Fishwhittler

I was just thinking about all the topcoats I've tried in the several years I've been building lures. Actually I've only tried six different topcoats, but it took me a long time to find a good one. Anyhow I figured I'd post my experiences with topcoat. #1. None At first I didn't know that I needed to use topcoat. It didn't really matter, as the lures that I was building then didn't catch any fish and even if they had they would have broken if a fish grabbed them. #2. Minwax Polyacrylic The first topcoat that I tried, and I actually caught a few fish while I was using this. Unfortunately, polyacrylic isn't waterproof and so these lures didn't last very long. #3. Seal Coat lure & jig finish This topcoat was waterproof, but it wasn't very durable in my experience and I started looking for a new topcoat. #4. Minwax Spar urethane This one actually worked for a while. But eventually I gave it the axe, too. It didn't cure fast enough for my liking, it had a brown tint that became more pronounced over time, and finally it started curing in the jar. #5. Minwax Clear Brushing Lacquer My experiment with lacquer was a miserable flop. I learned several things: (#1) lacquer is very toxic (#2) lacquer doesn't react well with solvent-base paint (#3) I needed to look for a new topcoat. Note: Lately I've been experimenting with lacquer again and I've achieved some acceptable results. Not enough, however, to make me switch to lacquer for topcoat. #6. Flex Coat High Build rod finish I got this by mistake; I ordered what I thought was Flex Coat Ultra V, but it turned out that the description on the website I ordered from was incorrect and so I got regular Flex Coat. I gave it a shot, but in about a month it yellowed and my quest was not ended. #7. Flex Coat Ultra V My current topcoat. I haven't found any problems with Ultra V since I started using it. It's more pricey than any of the other topcoats I tried, but the price is offset by the fact that it is simply the best topcoat I've used.

I've only used the 8oz size (for now), but Mudhole sells Flex Coat in 2oz, 4oz, 8oz, 32oz & 1 gallon sizes.

Those look awesome! I really like the carp bait.

Very nice! I like the two griffon knockoffs.

Have you tried tearing strips out of a sheet of paper to get a pattern? I did that with this bait and it turned out pretty good.

Here you go: Compound Bending Lexan. Here's another by Hazmail: Polycarbonate (Lexan) Lip Former

Very nice! Is the chrome on the bait foil tape? It looks really cool.

Here's the XCalibur XR50 in "Rayburn Red". It looks different from the "Red Shad" Rattle-Trap (below).