mark poulson

I tried some Apple Barrel paint with my Iwata HC+, and had to thin it with windex to get it to shoot. Lots of residue in the cup when I was done that wouldn't pass thru the needle. I'll stick to Createx or Wildlife paints.

Man, that carving job is beautiful! I don't know if I would have the guts to throw that after all that work. I don't know enough to offer any advice to an artist like you, but I just wanted to give you kudos for a great lure.

I think the lures look great! How did you weight them, and what kind of wood did you use? Bezyb's probably right. I'd move up in hook size, as long as it doesn't affect the action, and the the hooks don't foul. I've found bigger Owner Stinger trebles had a short shank, but are really strong and sharp.

In the past I've used glass worm rattles, and the plastic rattles off of Rattle Claws, and they both worked fine.

I use SST screw eyes, .072 gauge, from Stamina. I use both the 7/8" and the 1 1/8".

I've used fir, pine, and poplar. All work well. I've settled on poplar for it's combination of light weight (relative), strength, and ease of shaping. My first topwater punker-type lures were from kiln dried fir, and they work great. I switched to some pine I had, and they also work great, but I had to add more weight. With poplar, I think I have a good compromise, although I still like to use pine.

A question about how important sealing the bait for strength really is. If you through wire your blanks, and use epoxy as a top coat, is using a sealer to strengthen the lure body all that important? I just repainted some balsa cranks whose lacquer/polyurethane paint jobs had blistered. I used Minwax poly acrylic sealer, Createx paint, and Envirotex Lite clear coat. They are holding up fine, both to the sun, and to fish.

Brilliant!

The guys who made the Pupfish tried copying a Megabass lure, the Dog X, and see where it got them. Megabass (Megabucks) doesn't fool around when it comes to protecting their stuff.

benton, I don't use DN, but wouldn't spraying a coat of Createx clear over the paint job before you use the DN protect the paint, since, from what I've read, Createx has no problems when you coat it with DN? Sorry for the run-on sentence. Too much coffee.

You've got an amazing amount of detail. Good job.

Good looking lure. What did you use for the tail?

That's good news. I'm a Jewish carpenter who's allergic to sawdust. How's that for a laugh?

Good job! Be sure you're careful with the teak dust. It can really trigger some nasty allergic reactions, if you're allergic.

Forgive me for being thick, but does the crackle paint dry and crackle before you top coat?

I'd hit it!

If you do taxidermy, you're probably already a better painter than 95% of the rest of us. I really don't know anything about lacquer paints, but, as for top coats, the choices, to me, boil down to durability and weight. Epoxy is the toughest, most durable, but it's also the heaviest. It will not react to lacquer or water based paints, so it's a good choice. Urethane clear coats are lighter, but not as durable. I don't durablity is as critical as weight on a crank, but on jointed lures it is more important. Again, since you're already an accomplished air brusher, you've just about got it licked. Make some test lures, or paint up a couple of pieces of wood or PVC and then try out different top coats, and see which one does what you want. One word of warning. If you're making wood lures, a good sealer is critical, or your paint job and top coat will be for naught. Post a sealer question here, and there are guys who have all the answers. Good luck, and welcome.

What I've found with jointed swimbaits is that having a really strong sealer is critical. The top coat and paint, no matter what you use, are going to chip due to the sections banging against each other at the joints. Not if, but when, at least in a wood bait. If you use a really strong sealer, like epoxy that's thinned a little, and coat it well, then your paint scheme will last longer, as long as you scuff the epoxy surface with fine sand paper or a scouring pad, to allow a good mechanical bond. Rattle can paints will work fine, and then another coat of epoxy for the top coat, and you're set. Good luck.

Man, that is one incredible looking bait. You are truly an artist.

Vman, At the risk of getting booed off the stage, I have.......... a vortex question. Would hollowing out the curve on the bottom of #3, from the lowest point up toward the tail, so it had a concave shape, create a low pressure area and a unique action? I've done that on the top of my swimbaits, from the line tie to the high point, to try and get them to have more action, like a lipless crank. Have you an opinion?

If you like Megabass jerkbaits, look at Orbit 80 jerkbaits from Zip Baits. They are 5/16oz, but, because of their internal weight transfer system, can be fished with a baitcaster, which I much prefer. And they have the most erratic action of any jerkbait I've fished. And, because their paint schemes are on the outside, I can lightly sand them with 600 grit to get down to an almost transparent body (the original paint stays in the molded scale pattern, which isn't a bad thing), and then put my own paint on them and go. The Orbit 80 suspends perfectly out of the package, and I rig some with larger hooks to make the sink slowly on the pause. All in all, a great jerkbait. No, I'm not sponsored by Zip Baits. They just work really well, and I like for people to catch fish.

I've found that narrowing the lip will make a lure run shallower, since there's not as much surface catching the water and forcing it down. For me it also makes for less side to side wiggle (I think that's the term, as opposed to wobble, where the lure body rolls from side to side). Probably Bob is right, and shortening the lip in small increments until you get a decent action is the way to go. But you may not be able to save it. I've ruined a few store bought lures messing with the bills. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

That's funny Rofish. I'm jealous of anyone who can actually manipulate images on the computer. It looks like a blast. 76gator, I am a computer illiterate, so I can't help you, but your bait looks good. Maybe try misting the green with transparent brown, and a little gold. But I'd fish it like it is. Again, it seems to me that contrasting areas, like a white belly and dark back, with shading on the sides, are the key in any color scheme, with glitter for flash as an initial attractant on the back and sides.

And all this time I thought I wasn't mixing it well enough. Thanks.

If your pattern extends up onto the back, and maybe even if it doesn't, try folding the stencil material in two after you've traced the pattern on one side, but before you cut it out with an exacto knife, so you get two identical faces when you cut out one side. the same way you did art projects in grade school. By draping it over the back and pinching it at the bottom with clothes pins, or whatever clamp you use, it will hold itself in position while you paint both sides of the lure at the same time, so you only have to clean up once after each color.