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muskietom51

installing lexan lips

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I build Muskie baits and epoxy in the bills. I use five minute West System. I put the Epoxy on of the the bill with a popsicle stick, and apply it evenly in a pattern matching the profile of the body. When you slide the bill into the slot the excess epoxy rolls out and makes a nice bead around the slot almost like you ran a nice small bead of caulk around the bill. I also put a very thin coat on the bottom edge of the bill where it bottoms out in the lip slot for a little extra strength. If you put to much there it makes the bill act a little greasy in the slot wanting to slide side to side. You will have to try a little based on how much clearance you have in the slot and how much extra you want to roll out. This gives a look like you would see on a Wiley bait.

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I clear coat the lure first than install the lip. Heat up your epoxy. that will make it thinner.. then lit it drip into the lip slot of the bait. Plus after you heat the epoxy.. it will harden up faster. later... if you get some on your bait get it off before it dries.. I use kid paint brush get a clean brush to brush off the extra epoxy that gets around the bait and lip... usually I can install 2 to 4 baits in one mix of 30 min devcon.

now if your using devcon to clear coat with... just install the lip and use the extra epoxy that gets around the bait as your clear... actually that is the best way if you really dont want to make a mess of your bait. or you could just make a lipless bait and you never have to worry about this at all. :lol:

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I pack the lip slot with epoxy by pushing it in with a piece of ss wire. You can fill the entire slot like this if you want to. Wipe any stray epoxy off the body with a dry piece of paper towel. Then just push in the lip (dry, no epoxy on it) and the excess will squeeze out the rear corners of the slot. That may leave a small void at the front of the slot but it will prevent epoxy from squeezing out on the lip. You can fill any void at the front of the slot with epoxy when you clearcoat it. If you get a smear of epoxy on the lip's surface, dampen a Qtip in denatured alcohol and remove it before it begins to cure. Denatured alcohol or naphta will not cloud plastic or Lexan. I cut a paper towel into small squares to use as swabs before installing lips. You may use several on each bait. Use them for one wipe and throw it away. And clean your hands with solvent between each bait if you feel any epoxy on them.

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Good advice on the paper towels Bob! I do the same thing, wipe once and pitch. I also like a coat of clear over the paint to facilitate easy clean-up.

I don't like my lips to fit so tightly that I can't get decent coat of epoxy between the lip and the top and bottom of the slot. I like fresh epoxy in order to gain maximum tooth into the wood. Also keep bubbles in the epoxy to a minimum. In addition to as much hole or holes in the lip as possible without weakening it, I heavily score the entire imbedded surface of the lip. The strength of your lip bond will often determine the life of the lure.

Dean

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