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fish eyes in top coat

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I keep getting fish eyes in my top coat,anyone know what causes this?I tried brushing them out as it spins on the dryer but as soon as the wheel makes one revolution the imperfections reappear .I'm careful not to touch the paint after its painted......any thoughts on what causing this ?

I use Etex and just started having this problem.

Thanks SF

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Agreed it is something you changed in the area you work in or the tools used for refinishing. Fish eyes came from silicone which is in many products. Go back to the time when you had no problems and see what changed and remove it. start with a clean area ,no old rags brushes cups stir sticks. To get rid of them let dry completely sand about half way out then clean with a good quality wax and grease remover found at an auto refinish store. This process is wipe on wet and dry completely with a new clean rag or lint free towel. Then throw them away they are no good for that purpose any more. Now you should be able to recoat with no problems. Remember the slower your finish cure the more chance of contomination. Silicone gets air borne easily so check your area well.:yay:

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What are you using to mix your etex in?

What are you using for you wood sealer?

If you are mixing in a contaminated cup or mixing with a contaminated stick you could be introducing waxes or oils.

If your wood is not sealed completely there might be tiny vents that you can't see. These let air escape as the etex is curing and this will cause the fish eye.

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You guys got me thinking....I think I know what it may be,I have been use Kills sealer which is oil based sealer.Could that cause this?

The only other thing I have changed is I have been using plastic syringes too get a even mix on the etex.I don't think that's it though since they are medical grade.

Thanks for all the help.

SF

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You need to do a few quick test pieces. One with the kilts, another the old way, both using the syringes.

If this does not reveal the problem, it could be some lube thing that the syringes have installed as a standard. Could be silicone to reduce friction.

How do the syringes feel to the touch, inside?

Try cleaning the syringes thoroughly in a solvent. Take care if they are plastic.

My money is on the syringes being the problem.

Dave

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The oil based sealer should be ok so long as you let it dry completely.

Try this instead: seal with a sanding sealer or polycyrlic, two coats. Once dry then use a white primer of some kind, rattle can or dip, makes no difference as long as you let it dry completely! Now, put on some latex gloves and then with a clean paper towel and a dab of rubbing alcohol, clean the entire surface of the lure. Only touch the lure from this point forward if you have latex gloves on.

Paint, let dry overnight...........do not touch lure!!

Clearcoat...............if you put a second coat of clear on repeat the cleaning with the alcohol.

You can save these lures by letting the cleacoat set up completely, clean rubbing alcohol, clearcoat again.

RM

Edited by RiverMan
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All good suggestions...Vodkaman very well could have nailed it with his thinking that the syringe could have a tad of silicone for lube, of which it takes the smallest amount to cause fish eyes! Those in the custom paint trade judiciously use special silicone removers to prep their work as a matter of course to remove any possible trace of silicone residue left from polishes, etc, to prevent fisheyes from ruining expensive paint work. The best guitar polishes are silicone-free for that very reason, should some repair work be needed someday.

Dean

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I wanted to revive this thread because I think Vodkaman was totally correct as I was on this hating Etex bandwagon after having acceptable results with the first couple but then having real issues over and over. And while these syringes came from the hobby store and were sold right there with all the epoxies and CA, I wil never use them again.

I stopped using Etex for a while but wanted to give it a try after reading this thread. Sof I have gone back and retried using Etex and things are fine. I QUIT using the syringes! The last 6 baits have come out with nice smooth finishes and zero fish eyes. So no more syringes for me, I am just throwing them away!

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I bought my syringes from the www.mudhole.com site that sells Flexcoat, and they haven't given me any problems. They are labeled Flexcoat 3cc syringes, specifically for mixing epoxy.

Look under the rod building supplies.

Switching to syringes has made my life sooooo much easier. No more worrying about the right mix, or mixing too much and wasting epoxy.

Someone on this forum suggested using them, and I'll always be in his debt. Unfortunately, I can't remember who it was, but I owe him bigtime.

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Sorry haven't been around in a wile,but wanted to say that Vodkaman was right on with the comment about the syringes....that was the cause of the fish eyes .

I pulled a new "syringe" out of the packaged and could see a oily looking substance on the rubber plunger,so I then just went to mixing up the etex without them and that did the trick,no more problems with fish eyes.

I got the syringes free so no loose there,maybe I can use them for something else.Just one of the many reasons I love this board and the info it provides is priceless...thanks SF

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