RiverMan

I'm convinced a guy can make money at this otherwise there wouldn't be so many big names doing it. Now whether us small guys making a few baits at a time can make money is another story. I am making a bit of money on my baits but if I were to figure out my hourly wage I'm guessing it would be somewhere around 5 dollars an hour; but for me as a second job this still beats flippin burgers, pumping gas, etc.. I build lures first and foremost because I enjoy it and what little money I make on the baits is mostly dumped right back into materials.....well except for that Lear Jet I purchased last month. If you want to make money at this I would say you will have to do what all big companies are doing to be successful..... outsource. Take a look at anything you buy these days from Cabelas, or whoever, nearly everthing has a tag on it saying "made in china or made in india". There's a reason why so many products come from overseas and why so many jobs from this country are headed that way, it makes money! Look at WalMart. Beyond that tho, you will need a product that is better than most and better than all would be better yet. Jed

Hmmmm, my post in this thread seems to have vanished, guess it those "x-rated" Paasche VL pics I posted, lol. Jed

I have only owned one airbrush so it's difficult for me to provide any comparitive info. However, I have a Paasche single action and one thing I don't like is that the smallest tip still doesn't go fine enough. The thinnest line I can paint with the small needle is probably 1/2 inch. It seems to clog a great deal too but then again I am spraying the cheapest of paints from WalMart. Gravity feed sounds like it would be a mess tho...is the gravity feed chamber sealed or do you have to worry about it spilling out? Jed

An interesting process you had set up there Star. I have built a few molds like this myself and played with featherlite, it's alot of fun and cannot be beat for consistency. Thanks for posting the info. Jed

BlackJack is right, Shorty's is the place. I just ordered 500 trebles from them..you might have trouble ordering less than that, not sure. jed

I think the foiled bait is my fav too, great job Bass, makes a guy wanna hook one on the line doesn't it? Jed

That is really cool, nothing around here like that...if there was someone would kill it, lol. Jed

That is just amazing to me that someone would have the nerve to go into your house and take things....and gifts no less, could he stoop any lower? Well if you don't catch him he will eventually get caught and it may not be the "nicest" person that cathes him if you know what I mean. Oh well Nathan..... Jed

Just wanted to tell all my buddies on TU that I hope you have the best of Holiday Seasons this year! Thank you Jerry for starting this site and doing the best anyone could of making sure it runs smoothly. There couldn't be a more friendly and gracious group than those that participate on this site. Happy Holidays! Jed

Kell, I would like to pass on a bit of into to you that might be helpful. I read once something that I think was very insightful. The author explained that when you are raising a new "angler" it's important to make it "fun". When you are fishing with the little fella don't "make him fish", let him throw rocks, explore, poke around with a stick, catch bugs, whatever. By doing so you are teaching him that fishing is something "fun" and this will stay with him forever. If you "make him fish" he will associate fishing as something "not fun" and it will likely ruin him to the sport forever. Jed

Sweet, too nice to be on a jig you are going to beat to death! Put those paint jobs on a hard bait! Great job! jed

Kell, I have some great memories of my kids with drawings and such too. My sons are 17 and 14 now. Here is a list of tackle needs my youngest son put together upon returning from a chum salmon fishing trip. It says: For next year we need swivels, heavier jig hooks and green yarn, egg sinks, and newer maxima 12 pound line. Kids are so much work but worth every bit of it. Jed

I think for once you guys have left me speechless...or maybe it was just all those Devcon fumes, can't be sure. Jed

That's a good tip on the foil AlamOso! A few bullets concerning the two finishes from my perspective: 1. I cannot say Devcon ever failed me. I had one or two baits do some strange peeling but I have had a couple odd things happen with Etex too. 2. It seems once dry Etex is more difficult to peel off, it comes off in small pieces while Devcon will come off in large chunks. 3. I have some Devcon baits that yellowed some on the bellies but I suspect this was more a result of a paint problem than anything else. 4. Etex is easier and considerably cheaper to use when working with large numbers of baits. 5. I know of several large builders that use Etex as a final finish, none that use Devcon. 6. Etex burns my eyes, Devcon does not. 7. I think it's easier to get a perfect finish with Devcon than it is with Etex. 8. Anglers fishing my baits are reporting that the Etex is holding up exceptionally well for them....thus far. 9. Etex is cool, Devcon is for Dweebs.....sorry couldn't resist that one Skeeter. 10. Have had one bait returned to me with Etex but think it was likely a combination of repeated slams to the rear of the bait but toothy critters and potentially uncured paints. 11. Got tired of having to track down the Devcon, supply was not always available. 12. I have more problems with bubbles in Etex than Devcon.. I know Rich says this is something I am doing wrong but I am a very persistent fellow and still have hassles with it. Beyond all that, some of you might remember the Devcon Bait test I was running in the window of my truck? Well that bait sat in the direct heat of my truck all summer long and it hasn't yellowed a bit! I will post a pic if anyone is interested. Etex is my choice for now but I expect any day someone will post info regarding something "better", looking forward to it. Jed

I think I paid about 6 or 7 dollars for mine at Wal-Mart and they work great. After trying it with a knife, pliers, teeth, etc., I would suggest getting a pair of them and being done with it! Avoid buying the really "cheap pair" that have only a rivet holding the two sides of the pliers together...had these first and they lasted a very short amount of time. Jed

Hey that is nice Coley. Jed

Cool pics FF, thanks for taking the time to post them for us. Jed

Yea you can recoat either way.......there won't be a problem. I have used Devcon for literally a couple hundred baits and I have used Etex on a couple hundred baits. I like them both but preferred to apply Devcon. I am currently using Etex however for a couple reasons...one is I can get it much cheaper than Devcon and two it's what many of the top builders use, and three it has a good track record for longevity. RM

I have never had this happen Lapala but I personally (note I said personally) have found that Devcon is brittle once dry. (I would suggest you try etex-but don't tell skeeter!) Jed

Brandon make sure you are "logged in" when you get to the site otherwise you won't be able to see the pics! Jed

Welcome Dark Star! Your experience will be very much appreciated at this site I'm sure! Jed

I have had this problem if the wood I am using has too large of a grain to it, like cedar. This causes chunks to fall out as the wood is removed. It may be too that your lathe tool is too aggressive and removing too much at one time. I would suggest trying two things, a harder wood and use a tool that takes off a bit less wood at one time. jed

I bought some water based Kilz, diluted it with water, and dipped one bait yesterday made of basswood. The bait looks very good, completely white, and the paint is difficult to scrape off. I think the stuff is going to work great. jed

It's interesting that all of you mention sealing the wood for the purpose of preventing color bleed instead of water protection. I'm using poplar too Bassnator most of the time and find that a single coat of white paint is adequate to prevent my paint from going anywhere once it hits the bait. Mostly I use a flat white paint from a rattle can as my primer. I tried dipping a couple baits today into some diluted water based kilz primer/sealer and the finished result looks very promising. I will probably give this a try for awhile and see how things go. Thank you! Jed

Skeeter brought up a good point in another post about sealing the baits prior to painting that has me wondering what others think. It seems to me that if the water gets past the etex/devcon barrier on the outside you are probably done for anyway so why bother taking the time to seal the wood? What do you guys think? Jed