BobP

Before I built a turner, I'd just do it by hand and it came out fine. Put a wire hanger on the nose and tail of the bait and reverse it every min for the first 15 mins, then every 5 mins for the next 15 mins, then once or twice more during the next 15 mins. If you measured and mixed it properly, that should do it. Dick Nite is much thinner. If you just dip it and hang it, it can collect at the end of the bait and get a rash of bubbles in that area. I doubt you could flip it quickly enough manyually to avoid that. I dip mine, let it drip for 15 secs or so, then spin it for 30 mins on a turner.

A small lip can make a big wakebait swim. I use a lip the same size/shape as a Strike King 5" King Shad swimbait for a 3 segment 7" wakebait, and just install it at about a 80-85 degree angle. It's pretty inconspicuous and the bait wakes and swims well.

I buy some discontinued Rapalas on Ebay. I think many come from stock found moldering in warehouses or from failed businesses, etc. They've been carted around from place to place, sold/resold, and can be scuffed from handling or poor storage. And of course clearcoat technology has progressed quite a bit in recent years. I don't much care since I buy them for fishing, not for collecting, and often repaint them anyway. I wouldn't hesitate to dip them in some Dick Nite to fix any serious clearcoat problems though. I gotta wonder if it would even be worthwhile to counterfeit a Rapala, since the price point on them just isn't that high.

The matte lips I've seen are on LC craw pattern baits that have the claw arms out on the lip. I suppose they do it so the arms will stand out against a translucent background? It increases the perceived size of the bait and I prefer clear. If the lip has been sanded, clearcoating it will fill in the tiny scratches and make it clear again, if that's what you want.

Unless you're fishing for muskies, just want a thick clearcoat for some reason, or need to recoat to fix goofs, I don't see any need to use 2 coats of D2T.

Yeah, it can stand A LITTLE variance but I'd try hard to get it equal and then mix it very thoroughly. Good measures and mixing are critical to getting the smooth hard finish you want.

Whichever side has the pin, it all has to hold together so I don't see a big difference. But if the hinges are reversed with the notches pointing forward, it will significantly alter the action of the bait since the segments will be catching more water.

Nice action! I assume the tape was to hold it together until he finalized the design Sort of looks like Nemo now, doesn't it?

Hey, I got gypped! fatfingers gets brushes and Dean gets lube. All I got was this lousy airbrush! Fatfingers, are we talking about the same brush? The HP series with .2mm tip? Even the smallest brush in my set (it looks just like your ref set) won't come close to fitting in my HP's barrel with the nozzle removed. And this is the first I've heard about a "tiny channel under the needle". I'm getting paranoid

Yes, "Don't mess with what works" is a factor here but Devcon 2T and Etex are used extensively and are known to work well as clearcoats. Might other epoxies? Sure. Go ahead and try them but if they don't work, you'll have to peel it all off and start from scratch. Devcon Two Ton levels out excellently after brushing it on, cures in a reasonable time, wears well and doesn't yellow. Envirotex Lite (aka Etex) is less expensive, thinner and longer curing but othewise has similar properties. Why not use them if they're available?

Nah, all I got with my HP+ was the wrench to remove the tiny nozzle (.2mm). Shooting cleaner through the brush and running water through the trigger slot seems to get the job done. I'm not fond of taking off the tiny but very expensive nozzle. If it ever rolls off the bench, I'll have a heart attack. But so far, so good.

I think sagacious is right about durability and the hair I've used for tying bucktails seems too soft for the fins on a swimbait. But you can buy dyed black deer and calf tails from staminainc.com. Any aniline dye, like Rit, should be permanent if you need to dye something.

I have that set of brushes but the smallest brush is still too large to fit into the barrel of an Iwata HP. Don't know about an Eclipse. They do a great job on most brushes. Mike, you don't have to avoid solvents with many airbrushes nowadays because they are built with Teflon packing that is not affected by solvent. Check the specs on an Eclipse to see if it isn't one (I'd bet it is). I shoot acetone through my HP with no problem. But less volatile cleaners work about as well. I have specially formulated non solvent airbrush cleaner that works OK. However, 70% isopropyl rubbing alcohol with a squirt of dish soap works just as well for less money. What you clean it with is less important than disassembling it and cleaning it thoroughly EVERY TIME before you put it up.

There may be different chemistries used in the hardeners but I haven't heard of epoxies that were incompatible, so I think it's an excellent bet it would work. You could probably coat with D2T and then use Etex an hour later, just after the D2T was past the "spin cycle".

D2T doesn't require thinning at temps above 70 degrees but you can add A FEW DROPS of denatured alcohol, acetone or lacquer thinner in cooler temps. Stir it in after you mix the 2 parts. I generally use denatured alcohol because it flashes out of the epoxy a little slower, extending the brushing time. I also use a 50/50 mix of D2T/DN for waterproofing/sealing. The Etex (Envirotex Lite) is an epoxy formulated to refinish table tops and comes with some solvent in it. It's much thinner than straight D2T. Buy it at home centers or at Michael's Crafts in 2 8oz bottles for around $12. Personally, I like the D2T because it will cure in 6-8 hrs even when thinned while the Etex takes considerably longer.

IMO occasionally yes but mostly no. When bass are hitting minnows on top or when minnows are flipping on top for whatever reason, the splash seems natural. But more often, a quiet entry is more natural and catches more fish. That's one advantage of throwing light balsa baits - less splash. And when you can't be quiet, it helps to let the bait sit until the ripples fade away to start the retrieve. In these days of 70 mph bass boats and run & gun fishermen, that doesn't happen very often!

Translatex Cover White

Well, obviously nobody has tried it! What makes Devcon Two Ton a good clearcoat is that it levels out very well after you brush it on, and it cures crystal clear. Why not try the Z-poxy as a sealer and see how it does? If it levels and is clear, it should work fine. If not, you've got the sealer on there anyway. Sand it smooth and look for another clearcoat.

Mark, I think a better analogy is the rudder on a boat. On a crankbait, the airstream is hitting the flat side of the lip, not the edges of the fletching like on an arrow. And the lip is applying asymetrical force on the crankbait, not like the fletching distributed around the shaft of an arrow. The more the rudder is turned, or the steeper the lip angle on a crankbait, the more deflection force (aka tumbling force) is applied. Deep divers with large lips and very small lip angles (often zero angle) tend to cast best. Weight balance over the whole bait is also critical. If the lure is front heavy, it may fly OK on a perfect cast but the least little aerodynamic change will cause it to tumble. I built some chest weighted deep divers and found this out the hard way! Fortunately, my casting has developed to such perfection now that it really isn't a problem

Iwata or Paasche? I have an Iwata HP and a Paasche VL. Either will work. The Iwata is superior quality. Which is better for your application depends on how you work, how many baits you paint, what kind of paint you want to use, and how much you want to spend.

I use Createx transparent all the time and haven't had any problem. Are you shooting too much to make it opaque? Are you holding the brush too close to the surface? Are you thinning it with something? (I don't). Are you laying down a white color basecoat before adding your colors? (I do).

Hey Pete, another thing you might consider is the lip. It appears to be set at a fairly steep angle on the diagram. Depending on its length, that would definitely cause the lure to cartwheel when casting.

JMHO, gravity feed is better in every application except one - that being if you want to shoot paint from a large paint bottle to cover multiple lures. For crankbaits, the gravity models use less paint and are easier to clean afterwards. For example, I squeeze only 5-6 drops of paint into the cup on my Iwata gravity feed brush to paint details on several baits. You'd flush more unsprayed paint than that out of a syphon feed brush when cleaning it between colors.

One that works well for me is the cheap paint-on hobby glitter you get at any hobby shop. It's water based and you paint it on to whatever density you like. To me, the best thing is you can thin it with water and apply it to specific areas of a crankbait, when you want "just a hint" of scale flash on a belly or side. But you can also apply it unthinned in multiple coats if you want all glitter. It comes in a wide variety of flake colors and sizes and is very inexpensive. Regarding Devcon Two Ton epoxy, do a search in this forum and you'll find more info than you need about it!

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