akriverrat

i use mirror gloss clear and i apply after i reheat the jigs for about ten minutes. i dont think it matters too much when you put it on ive never had a bleeding problem and ive applied right after color too.

water boils at 212 degrees which is a little cool for powder coating but what id do is get your water and eggs on the burner and right after the water starts to boil give the egg three or four minutes to get it to temp then take out, dry, and use the copper egg holder to dip in the fluid bed. might have to go over it with the heat gun easily to help it flow out then bake it off at the desired temp and time. remind me to not have any of your deviled eggs right after easter

its basically a tube usually pvc with an air chamber underneith it where air is pumped into the bed. this fluffs the powder. there is a ton of info on this site and they are easy to make.

sounds like you are dipping right into the jar and getting too much of a coat. you need to really fluff the paint up before you dip or build yourself a fluid bed. i recommend the fluid bed as you will get an even and light coat and not waste powder as well as not filling the eyes in.

the heavier the jig the more impact is going to mess with your finish. all the jigs i make at current time are 3 oz minimum so the more protection the better. i am looking at getting either a 7 and 9 oz butterfly jig mold or a 10,12, 16oz fish jig mold from collins customs next. a good tough clear coat will be mandantory.

strength is my main concern as well as my customers. has there been any tests done on the breaking strength or (pull strength) of brass eyes? i know i feel more comfortable with a through wire form on any lure that is acting as part of the mainline. i see people promote through wire construction. thanks for the tip reeves, i havent heard of the little blue bender. ill look it up.

cc600 forms went up a few bucks since i bought last and im looking at a new mold that uses brass eyes and not a through wire form. is it easy enough to bend these up myself? couple nails in the right spot for a jig should give me the right length. the cc600 is jsut a couple 180 bends and the new mold would be looped on both ends with probably a .050 wire. any special tools i need or just the wire bending pliers?

heres the right one you need. High Temperature Foil Tape

i use a high temp foil tape that is as chrome as chrome can be. wont dull and i just use mirror gloss powder as a clear coat. works great. Foil Insulation Tape

aquarium pump for a 20 gall tank should be plenty of air. id get one with two outlets, one for color and one for clear coat. add adjustment valves so you can dial in your pressure. some powders act different than others. tons on ebay ill bet.

this has probably been mentioned before but im going to share anyway. i did up some 4 oz spearheads in firetiger colors and fully cured them before i added stripes with black magic marker. after i add the stripes i reaheat and dip in my mirror gloss but anyway i had a couple that had some drips that collected at the nose of the jig. since i was going to reheat them anyway i filed down the drip thinking it might gloss back over after reheating and it worked. might depend on the jig you are painting but you can file drips off and get it to blend back in just like it wasnt even there. make sure your file is clean.

i use clear gloss powder coating i got off ebay. i triple coat in the fluid bed after ten minutes of cure time on the color. they come out nice and shiny and are tough as heck.

do it molds has come out with the 7 and 9 oz "flutter jig" that resemble knife jigs. im gonna pick one up. will use the harder lead but the biggest challenge will be coming up with the color coordinations and making it look good. thanks for the advice sagacious. i also talked to the sales rep about grout for pouring lead and i guess they do make a high temp grout. he said he would get the specs on it and i will share if i get them.

i misunderstood fluxing altogether. i thought it was only to get the bad stuff to float to the top and be skimmed off. had no idea it helped with the alloys as well.

thanks sagacious

the thing is that this stuff was melted before and mixed into the weights. if it is tin and anitomy i am wanting to use it if at all possible. it looks like a metal of some sort, its jsut not melting in.

i traded out some jigs for more lead in the form of bank sinkers. the guy told me that his buddy poured them all and had no use for them anymore. they been sitting in his garage for some time. they looked of good quality and still shiny. when i melted them down there was a mass of gunk floating on top that i pushed aside thinking it was tin or antimony and it would eventually melt. no such luck. is there something i can do to get this stuff to blend again? what do you guys think it is? i am used to pouring pure lead so this is a new breed to me. i am also looking for the harder lead for my thinner longer jigs. thanks.

ive tried to sell my jigs off and on with not too much result. seems like i only get time to make them in the winters when im only working 40 hours per week. in the summer i am too busy to be pouring and powdering alot of jigs so business has been slow. not that i plan on making a bunch of money doing this. anyway the guys on the alaska outdoor network are putting together a "trash fish derby" and i offered to donate some jigs to the cause. SO i am officially a "sponsor" of a fishing derby this summer. i just think its too cool and had to brag- err, i mean share. so ill be giving to a good cause, something that dosent target trophy breeder fish AND ill get some recognition in the process.

take a look at some of the japanese long jigs. they are very large . jigs like the sanme and the nagamasa. the nagamasas look slender and can be made with lead ill bet but the sanmes look pretty beefy. these jigs would kill the ling cod and the halibut up here in alaska ill bet.

anyone use this for there homemade molds before? this stuff is tuff but wondering if it can stand the heat? also found this online TinSil 70-60: Polytek anyone use this before? looks spendy enough to where it might be worthwhile to just get a mold custom made.

i am wanting to get into big saltwater jigs and am wondering the best way of going about it. once a jig gets so big then lead is not going to be the best metal to use. should i be looking into different lighter metals to pour into a mold or should i be looking into a metal lathe? anyone out there make big saltwater stuff? if so id like to hear how you go about it.