mark poulson

PAVABill, That was classic, and perfect. I think it should be a permanent thread at the top with the tutorials. And I think we should created the "Twisted Dick Jerker" award for those who make truly significant contributions to the forum. For his insightful analysis of the current brouhaha, I nominate PAVABill for the first award!

Clemy, So......any luck? I need Owner ST41 1/0 trebles, too. Fingers crossed. Mark

Try Rome Specialty Co. Also Roscoe Terminal Tackle. They are one and the same, but I don't know how I got the link. All I know it's in my favorites under split rings. Good luck.

Yeah, I dive whenever I try to swim. Seriously, I haven't been in the ocean since I hurt my neck. Too unstable for any currents or waves. But I did when I was a kid, free diving along the jetties and breakwaters in Venice and Santa Monica. We got beat up a little, but the lobsters made it worth it. The big kids and adults dove for abalone. Too hard for us kids to pry loose. The sea is an amazing place.

Pete, The bubbles are from air trapped in the forstner bit pilot hole from the eye recess hole. I need to fill them before I install the eyes. I know that, but sometimes I'm in a hurry, and forget.

Scott, That's very interesting. All of the "pure" PVC products I'm familiar with are, basically, plastics, like plastic pipe, plastic parts, etc. I thought that, in order to get both the tensile strength and the light weight, AZEK was a mixture of PVC and a fiber of some kind. It sure is great stuff, at least for lure making. Mark

I think we've all been out in the sun too long. I tried to give a lure some UV protection by spraying it with a clear gloss rattle can finish with UV protection. I don't know if it's UV protected now, but it sure as hell softened the epoxy top coat. Weird.

Does putting on a clear top coat with UV protection, so it won't yellow, protect the layer underneath it from UV, too, or will they still yellow?

I really like the idea of using a hole punch on some self adhesive hologram materail, and then painting on a pupil and adding a drop of epoxy. Does anyone know where to get hole punches that are larger? I'm looking for 5/16, 3/8, and 1/2 inch sizes.

I'm not sure what cellular PVC board is. I use AZEK PVC decking, which is a mix of fiber and PVC. It shapes and sands great, although it melts a little and sticks if you sand too fast with a belt sander. I don't know if the cellular board is the same material.

Man, I live having a paint expert on site! I feel like I'm cheating every time Downriver answers a question. It's not supposed to be this easy. Now for my next question. I use PVC as a lure body material. I prime with Krylon white primer, rattle can, thin coat. Then I base coat with Createx new Wicked Color white, and do my other colors over that. Usually they are a mix of Auto Air, Wildlife, Createx, and Apple Barrel. I heat set each coat with a hair dryer, first on low, until the gloss/wet look is gone, and then on high for another ten seconds per section. I usually mix in a coat of Krylon fixative over my scale coat, in case I screw up the next color coat, so I don't have to redo the scales, and I use a hair dryer to dry that, too. Finally, I use either Krylon spray glitter, or Minwax Polyacrylic with fine glitter to add the last coat, hit it with the hair dryer, and let it hang overnight. I coat the next day with Nu Lustre. My question is, do any of the intermediate layers provide some kind of protection for the Createx, since you say it sets at 325f, and I'm sure I don't reach that temp.? Sorry to be so long winded.

With so many to choose from, how'd you pick the keepers?

Man, you found a honey hole! How did you cull?

I was happier with last year's outcome, but they were both exciting to watch.

That game was like an NBA game, where the lead changes so often in the last two minutes, and it's madness at the buzzer. Now that I've thought about it, I am even more pissed that he retired and moved to Hawaii, and didn't take me. As if I needed another reason.

BobP, You're right. As a rule of thumb, the better the paint job and the better the ability to catch fish, the faster you lose it! The ones that "last forever" are the ones that don't work. I just got tired of both D2T and Etex yellowing after a couple of trips. finlander, I use a paper clip to mix my epoxy, and then I roll it around in the plastic mixing cup while I blow it with the hair dryer. The bubbles usually burst this way. Even when I use a fine artist's brush, I get little bubbles when I'm coating, but I can usually brush them out. It's the bubbles from air trapped under the stick on eyes that drive me nuts. I am constantly checking for those, and still miss some. I get the same working time whether I use the hair dryer on it in the mixing cup or not. Heating the epoxy just makes it more runny, and easier to apply. I am always able to turn the lures for an hour or so, check for bad spots or bubbles, and then use epoxy from the same mixing cup batch to fix them. The mixed epoxy is still usable after an hour, and will still level out on the lure. BEZYB, I do the same thing when it's cold. Never had it affect the epoxy. I also hit the epoxy in the mixing cup with the hair dryer while I'm coating to keep it runny when it's cold. I alsopreheat the lures when they're on the wheel before I start coating, but, once I've begun coating, I try not to hit them with the hair dryer, in case I might kick up some dust.

When I used Etex, I found I had to turn them for at least eight hours in warm weather, and longer in cold weather. As far as yellowing epoxy, if it doesn't say UV inhibitors added, it will yellow. How much varies with both brand and batch.

Sounds painfull!

David, Come on, the game sucked? I was rooting for Arizona, and didn't have a beer the whole second half (which is why I remember it). I've seen every Super Bowl, and this was one of the best. The commercials were forgetable, but not the game. And those bugs are delicious, aren't they? My best friend's little brother, who retired five years ago as LA County Chief of Lifeguards, and moved to Hawaill with my best friend, a retired Fire Captain from Sacramento, used to be stationed at the Santa Monica pier. He would dive the breakwater there, which was off limits to the public, and bring my Mom lobsters like that all the time. She got spoiled, but he loved her and kept bringing them. She used to give me the leftovers to take home to my family. Tough duty! Mark