reeves

For skirts, go to www.fishingskirts.com, super selection of top quality skirts at a very reasonable price. He carries some awesome jig patterns. For your lead, you won't get any deals on ebay but it is readily available there. Try your local scrap metal yard, or any tire shop for wheel weights. Tire shops used to give the stuff away just to get rid of it, but when the price of lead went skyhigh, they started selling it. Check the price that lead is going at on the market before you go shopping. As I am typing this reply, pure lead is selling for $.54 a pound.

HAWGHUNNA, I have tried several different materials and my favorite is the silicone rubber, I seemed to have better success using this material than all the others. Smooth-on is the brand that I used. They have a small kit that only cost around $35 and gives enough material to do a couple of molds. I used the Smooth Sil 950 and it worked well. I do not use these molds for production, so really not sure how it will do under those circumstances. If you use silicone rubber, don't let it get too hot or you will prematurely ruin the mold. One other tip, most of your success in making any mold is in the master part you are using. Any flaws in it will be reproduced in the final mold, so inspect it well under a magnifying glass if you have one. Keep us posted on your progress.

HAWGHUNNA, I can't really offer any advice on the mold you made. I made one once out of the water putty and was really disappointed in the results, but I'm sure it was me more than the material. To flux your lead you can use parafin, bees wax or candle wax. We had a great thread going on fluxing here a while back and it was very educational for me. You might do a search on it and it will explain what is going on with your lead. I learned that it is not as important to flux as it is how you flux. Well worth the search. Good luck

I wanted to make these available to all TU members before they go on Ebay. I think you will find this to be a great price for a quality hook. They come in packs of 50 hooks and I won't break them down into any smaller quantities, but you are welcome to purchase more if you want. OWNER 2/0 SPECIALTY SPINNERBAIT HOOK ROUND BEND HEAVY DUTY FORGED XXX STRONG SHANK SUPER NEEDLE POINT RED FINISH This hook is interchangeable with the Mustad 32608 3/0, and is only longer by the length of the hook eye, otherwise a mirror image. 50 pack = $17.00 1,000 count = $160.00 You can order by PM, or email me at : reeves@dishmail.net Payment can be check, money order, or Paypal. I will calculate postage on www.usps.com .

My main goals will be to re-organize my shop for better flow of production and to start making fixturing for my electrostatic powder coat system and get it into operation, I have been procrastinating long enough. Love to catch the trip to Australia with ya MT, but prior comittments are killing even a small jaunt to Florida

I tend to agree with JSC on this one. Do-it makes very few production molds, mostly in the round ball-head jig styles. The fact is that you do have to load a hook for each jig, so you either do it eight times once, or once eight times? (did that make sense ?). In other words your time is practically equal, and I lean toward one at a time because when pouring multiples, often I get splash over from one cavity to the next, thus ruining that part. Centrifugal casting is far better and faster and the end part is a part that does not require sprue removal and seldom any clean up to the part. For production purposes, this is the way to go.

I just finished watching the latest presidential debate on tv. You may have something One Sock! I only wish you had started your campaign a bit sooner, you have a lot of ground to make up, but this is America and anything is possible.

Sounds like you have fully enjoyed it thus far. Enjoy the remainder and all the many years to come. HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAVE!

Ted, You might try your local Auto Parts store, and as much as I hate going into one, a dealership service dept. I always feel like I need to bring my banker with me when going in there. Good luck and let us know how you do, hope you cool down soon.

I'll take a stab at it. It looks to me like an O'Shaughnessy, and from the deminsions, it is a 4/0. I didn't measure the diameter on one, so this is only an uneducated guess.

Are you wanting a belly weight with the eyelet to attach your hook to once it is epoxied into the crankbait? I might suggest that you contact Mavrick, on this site, he carries all sizes and they can't cost very much.

I have done a similar thing only using a small block of wood attached to the bottom of the mold using super glue gel. Hasn't fallen off yet.

Mike, Just getting caught up on posts after being off for a couple of days. Really glad to hear you are now up and running and producing jigs instead of pulling your hair out. Hope you have started a list, because your next mold will no doubt present a whole new batch of problems. Seems like they all have a personality of their own. Good luck and keep us posted.

Mike, To pre-heat your mold, when you turn on your lead pot, just lay the mold across the top of it and when the lead is ready, so is the mold. Another method is to make several pours without inserts (hooks) and this will bring the mold up to temp after about 4 pours. Now, if I understand you correctly, your main problem is incomplete pours, I believe you mentioned the barb is not coming out. Air is being forced to this part of the mold as lead enters the cavity, and it is trapped with no place to escape so lead can fill in behind it. You need to give the air a place to go. Using the edge of a fine file (the smaller, the better), scribe a line in the surface of the mold from the highest point in the area of the cavity not filling with lead to the exterior of the mold. Go slow, not much of a channel is needed, and you don't want to slip and damage your mold. You only need to do this on one half of the mold, not both halves. Put your hooks in and pour a part. Hopefully this solved the problem. If it didn't, you may need to file the channel just a slight bit deeper. Keep doing this until you have results. You will also get a little lead in this channel which can be easily snipped off the finished part. To answer your question on a cheap skirt tool, do a search using the words 'skirt tool'. There are several threads in the wire baits forum on how to make one out of a Bic pen and you won't get any cheaper than that. As for where to buy a pre-made Eakins skirt, I can't help you there. I make all my own, and I think if you want to duplicate the colors, go to www.fishingskirts.com and pick the ones you want, Charles has the whole rainbow at a very reasonable price, as well as an inexpensive skirt tool. Let us know how the next pour goes, I am interested to see if it solved your problem. Oh, one other thing to try before you vent the mold is to tilt it slightly as you pour into it. Look at the mold sprue area, most of Do-it's are at an angle to the cavity and tilting helps the lead get to where you want it. Good luck.

Mike, The others have really answered your questions. No hardener necessary. When applied, powder paint is still subject to chipping very easily. Once baked for a good cure, it is then what they term as 'chip resistant'. There is a cure chart of times and temps to bake at, but anymore, I just bake at 400* for 12 minutes, shut the oven off and leave them in there for a while. The first 12 minutes is critical to link the powder components to achieve the hardness, the addititional time in the oven is just extra which does seem to add to the hardness. As for clear coat, not necessary. I use a lot of clear, but only if I want glitter on the bait. The glitter is mixed in the clear and really stands out when finished. Don't mix it in the paint, it gets lost. Good luck.

MIKE, First off, welcome to Tackleunderground. There is a lot learn here so hang on, you a in for one great ride. And as Mark incicated, you should post this in the Wire Bait forum so those with all the right answers for your problems will be aware of the post. There are several reasons why you are not completely getting a full pour on your jigs. Those that come to mind are: * Lead not hot enough * Mold also not hot enough * Lead flow set too slow * Area of jig not filling needs venting (air getting trapped) These are pretty much self explanatory, so tweek on them and see if it helps your problem, if it doesn't, let us know. As for paint, there is only one answer, POWDER PAINT. Go to dayooper's website and watch the videos on how to do it, then order the colors you need. www.tjstackle.com All this should get you started. Please give us a progress report in about a week. Good Luck.

droptine150, Everything in the above posts are great and will more than meet your needs. When it comes time to clean that airbrush or have problems with it, I would strongly suggest an good set of cleaning brushes. I believe in using them religiously to keep my airbrushes in top working condition.

If I understand your problem correctly, you have the burners, you have the tanks. The burners screw onto the tanks, but no one will fill the tanks. If this is the case, your problem is not with the burners, but with the tanks. Some years ago someone had this massive brain-fart to protect everyone and change the valve on all propane tanks, and made the old style illegal to fill. This left everyone with the option of buying new tanks or retro-fitting their old ones with the new style valve at the cost of around $35 per tank. Not sure who the brain surgeon was that came up with this piece of legislation, but he was obviously having his palm greased by the valve and propane folks. I have two large standing tanks with this problem and one BBQ grille size tank as well. Living in the country, I have my local propane company come out to the shop with his truck and he fills them, no problem. But if I take them to town to have filled at the propane company, they won't do it. Too many eyesI reckon. Your burners will fit on the new valve, you just need to find a place to fill your tanks. Another option would be to get a tank of propane at one of those rental set-ups outside of convenience stores. Good luck and let us know how your problem works out.

UG, If I knew how to add a link to the thread I would have done that for you. But you need to read the thread titled "LEAD QUALITY" started by Javelin on June 29, 2008. It addresses this very issue, which I had the same understanding as Smalljaw until Sagacious stepped in and cleared it up for us, for which I thank him a zillion times over. Read that thread and you will get the idea as well as be very surprised at the results. As for temperature, I keep my pot set at around 750 degrees, that is where I am comfortable and have had relatively good success there. If pouring real big stuff you may want to increase it to compensate for the cooling as your mold fills.

I spincast that jig in 3/8 and 3/4oz. with a flat bottom. The hand pour mold is available through Shawn Collins (not exactly the same but very close).

IGOTWORMS, if you want the hardness in the paint, you MUST bake them after painting. To prove it to yourself, take one after it cools from painting and drop it on the cement floor. It will chip. Do the same test after baking and it may dent the bait, but won't chip. Baking links up the chemicals in the paint for the hardness and that is about as technical as I am capable of getting.

I think it a matter of preference and what you are most comfortable using. Both do the job well. I use the torch for one reason and that is because I can see my source of heat and exactly where I want to place the jig in that heat source. With a heat gun (and I have tried it over and over), I manage to burn my fingers more than I care to admit to. You will have to play around and experiment to see what is comfortable for you when using a torch. You don't need a real heavy flame, you are not trying to cut steel. I set my flame so it is only about 3/4" tall with a light blue center. When heating the jig I am continually moving it not letting the flame stay in the same place on the jig very long, you will melt many if you do. I like the jig hot enough so that when removed from the powder, it is melted and very wet or glossy looking. Remember, too hot will get you too much paint on the jig. Just play around and adjust your times accordinly. You will be painting beauties in no time. Good Luck

This is just a guess, but I would think that Skirts Plus is probably involved with the TurboFlare skirt. Skirts Unlimited is or has come out with their version of the Hole in One. It would be well worth a call to Charles to inquire. You can find his phone number on his web site, www.fishingskirts.com If you are planning on buying in bulk, this is the place.

Hey Mark, I for one appreciate the fact that you posted a goof-up, many of us will learn much faster because of it. The fact that you fessed up to it, earns my respect. Thanks! And to quote 'reeves' . . . . . "if you ain't makin' mistakes, you just ain't doin' nothin'" George

finlander, You might give this a try, they are real hot stuff in the southern lakes. Not sure about the rattle, but they are an awesome bait even without one. www.trollingnolanstackle.com Hope this is of use to you, good luck.