one. Including due to the defenselessness of the tip, which has been simultaneously cleaned of anti-corrosion coatings. But sometimes there is no choice - either he is somehow sharpened, or completely stupid. Again, as when preparing the fore-end for tinning, it is better not to use a coarse diamond file - too quickly and roughly it can peel off a fair layer of metal. The same can be said for various sharpening stones and files. For such an operation it is worth using more gentle materials and technologies. The best choice is very fine-grained sandpaper, which, for convenience, can be applied to a spatula or any plate of suitable thickness - just so as not to grind off the beard.

Technological process of metal soldering

You can also use a drill with a sheet metal disc coated with fine grinding paste (like GOI paste). The main thing is that the disk is flat and does not “beat” when rotating. But still, it is better to consider the option of sharpening the hook as a temporary measure - and at the first opportunity, resolder it or change the bait for a new one.

Alexey Dyachenko

Homemade tungsten jigs

Back in the 16th century, the mineral wolframite was known, which translated from German ( Wolf Rahm) means "wolf's cream". The mineral received this name due to its characteristics. The fact is that tungsten, which accompanied tin ores, during the smelting of tin turned it simply into foam of slag, which is why they said: “devours tin like a wolf devours a sheep.”

Over time, it was from wolframite that the name tungsten was inherited by the 74th chemical element of the periodic system.

Tungsten Characteristics

Tungsten is a light gray transition metal. Has an external resemblance to steel. Due to its rather unique properties, this element is a very valuable and rare material, the pure form of which does not exist in nature. Tungsten has:

• a fairly high density, which equates to 19.3 g/cm 3 ;
• high melting point of 3422 0 C;
• sufficient electrical resistance - 5.5 μOhm*cm;
• normal indicator of the linear expansion parameter coefficient equal to 4.32;
• the highest boiling point among all metals, equal to 5555 0 C;
• low evaporation rate, even despite temperatures exceeding 200 0 C;
• relatively low electrical conductivity. However, this does not prevent tungsten from remaining a good conductor.

All this makes tungsten a very durable metal that is not susceptible to mechanical damage. But the presence of such unique properties does not exclude the presence of disadvantages that tungsten also has. These include:

• high fragility when exposed to very low temperatures;
• high density, which makes its processing difficult;
• low resistance to acids at low temperatures.

Production of tungsten

Tungsten, along with molybdenum, rubidium and a number of other substances, is part of a group of rare metals that are characterized by a very low distribution in nature. Due to this, it cannot be extracted in the traditional way, like many minerals. Thus, the industrial production of tungsten consists of the following stages:

• extraction of ore, which contains a certain proportion of tungsten;
• organizing appropriate conditions in which metal can be separated from the processed mass;
• concentration of a substance in the form of a solution or precipitate;
• purifying the resulting chemical compound from the previous step;
• isolation of pure tungsten.

Thus, the pure substance from the mined ore containing tungsten can be isolated in several ways.

1. As a result of beneficiation of tungsten ore by gravity, flotation, magnetic or electrical separation.

   In this process, a tungsten concentrate is formed, consisting of 55-65% tungsten anhydride (trioxide) WO 3. In concentrates of this metal, the content of impurities is monitored, which can include phosphorus, sulfur, arsenic, tin, copper, antimony and bismuth.

2. As is known, tungsten trioxide WO 3 is the main material for separating metal tungsten or tungsten carbide. The production of WO 3- occurs as a result of the decomposition of concentrates, leaching of an alloy or sinter, etc. In this case, the output is a material consisting of 99.9% WO 3.
3. From tungsten anhydride WO 3. It is by reducing this substance with hydrogen or carbon that tungsten powder is obtained. The use of the second component for the reduction reaction is used less frequently. This is due to the saturation of WO 3 with carbides during the reaction, as a result of which the metal loses its strength and becomes more difficult to process. Tungsten powder is produced by special methods, thanks to which it becomes possible to control its chemical composition, grain size and shape, as well as particle size distribution. Thus, the fraction of powder particles can be increased by rapidly increasing the temperature or by low hydrogen supply rate.
4. Production of compact tungsten, which has the form of bars or ingots and is a blank for the further production of semi-finished products - wire, rods, tape, etc.

The latter method, in turn, includes two possible options.

One of them is associated with powder metallurgy methods, and the other is with smelting in electric arc furnaces with a consumable electrode.

Powder metallurgy method

Due to the fact that thanks to this method it is possible to more evenly distribute the additives that give tungsten its special properties, it is more popular.

It includes several stages:

1. Metal powder is pressed into bars;
2. The workpieces are sintered at low temperatures (so-called pre-sintering);
3. Welding of workpieces;
4. Obtaining semi-finished products by processing blanks. The implementation of this stage is carried out by forging or mechanical processing (grinding, polishing). It is worth noting that mechanical processing of tungsten becomes possible only under the influence of high temperatures, otherwise it is impossible to process it.

At the same time, the powder must be well purified with a maximum permissible percentage of impurities of up to 0.05%.

This method makes it possible to obtain tungsten rods with a square cross-section from 8x8 to 40x40 mm and a length of 280-650 mm. It is worth noting that at room temperatures they are quite strong, but have increased fragility.

Fuse

This method is used if it is necessary to obtain tungsten blanks of fairly large dimensions - from 200 kg to 3000 kg. Such blanks are usually needed for rolling, drawing pipes, and manufacturing products by casting. Melting requires the creation of special conditions - a vacuum or a rarefied atmosphere of hydrogen. The output is tungsten ingots, which have a coarse-crystalline structure and are also highly brittle due to the presence of a large amount of impurities. The impurity content can be reduced by pre-melting tungsten in an electron beam furnace. However, the structure remains unchanged. In this connection, to reduce the grain size, the ingots are further melted, but in an electric arc furnace. At the same time, during the smelting process, alloying substances are added to the ingots, giving tungsten special properties.

To obtain tungsten ingots with a fine-grained structure, arc skull melting is used with metal casting into a mold.

The method of obtaining the metal determines the presence of additives and impurities in it. Thus, several grades of tungsten are produced today.

Tungsten grades

1. HF - pure tungsten, which does not contain any additives;
2. VA is a metal containing aluminum and silica-alkali additives, which give it additional properties;
3. VM is a metal containing thorium and silica-alkali additives;
4. VT - tungsten, which contains thorium oxide as an additive, which significantly increases the emissive properties of the metal;
5. VI - metal containing yttrium oxide;
6. VL - tungsten with lanthanum oxide, which also increases emission properties;
7. VR - alloy of rhenium and tungsten;
8. VРН - there are no additives in the metal, however impurities may be present in large volumes;
9. MV is an alloy of tungsten with molybdenum, which significantly increases strength after annealing while maintaining ductility.

Where is tungsten used?

Thanks to its unique properties, chemical element 74 has become indispensable in many industrial sectors.

1. The main use of tungsten is as a basis for the production of refractory materials in metallurgy.
2. With the obligatory participation of tungsten, incandescent filaments are produced, which are the main element of lighting devices, picture tubes, and other vacuum tubes.
3. Also, this metal underlies the production of heavy alloys used as counterweights, armor-piercing cores of sub-caliber and swept-finned projectiles of artillery guns.
4. Tungsten is the electrode used in argon-arc welding;
5. Its alloys are highly resistant to various temperatures, acidic environments, as well as hardness and abrasion resistance, and are therefore used in the production of surgical instruments, tank armor, torpedo and projectile casings, aircraft and engine parts, as well as nuclear storage containers. waste;
6. Vacuum resistance furnaces, the temperature in which reaches extremely high values, are equipped with heating elements also made from tungsten;
7. The use of tungsten is popular to provide protection against ionizing radiation.
8. Tungsten compounds are used as alloying elements, high-temperature lubricants, catalysts, pigments, and also for converting thermal energy into electrical energy (tungsten ditelluride).

characteristics of tungsten, grades of tungsten, production of tungsten, use of tungsten

When fishing in the summer and winter seasons, the use of gear differs significantly. Summer fishing is characterized by the use of a variety of baits. In the winter season, the choice of bait is small. Success in fishing largely depends on equipment. To ensure active biting, tungsten jigs are widely used.

Mormyshka is an artificial bait used in winter due to the lack of natural bait. Tungsten is considered the best, as it has minimal dimensions and maximum possible weight. The specific gravity roughly corresponds to the weight of gold, one of the heaviest metals on earth. tungsten is used for fishing in fast currents and great depths.

Lures of this type have the following advantages:

1. Stable behavior in fast currents and high degree of immersion.
2. The bite improves, since the size of the bait corresponds to the small representatives of the underwater world that fish feed on in winter.
3. High strength and durability thanks to tungsten material.

In turn, baits are divided into two types: moths and non-moths.

Moths

Moths are called bait rigs. This is a classic of winter fishing. The essence of using moths is that additional bait is placed on the hook. Most often, it is used as a bloodworm, used with a tungsten jig.

Moths are used successfully when fish activity is low. The bright ruby ​​larvae of the dragoon mosquito look very appetizing on a hook, and cause the same excitement in predatory or peaceful fish. But moths also have disadvantages - poor preservation, tenderness and inconvenience in the nozzle.

In winter fishing, fishing with maggots mounted on tungsten tackle, instead of the usual bloodworms, has increasingly begun to be used in winter fishing. Maggot has significant advantages compared to bloodworms. It withstands frost perfectly, can be stored for a long time, fits perfectly and stays on the hook.

In the absence of live moths and maggots, amateur fishermen use artificial substitutes, divided into two types:

• The pellet, which has a rich range of colors, is the most popular artificial bait. This is a replacement for live bloodworms. To imitate it, pellets are placed on a hook, like beads.
• A drop is a type of pellet and has an elongated shape. Successfully used to imitate maggots.

Mothless

If there is an active bite and the fish are caught using any bait, then successful fishing is possible with the help of a reelless bait - a type of baitless tungsten tackle. Luck is achieved by skillfully playing with bait at different depths.

Tungsten reelless jigs have several popular varieties:

1. Ant. The shape of the tackle resembles an ant. Used for fishing for roach or bream during the most active seasons. When fishing, you need to make small vibrations with the rod. A reelless tungsten jig will be perceived by the fish as an ant caught in the water.
2. Boat. It is used for catching peaceful fish at a depth of up to 2.5 m. To attract, the active wiring technique is used. It comes in a variety of colors and additional attachments.
3. Donkey. Its shape resembles a quarter of a coffee bean. Works great in a variety of conditions. In this case, the presence of a current does not matter. This type of bait is painted black and has one hook.
4. Damn. Most often used for fishing for pike perch. In addition, it is successfully used for catching other types of fish. They come with three or four hooks.
5. Goat. Many fishermen consider it a separate type of gear. In fact, this is a type of devil. If there are 3-4 hooks on a devil, then no more than two are used on a goat. Goat is made from copper or brass. Refractory metal is not used for its manufacture. The main application is ice fishing with the appropriate fishing technique.
6. Uralka. A popular type of bait for predatory fish. Outwardly it resembles a curved drop. A classic artificial bait in the amateur fisherman's collection.

What are tungsten jigs?

A tungsten jig consists of a fishing hook and a weight made of high-density metal. It is easy to find in fishing stores. But there is one important drawback - the high price. Therefore, this gear is often purchased for sport fishing.

Knowing the advantages of combining large weight with small size, fishing enthusiasts have mastered the production of tungsten jigs at home. Many fishermen have achieved such skill that homemade baits are superior in catchability to industrial models. To make cheap tungsten jigs, all you need is patience and a simple set of tools and materials.

Under what conditions are they most effective?

The greatest effect from the use of tungsten jigs is obtained during winter fishing. In winter, the fish behaves passively, hunting for miniature underwater objects. This tackle is great for catching capricious and sluggishly biting fish.

In addition, tungsten jigs of the brand Dart, manufactured by Diskus, weigh twice as much as lead, with small dimensions. This allows for effective fishing at great depths and fast currents.

Dimensions

Gear has a gradation of sizes, depending on the fishing season and the type of fish. The ball size of a tungsten jig is 2-6 mm for catching perch in winter.

Homemade tungsten jigs for pike perch fishing have an oblong shape and the largest size among winter gear, and are painted white.

The largest, compared to winter gear, are summer tungsten jigs in the form of drops. The drop sizes vary: in diameter from 3 to 5 mm, in height from 8.5 to 9.5 mm. In the warm season, the drop is painted in red-brown tones; pike perch, perch, and crucian carp bite well on it.

Weight

By weight category, gear is divided into light, medium and heavy. When making a tungsten jig with your own hands, on average, they adhere to weight gradations of 0.7 g, 0.85 g and 1.8 g.

The weight of the tungsten jig is selected for specific tasks. It depends on the strength of the current and the depth of the reservoir. The deeper the reservoir and the more intense the water flow, the more weight the bait should have.

Why are jigs made of tungsten? Due to their high specific gravity, baits have significantly smaller dimensions compared to lead baits. As a result, the flow of the current has less influence on the action of the bait, small sizes are more natural and attractive to fish.

Design Features

In addition to ordinary baits, the range of products now includes elite tungsten carpe diem jigs. They have a flattened olive-shaped shape with a gold coating. The equipment allows the installation of a fluorescent pellet, which makes biting a particularly exciting activity.

What kind of fish are caught?

In summer, a jig made with your own hands from a tungsten electrode is good for catching pike perch, roach, crucian carp, and perch. The color of the artificial bait is important here. Red-brown shades are preferred. In winter, bait is used to catch crucian carp, perch, and carp.

How to make a tungsten jig with your own hands

You can easily make tungsten jigs with your own hands using the following technology:

• Cut off a fragment corresponding to the shank of the hook from the tungsten electrode.
• Cut the heat shrink tubing slightly longer than the insert.
• IN heat-shrinkable The rod and shank of the fishing hook are inserted into the plastic tube.
• In the flame of a candle or lighter, heat-shrink and compress the assembled structure.
• Apply a layer of superglue along the edges of the tube.

As a result of production, a tungsten jig is obtained, which is quite durable, which can be used in both the reel and non-reel version.

Materials and tools

Making tungsten jigs with your own hands requires equipment with the appropriate materials and tools:

1. tungsten electrode;
2. fishing hook;
3. plastic heat-shrinkable SSD tube;
4. lighter;
5. a grinding machine with a cutting disc for cutting the electrode;
6. Super glue;
7. protective glasses;
8. bench vice;
9. thin disk with diamond coating;
10. set of files.

Where can I get tungsten for equipment?

Tungsten is a widely used material. The refractory metal is used in incandescent light bulbs and is sold in the form of wire. In addition, tungsten for jigs can be found in workshops engaged in argon welding. Refractory welding electrodes are suitable for the manufacture of tungsten jigs.

The simplest technology for soldering a tungsten jig

To begin with, you need to cut the material to the desired size on a cutting or grinding wheel. In this case, you should protect your eyes with glasses. Then hold it in a vice and drill a hole in the tungsten blank with a drill with a diameter of 0.7-1.5 mm. Drill at 500 rpm using emulsion. Any oil is suitable as an emulsion - from vegetable to machine oil. Some even use milk.

Soldering tungsten is a serious problem because it cannot be soldered with tin-lead solder. There are many videos on the Internet showing the intricacies of the technology, how to solder tungsten bait. They describe two soldering methods:

1. copper plating by electrolytic method followed by soldering the hook with tin-lead solder;
2. dipping a red-hot workpiece into hard solder of the PSR type, using a specialized flux, followed by soldering with hard or tin-lead solder.

Before soldering tungsten jigs at home, cut the groove for the hook with a thin diamond-coated disk. Insert nichrome, or better yet, tungsten wire into the drilled hole to prevent soldering.

What to consider when making

It is necessary to take into account many nuances of the technological process. The main problem is the frequent breakage of the fishing line due to the sharp edges of the hole in the tackle.

How to make a tungsten jig and avoid loss.

To avoid unnecessary losses, they use a method such as inserting a plastic cambric into the hole of a tungsten jig.

In addition, it is necessary to avoid overheating when soldering the copper-plated layer of a tungsten bar to prevent peeling.

How to tie tungsten jigs correctly

1. Rigid tightening knots covering the ring with strong fixation. Recommended for use on thin lines.
2. Loop knots that slide freely along the line loop are used on reelless gear.
3. Hook knots, which are a compromise between loops and rigid knots. The strength is higher than on a loop, but lower than a rigid knot. Similar units are also used for attaching jigs without loops, with a hole.

What is the difference between tungsten and lead jigs?

This type of gear is superior to lead bait in physical characteristics, but is more expensive to purchase. Tungsten jigs can be easily made at home, just like lead jigs. Lead tackle differs from tungsten in that it is twice as large in size with the same weight.

Tungsten jig repair

The body of the tackle itself cannot be damaged, since the hardness is comparable to hardened steel. Repairing tungsten jigs involves replacing the broken hook and restoring the coating. It is possible to repair tungsten tackle by resoldering the hook shank.

Re-soldering tungsten jigs

When removing a broken hook, the galvanic coating may peel off, after which it is impossible to solder the hook to the jig with tin-lead solder. To solve the problem, you need to use hard solder consisting of an alloy of silver and copper. When soldering, use specialized fluxes, such as borax or boric acid.