cadman

It may be more feasible just to buy the mold if you pour. You'll get a mold, and the customer will be happy. Whatever he pays you for the jigs, may be half the cost of the mold. Also he may buy more from you down the road, so the mold will pay for itself. Just a thought.

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I don't know what those look like, so I can't say. I custom make everything that I need, so any hook I want is no problem for me.

Yes they do. Also, the Poison Tail and the Snootie jig work really well chattter style. You got to love those Poison Tails. They are awesome with that hook.

The Sparkie I believe is flatter. I personally like the the double collar Arkie. You can put a skirt on and a trailer, and it holds really well.

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You are absolutely right about Devcon 2T 30 minute. I use it religiously, and have never had any problem with it. On crankbaits you must rotate the part to get an even coating. On my lead jigs I never rotate, and they come out flawless. Just keep the jig standing head up. JMO

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You can make them as small as you want. There is a blade to jig size ratio though. Naturally the bigger the blade, the more it wobbles. Also if you go too small, you won't have room for the snap in the blade. If you have a special profile in mind PM me, and we can discuss it.

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Tony Not to sound arrogant, but if you have too much powder on the jig (and that's what it is, when you start getting drip marks forming on the jig when you bake it) I don’t care how you hang it; any drip mark on any part of the jig just looks bad. I know the fish don’t care, but if you want people to comment on your quality of work, that won’t happen that way. Thinner is always better, you can always add more paint. If you are dipping and not swishing through your powder do that, and definitely fluff your powder more often. Do not push your jig into the powder; instead you should be moving it through the powder. If you are using a fluid bed that should never happen. Just my:twocents: worth for a Friday.

This topic has come up before many times. You will have to do trial and error on what works for you. I' m not here to judge what's right or wrong. I use to dip jigs in vinyl paint . Never again. It's too messy, and it gave me a really bad headache. Now I use powder paint only. Brand of paint is personal choice. A lot of guys here like Pro-Tech. Excellent paint, kind of expensive. A fluid bed is a must for production runs, usually one color application. If you are not going to paint a lot, a fluid bed is a waste of money, however nice to have. If you do multi-colors, you will rarely use a fluid bed again, maybe for a base color, but even now I rarely use my fluid bed. I pour all my jigs with out the weed guards. I believe I get better paint job this way. This is only my opinion. There are lots of ways to get the job done. The two posts above mine have some good info for you to try.

I buy the copper ones from Hagen's ($69???/1000), they are cheaper in price than the stainless steel ones. I put these on 5 different Do-It jig molds and they all work fine with the molds that have the 1/8" pin for the weedguard. There are two ways to put them on the hook, to get them longer and shorter. On the top side of the hook, or on the bottom side of the hook with the hook laying down in your hand. There is a difference. Also there is a difference on what hook you use, actual size or one size bigger or one size smaller. This mainly depends on hook wire diameter. Everyone naturally wants them longer. Also the Tru-Turn hitch hikers will never fall off, unless you bend them too many times, in which they will break off. They are soft though, but I have never had any problems.

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thedude............thanks for the link. and the help Mattman........... thanks for all the rest of the info, and your help Very much appreciated guys............Ted

Thanks Guys. I have a couple more questions. I read the link above, and it said to use cork powder mixed with epoxy. #1 How do I get cork powder? Do I take an old rod and file the cork handle or sand the cork handle to achieve this? #2 When I get the powder, can I mix this with Devcon 2 Ton epoxy. I have this already at home? #3. Or should I not do either of the above and just epoxy the cork together using Devcon, and clean it with alcohol. Thanks again. Sorry to be such a P.I.T.A.

I have a rod that the cork at the butt end is cracked. If you look at the pic you can see the crack line. The cork is still attached. I can easily separate it, and the crack would get bigger. I would like to salvage this rod. What can I use to glue the cork together. Whatever I use, can I wipe off the excess glue, and sand lightly. Please give me your info on how to salvage this rod if possible.............Thanks for all your help

Sorry about the mislead information. The bridal tulle, will not withstand the heat from a heat gun or baking. My eyes saw powder painting, my mind thought air brushing. Now that I'm on track, I'm thinking wire mesh. Let me look around, and I'll post back to you in several days.

I assume you are use the aluminum tape, that the hardbait guys use correct? If so, don't they have a thinner version of that tape? If they do, you can use that, and then put bridal tulle underneath it, to get any effect you want. Also aluminum foil works, but I don't know what you would use for glue. Heating the jig up to accept powder paint, may un- adhere the glue, and everything would start to fall apart. Just some of my own thoughts on this.

Very nicely done. How big is that jig?

Doesn't it s**k when something bothers you that you just have to have it. :pDon't blame me that you want perfection, are addicted to this as much I am, and would spend your kids college money to pursue this madness. Don't feel bad, I'm in the same boat. I thought I would make a lot of money at this, LOL but all the money I make, I spend on buying more jig equipment. What a vicious circle. Take Care.......PM Sent

Yes I will, once I get the powder. Also what really looks awsome, is Spike-It blade dip on a raw jig. Dip it in the color, bake the color, and then clearcoat. I've done a 100 chart./yellow ultra-minnows for a guy, and he just loved them. The blade dip is fast and easy. Just some things to experiment with.

On occasion, I've had customers request gold and silver colored jigs. I know you can plate them, but I didn't want to go that route, and I know they can be air brushed. Lately I've had some more requests from customers including a copper color. Well that got my curiosity going, it doesn't take much when it comes to powder painting. I've tried Pro-Tecs gold and silver. Definitely not even close to the real thing. For those of you looking for an excellent silver, just clearcoat a freshly poured jig. It doesn't get any better than that, unless you chrome plate. So to solve my dilemma, I had some custom gold and copper transparent powder made. The nice thing about transparent powders, are you can put them over other colors, to obtain some amazing combinations. From what I saw of the samples I received, the gold looked like a shiny gold wedding band, and the copper color was just as brilliant. I have some powder coming in a week, and then I will paint some jigs, and possibly post some pics for all to see. What do you guys use for these colors, if you don't mind sharing your secrets?

I gave up on using a bottom pour pot for this. I use to turn the wire, and it was a pain. I bought a hot pot. I'll tell you what it was the best investment I made for pouring spinnerbaits. It's easy, no more fighting wires and bending them. Trust me, get a hot pot, you will never go back to using a bootom pour pot for spinnerbaits

Here is the pic I promised you guys. The jig in the lower right corner has the tape still on it.