mark poulson

I've ordered from them. I think it took a little over a week, but I can't remember for certain.

Dale, Good for you. I would have bought one if I had known they were available. I just used a bunch of air fittings I had left over from work.

Since you have already made a larger version, if it works, cut it down by hand to the size you want, and see if it works, before you go to the trouble of making a mold.

I've bought blanks from him, but not those. Good guy.

You can try coating the bottom by dribbling the color mix over it by hand after you've swished it in the fluid bath. I do that with my glow powder to try and keep the details on spinnerbait heads cleaner, and to add a different color to the top of the bait. There are folks here (Cadman) who are true artists when it comes to adding powder by hand, but I'm not. I just take a pinch between my fingers, and drop it on as I need it. I'm not steady enough anymore to do the tap the spoon method, but it produces some amazing results.

You can make a manifold with several separate female air fittings right at the air compressor, just past the regulator, and use compressor hoses, which are designed to hold pressure, as your distribution lines. With a couple of hose clamps and fittings, you can even mount a hose along the edge or back of your work bench and put connection points wherever you need them. That way, you have a distribution system with components that are actually designed for compressed air, instead of having to adapt something else, and it's really easy to do.

I also have this happen, even though I tap the jig, upside down, after I swish it through the powder to get as much out of the weed guard hole as possible. I just thought it was the fishing gods telling me the glitter/glow goes up! Seriously, I don't get migration to the hook eye when I cure them in the toaster over, head down, for 30 minutes at 350. I'm guessing it because of how I dip the heads initially. I hold them by the hook eye, and dip them top face up, because that's the best way for me to get the head covered without too much on the hook shank. Maybe the glitter/glow is in the top layer of powder, so it just coats the jig top more.

Dave, Have you tried 100% silicone caulking? It cures more slowly. I usually put a thin coating of the caulking onto my masters with my finger to be sure it's in every detail. I spray that caulking with a mist of water, and then mix the rest with a drop of water to accelerate it when I fill the rest of the mold box, being careful not to hit the master. I still wait 48 hours to open the mold, even though the outer/water mixed part is set, because the pure silicone around the master cures more slowly.

I agree. Plastic PVC pipe that is sold in the big box stores, the white stuff, is not made for constant pressure. As it ages, it become brittle, and that's not good. If you want to use it for multiple stations, put a brass shutoff valve at the compressor, and only turn the pressure on when you need it. Just be careful when you're changing locations with your hoses that you don't torque the fittings.

Go here and check out the Createx Colors. Transparents are labeled transparent. http://www.coastairbrush.com/categories.asp?cat=11

Is that only for people who also sell baits? Can you deduct their value as advertising?

Just remember, lawyers and accountants are some of the smartest people around. If you can think of a way to cheat, they've already thought if it. Trying to hide from the IRS is like trying to hide a joint from a drug dog.

Once you begin to sell as a money making proposition, you're a business, and need to go totally legit. Get an accountant, and do it right or you'll pay for it later. It's like being a little pregnant. No such thing.

I like a softer senko, so I use both glass blasting media and softener in Baitjunky's medium. I still add salt for flavor, but I can get a much tougher,l softer senko using the glass media.

Great advice!

Anglingarcher, You must really understand what you're talking about, because you made it clear to me. Thanks.

Think light belly, dark sides and back. You can use a lot of different color combinations. I don't think specific color is that important, as long as you have the contrast between the belly and the back.

It looks to me like the horizontal tail fins act as a planing surface, giving the tail of the bait more lift on the pull/pause. Kinda like the planing plate people put on their outboards to help their hole shot. Could you change the angle of the tail fin to get the bait to rise or fall on the pull?

How buoyant the bait will be is determined by how buoyant the particular wood you choose. Balsa is so buoyant it lets you make small baits that are still buoyant, but heavier woods need more size to offset the weight of the lip and the hardware. I think you'll be better off if you make your own blanks from a wood you want to work with, instead of what a store bought blank is made from. Pick a successful commercially available lure you like, trace it's shape onto a piece of flat shirt cardboard, and cut out a template. You can change the size with a computer program, or you can just trace around the template with a compass, adjusting the opening to make the lure bigger. You can also follow the outline with the compass on the inside, to make it smaller. Pick a wood you want to use, cut out a couple of blanks, rough shape and sand them, add the lips and hardware, and seal them, so you can begin to test them to see how much and where to put your ballast. Remember to keep the original lure close by for reference and comparisons. It's a process that gets shorter with each build, because you'll learn from each one, and that will make the next one that much easier. You probably won't get it right for the first few you build, but each one will be a little better, as you begin to figure things out. Good luck, and keep us posted on your progress.

Are your fins vertical or horizontal?

You're getting brown where the two colors overlap because they are opposites on the color wheel. Any primary color with it's opposite secondary color, in this case yellow and violet (purple) will make a brown. https://www.sessions.edu/color-calculator/ I'm not smart enough to figure out how to avoid/prevent it. Good luck.

Thanks.

Thanks.

wchilton, Thanks for the confirmation. Do chartreuse and red pigments smaller by nature? I noticed they seem to both bleed, whether it's paint or a sharpie.