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eastman03

Preserving carving details

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Maybe I'm overthinking this, but usually for my musky lures I like to shape/sand, carve details, then seal the wood in soar urethane. At this point I'll put one or two thin layers of etex on, then prime and paint and two or three more layers of etex. 

Now the problem is that I'm dabbling in carving details like find and gills and when if I do a layer of etex under my paint, I fear I will lose the details in the wood.  Is this undercoat layer of etex unnecessary? I like it in general because with muskies eventually (even just with hooks and rocks)  the outer layers will be penetrated. So then it's often the inner layer that becomes slightly exposed where the hook rash, or (hopefully) teeth marks are.  

How do you guys prepare the wood when it's carved? Or what is your order of finishing?

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I’m not sure there is a fix for this on a traditional wood lure except to find a penetrating wood sealer to use versus epoxy as an undercoat, or carve your details deeper so the finish layers do not fill them in.  You might also consider topcoating with a tough but thinner product like MCU or UV cured polyester resin.  I don’t think the fish care about fine carved details versus painted details, but I understand the craftsman or user might.

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Thanks for the help. Right now I only make one or a few lures at a time. I don't want to I get into plastics. Part of my enjoyment is the craft and hand building and sanding every single lure. 

I think your right Bobp. I'll probably make sure the lure is good and covered with urethane. And just paint and then epoxy. I do completely agree. Fish don't care one bit. But I enjoy putting details into it. This particular one is for a guest that I guided this spring. He liked some of my lures so much he ordered two custom ones like this. That's a first for me!

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Sounds good guys! So I'm going to try the heat and thin out the etex method.  Sounds like a good solution to my question! Thanks 

shawnm1, your new lures you posted look great! I really need to improve my epoxy finishing skills,  your finish looks perfect!

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On 7/5/2018 at 7:20 PM, eastman03 said:

He liked some of my lures so much he ordered two custom ones like this. That's a first for me!

Thats a great feeling isnt it. I once gave a lure to a tourney fisherman that had taken me out on his boat a few times. Just as  a gift. He was in a tourney later that year and the bite was tough. Only two fish were weighed that day and the winner hit my lure. He ordered three of them after that. One to throw, one as a backup, and one as a display.

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