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Etex seems to be one of the more sensitive epoxies. I don't have the best luck with it. Don't forget to check for high humidity as well as temp. High humidity can affect the curing of some epoxies. Etex cures best at below 50% humidity. I was surprised at how much humidity there was in my basement during winter. When using Etex, I run a dehumidifier. https://www.eti-usa.com/sites/eti-usa.com/files/bulletins/Envirotex-Lite-Professional-Tip-Sheet2.pdf Lately, I have started using D2T more just to carry me through until I stop procrastinating and build a UV setup. D2T seems to be more tolerant of environmental factors. I might be a good idea to have a weather gauge set hanging in the shop to show temp and humidity.

JD_mudbug & Mark I agree, Iv'e been building handcrafted lures for quite a while and have had some great success with them, but the one that sticks out to me was a tournament buddy of mine asked me to build him a pair of shallow water crankbaits for a certain situation, I built 2 and painted them in a japaneese style or version of sexy shad. He fished them the weekend after picking them up and caught over 30 bass ( 1 day ) with those lures. So I'd have to say seeing someone else, especially a buddy fish your creation and have success would be my best. I've built this particular lure for many years and fished it all over and in different situations, always caught fish but having a buddy new to the lure have success with them was really special. I always encourage anglers I come in contact with to follow thier passion or dreams in tackle crafting and take pride in helping others when the opportunity arrises. Recently I've been mentoring a young man, the son of a friend I work with, he sends me pictures all the time of soft plastic baits he's made and fish he's caught with them, always bring a smile to my face seeing him enjoy the baits he's created and the fish he catches with them. Rich

I actually really enjoy epoxy I currently have (not etex btw). It has a very hard but not brittle finish and has a long enough work time so I can clear coat 10 baits without it setting up on me. I work slow so the long cure time is actually preferable to me. It's worked great all summer until now but it's no big deal; just glad I found the answer to my problems and potentially help someone else who may have the same issues

You may want to revisit the type of epoxy you are using. Everyone is so quick to recommend etex, but I've found it's actually pretty terrible. LOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG cure times, inconsistent batch-to-batch, WAY too many bubbles, all manner of nonsense. I switched to Amazing Clear Cast. It cures faster, harder, and with none of the problems that etex had. It's also only in the mid-60s in my shop as well. No issues.

@JD_mudbug It's always tempting to compare... I just bought an airbrush the other day. When I went back and bought a hose the gal at the counter asked me what I paint. We talked a bit about making lures when she asked me if airbrushing is easy (I've not tried it yet). I told her, "well, the guys on YouTube make it look easy." I think accepting the process of learning through mistakes is critical! The booklet that came with the airbrush I got specifically says to be prepared to make lots of mistakes. It's all part of the journey. I've been very impressed with some of the work I've seen on this site, and hope to learn and practice my way to such high quality pieces.

LureWorks does offer pipettes which work great for transferring straight from the can to your airbrush reservoir. An investment in some paper cups shouldn't set you back much. You can do a quick pour from the can into the cup and then pinch down the lip for easier dispensing of small amount of material. You can also use a two cup method to get the paint out of quart or gallon cans. As far as storage you shouldn't use plastic bottles. Very few plastics are compatible and even ones that will tolerate the solvents still will loose some through evaporation over time.

You might be able to find a black metallic power paint that matches the black nickel blades. I know it is available. I just don't know if you can get a small container to test for matching. It is usually sold in large containers for car parts. I use metallic black nail polish or just a regular black with a glossy clear like epoxy on my bodies. I only have to make a few so that doesn’t help you. Paint will hold up much better on the body than it will on the blade. Paint on a blade will end up wearing down eventually. There is just so much rotation and a thin edge that the paint wears off the edge eventually. Once the paint is off the edge, the flaking and cracking migrate in. Another issue with painted blades is spider web type cracking. Some blades never get it, some do. This seems to happen randomly. It could be cold temps and high temps causing the blades to contract and expand just a bit and the paint cracks. Once that happens, it is just a matter time before a paint chip flakes off. It is tough to see in the pic of a sz 5 mag willow. There are fine cracks all over the surface. I fished with that blade on spinnerbait one day and put it in my spinnerbait hanging box. The next time I took the bait out the cracks were there.

I also view crankbaits as expendable and I don’t have customers who expect (unreasonably) that they last forever. That doesn’t mean I want them to disintegrate an hour into a hot crankbait bite though. I undercoat with epoxy and topcoat with various stuff - MCU, UV resin, or epoxy. So my baits have 2 tough waterproof coatings. That’s enough for me. But all of us are “rolling their own” and if you want 10 layers of finish on your bait for some reason, well, no fault, no foul.