cadman

Wow, I'm surprised they ship to Mexico. That is good for you and good to know.

Good answers guys. Yes you could put an isolator in and it will work. However the amount of overflow charge to your trolling motor batteries would be so minimal, because like mentioned you don't use your big outboard as much so it can't keep charging. Unless you leave your OB running all the time but then you're wasting gas and still not getting that much extra charge.

Just thought I'd post this info. I'm sure you guys have ordered Do-It molds from the past. I've mentioned this before, however it is worth repeating. Jim Zeiner and Co. (Wichita, KS) have done it again. Their prices of molds still to this day remains cheaper than anybody else on line. I bought 10 molds and saved $40.00, plus their shipping charges are cheaper than anyone else as well, now I live in IL so don't know if that applies to all the states. None-the-less, Zeiner's is the place to go to buy your Do-It molds.

mhtrapper, Here is some info for you: ****On the powder paint, you would need about 4 - 6 oz and yes when the fluid bed is at full boil the powder should be about 1" below the top of the cup. ****On the pourous filter, you can go to TJ's tackle on line, I believe he sells it. The stuff is not cheap. Finally from all the info I've gathered over the years from guys, all powder doesn't work flawlessly in a fluid bed cup. Some powder like white is heavier than others which may cause small volcanoes, so you still may get them.

Molds like that are custom made. No problem to copy if you use them for yourself. If you are planning on selling them, DON"T, because you will probably get sued.

Hands down. Snootie jig. It has a lot of sizes and can be used for everything, along with the fact you can put on a lot of different style hooks on there. My second choice would be Poison Tail or Grass Jig.

Yes, I do this all the time. Clean your brush in lacquer thinner. If you are using the cheap kids throw away plastic brushes, clean your brush in lacquer thinner, however do not leave brush in there. As soon as you clean the brush, take it out and let air dry. You will be able to use the same brush about 4-6 times before the bristles start to get fuzzy and deformed. At that time I throw it out and take a new one.

Red, Here are some answers to your questions. #1. I personally myself am not a big fan of full or stiff weedguards. So I do what you did all the time. I buy the full weedguards and pull off the fiber strands to my liking and then glue them in. Nothing wrong with that. When you put the weedguard in, I stick in the loose ends in the hole, then when everything dries, I go back and trim the weedguard to whatever length I want. For tackle components almost everybody here buys from these three places. Barlow's, Jann's Netcraft and Lure Parts on line. There are others where you can buy in bulk by the 1000 count as well. #2 If I remember correctly, both glues have Cyanoacrylate. I believe the Krazy glue dries faster than Loctite. I have never used Krazy glue so I can't give you an honest answer, maybe someone else will reply on this. #3. I do know that once you put Loctite on the back of an eye, it does glue it in. I believe that at one point I had issues with it because it had a chemical reaction with the powder paint and it would soften it. So I stopped using it to glue eyes. This is just from my experiment. Don't know definitely for sure anymore. Again, most guys use some sort of epoxy to cover the whole eye to keep it from falling off and adding a harder finish to the jig. You can also use clear nail polish on the eye. However, I used that years ago, and the acetone in the clear screwed up my paint finish. By now there are many new products out. You can't go wrong with epoxy as it has never done me wrong, ever. #4. If you are buying skirt tabs, the cheapest place to buy them is from fishingskirts.com. He has more colors than you will ever need and if you are not happy with that, you can combine and create your own. Rattles are very expensive, I have yet to find them in bulk, so we all have to pay. If anyone knows where you can buy rattles by the 1000 count please let us know. #5. I have spoken to Charles extensively at fishingskirts.com about his powder paint. He has a very good product and definitely gets a lot of info before putting a product on his website. The color you posted is a two part process. You have to buy the base color which is blk/silver and then you have to buy the blue overcoat. I know the process he uses, and you will have to put both colors in two separate fluid beds and apply them at two different times. Read his instructions. You cannot mix the two colors together to achieve what you posted. There is a step by step process on which color goes on first and then what goes on next. I think it would be easier to do this by dipping the jig in the powder and not using a fluid bed. In most fluid beds, you need at least 6 oz of each color. If you go this route, you will have to buy quite a bit of powder of each color, and at $8 for 2 oz , can get expensive quickly.

Sarge, Type in Tower Hobbies. They sell it by the dual tube applicator and also in two 9 oz bottles.

Sarge, I personally don't use createx on a regular basis on a lead jig head. Once the clearcoat is compromised, then your paint job will be a waste of time. If you want to spray detail, you will have to go with a lacquer, which will entail removal of paint fumes. So your alternatuive is powder paint. You can not get the detail and the fine line with powder paint like you do with an air brush painting crankbaits. This is not possible as the powder paint needs a hot jig to grab and hold the paint until it is cured. So I would either use the brush method which is what I use or you can spray it on with a special powder paint air brush. If you want more info on air brushing powder paint look up posts by Smalljaw, he does this process regularly and does a beautiful job of it. Finally I would not use Devcon 5 minute. It turns yellow really fast and has a very short working time.

Blades, I don't want to sound like a jerk, but you have eliminated everthing that anyone uses. All the products that you've mentioned have been proven to work and withstand the elements. Sometimes you can't improve on certain processes and you have to do what it takes. Clearcoating is a slow process unfortunately, and it is what it is. If you find something let us all know. I'm sure we would like to spend a lot less time clearcoating as well and have a superior product that will hold up.

Wow, do you really have to ask me this question. Ok, well then I don't come back from the doctor normal. But I don't think I go in their normal either. So what does that make me double not normal????? Figure that one out a double negative.

Pete, There is a lot of controversay on this. But I follow what Jig Man says. Also protect your face and eyes. I also do a lead, blood test at my doctor's office every year and I come back normal. (Well maybe not really). But if you have a lead test done go to your doctor not a lab. A lab will set you back $100. My doctor only charges $30. I think that is the best test of all.

Jig Man you're killing me. . What you should have said is "You'll be fine eventually you'll have a third eye to see better"

X2 I know I couldn't remember everything, there are so many variables to try. Sooooooooooooo try them all until you come up with a solution. Thanks Smalljaw

Mindhunter, First of all, I would highly recommend Frankford Arsenal Drop Out mold release. This is the best investment anyone can start off with. If you can't pour with this stuff (other than lead free jigs) than you are really doing something wrong. Next is flux the lead heavily. Followed by heating your hooks. I do not use a torch to heat hooks, I think this is a bad idea, (JMO) I use a 100 watt light bulb with a reflector aimed at all my hooks in a black bowl. Your choice. This should get your lead to flow better with hot hooks. Plus using a lamp is safer than using an open flamed torch in my opinion. Now I did find that this mold is hard to pour at the beginning until it is broken in. With that said, if you are still having problems, carefully open up the cavity that holds the hook shank on both mold halves. Now I mean carefully. What could be happening is the air is getting trapped as the lead pours in the mold. By you opening up the cavity there, your hooks will be a little looser, however what you will see is a bit of lead leak out and drip down the hook shank. With this happening, you know that the air is being pushed out as the lead fills the cavity and you should have good pours. You can easily trim off this little peice of lead. I have done this to many of my molds. It is easier to trim off a little piece of lead on the hook shank, than getting frustrted trying to get good pours. Trust me I've done this many times and some things are proven that work. If you still are having problems you can crack the mold with a piece of tape or business card as mentioned above. If you are pouring the cavity closest to the hinge, you can put the tape by the hinge, if you are pouring the cavity closest to the handles, put the tape behind the cavity you are pouring. Move the tape front to back to get minimum or maximum gap. Now the whole purpose of this is to release trapped air. If you crack it too much you will get flash. So the optimal thing to do is adjust the tape so you release the trapped air and not get flash. This is a trial and error thing. Finally you can also try to force the lead into the mold. Do this at all stages of pouring. Whether with tape, without tape, tilted or whatever. Sometimes sticking the mold sprue hole onto the pot pouring nipple forces lead into the mold. This does solve many bad pours. There are a lot of tricks that I can not possibly cover for you. Everday I pour is a different day for me as well. I have good days and bad days just like everyone else, on the bad days if they are really bad, I just walk away and start on it the next day, and try to figure out what I haven't tried. Most of the time the next day is 100% better. Just a quick note: I started to pour lead-free jigs, and that is a totally different animal. There are many things that just will not work. So hang in there and ask questions. Everyone here is willing to help. Let us know how it goes.

You can use, paper bags, tyvek envelopes from the P.O, vacuum cleaner bags, lunch bags etc. You will have to do trial and error to see what works for your powder paint. I glued it to the bottom of the cup with polyseam adhesive.

Well I'm glad everything is working out for you. There are a lot of knowledgeable guys on here with a lot of hands on experience. Just ask questions and someone here will have an answer for you and lead you in the right direction. One thing about the acetone, and I don't know which one you have, but acetone is an oil based product and it may have some oil in it. (Don't quote me on this). Anyway oil and powder paint don't mix, however if your jigs came out good then don't sweat the details. Realistically the only one that cares about a painted jig is you and your customers. Fish really don't care. Many many times caught a lot of fish on a raw beat up jig. It's all about presentation.

Derek, The 5304 are a litle pricey. However I will tell you one thing and that hook is strong and does not flex much. If you want to bend it by the eye, you will break the hook. The hook point on the Owner is sharp. I would probably fish that hook over a Gami. JMO. If you have never fished this hook you need to try it once. It is worth the time to see how you like it.

Smalljaw, I don't know what it is about you and I that we like our Snooties soooo much. That is my go to jig every single time I go on the water. The only other jigs I have tied on are the Poison Tail and a football jig in rocks. You know I have 100 plus molds and I keep on going back to the same three , with Snootie being #1. Maybe it is the way I work that jig. I just love it, doesn't get stuck in weeds, goes through vegetation, really well, and I can bounce it, flip it and so on just like you. Above all it catches fish. Also if I want a really slow fall jig the 1/8 oz Snootie is great for that as well. It is a very versatile jig. I've tried many of my other jigs I make and I still like the Snootie. Also you can put in quite a few different hooks in there from Owners, to some Gami's, Mustad and Eagle Claws. So you can use a really heavy hook to a thinner hook. The options are endless and most of all, there is very little modification needed if any. I didn't want to talk you out of a brush jig mold, because I do sell a lot of these jigs, and for those guys that like them, they work for their type of fishing nothing wrong with that. It's all about how you fish and what you have confidence in. If you find a jig that loads up the boat for you with fish, than stick with that jig because apparently you know how to fish that jig and trigger strikes.

It's always better to paint freshly poured jigs. Reason being is if they sit too long, they start to oxidize, along with dust and other stuff that may spill on them. If you have jigs you just poured and you are not going to paint them, then take the new jigs put them in a zip lock bag, squeeze all the air out of the bag, put on shelf. They will last like this for about 6 months maybe more. Just keep them closed and in an air tight bag. Now if you have old jigs that have turned gray, there are several things you can do to use them. #1. Wipe off all the jigs in rubbing alcohol, to get oils off. #2 Dry jigs , and then dip them in vinegar. (Stuff around the house the wife uses) The vinegar will etch the lead because it has acid. #3 Finally if you really want to go the extra mile. Once cleaned, you can spray the jigs with etching primer. (This step is optional.) #4 Take your jigs and go powder paint them. That's it.

Derek, The inside diameter of the hook eye on the 5304, is slightly smaller than the pin sticking out of this mold. I put a hook in there, and when I pressed the two mold halves closed, I was able to pour the brush jig no problem with no flash. Also in doing this I did not spring the hinge, as the aluminum in the mold does have some give. As far as the hook shank of the 5304's it fits in all the mold cavities no problem. The diameter of the hook shank on the 32786 is bigger than the 5304 hooks. So that is not an issue.

Smalljaw you are correct all the hype about stand-up jigs, only works in a perfect world where the lake bottom is perfectly flat. . With that said I too can care less about stand up jigs. If there is a fish there and you are moving your jig or whatever, the fish will pick it up plain and simple. One other thing I know you like Snooties like I do, and I've tried the 5304 on that jig and it is just kick-a**. I have sold many, and am going to try them on my Snooties I'm going to fish this year.

Mindhunter, please start another thread and I will reply. I don't want to hijack this thread either, as my response to your question and other responses from other members may be lengthy.

I don't know if I would recommend a certain hook size for a certain jig size. I have seen guys want 6/0 hooks on a 1/4 oz jig and vice-versa. So this is what I can tell you that fits in the Brush Jig mold and an Owner 5304 hook. 1/4 oz size = 2/0 just barely(hook eye on the hook too small in diameter) , 3/0 and 4/0 fine 3/8 oz size = 3/0 and 4/0 fine 1/2 oz size = 3/0 and 4/0 fine 5/8 oz size = 5/0 fine 3/4 oz size = 5/0 fine 1 oz size = 5/0 fine My hook eye pin on my Brush jig mold may be a little worn from use so these hooks may fit my mold a little easier. I couldn't tell you how they fit in a brand new mold.