[Net Man]

I have refinished some old Tenn. Tuffy's and they crack after a few cast. I strip the bait down to the wood and seal it, prime, and than paint. What is causing it to crack. I also had this happen to an old Poe bait too. Any help???

[blackjack]

moisture is usually the culprit, whether it be from an external source or internal. need to know exactly what you are doing with sealer, primer and finish

[Net Man]

I let the bait soak in the sealer for Aprox 30 min. Than I let it dry for 1 day and sand it. After I sand it I soak it again. Than I prime it. Once that dries I lightly sand it and prime it one more time and lightly sand again. Than I spray a base coat, put the colors on and spray the clear. I use an automotive clear and will spray 3 to 4 coats before it is finished.

[jflures]

sounds as though you are going about it right. What type of paint are you using?

[Net Man]

I use lac. paint.

[jflures]

you may be having issues with the paint and clear coat.

[Net Man]

The big issue I have it that I can paint 3 Tenn. Tuffy's and 1 or 2 will crack. But not the 3rd. I don't understand this at all. I know that I am new to this but my Dad owns a cabinet shop and restores old cars. So I have been around lots of different paints over the years. He does not know what is going on either.

[BobP]

If you're refinishing baits that didn't crack before, water is penetrating the finish and cracking the wood. If the cracking is near the tail, I would suspect a leak around the hook hanger. I'd consider waterproofing the bait with a 50/50 solution of Devcon Two Ton epoxy and acetone before applying the finish.

[Net Man]

When they crack you can see a hair line in the wood where the crack was. And some places the paint is not even reallt stuck to the wood that well but in other places you can't get it off.

[Net Man]

All the cracks seem to be coming from the bill.