mark poulson

Try putting some clear nail polish over the hook rash areas. That stuff is tough. After I've painted a bait, and top coated it with Rustoleum X2 Gloss Clear, I put a coat of nail polish over the path of the trebles, and don't get hook rash. But I don't paint trolling lures, so I don't know how it would hold up to trolling.

Did you give them your real name?

I float test my baits to be sure the ballast is right in a 5 gallon bucket of water. You can do the same thing in the kitchen sink or bath tub.

That is slick!

I have used my heat gun to get the first color ready for the second color in some of my open pour silicone molds, and also to get the top of the bait to even out after it's poured.

Thank you for that answer. It must be a difficult process (expensive), or I'm guessing more companies would be using it.

I don't know how much difference a specific paint job will make on a spinnerbait blade, because they spin so fast. I've coated the blades with a simulated bass paint scheme, green on top, and the bottom white, and added black accents in the middle to try and simulate a baby bass, but I've gotten more bites with just polished brass blades. Maybe the baby bass blades took too much attention away from the spinnerbait body with the hook. I don't know. I think the blades on a spinnerbait are there to draw attention to the bait, and to add vibration, so the bass' senses are on point as the bait passes. Once the bait is in range, I want the bass to focus on the part with the hook. With the "they can't eat it if they don't notice it" theory in mind, I do coat the cupped side of my blades with glo paint, and then go over both faces with clear nail polish and mylar bits (Sally Hansen 'In the Spotlight'), to make it more visible in dark conditions, or in dirty water. The clear makes the glo polish hold up better, and the mylar bits make it flash if any sunlight hits it, so I'm hedging my bets.

What is a guanine finish?

I hope you're right! I just coated my first two 2.5 squarebills with KBS Diamond Clear. I keep my cranks on one side of my front deck, and my soft plastics on the other, because I've used some top coats that react with soft plastics, so it's become a habit with me. I'm going to keep that habit, because Rustoleum X2 Gloss Clear is such an easy, and cheap, top coat to use, especially on jointed baits. Plus it really makes paint schemes pop! But it doesn't play nice with soft plastics. So far, my one KBS dip coat has held up fine. I fished one of the cranks hard the past two weeks. I haven't noticed any hook rash, or haziness from bumping into tules, and going through grass. I haven't encountered rocks yet, but the levee walls are rock lined, and that is a great high tide bait, on the inside weed line, so that time is fast approaching. I haven't had one of the KBS coated baits in contact with soft plastics...yet! I'm sure it's bound to happen eventually, and I'll report back on how it reacts with soft plastics at that time.

Thanks. I'll look for it next time I'm at a craft store. I'll also try some of the craft paints I already have.

I'll have to try that! What types/brands of craft paint work for you?

Clemmy, I am on their wait list for so many skirt colors I feel like a stalker!

Once you have the blades powder coated, you can add details with an airbrush paint like Createx. Dip a toothpick or fine paint brush into a drop of the paint, and add your dots/detailing. Once it's been thoroughly dried, top coat with clear nail polish, two coats.

X2 Please!!!

Hahaha I use a coffee grinder that my in-laws left at my house one holiday. After I realized it would grind salt, I "forgot" to return it.

For me, keeping salt suspended is a trade off. Powdering my salt keeps it in suspension a long time, but it turns my colors milky. The coarsersalts keep the baits clearer, but I have to constantly stir. I don't have a magic answer. Sorry.

Thanks.

I use the glow tabs from Skirts Unlimited. They are the closest I've found to clear.

Try adding a few strands of this to a clear skirt: https://fishingskirts.com/product/blue-smoke-301-338/

What do you mean by holographic?

Sounds like one of my honeymoons!

The ones I saw, years ago, used pizza cutter wheels, bolted together with spacers between.

Dave, I remember your machine! If I remember correctly, you used it to make lots of a certain crankbait that eventually got outlawed in the city you were living in at the time. I was so jealous!

I use Rustoleum X2 Gloss Clear in a rattle can. It is not idea, because prolonged contact with a soft plastic bait, like a worm or a swimbait, will soften the finish, so I am careful to keep my baits separated. An aerosol spray let's me coat the faces of the baits without clogging up the joints. I use two coats, 20 minutes apart. I'm sure there are other aerosol clears (KBS Diamond Clear comes to mind) that will allow you to coat your lures without clogging the joints.

Woodie, Did you try clearcoating over the g-finish?