bladesandbaits

" This is good info . I am frustrated with D2T and Etex,lure turners,chipping topcoats.added weight,etc." Let me see if I can answer this first part without starting a huge debate. 1st off... Epoxy Top Coats have there place theres no doubt. Each of us probably have a preference of when to use Epoxy and heres mine.... And this is just my opinion. I use Epoxy topcoat on Heavy Deep Divers... Musky and Toothy Critter Lures ... Rattle Traps and when and only when i need to do a rush job for someone on the road and needing some baits for a tournamnet. What I will say as a blanket statement regarding the Top Coat Topic is were not married to the freaking lure ! Nothing last forever! Now my situation is probably different than most becuase I dont build custom hardbaits to sell to the public. I do build them for myself and although I do coat them with epoxy before i base coat them for painting, I almost always spray Urethane Clear for a topcoat and have already accounted for that extra weight in the lure when I weight it during the build. I have averaged custom painting 2000 baits a year at times and they range from anything to custom built and weighted crankbaits that will rise at a specific weight .. to very evenly balance japaneese baits .. shad raps ... Rattle Traps. So as far as ruling out epoxy ... I just cant do it.. it has its place in my arsenal and my descrimative use of it is has brought me much success. "About how long does the tack coat take to get right, on average." The particular Topcoat Urethane Clear / Reducer/ Hardner mixture i use takes about 5 minutes to tack up between coats (using medium Hrdener) but like I was saying to Rayburn (Ben).. I have to" tell a story to" .." tell the other story"...... so the only way i can really thoughrouly answer this is tell you my process. In the process I am going to explain you should able to get an idea of the "items" needed but bare in mind that all these steps and items I list are what gives me what I feel are superior results. There are Members here that can vouch for the quality and durablity of my topcoat finished with 2 part urethane, but Im not sure they post here anymore. I turned Skeeter on to this process a few years ago and Im not saying he has completly gotton away from Epoxy ( and let me tell you he was a die hard Epoxy user and damn good at it) --- but he does use the same Urethane Clear I use but im not sure how frequently. Lapala has a Smithwick Rogue I did that has been chewed on by a few Snakeheads and although one ripped a groove down the back of the bait and it did compromise the clearcoat all the way down to the raw lure body, the bait is still servicable and the finish and paint havnt peeled off. I use PPG 2021 Ceramclear. It is a 2 Part 4 to 1 mixture I normally mix 2 oz of clear to 1/2 oz (Med)Hardener to 1/2 oz Reducer ( this does about 25 to 30 normal size baits one coat) I have a dehumidifier in my paint room that keeps my paint room about 37 % humidity give or take a few % I spray in front of an Exhaust Fan and dont use a resperator but..... my Exhaust Fan is very high volume and I promise you , you never smell the fumes. note: I want my Exhaust Fan to serve 2 purposes. 1 is to get rid of fumes and 2nd I want it to pull or suck the clear toward the bait. Anytime I spray anything on a bait... I do it in fron of my Exhaust Fan .I could go on and on about the advantages to a good high volume low speed fan but thats for another day. I spray two coats on the baits by working thru all of them with one good coat and hanging them... then by the time I get to the last bait - the first bait is tacked up and ready for a second coat. I mix a second batch of Clear and work thru the baits with a second coat. Same 2 part mixture -- same Hardener /Reducer I leave the baits hanging over night ( 10 hours) with the humidifier on Now... the next day the baits look fabulous ! but im not done. I take the baits down and scuff them lightly with scotch brite --- then blow them off with high pressure air blower, in front of my Exhaust Fan so it sucks all the dust off and out of my room! I mix another batch of Clear I mix the same 2 oz to 1/2 oz ratio Hardener and Reducer but I use the Slow Hardener instead of Medium. I use the slow hardener because I want a slow cure for Maximum Adhesion and Gloss! note: My Slow Hardener wont tack up for at least 45 minutes. You can break this down and use the same process for 5 baits as easy as you can 30. Im sure this all sounds anal and alot of trouble but once you have your paint area set up. its no hassle at all. Also.. as I stated in an earlier post. You dont have to use the Urethane Clear that I use .. any good quality clear should have different Hardeners available as well as reducers. Regards, Blades

" This is good info . I am frustrated with D2T and Etex,lure turners,chipping topcoats.added weight,etc." Let me see if I can answer this first part without starting a huge debate. 1st off... Epoxy Top Coats have there place theres no doubt. Each of us probably have a preference of when to use Epoxy and heres mine.... And this is just my opinion. I use Epoxy topcoat on Heavy Deep Divers... Musky and Toothy Critter Lures ... Rattle Traps and when and only when i need to do a rush job for someone on the road and needing some baits for a tournamnet. Now my situation is probably different than most becuase I dont build custom hardbaits to sell to the public. I do build them for myself and although I do coat them with epoxy before i base coat them for painting, I almost always spray Urethane Clear for a topcoat and have have accounted for that extra weight in the lure when I weight it during the build. I have averaged custom painting 2000 baits a year at times and they range from anything to custom built and weighted crankbaits that will rise at a specific weight .. to very evenly balance japaneese baits .. to shad raps ... to Rattle Traps. So as far as ruling out epoxy ... I just cant do it.. it has its place in my arsenal and my descrimative use of it is has brought me much success. "About how long does the tack coat take to get right, on average." The particular Topcoat Urethane Clear / Reducer/ Hardner mixture i use takes about 5 minutes to tack up between coats but like I was saying to Rayburn (Ben).. I have to" tell a story to" .." tell the other story"...... so the only way i can really thoughrouly answer this is tell you my process. In the process I am going to explain you should able to get an idea of the "items" needed but bare in mind that all these steps and items I list are what gives me what I feel are superior results. There are Member here that can vouch for what my topcoat finished are like with 2 part urethane, but Im not sure they post here anymore. I turned Skeeter on to this process a few years ago and Im not saying he has completly gotton away from Epoxy ( and let me tell you he was a die hard Epoxy user and damn good at it) --- but he does use the same Urethane Clear I use but im not sure how frequently. Lapala has a Smithwick Rogue I did that has been chewed on by a few Snakeheads and although one ripped a groove down the back of the bait and it did compromise the clearcoat all the way down to the raw lure body, the bait is still servicable and the finish and paint havnt peeled off. I use PPG 2021 Ceramclear. It is a 2 Part 4 to 1 mixture I normally mix 2 oz of clear to 1/2 oz (Med)Hardener to 1/2 oz Reducer ( this does about 25 to 30 normal size baits one coat) I have a dehumidifier in my paint room that keeps my paint room about 37 % humidity give or take a few % I spray in front of an Exhaust Fan and dont use a resperator but..... my Exhaust Fan is very high volume and I promise you , you never smell the fumes. note: I want my Exhaust Fan to serve 2 purposes. 1 is to get rid of fumes and 2nd I want it to pull or suck the clear toward the bait. Anytime I spray anything on a bait... I do it in fron of my Exhaust Fan .I could go on and on about the advantages to a good high volume low speed fan but thats for another day. I spray two coats on the baits by working thru all of them with one good coat and hanging them... then by the time I get to the last bait - the first bait is tacked up and ready for a second coat. I mix a second batch of Clear and work thru the baits with a second coat. Same 2 part mixture -- same Hardener /Reducer I leave the baits hanging over night ( 10 hours) with the humidifier on Now... the next day the baits look fabulous ! but im not done. I take the baits down and scuff them lightly with scotch brite --- then blow them off with high pressure air blower, in front of my Exhaust Fan so it sucks all the dust off and out of my room! I mix another batch of Clear I mix the same 2 oz to 1/2 oz ratio Hardener and Reducer but I use the Slow Hardener instead of Medium. I use the slow hardener because I want a slow cure for Maximum Adhesion and Gloss! note: My Slow Hardener wont tack up for at least 45 minutes. You can break this down and use the same process for 5 baits as easy as you can 30. Im sure this all sounds anal and alot of trouble but once you have your paint area set up. its no hassle at all. Also.. as I stated in an earlier post. You dont have to use the Urethane Clear that I use .. any good quality clear should have different Hardeners available as well as reducers. Regards, Blades

I think your probably real close Ben. I use Badger 150 air guns and shoot my clear with the large tip. Now.... you know me - and I have to tell a story to give an answer. As many years as i have been painting and i'm ashamed to say i have no idea what the diameter of any of my tips are lol but I can tell you that the large tip on a 150 uses a 5mm needle and the 150 needle control is like a throttle --- and I rarley ever throttle it wide open so I am guessing that i'm averaging 3mm as well. When I do big baits -- I do use a touch up gun (HLPV) but find myself applying about the same thickness coat with the touch up gun because the trigger on it throttles the flow as well. Im really only using the touch up gun because the baits are big and I can cover more realestate than dabbing around with the Badger so....... my answer is yes.... but what i will add is I really think I get a better "build" of clear when I allow it to tack up between coats. Sense I normally try to do 30 to 40 baits at a time -- and I normally mix 2 ounces at a time--- I can run one coat on all the baits and hang them as I go. Then when its time to do the 2nd coat and 3rd the process doesnt change and they have all tacked up really good. Not sure if this answers your question and if it doesnt we will try again ! Regards, Blades

Thanks Red.Guess I should have posted this in "The Docks" sorry. One more question..... are the older topics and posts archived somewhere and will they be accesible anytime in the future ? Some great stuff there from back in the day ! Regards, Blades

Get your parts guy to order you some reducer. (see product chart bottom of this link below ) You csn play around with the reducer and activator to get a flash time that your happy with.You can also hang your clear coated baits in an oven at 100 to 110 degress and they will flash quicker. I hang all the baits that I clear with Urethane and use a medium activator and they flash or "tack up" withen 5 minutes but still take 12 hours to cure. The clear never runs. If you really want a good finish then spray your clear on light coat first then allow them to flash then do another coat. Remember that when using Urethane Clear .... the slower it cures the harder -- more durable-- and glossier the finish will be. Vertually all Urethane Clears have a reducer that will thin them and some use a universal reducer. Regards, Blades http://www.5starautobodyproducts.com/clearcoats/5155.htm

All the pictures and post from "back in the day" ? Either I have forgotten how to search the site or its gone. Regards, Blades

Mery Christmas Everyone ! May God Bless All Of You - Our Service Men and Women In every Corner Of The World- and All Of You ! Regards, Blades

Merry Christmas Everyone. May God Bless You All and God Bless The USA! Blades

Thank you all !!!! I have an idea of what to make now. Regards, Blades

Hello all. Been a while since I have posted. I first want to say hello and I hope this finds all of you well! I have a question . I was talking to an old friend the other day and he was asking me if I could make him a Jig that he was unable to find on the market. He called it a "wobble head" Jig. He described it as a lead molded on a hook shank and the lead profile was flat and wide and had a keel designed into the bottom of the body. I have searched and come up with nothing - and there,s no better placed to get an answer than here! He says its from back in the day and nothing new. I have searched and found several baits people are calling a "wobble head " but nothing comes close to his description. Any feedback is always appreciated. Regards, Blades

LOL just teasing ! Thanks for playing along.Its been a while --- I hope all is well with everyone. Regards, Blades

What Top Coat should I use ? Regards, Blades

After a 5 year hiatus (sp), I am cracking all my equipment and tools out and build a few Custom Rods. I was wondering about Micro Guides. I am seeing a few rods being built using these guides with an In- line (coventional) application. The last experience i had with these guides was on a spiral guide placement application. Soooo---- Anybody tried them in-line? I would think it would take several more guides than usual. MAybe even more than a spirail application. Has anyone came up with any great advantages/disadvantages? Your thoughts (pro's and con's) on this are appreciated. Regards, Blades

I hate to use TU as a political platform but if any of you enjoy fishing- Please contact your congress person immediatly and get them engaged! This is just the first step of many to come. Everyone please pass the word around- post this on as many websites that will allow it! Get busy -- we dont have much time. PLEASE READ, REACT AND PASS ON: Feds to 60 Million American Anglers: We don't need you IRVINE, Calif. USA - October 5, 2009 - A recently published administration document outlines a structure that could result in closures of sport fishing in salt and freshwater areas across America. The White House created an Interagency Oceans Policy Task Force in June and gave them only 90 days to develop a comprehensive federal policy for all U.S. coastal, ocean and Great Lakes waters. Under the guise of 'protecting' these areas, the current second phase of the Task Force direction is to develop zoning which may permanently close vast areas of fishing waters nationwide. This is to be completed by December 9, 2009. Dave Pfeiffer, President of Shimano American Corporation explained, "In spite of extensive submissions from the recreational fishing community to the Task Force in person and in writing, they failed to include any mention of the over one million jobs or the 60 million anglers which may be affected by the new policies coast to coast. Input from the environmental groups who want to put us off the water was adopted into the report verbatim - the key points we submitted as an industry were ignored." Recreational fishing generates a $125 billion annual economy in the United States and supports jobs in every state according to government figures. Through the Sport Fish Restoration program, anglers have provided more than $5 billion through excise taxes on fishing tackle to fishery conservation and education for decades. In addition to the economic aspects, anglers lead the nation in volunteer conservation efforts on behalf of improving fish habitat, water quality and related environmental areas. "There was no mention of the fishery conservation efforts which anglers have led for over 50 years in every state - an environmental success story that has no equal in the world", said Phil Morlock, Director, Environmental Affairs for Shimano. "The Task Force did not make any distinction between the dramatic differences between harmful commercial fishing harvest methods and recreational fishing, even though we spelled it out for them in detail," added Morlock. Claiming to be the result of a public consultation process the report states, "Having considered a broad range of public comments, this report reflects the requests and concerns of all interested parties." The original White House memo and not surprisingly the Task Force report contains multiple references to developing a national policy where Great Lakes and coastal regions are managed, "consistent with international law, including customary international law as reflected in the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea" - a 300-page treaty the U.S. has never ratified. "We question what implications there will be for state authority and jurisdiction in the Great Lakes and coastal regions if the U.S. adopts the U.N. Treaty," said Pfeiffer. The report makes it clear that future authority for implementing the policy for coastal and inland waters will fall under White House jurisdiction with a new National Ocean Council comprised of over 20 federal agencies at Cabinet Secretary or Deputy Secretary level. No reference to Congressional jurisdiction is indicated. "This significant change in U.S. policy direction is the result of a 90-day fire drill process as ordered by the President that, not surprisingly, lacks balance, clarity and quality in the end product," said Morlock. "People who simply want to take their kids fishing on public waters deserve better from their government," he added. Shimano is joining with other members of the recreational fishing industry to urge anglers to contact their members of Congress and the administration to request this process be required to adopt the economic, conservation and social contributions of recreational fishing as key elements of the policy. It is critical that we ensure Congressional oversight and state jurisdiction and management continues. E-letters can be sent to the administration and members of Congress by visiting KeepAmericanFishing.org. The future of fishing is in your hands. ### Editor's Note: Phil Morlock is attending Congressional Sportsmen's Caucus functions this week in Washington, DC, but will make himself available for questions, interviews on this. Contact John Mazurkiewicz with Catalyst Marketing for arrangements. Regards, Blades

Tackleunderground - Search Results This should get you started. Regards, Blades