Husky

Many years ago, my top coat was Spar Varnish. It dried in hours and gave a great finish. If it wasn't for it's yellowish tint, I'd still use it!!

Hey Jay, I told you this was the place.

Another thing you'll really hate is the fact that you can post links here. You'll miss out on all the PM's telling you what has been deleted.

Sintra sign board is a better product than you'll get at the Box Stores. Here's a link to a thread you might like.

It's just part of the natural progression and sharing of ideas found on this board. For the most part, the people here are the most generous and helpful you'll find, anywhere. We all owe a special thanks to Redg8r for providing us with such a great "Meeting Place." Mike P

PDF Tutorial Attached Photo Finishing Foil and Faux Finishes The following Tutorial is for those of us who want to create very realistic finishes with a minimum of hassle. This is not to say it is the only or best way to achieve that goal, but I found it to be a very viable alternative to decals, and much less costly. Truth be told, I also find it easier to do. In addition, the supplies are more readily available. With very little practice, anyone can get wonderful results. I developed this technique after realizing that it is not practical to print on foil. Doing so, is a tribute to Murphy Photo Finishing Foil and Faux Finishes.pdf Photo Finishing Foil and Faux Finishes.pdf Photo Finishing Foil and Faux Finishes.pdf Photo Finishing Foil and Faux Finishes.pdf Photo Finishing Foil and Faux Finishes.pdf Photo Finishing Foil and Faux Finishes.pdf Photo Finishing Foil and Faux Finishes.pdf Photo Finishing Foil and Faux Finishes.pdf Photo Finishing Foil and Faux Finishes.pdf

Yes, Lincoya was the one who steered many of us to photo finishing. I started printing on tissue and placing it over foil because I couldn't print on the foil directly and felt that decals were too thick for my liking. I wanted the shine of the foil to bleed through the image. Here's the Tutorial I put together. Photo Finishing Foil and Faux Finishes The following Tutorial is for those of us who want to create very realistic finishes with a minimum of hassle. This is not to say it is the only or best way to achieve that goal, but I found it to be a very viable alternative to decals, and much less costly. Truth be told, I also find it easier to do. In addition, the supplies are more readily available. With very little practice, anyone can get wonderful results. I developed this technique after realizing that it is not practical to print on foil. Doing so, is a tribute to Murphy’s Law. There was smearing (And Swearing), tearing and an overall unsatisfactory result. Still, I wanted to get a shinny metallic finish under the Image of a baitfish. After much experimentation, I struck upon the Tissue/Foil process, which allowed me to get the results I wanted. I’m sure those of you who give it a try will also be as pleased as I was. I’d also like to say that you can place the Tissue image onto a painted finish. The underlying color will show through the Tissue Here is a rendition of a Menhaden over yellow paint. The Tissue allows for a very user friendly method of applying a Photo Finish, especially over foil. Here’s hoping you find it a useful tool. Mike P (Husky) Supplies; Foil or Foil Tape, Adhesive, White Gift Tissue and a scanned image to print. 1. Affix the wrapping tissue to a sheet of standard paper with a glue stick so it can be printed on with an inkjet or laser printer. Glue the edges of the standard paper then lay and cut the tissue, once affixed. A razor works great for this purpose. 2. Print the Fish Image you want onto the Tissue Paper. I use MS PUB to Size and reverse the image. I’m sure that there are many other programs that will work as well or better. I get many of my images by searching Google Images. If you can, it would be better to take photos of the baitfish to get better quality renditions and even more realistic images. 3. Glue the printed images onto Foil or Foil Tape with spray adhesive. (Use the Brighter side on the Foil) Spray the foil and carefully place the tissue, avoiding wrinkles. 4. While you’re waiting for the glue to dry, seal your plug if you haven’t already done that. I use the Plasticoat process, but and good sealing method will do. Plasticoat is just hard plastic cups or plastic utensils dissolved in Virgin Lacquer thinner. 5. After the glue has dried, cut out the Image and the foil. I like to use Foil tape when practical, but it is much thicker than standard foil and only comes in Silver. It is stronger and more durable though so you’ll have to see what suits your needs best. Smaller plugs will be effected by its’ weight. 6. Spray the back of the Foiled Images with adhesive (Foil tape has its’ own) and glue them on your lure. It helps to align the Images before gluing them on so you can get them positioned correctly. "Measure twice, cut once". (This means if you need glasses, wear them for this step. I still make that mistake at times. ) Work them in GENTLY, from the centers out. Use your finger tips to do this work so not to damage the thin tissue. With a little practice, this process becomes very simple. Once the Images are totally in place, burnish them on with a round smooth object to get all the remaining wrinkles out. Again, go gentle as not to tear the Tissue. A Sharpie works great for this. Here’s a “Foamie Herring” getting the treatment. 7. Let the Adhesive dry, totally. (Foil tape needs no waiting period) Once dry, coat the lure with Etex or Devcon. I prefer Etex as it is thinner and I have a half gallon of it. If you use Devcon, it would help to thin it a bit, but isn’t absolutely necessary. The moisture in the FIRST topcoat will make the Tissue transparent allowing the foil or painted finish to come through. Whatever is printed on the image will remain, giving a very realistic effect. 8. When the first coat is cured, Paint the back and belly. You people using air brushes can get a very nice transition. When the paint is dried, give the lure another Top coat. After that sets, I add my lips. This plug was done with Rattle Cans. Here are some results of this endeavor; http://www.stripersonline.com/surfta...light=weakfish

My model weighed 6 gms in balsa and 10 in foam, if that helps.

Sorry, it shows on my screen. How's this?

FYI: This Sturgeon is Still alive, just worn out from the fight. They turned him loose after the photo. This Sturgeon was caught on the Willamette River just below Oregon City two weeks ago. It weighed out at over 1,000 lbs and measured out at 11'1'. It was 56' around the girth and took over 6 and a half hours, and 4 dozen beers, for the 4 guys taking turns at the reeling it in. Any Sturgeon OVER about five feet has to be released unharmed and cannot be removed from the water. They are brood / breeding stock and probably older than most of us.

Urethane Resin! http://www.dascarplastics.com/ Give them a call and they'll tell you what's best for your purposes

Here is where I found the least expensive foam. !6 lb Density is the best. It comes in a distant second to UR, but it does work well, albeit a tad messy.

They were just search results for "Propionate". One is for the thread, the other for post. I'll try again. http://www.tackleunderground.com/forum/search.php?searchid=142191 http://www.tackleunderground.com/forum/search.php?searchid=142194

Try these. http://www.tackleunderground.com/forum/search.php?searchid=141817 http://www.tackleunderground.com/forum/search.php?searchid=141820

WASH them with warm soapy water to assure all MR is removed. I dip them in Propionate to get a smooth base coat.

I don't believe any commercial lures are made from it. I found it quite durable and it performed well. The downside is that it is messy and can, at times expand differently based on temp/humidity. Your best bet would be going to Urethane resin and micro balloons. http://www.tackleunderground.com/forum/showthread.php?t=10995

Re: mold for crank baits Mike P (Husky here) PM any time. Read this; TU lost all pictures, but the Freeman site is the best for what you're looking for. http://www.freemansupply.com/moldmaking.htm You'll want to make a 2 part Silicone mold. Michael @ Hobbysilicone is great. You can get most supplies from him. His Prices for Silicone in 10 lb Tubs is VG. http://www.hobbysilicone.com/ or Call theses guys for Urethane Resin. Tell them exactly what you want to do. Very reasonable and helpful. The will stagger you with info. http://www.dascarplastics.com/ Get your 3M glass micros here. http://www.shopmaninc.com/fillers.html Originally Posted by Coley Micro Balloon Formula for Urethane Resin (Alumilite is a UR) Here it is; First of all let me say this about Alumilite. It is really great stuff for making bass crankbaits. It comes in part A and part B. It has no fillers, until you add one. The mix ratio is 1:1 by volume or weight. I use weight for the resin and volume for the filler, in this case Microballons. Using no filler the bait will sink, using 50% filler the bait will suspend and 100% filler the bait will float. What I do is this. I pour some part A into a clean half-pint jar (at this point it doesn't matter how much) I pour some part B into a clean half-pint jar (at this point it doesn't matter how much) lets say both jars are 1/2 full. Add 1/4 pint Microballons to both jars. This will give you a 100% mix. Then using a scale I weigh out equal parts of A & B, mix and pour into mold. You need to mix the Microballons into each part, before mixing them together. You only have 2 1/2 to 3 minutes to pour after part A & B get together. So far, I have seen no separation of the microballons from the resin.. I am pouring all my molds from the tail end of the bait, this eliminates a big sprue to remove and sand down on the top or bottom of the bait.

What he said. They have a "glass jaw". Circuit board, Poly C and SS are the way to go!

Husky, Mike P here. I love this forum. The sharing of ideas here is equaled by none. I've been building since the 60's which corresponds with my age! I started with jigs as I had a stubborn habit of trying to yank stripers out of the rocks and store boughts, even in those days, got expensive. I was one of the first in my neck of the woods to go to soft plastics. I have a penchant for molding baits and have had great success with my foamies and now my Resin castings. I started making poppers and then swimmers and I have to say, nothing beats catching on home mades when others are getting skunked. Tight Lines

Here's a place where you can get 28 Durometer RTV for $89. He has the 35 Dur but only sells it in 44lb buckets. 10-1 ratio but real easy to use if you have a gram scale. http://www.hobbysilicone.com/Silicone.htm

OK! I guess the reason .045 works so well for me is that I cast the harness into Foam or UR. There's not much leverage that way. (I fish mostly SW and those critters pull pretty hard)

Call it a hunch, but if it hasn't cured yet, it won't. Can you tell me the ingredients, name and brand, please.

I'm looking forward to pictures.

Where I show the Model in The Balsa wood, I'd like to add that you can put in "Keys" by heating the rounded end of a drill bit and burning a few on to assure perfect alignment.

It sounds like you're right on target! You probably did a bit of overkill with the chopping, but it won't hurt. The key is having the model covered with a layer of RTV. All else is Filler, regardless of what it's made from.