First Attempt At A Crank

[JRammit]

21 hours ago, FrogAddict said:

Ask anyone on here that has built lures for any length of time about their "rejects" and they'll tell you they have a box or something full of them!. 

 

Mine are hanging proudly on the wall in my work shop... In order from my first ever, to most recent.... Nice to see my progression every time I step in the shop 

This also takes some of the pressure off.. Now when I screw one up, at least I'll have a new decoration 

[eastman03]

Had to go back and read this all again. Have still been having envirotex issues. So frustrating. It's one thing to have a  bit of fish eye to sand off on the first layers under the paint. But now I just finished a painted lure with etex and it was running like crazy. Perhaps I over compensated for the cooler basement room and heated it up too much with hot water perhaps I just did to thick of a coat. Sure is frustrating. Seems like there is always something wrong. 

Edited February 26, 2017 by eastman03

[SW Lures]

Etex is a two part epoxy and the compensation in heat should have made it set up faster if nothing else.  One part is a hardening agent. This is what I have learnt with D2T and I would say this may be true here. 

This coating needs to be turned to level it out. At the beginning after coating the epoxy will be soft but not running off the lure. With that being said, are you measuring properly? Are you mixing it thoroughly? These are the most two issue that happens with two part epoxy.

Don't over cover the bait with to much Etex. What do you mean about heating up the room with hot water? Are you refering to boiler or hot water heater?

Just trying to help figure this out. Nice looking scheme tho.

Dale

[eastman03]

Thanks dale. 

I just let the etex bottles warm up in hot tap water. The result was noticibly more runny then before when I just did it at room temp. It did assist in getting rid of all bubbles. I warmed it up in hot tap water. Then mixed equal parts by volume ( I even rigged syringes up to make it accurate).  Mixed for five minutes. Let it sit for another five. Then brushed it on. And left them on the turner. I checked on then after 30 min and I could see the etex was sagging. Not sure why. 

 I think I just put it on a bit thick and let the bottles get too warm. Not sure. 

[SW Lures]

Yep now that I know what you did I agree with you. I'm not sure how long you have been doing baits but I remember doing that myself, we want to have them look great, that we over do things sometimes.

As far as the room temperature take the bottles into a heated room till your ready and bring it down. A small space heater could help, but be careful with it. I believe it should do fine then. The small bubbles you can exhale on the area and your breath will pop the bubbles. May not work all the time.

Let us know,

Dale

[gliders]

Eastman, if you are using turner and getting what appears in pics as big sags or build up,and your turners not going silly fast or slow,which I Imagine it's not,then your putting on to much e-tex . Heating in warm water not the problem unless your leaving it so long when mixed that its starting to set. I personally don't leave for 10 mins before applying but rely on heat gun for bubbles. If that is patches of micro bubbles in picture also,then that can be caused by cold epoxy or also over use of heat/flame. (And many other things !) Good luck,and hope you get there. ....glider

[eastman03]

Thanks guys. I've only made a hand full of lures. Love doing it. I'm just getting into it. Almost have to talk me off the ledge with this envirotex. It sure looks great when it works but I've probably done about 10 applications with over half having some issue. I think I'm narrowing it down now. This last one was just a bit too warm, and too much on the lure and probably a bit overuse of the torch I use to zap bubbles. I've done it once before way too much and it pretty much liquified the etex and it started dropping off lol.  I will continue to be diligent about cleanliness and such. Just need to dial in the amounts. Thanks guys. I'll let you know how the next batch goes. I'm on the finishing coats now. No room for error!

[MarkNY]

Eastman, i know in the past when I've put too much etex on a lure it built up on the belly similar to your pic. What helps me is to just slow the whole process down. I take both parts out with syringes, put them both in a small mixing cup and start mixing slowly with a mixing rod. Try not to mix too fast or you will add lots of bubbles. When it starts to turn clear I set it down and get my epoxy brush ready and also lay down a square piece of aluminum foil on my bench. Mix it again thoroughly, scraping edges. I hold cup at an angle so it's always running downhill as i mix.  Once it's mixed I pour it out on a square piece of aluminum foil. I move the foil around to move epoxy and also breath on it at the same time and that takes just about all of the bubbles out.  Then using a filbert shaped brush I apply epoxy to lure working from head to tail. I try to make side to side strokes with the brush to keep it all even. Again work slowly. Don't be tempted to use all the epoxy, just use what's needed to cover the lure. Most times I'll have to remove a little epoxy from lip area or from the belly hook hanger. If there are any bubbles left just breathe heavily on them and that will pop them. That system works for me. Hope that helps. Mark 

[RayburnGuy]

Etex is designed to be a covering for bar tops, table tops and those sorts of things. It has solvents in it that help it to flow so it self levels. A bar top with high and low spots in it wouldn't be very practical or attractive. We have to keep this in mind when using it as a coating for lures and remember to apply it in thin layers. This is why most people that use Etex do multiple thin coats. If you try to layer it on too thick thinking you'll save time you are only creating problems for yourself farther down the line.

Etex also has to be mixed thoroughly. I think the directions say to mix it for 5 minutes. Warming the epoxy will indeed allow any bubbles to dissipate better, but you need to remember that by warming it you are also reducing the viscosity. (making it thinner) By making it thinner you are making it easier for it to sag and run once the bait is on the turner. If you want to warm it to help do away with any bubbles you can let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes after mixing to allow it to cool back down a bit. This will also allow time for bubbles to rise to the top. There's no need to be in a hurry when using Etex. If your trying to cover so many baits that your having to hurry then you need to rethink how many lures your trying to coat and reduce that number until it's something you can do comfortably.

Using a soft bristled brush to apply the epoxy will also help keep bubbles to a minimum. At least it has for me. 

Ben

 

[eastman03]

Ok thanks guys. I can do it! Lol. Let you know how it goes. 

[mark poulson]

When I used Etex a lot, I used Flexcoat syringes to get exact batches  every time.

The syringes come with a slightly tapered nozzle, so I drilled holes in the top of each component's bottle that were slightly bigger than the nozzle's tip, and that let me leave the syringes in the tops of the bottles when I wasn't using them.  To fill, I held them in tight, and turned the bottle over, and then just pulled out as much as I wanted into each syringe.  Then I turned the bottle back over with the syringe on top, and removed the syringe, so I could squeeze out the component into my mixing cup.

http://flexcoat.com/products/supplies-accessories/color-coded-syringes

[MarkNY]

I use all flex coat supplies when working with etex. Syringes, cups, stir sticks. I also use these self sealing inserts for part a and b bottles. Just thread them in and stick syringe in to draw out resin. They work great and keep things neat.