jrhopkins

check out www.glonation.com they have paint as well as powder. haven't used the paint but the powder glows great for a long time. i sprayed the lure with acrylic and then just dumped the powder on it and then shook off what wouldn't stick. let it set up for a while and then clearcoated over it. here's a pic of the belly of the lure shot in the dark with the flash off and a pic of the finished lure. i just put the powder on the belly of the lure.

the flea market was a cheap trial run, $100 for 4 days. the local outdoors/fishing/boat shows start out at around $500 for 3 days. i may give that a try come spring. walmart would sell that bike for $9,999. and it would be imported.

most of the people here are " weekend trout waiters". they go out on the weekend with the $9 walmart combos, throw a line out and wait for a fish to come by:yawn:. went out yesterday and caught 2 nice smallmouth on one of my " too big" swimbaits ( 5" lure ). fall is coming so the big fish bite should get better.

was wondering about the sizes of other guys swimbaits. i have made all the way up to 14" for special orders but usually 6-7" for the big ones and smaller ones usually 4-5" the reason is because i went to a huge flea market over labor day weekend to try to sell some of my lures. over 500 vendors there selling everything from bed sheets to tractors. 1000's of people. only sold 6 lures:cry:. rained all weekend! the most frequent question asked was "you fish with lures that big?" average size i had on display was 5", multi-jointed lures ) i assume that other than bass and muskie, pike fishermen, most are not aware of the " big lures for big fish theory". sold all the lures to bass fishermen there. just wondering if i need to downsize? although getting all the joints in a small lure ( under 4" ) would be a pain!! any thoughts??

yeh, we've all heard that old "buzzbait blade really moving" story before;). great action on the lure with or without the blade!!

sand the board with 150 paper, go to Home Depot ( or any paint store) and ask them for a product called 'Flotrol", it's an additive to use with latex paint that allows the paint to flow more evenly. i use a foam brush to apply it with excellant results. 3 coats, i lightly sand with 400 grit between coats and wipe off dust.

just checked the package on my d2t and it says 30 minute handling time so i'm sure that is the same stuff as in the syringes that i have been using.

if i had to use minwax i would use the water based polyacrylic

another thing you might try is tung oil. it soaks into wood, drys quickly and won't swell the grain. i have used it a lot for furniture finishes.

never used the lacquer. most lacquers yellow with age.

MinWax is good. also check out General Finishes topcoats, rated #1 by Fine Woodworking magazine. Rockler woodworking sells it. it is all i use for furniture projects. i spilled some in my truck toolbox about 8 years ago, still there!

nice job but what's that little speck toward the tail? never mind, bug on screen:sauced:.

on mine i had to spread the ballast out along the width of each segment. also, the shape of the body was flatter on the bottom and the top area was more rounded.

hey Pete, would that be a cranking battery or the deep cycle battery:D?

anyone using holographic film as an overlay on your lures check out your local party store or gift store. the local Dollar Store has these gift bags in all different holographic finishes and patterns. a huge bag cost me $1.99. probably about 80 sq. inches total. i cut out enough to cover a lure, soak the piece in some hot water for about 10 minutes and then use your finger to roll off the paper backing. leaves you with a thin film that can be glued to the body of the bait. stop rubbing when you stop getting paper rolled up. here's a pic of the bag i got. zoom in on the image to see the eyeball effect. http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r17/jrhopkins_photos/IMG_0994.jpg

looks very nice, way to go Tim!:yeah:you use the aluminum can material for the hinge?