cadman

TwoBits, for what it's worth I've been using a heat gun from day 1. I recently have changed to a dual heat digital heat gun by Wagner. I use a count method for my 1 color painting. Like (1,2,3,4, seconds) for a 1/8 oz jig. Different jig shapes, and diferent weight of jigs have slightly different count numbers in seconds. The reason I went to a digital heat gun is this. In the last 3 years I have been blending 4-5 colors on one jig. This is pretty hard to do when you have only one heat temp setting. I heat all my jigs on a 1250 deg heat gun (low setting). I blend all my colors on 850 degrees (low setting). I am in the process of making a perch and a bass pattern out of only powder paint in 6 colors. I'm close but as of yet no cigar. When I do I will post some pics on TU. As far as I'm concerned a heat gun is the only way to go. Just my:twocents: worth.

charmer, I hang all my jigs on a threaded rod on the hook. My first reply to your problem, is to put less paint on. I never ever had paint drip, even in the early stages of powder painting. Less paint is better, you can always add more paint. Once you resolve this problem, your other problem will go away.

ghost, you are similar to me in some ways, as I also try to find the solution to certain things that I want proven. The only problem with that, and I'm the biggest offender, is it will cost me more money sometimes to prove something to myself than what it's worth. Similar to what you are doing. Yes you can epoxy the beads with nail polish over them. The question is this, by the time you get done with all of this, it would be cheaper to buy colored beads, even if you got these free. But I will tell you this, and I'm sure you'll agree. Like me it's not about the time, materials and labor, sometimes, it's about proving a point to yourself and everyone else, that it can be done. I commend you for your persistance, as I myself have spent many hours trying different white paints. So go ahead and be a pioneer, try what works, and fuels your interest, and like I said share it with the TU family.

ghost, it depends on the plastic compound. Some plastic is more pourous than others. The only thing I can say is try the Spike-It blade dip (excellent tip bamarocks), Spike-it plastic dip, some inks will work, you can try rit dye, and I know nail polish will work. Like bamarocks said, I don't know the longevity of the finish on plastic beads either. Let us know what you come up with. Share the info, that's what TU is all about.

I'll agree with all the posts here. You have to think of this whole process as a kind of production line. You pour all your jigs, you're done, Cut off all the sprues, you're done. I file all my sprue remains, nice and smooth, you're done. Now comes the painting which is the same process. Heat, dip, blend, heat more if needed, done. When I'm done with all the painting into the oven they go. I'm personally very picky about my quality. I don't want to be filing lead next to an open jar of powder paint. My painting process is the last step, and it's done on a clean towel with plenty of room, and a clean work space. Just my worth.

rockylinx, I just put an add in the paper for a Lowrance X-85 and a Lowrance gps. PM me if you are interested.

I think I can help.....PM me...Ted

Darrin, I personally like and use starflash skirts. To me they are of high quality. If you're interested, PM Dungeonhawk. I got mine from him at a better price, than you'll find anywhere on the web, or in any catalog. Tell him I sent you there. He'll do real good by you. If anything at least try out the skirts, I'm sure you'll like them. His name is Ryan. Also if you want your skirts to stay on your spinnerbait, tie them on direct. If you need anymore help PM me.

If you are going to put Devcon on and go through all the trouble, my answer to you would be yes. Always bake powder paint, it cures and hardens the finish. I only put Devcon on when I use 3d eyes, other wise to me the powder paint finish is tough enough.

Ray, let me start this post by saying that you have way too much stuff going on. I don

If you are referring to lead lure bodies, then yes you can use powder paint. There are other options, like you said air brush, then there is vinyl paint. Powder paint is the easiest IMHO. No smell and easy to apply. Air brushing has the cost factor, and a learning curve. However: you will get combinations with an air brush that you can't get with powder paint. A member on this forum by the name of Dampeoples does an excellent job with powder and air brush paint, maybe he will chime in and give you his thoughts. Also with an air brush, you have to seal the paint in if it's createx or water based. I don't know if anyone uses lacquer paint on lead jigs? I'm curious Does any one here use that? As far as spoons, I would say that aire brush would be you best choice. Again someone here will probably know more about this. Good luck on your choice and happy painting

ldzoller, PM me, I can go over some of the differences....

To all interested in copper blades. First of all, this is the info I have so far. All copper blades are pure copper, they will not be coated to prevent tarnishing or oxidation, which will definitely happen. This is a good thing because the more it tarnishes, the more it squeals. Secondly these blades will have to be made out of full hard copper for longevity. Soft copper will bend like a piece of aluminum foil. With this said, I would need 2 pefectly good blades you want to reproduce. One to flatten, and one to use as a proto type. From there I will get prices. I can not promise any one that these will be competitive to store bought brands. Also depends on the blades, if they are stamped, it may be too cost prohibitve to tool, for small quantities. So I'll stop this post here. If you want to know more about this PM me, and we can discuss further if you like.........Ted

heavycover, I may be able to help you out. If you let me know what you want, sizes and quantities, I can have them priced up for you. I will tell you one thing even with the coating on the copper, they will turn brown then black then green, and squeal like a pig in the water. PM me and we can discuss this further.

Pickeral Pete, hit it right on the head. I always use a white base before doing light colors. Using white brings out the true color of all the flourescent powder paints. usually with one dip, especially the glo. I've tried clear glo over other colors, and it dulls the other colors like Pickeral Pete. However: if you put white, then glow, then other colors, it works very well. I have not used glo powder paint in a fluid bed, so I can't say.

Here's there link www.do-itmolds.com here number is on the bottom of their web page.

First of all, I had the same question. I have a catalog, with many Do-It mold jigs, I don't sell on the internet, I do sell to small bait shops and by word of mouth. I didn't know what to call my jigs. So I asked Do-it and they told me that I can use the name Poison Tail, Grave-digger and so on. A lot of names like football and round jigs have been around forever. They were very nice about this. So that's what I have in my catalog. I would however ask them for your own self assurance that this is OK. Let us know what response you get. They told me that since they only sell the mold, and not in the market to sell jigs that it was no problem. Again ask them first, they are very easy people to work with.

I use a powder glitter over my final paint. It works for me, then I just bake it for a durable finish. I know you can mix glitter in the epoxy, and then put on the epoxy. But I have never tried mixing glitter in the paint. I want to say that it won't work because of the different material composition of the glitter and then baking it. But don't quote me on that.

Hey Ron, I have never had that happen. What kind of paint is it? Are you referring to the paint being flat as in no shine at all? You could put a powder gloss coat after painting and before baking. I have flat powder paints with no gloss, and powder paints with textured finsh that are not shiny, however they are made for that reason. That is strange, unless there is something wrong with the paint.

OMITB, I put equal amounts of epoxy on a piece of aluminum foil, or an upside down soda can. Mix the two together, and now your set to go. Take the fused end of the weedguard and swish it in the epoxy, then stick it in the jig hole. Two reasons why I do this. The alum. material pulls the heat away from the epoxy, slowing the curing process. Secondly, if I'm going to epoxy my jigs after the weedguards have dried. I know I can use the same epoxy without any problems. I don't know if you can use super glue, or any other glue to put in weedguards, and then epoxy the jig with Devcon 2T, without any chemical reaction. Maybe someone else can answer this. I'm happy with my process. Timjohnson, I'll agree with the vinyl paint. The only thing that ever gave me was a bad headache. But if it works for you use it. I powder paint all my jigs, then powder glitter, then Devcon if 3D eyes are used. I do my process like Ive posted earlier. I by no means am breaking speed records. However, I believe my jigs are among some of the best I've seen here. My quality and pride come first in every jig I make and sell. I won't be retiring anytime soon making jigs.

First of all I don't use the full weedguards from the package. They are too stiff. If your weedguards are too big and they won't fit in the hole, you have two options. #1 pull some strands off the weedguard to make it fit, or #2 measure the diameter of the weedguard, and open up the hole in the jig with a hand drill, this process is used for after the jig is poured. You can modify your mold if you want, to make them fit, if you want to pour with the weedgurds in you mold. I do not pour with weedguards in place. This is a personal choice. I find it much easier to pour, powder paint, bake and put in weedguards in after with Devcon 2T epoxy. You will get a lot of good advice here, try it out and let us know how you do

Hey Ron, I only epoxy jigs that have 3d eyes on them. All my other jigs are painted and baked. I lose more jigs around rocks than worrying about chipping paint. If I can fish a jig for 4 hours and not lose it and it chips from banging on rocks, than I'm still ahead of the game. I've never had any customer complaints.

Ghost, I'm at work right now, I'll PM you, later tonight or by the weekend. If you want to use e-mail, PM me your e-mail. Take Care Cadman

Ghost, on the spinnerbait heads are you talking about the complete lead body with hook and wire??? Also on the weedless jigs, what kind of body style (round, football, arky etc)? Are you looking for bass jigs, walleye jigs????? What kind of hooks, thin, bass style. Please be more specific. if you want, list the part # or page # of the jigs you buy at Jann's, so guys can get a rough idea of what your looking for. I'm interested?

This is the follow up to the mold problem I had in the earlier posts. Yes it is frustrating, and next time I will fix it myself like I stated in my post. It would have saved me a lot of time. The only thing is I don't have a wide variety of hardened pins. But you can use any steel rod that measures under the inside diameter of the eyelet. I know now that my way would work also (Thanks to Elken for his insight). Next time around I have a solution to this problem and an easy fix. By the way Do-IT turned down all the pins on my mold, and the eyelets fit much easier now. I tried the mold, and it works just fine.