cadman

I know how it is Bruce and MT, my wife and I ice fish here in Illinois several times a year. She will go out on the coldest days with me and fish. She has a little ice shanty that she sits in with a Coleman lantern. If you close up the flaps on the shanty, with the Coleman you can get it up to a balmy 40 degrees fahrenheit, that's on a really cold day (10-15 degrees f). I myself like to sit in the open air and watch what everyone else is doing while I fish. Most of the time on a good day she will outfish me. I think women fish better than men, because they are not interested in all the gadgets, tech'l info, and the where and whys of how ice fishing should be. They are more simplistic and in her case, she just pays attention and fishes. I on the other hand am watching my graph and my underwater camera, and trying to figure out what I am doing wrong. Too bad it's not like the old days. Go out with an ice fishing rod a bucket cut some holes, fish and go home. I still however enjoy the peace and tranquility when I go out on a frozen lake, and try to outsmart the fish.

Termite, is right I'm a die hard Devcon 2 ton 30 minute (D2T) user. It is not bullet proof naturally. If you are fishing over a lot of rocks, it will help, but rocks are brutal on jigs, and nothing I've found so far is perfect. I'm in the process of trying e-tex. Once I get some time I will give it a shot and post my own thoughts on it. But D2T definitely helps, and it gives the paint on your jigs depth, and crystall clear shine.

If you are interested in pursueing powder painting I among others can help and assist you on this site. PM me your e-mail, and we can discuss some things without getting into pages of info over here.

When I started making jigs I thought that etching primer was a must before putting on powder paint. Only to find after doing extensive studies with powder paint and lead adhesion, that if the lead is clean, and preferably newly poured, that etching primer was not needed. Well now since I do only powder paint, I do not use etching primer, and the paint holds up extremely well. The nice thing for me about not using etching primer is #1 I don't have to tape off all the hooks anymore, once you spray it on it is hard to get off and #2 I don’t have an extra step in my process, plus I don't have to pay for etching primer anymore. The primer I used to use was in 12 oz spray cans. The ones I used were Plasti-kote sandable lacquer primer, then I went to NAPA’s #7220 Technique self etching primer. Also I believe I paid $11 per can. It's not cheap but it does work really well. It is also available in gallons. I hope this helps. As far as my avatar goes that is all powder paint, 5 colors + a glitter coat and a clearcot. Yes I still do make them.

You may want to ask this question in the hardbait section, as there are a lot more guys, there that use air brushes along with lacquers and automotive paints. Also when I started spinnerbait making, I used to spray etching primer on my jigs for paint adhesion. It was gray color, but I suggest you use white, as it would be better for light colored paints. It was available by the gallons and was sprayable through an airbrush. That was about 5 years ago, I'm sure they have something better now.

Welcome to TU, looking forward to seeing some of your work.

Everyone has their own system on painting, so you will have to experiment with what works for you. I paint and bake all my jigs as is. I then go and drill out the hole I need. Now this is advantageous to me because I don't use full weedguards. The guys I deal with like 15 strand weedguard(on an 1/8" base hole pin) for better flexibility and hook penetration. If I used a 1/8" dowel or pin or whatever to put in and paint afterwards, the hole would be way too big for my application....So this choice is up to you on what you are trying to accomplish.....As far as glues, I've used super glue, 5 minute epoxy, and goop. They all work well. As far as designs go, I'm in the process of making a design right now. The info I got from Do-It and my own experience is this. 1/8" and 5/32" base hole pins I physically measured were .001 under stated size. I measured them all. Do-It said that there toloerance on there pins is +/-.005. Also this depends on the plating process, and who is plating. I measured the mold holes with .125 pin gages. The pin gage on all my molds with base hole pins was snug to loose. This tells me that the opening in the mold is bigger. Do-It said probably +.003. So with all this information, if you get a pin on the nominal with a hole at +.003 yes you will have slop. But you have to remember, that you need to pull the pin out of the jig after it's poured, so making everything to with-in .001 is unrealistic. These are mold of course and not Rolex watches. As long as you don't get flash around your base hole pins after pouring, I think a bigger tolerance is acceptable and easier to work with in the long run. This is just my opinion. Also you have expansion of a cold aluminum mold. But that is another story, as I don't know how to factor expansion and contraction of aluminum molds and a steel pins when combined in the same environment.

Believe it or not I was fluxing before Sagacious even started posting on this site. The problem was that I was doing it all wrong, until he taught me how to flux properly. I used to have a fan in the garage with the door open to get the smoke out, I didn't know you were supposed to light the smoke. Anyway since I pour about 5 hours a day, I just toss in some bees wax pellets in my pot hour by the hour, and everything pours beautiful. If you use a Hot Pot, it works even better there, because I use that to pour my spinnerbaits, and you pour from the top where all the crud eventually goes. Skim flux, skim flux etc. perfect pours.

I also owe you a big thanks Sagacious. Now when I am not getting good pours even with my pure lead, I immediately flux, and the problems seem to disappear. Your statement "Flux often" is dead on, it has saved me some wasted effort.

Thanks very much Jim , that's kind of what I thought, but wasn't sure. I can see that the glue part would really help when you use the 8/0 hooks.

Can someone explain to me or give me a link on how to rig a swim bait. I am pouring the weighted hooks see pic. I know how to rig the one with the hitchhiker but not this one. Do you stick the hook eye into the bait? If so don't you rip open the head and damag it? Thanks Guys

Yes, the powder paint is still available. I have lots of it still left.

I don't always have the answer, but I do have this mold. First question I have for you is this. Have you had any problem with other hooks in this mold. The reason I ask is this. At one time I bought the #1623, without the crimp (#1623CR), and the other hooks actually turned in the finished jig. You can not use a #1623, it has to be a #1623CR. With that said, I have not tried any other hooks. The Eagle Claw they recommend are light wire hooks and bend easy, as they are made after the aberdeen style of hook. I believe the Gami's are harder, and they do and will break. Sorry I don't have a full proof answer for you, or a replacement hook.

There are several stand-up jig molds that Do-It sells, which model # are you referring to? Also why do you not like the #1623?

Are you sure that is the corrct hook #?

John, I commend you for doing this. A couple of years ago someone asked the guys in this forum, to donate jigs, for a fishing fund raiser to a family who's father was hurt or passed away. A question was asked how legit this was of the person asking for jig donations. This person came up with a brochure, date, time, place etc. I among others donated a lot of jigs which they were going to sell to make money or raffle off. To this day I never got a thank you from this person running this derby. I know he got my jigs, becuse he replied he did. I'm not saying that the derby didn't happen, but a thank you from someone you didn't know would have been the right thing to do. I am glad you are recognized as a sponsor, if you're like me it gives you a good feeling inside. I also have partaken in events for donations, and every year I take a new person or a kid fishing with me for a whole day on the water. It's a way of me giving back to some people for what I am able to have, and to introduce new people or kids to fishing...BTW I have always admired you work.

You can use a cnc machining center, or a milling machine. For all you machinist, I know what the machines do, but I don't know the correct names. Anyway, what you mill or hog out on one side has to be duplicated on the other side. This has to be done on the centerline of the pinned halves, as when you close the two halves both side must line up perfectly. BTW, I don't believe Do-It's molds are machined. I think they are cast, correct me if I'm wrong. If you are going to attempt to do this by hand, it is going to be very tedious. If you are going to have it machined, I hope you have a good friend that will do it for you. I design for a living, and a machinist , machining time and a design is going to be very expensive.........I hope this helps.

Chris, Very interesting and innovative. You are probably better off buying them direct. The cost for a mold and the spoon and the clip on the back would be very expensive to make. The other thing is if you do go that route, make sure this isn't patented, because if you sell them , you might get sued.

If you are referring to the pineapple clip that goes on the top, then you may consider getting them from Do-It. There was a post here several months back, where guys were buying from another source, and the clips were frozen in place and did not swivel...Just a thought.

Thanks for looking into this for me and the reply.

Hi Guys, I'm looking for a Gami hook, that is an exact match for a Eagle Claw #570 or a Mustad #32746 BLN. Is the Gami #114 hook the one I'm looking for? Any help would be much appreciated....Thanx.

This should help you get started. http://www.tackleunderground.com/forum/wire-baits/10459-powder-painting-bullet-weights.html?highlight=painting+bullet+weights http://www.tackleunderground.com/forum/hybrid-tackle/13920-powder-painting-bullet-weights.html?highlight=painting+bullet+weights

The 4/0 looks like it will pour fine. It's not in the center of the cavity like the 3/0, but I don't forsee any problems.

Combat, Myself, George and others will help you as much as possible, all you have to do is ask and be patient. My hat is off to George, as he paints a lot more jigs per week than I do, so he would be the one to give you good advice in painting and racking hundreds of jigs. I paint about a couple hundred a week, mostly multi-color. There is no magic answer or solution to powder painting. Everyone paints differently, and we all find a system that works for us. You will have to do the same. This may sound cliché, but it is all about practice. I’m not talking about couple hundred jigs; I’m talking about painting thousands, trial and error, and then trying to push yourself to do better if that’s what you want. There are days that nothing works for me, luckily I give myself extra time to finish orders, and on those days I just walk away and start the next day.

Glad to be of help.