Boro Jigs

[loadmaster]

Noticed on a thread about this new jig. link, and they do look good, the one thing that got my attention shipped from Duluth. Is some local making these or just a middle man

[live4chrome]

Marine general had had them in the past. They are just a glass jig. Nothing special. Never really done well one them if I recall right.

[danj22]

Found something similar a few years back at LOW.

Clear glass bead with a glow pink center.

Was a go to jig on the dead stick.

Only down fall, landing a slot walleye the clear glass separated from the color center.

May have to try some full glow for the LOW trip this year.

[Ben N]

I just wanted to clarify here, these are brand new jigs in the first year of production. So they are not the ones you've been seeing around the past couple years.

Here's a jig that has been producing crappies for me this year.

[Northlander]

So whats so new about them? They look like every other glass jig I have seen. Are you making these Ben?

[loadmaster]

Just saw that Ben will be at show booth 303

[Northlander]

I kind of figured.

[Ben N]

Yes, I am the one making them.

So whats so new about them?

Thank you for asking,

I use borosilicate glass to make the jigs. This glass is far more durable than traditional glass (soda-lime) because it has a higher melting point. Borosilicate glass also has an enormous color palate. This allows me to make 100% unique color patterns. The colors I make can only be possible using this specific type of glass. No two jigs will ever be exactly alike.

In traditional glow jigs, you would use glow paint. You would use the paint to cover the lead or tungsten body of the jig. Instead of using glow paint, I use glow glass. The glass I use has the glow-in-the-dark chemical completely mixed into the glass, not just painted on the exterior. So when the jig glows, it's not just the exterior paint of the jig that glows, but the entire jig body itself. This create a much brighter and longer lasting glow that is only possible using this specific type of glass.

Everyone always says how they have the "brightest and longest lasting glow". The chemical composition of this glass actually does make it one of the brightest glowing jigs on the market today. I can't say it's the brightest, but it's the brightest glow I've ever seen. Glow paint cannot compete with glow glass.

[fiskyknut]

Interesting.. There have been similar glass jigs with the glow in the glass sold up here around the LOTW for at least 7-8 years. Some were sold as 'optical' jigs, these look very much akin.

I don't know if this special boro glass mentioned is the same glass as the 'optical' jig was made from or not.. But my problem with these type glass jigs was the hooks breaking right where they came out of the glass body. After having quite a few break I quit using them and figured the heat from the molten glass was ruining the temper of the hooks. If the melting point of this special boro glass is even higher than regular glass what will this spell.

[fiskyknut]

In their defense though they did catch fish..

And I catch BIG fish at times so them jigs were under stress more so then your average Crappie would put em under !!

[Ben N]

I don't know if this special boro glass mentioned is the same glass as the 'optical' jig was made from or not.. But my problem with these type glass jigs was the hooks breaking right where they came out of the glass body. After having quite a few break I quit using them and figured the heat from the molten glass was ruining the temper of the hooks. If the melting point of this special boro glass is even higher than regular glass what will this spell.

This is a common misconception about making things out of glass. I'm not sure what type of glass the optical jigs use, but in this case it wouldn't matter. Thermal expansion doesn't allow glass and metal to be heated up and cooled off together. They both expand (heat) and contract (cool) at different rates, which would cause cracking and breaking if they were put together. Therefore, the molten glass and the hook are never hot at the same time. The glass is made and cooled, then the hook is introduced. There is no interaction between hot glass and the hook.

As for the optical jigs breaking, the only explanation I can think of is that there is too much pressure on the shake of the hook. It looks like there is a sharp edge in the glass left during production and that would cause a lot of stress on the shank. This could lead to the shank of the hook shearing off (if that is the breaking your referring to).

I've been working with borosilicate glass for the past ten years, and I've been a full-time glass artist since 2009. I apologize if I'm coming off like a know-it-all, but there are a lot of components that go into glass jigs and I just want everyone to be properly educated.

[Poacher's pariah]

Fisky, I think you're on to something with the melting point weakening the hook. Borosilicate melts at nearly 3000 degrees F, while carbon steel has a critical temp of about half of that. The critical temp is the temp at which steels harden if quickly quenched, or annealed if raised to that temp and slowly cooled. If a hook shank, with its small diameter, were to be heated above the critical temp, it will anneal (soften). The longer it is exposed to that temp and then gradually cooled, the greater the likelihood of a complete softening of the hook. Borosilicate is a tough glass, but it still can't be rapidly cooled or it will shatter. So a gradual cooling process would be needed to make these jig heads. That said, maybe you should go to 4lb test and break the line instead of the hook?

[Ben N]

Fisky, I think you're on to something with the melting point weakening the hook. Borosilicate melts at nearly 3000 degrees F, while carbon steel has a critical temp of about half of that. The critical temp is the temp at which steels harden if quickly quenched, or annealed if raised to that temp and slowly cooled. If a hook shank, with its small diameter, were to be heated above the critical temp, it will anneal (soften). The longer it is exposed to that temp and then gradually cooled, the greater the likelihood of a complete softening of the hook. Borosilicate is a tough glass, but it still can't be rapidly cooled or it will shatter.

This is very true. Making a glass jig with the hook imbedded in the molten glass would absolutely crack the glass and weaken/break the hook, regardless of what type of glass is used. However, the optical jigs aren't made like this. The glass is made and cooled first, then the hook is added.

[Northlander]

So is it bonded on with a glue of some sort? I cant see that lasting either. Ill stop by at the show and we can talk a bit. Sounds like a labor intensive process.

[loadmaster]

Do not care how they are made as long as they work. I like the colors will have to pick one up at the show to check it out. Ben hope to meet ya at the show

[Poacher's pariah]

Ben,

In looking at the pics I don't see how the hooks are embedded in a non-molten glass, maybe they're glued? BUT, have you ever thought of making glow beads? I'd love to have some for combining with a plain hook of my choosing, or for steelheading. PM me. I've got some ideas.

[Islandlaker]

I saw those jigs at the ice fishing show, they looked really cool. I guess I just couldn't pay five dollars a piece for them. Not sure if that is exactly fair considering I have paid 4.99 for rattling stop signs at marine general I guess I can justify that a bit more since they look more elaborate then glass jigs. Same reason I guess I wont pay 20 bucks for 10 tungsten jigs...

[Northlander]

I saw these lures at the show and after investigating them a bit found that they would be good for panfish and thats about it. The hooks didnt look strong enough for bigger fish, especially over time. The glow was ok on them though. Not great but good. At $5 a piece or 5 for $20 I think it was it was pricey. The glass jig making isnt cheap to do though. Over all I would be willing to try them out but not at that price.