Matt Moreau

I fight with this topic and i have not found what i like yet. I have tried 2 ways; 1. Syringe method... I have cathetar syringes and they get eaten up by the thinner. You only get about 10 uses out of them but they are only a buck or two. They resins i use also set up very fast so mixin in MB's and then sucking it into a syringe and then into a mold takes valuable time and is a real pain for me. Doing it this way i can only fill 1 cavity each time i mix so i hav eto make a new batch for each segment. If you use this method i would opt for a resin that has a potable life of 15 mins not the 3-6 as i find the work time is only about a minute here in California... Now that its colder i may get a little more tho. 2. The other method i use is just pouring it in. You have to find a resin that has a low viscosity becase as VM said the more MB you mix in the thicker it gets. I like Dascar Plastics rp 40 but i cannot do it with this method unless i make a decent size pour hole because its too thick. I have been trying a few of the alumilite products and the super plastic white is a good one but not nearly as hard as the dascar. I find with a 1-1 ratio of MB the alumilite SP white is still very thin and you can pour in small holes. Note....YOU HAVE TO GET THE WHITE as the other ones are thicker. Also the alumilite cost much more. I would love to hear what others do and what products they use. For me the second method works better but cost a little more

Ya from the looks of what i could find it seems like just another poly

Looks like its waterbased. Anyone tried the submersion test?

I havent made a slammer but I would try NO ballast at all. My thought is that being round the hooks may just be enough to keep it running true.

Flashabou or mylar flash wont work? both those are common buys at any fly tying place. Otherwise like gordon said i get some sheets at the dollar store and its sold as gift wrap. its thin and same color on both sides with no adhesive.

soda or beer?

Thanks for the replies guys... @Ice...on the first one the clear actually peeped taking paint with it. This was just a test and i did a few things wrong. I didnt care about it so i went heavier than normal laying the paint down and i fished it after just a night of dry time. On the second I wanted to test if I could clear over rattle can paint and waited maybe 2-3 days before fishing... this just more of chipped off from the hooks taking a little paint with it. @ Mcleod...I use waterbased paints and heat set so i am thinking that should cut down on compatability issues. I agree about the purity of the components but it was hard to argue with $70 shipped for a gallon of this stuff compared to $250. I may try the lower priced dupont ones as they have a bunch. I read that link some time ago it was a good read again. Thank you! @Woodie....I never thought of not applying t to wood. I kinda thought it would be like DN MCU and soak into the paint and create a good bond. I am assuming that if i use an epooxy over the wod it will be ok? Have you tried it over resin baits? @Sally...I mix in the plastic paint mixing cups i get at an autobody supply store near my house. I have never really smelled them. I have a moisture trap before the connection to my AB house. at first I was thinking more coats but i read on another forum that auto clear becomes gummy or something with too many coats and or too thick. Thats the main reason to pick some brains here. :-)

Hi Guys, I have had some mixed results recently and want your input. I bought an economy brand auto clear recently. It doenst seem to hold up and I dont know if I did something wrong or what. Its a 4 - 1 ratio urethane clear that I spray with a mini gun 1.0 nozzle. I put 1 tack and 1 wet coat. I usually wait 2-3 days and never had an issue but always used the good stuff like deltron. Well on the ones i did a couple weeks ago started peeling and what not after a day or 2 of fishing. So my questions are; 1. How many coats do you put of Auto Clear - do you do them all within a short period or buff and re apply 2. Do you use a name brand or economy brand - What brand 3. How long do you wait to fish them 4. Do you use water based paints or urethane 5. Any suggestions other than dont buy cheap stuff? ugggh!

Bob you are a god! I cannot add anything to your post.

Welcome Willis, Looks to me like you are on the right track for sure. These are 1000 times better than my firsts! As far as stencils go if you are painting the same lure you can make molds of it with shrink tube or using a vacuum former and like 2 liter plastic. I am not patient enough and just take any type of thin plastic film u can find and cut it out with an exacto. if you dont have a lot of round edges it works fine. I use projector film, rolodex film, that thin cutting board material, shoot any thin plastic u can find. There is also a sponsor that has a buch of good ones you can buy. Options are endless just use your imagination

I just wanted to say how blessed we are to have some of the pioneers and OG's still coming back and commenting on this site. To still see them around really makes me think how good we have it! I still enjoy all of your posts as much as the first ones and cherish them. Thank you for everything you have done for us!

Ben I think it really depends on how much paint and the top coat used. From what i know (admitingly not much) a hunting lure needs to be built exactly "wrong"!!! any small changes will give it a different result. I light 1 coat of DN may not alter it that much but 2-3 coats of DN along with multiple coats of acrylic will increase the weight on a smaller crank enough to possibly bring it back to stability kinda like Dave said "normal" action. Not to mention a coat or 2 of epoxy and that can really throw u off. You may be able to take a similar bait, weigh it, then paint and TC exactly as you would with the prototype weigh it again and subtract that from the ballast. Problem is that paint and TC add a small precentage of weight all over and in my thought you would be only taking that back away from the ballast location so ... sorry i guess this was just a rambling session

wow....WOW! That is truly inspiring!!!

Heck i make a chicken and rice dinner using salsa about 2 times a month. I just save the jars from the salsa...wash them good and let dry completely and they work fine. If you want to dip and not "tap the can" just be aware you will have wasted product... BobP correct me if i am wrong here.....but the more baits you dip = the more air thats introduced into the DN. Everytime you push a bait down you essentially are mixing air into the DN. This will make it cure even with bloxygen shot on top before you store it. Thus only put small amounts that you can use in about a month or so in each jar. seal the jars you are not using with saran wrap and a bloxygen shot and leave them be until u r ready to use them. This should cut down on wasted material but there is no way to prevent it with MCU's and Dipping baits. I have wasted A TON of DN!!!! If there is a better way please let me know but i always have some that cures when i dip.

Personally I just use AA sealer white over clean sealed wood. 2 coats and u r good to go! I have tried the automotive primer in a rattle can from walmart and it works good too. its thick stuff and will fill a little for you. draw back is its like $5 a can so i dont use it often unless i have a bait that I want to cover an old paint scheme or something. But if I sand it all the way down and have a good sealed clean bait then I just go with the AA sealer white.

HAHA.... well there you go who needs ebay! But to answer your question a QUALITY painted product will always be a better sell!!!

Howdy Guys, I researched on here a little and didnt find too much on RTV Mold making pertaining to brands and hardnesses. I have been testing different silicones lately and was wondering what everyone else likes when making their molds. Generally there are 2 types; Tin Cure Condensation Silicones and Platinum Cure (Addition) Silicones. I have used only Tin Cure. From my research you want a shore hardness of 8-20A... Up to 30 is workable but over that they are too hard and break down and tear much faster. I have tried Smooth On(the Oomoo one only), Tap plastics, ViSil, Alumilite and a couple other ebay cheapies. So far I have found that the Alumilite is by far and away the best product. SmoothOn and Tap were both second as their properties were very similar. But they both started breaking down after 30 baits or so and produce a lot of bulles when mixing so a vaccuum would be a good idea for these. The other ones are worth your time and/or money. I may try a few more on Ebay to see but so far Alumilite is the king! Pros of Alumilite High Strength 3; It has a thin viscosity when mixed so gets in every crack and crevas capturing all the detail and undercuts It does not have many air bubbles caused from mixing. This i believe is caused by the much thinner viscosity when mixed than other brands, thus no vaccuum needed I havent had tearing issues yet or mold breakdown Great release properties Smells decent Cons; Cost Please let me know what you guys have found and if I am on track here... Again this is limited research to what i have tried and I would love everyones opinions.

I dont know what a bagleys balsa Chartruese Shad would be specifically but I would do; 1. White base 2. if you do not have chartruese mix 90% yellow with 10% of a limish green give or take and spray entire lure 3. Do orange(red if you want) down the belly 4. Personally I would do a dark blue/purple scale followed by black on top but the bagleys is just black 5. Another touch i would do is AA saphire mirage(would make the blue/purple POP) followed by a gold flake dusting 6. Gills and eye This is a pretty simple pattern and you can alter alot on it to make your own variations. I personally would probably give like a light raspberry or pinkish red latteral line too but very faint if you did. Hek maybe ill paint one tonight to post but its been 110* so probably not LOL!

Bass Tackler, I would highly reccomend getting very familiar with the seach function on this site. There is more info out there than you could read in a month. You did well and bought a great AB to start with best tip i can give you is keep it clean and learn good cleaning habits with it. 1. Bodies - You can buy tons of different clear plastic blanks. Best places are Predator bass baits, bustin bass baits or there is a member that you may want to contact. I dont want to break any rules so just do a search and you will find what you need 2. Paint - Any water based paint is good to start with. If you buy an AB specific paint like createx, comart, tamiya and etc you do not have to thin them. if you buy the walmart and art store stuff you need to thin. You can use water to thin but there are better alternatives...Seach it! Also strain your paint with pantyhose...cut a small piece and put between the bottle and cap. 3. Top coat/clear - This is one of the most debated subjects here. there are a ton of options but only a handful that the OG crew uses. Each one has its own pros and cons and you need to see what works for you. below i would say are the top three Moisture Cured Urethan - Dick Nites is most popular 2 Part Epoxies - Devcon 2 ton, Etex and flexcoat are popular Automotive Clear - any decent brand Again use the search feature and do some homework. there is no easy answer for your questions you need to find what works for you.

Never fails 152!!! I guess I should probably just go start a soak on mine now too!!!

I buy mine from Tap PLastics

Salt, What pressure are you running from the compressor? Do you have a regulator or just a "MAC" Valve? I assume you are talking about the small pressure controller here? I would take off the mac valve and try it. Then buy a decent regulator! If you are getting air now it has to be a dirty gun. My assumption is your not getting enough air and your paint is too thick. Make sure that the nozzle cap and nozzle are properly sealed so you are not losing pressure and make sure the 3 holes in the nozzle cap are clean and you can see through them. Do like Ben said and strain your paint with pantyhose and you should be good to go. I run 20 - 40 psi but the lower the psi the thinner the paint and no flake. 9 out of 10 AB issues that i see on here are due to cleaning. I think Rookie once said if you are having issues take your AB apart soak it and clean it, then do that again and when you think your done do it again!!!

I also cant find the AZEK brand at my lowes or HD. I use the white trim boards for some of my stuff but call me crazy I still prefer balsa, basswood and poplar for my baits.

To be open like that it cant be an MCU... what is it like a spar urethane or something?

LOL you are a better man than me 152!!! In the first month alone i went through 3 nozzles for my iwata eclipse!!!! The first one I had no idea what i was doing. The AB wouldnt spray worth a darn after a couple days and paint would come out when just pushing the trigger down. I thought i had to cram the needle in to set it because it was spraying so terrible when in actuallity i had a dirty gun. The other 2 well....let me just say a jack n coke or 2 is not a good idea when handling those lil suckers. I kept dropping them when cleaning my AB and they would always fall on the tip and dent it. They would be usable but i couldnt stand it so now i keep a new needle and nozzle on hand at all times. Havent replaced one since then though! Learning good cleaning habbits and rituals are VITAL in this game. Now I take apart my AB MAYBE once a month but after each sessionI always take the needle out whipe down with thinner and run thinner through back flusshing a few times before i put it away. In addition after every color I backflush with simple green. There are many techniques out there for cleaning and I highly reccomend you dont pull a ME and learn as much as you can before messing with all the little parts and such!