EdL

Need a little more info - like asking what car should I buy without any info on use, type such as number of people you want to carry, mileage, cost limits. There are guys that use E-tex, D2T,DN, automotive clears. Suggest you do a forum search cause there are tons of info to help you make the choice that best fits your criteria (drying time, finish thickness, clarity, durability, availability, timing to acquire, additional tools necessary( lure turner, heaters, brushes, solvents), costs. If you starting out consider E-tex or D2T.

My thoughts and prayers to the family for their loss.

Have a great holiday! Oh and if your gonna work on lure's- Tip #1- wash your hands to get all the turkey juices off. That stuff does not do well with finishes.

Yep - get a morticing bit.

Any time Mindhunter. I didn't find the website another guy did but he at least shared the location. Looks to me like an Asian web site grabbed the video so we will see if they get a letter from a US attorney to delete the video.. What's the likelyhood they will pull the video. And I wonder how long it will take for the cheap KOs start showing up at the tackle store and on-line.

Try here: Post #3 http://www.ultimatebass.com/bass-fishing-forum/index.php?PHPSESSID=bab146140d4648c8ca7b2a0ac8cfff28&topic=92946.0

Moisture is in the air that surrounds the compressor. Depending on how humid it is in your area the air is sucked into the compressor and heated up. When the compressor cools down or you let the air go down a long hose the air cools and the moisture condenses and collects. SO you can put your compressor in a dehumidified room to minimize the amount of water going into the compressor or easier put a filter/dryer regulator on the outlet of the compressor to catch the moisture as it leaves the compressor. Also Iwata sells a mini moisture trap you attach right to the airbrush air connection. It is only available in one thread connection size though. You can also go the route of getting a small mini filter trap and put in the air hose line. Got mine at HD or lowes. If you compressor has a tank replace the drain plug with a valve and periodically blow out the water that collects in the tank. Good to do anyway to remove the water and avoid rust and corrosion inside the tank.

IMHO color shades and detail are used by fish and fisherman. U didn't say if you are interested in freshwater or saltwater lures. To me it depends on water clarity and bait action. In clear water detail may make a difference especially if the bite is finicky. In stained water making a bait that is brighter in color can make the lure a bit more visible to the fish. SO - to me the answer is complicated. Also if there was only one answer we would have a fish population problem - they would all be caught. Depends to if your interested in the "art" aspect of lure making , just functional (catches fish) or both. Just be aware that tackle making can become addictive and cut into you fishing time not to mention budget. One thing though - always have fun. The rest is after that.

I resemble that remark.

To help me get started with airbrushing I took a 6 hour intro to airbrushing class. The instructor told us he finds that it takes an average of 40 hours of airbrushing to get to the point of doing detail work proficiently. So as the guys are saying it takes practice. But don't give up. Kind of like learning to ride a bicycle. Its rough to fall down and get scraped but once learned you can go places with a smile on your face. I'm still learning but its get better the more I use the airbrush.

Check out an Ace Hardware if you're looking for ASAP. You didn't say what you wanted it for or what size. Ask the hardware guys there, tell them the properites your looking for and maybe they can help.

To me a home shop type air compressor is a better choice. Will serve more purposes beside airbrushing crank. You will likely find other uses if you have one. I use mine when I check car tire pressures, nail/brad gun, air sweep the bench top clean, and the list goes on. Mine is a Craftsman 25 gallon on wheels so I can move it around. I also put in an air manifold around the garage so I can have quick connects where I need them. Just plug in a quick connect hose to the manifold. I can also roll the bad boy to my cars when servicing them. Once it is pressured up the run cycle is low when I airbrush. An airbrush type compressor may run all the time (small diaphram type) or cycle more often (pancake type). Thats what I use. Anyway many choices and what will work for you - well you get to decide. Budget, location, noise, and purpose will help you decide. I've learned a long time ago with an air compressor get one big enough.

Here U go: http://www.homedepot.com/Tools-Hardware/h_d1/N-5yc1vZarnk/Ntk-Extended/Ntt-swagging%2Btool/h_d2/Navigation?langId=-1&storeId=10051&Ntx=mode+matchpartialmax&catalogId=10053Ν=P_PARENT_ID&primarySearchOnly=true&omni=c_Tools & Hardware&searchNav=true

Saw this video on Bassmaster web page. Interesting the first comment was from someone claiming to make the baits for Poss' company. He also said to look for a letter. Guess Ray got one that was overnighted. Now video removed. Going to the A-rig official web site has news today that the A-rig is licensed to Mann's bait company. Guess now if you put anything out there about how to make one you might get a letter. I guess it will be a cease and desist letter from a lawyer. A-rig company spilled their marbles when they put it out there for sale. How many companies have some form of one kind of bait or another and lawyer each other? Guess its easier to catch people on interrnet. The video I was before it was pulled just showed how he made one. Not how to about making them for selling. People are creative so there will always be someone out there making their own version. Guess one problem is that if you share how you do what you do you will likely get more than constructive criticism. Well back to the shop and make one for me only with patent pending mark on it for good measure.

What size rope do you have to use with this rig? And when it breaks off you can lose 5 lures at once instead of one? Guess if you win big bucks at a tourney you can afford it.

Ask for PVC brick molding. It around 1"-1//4 thick if your looking for thick body material. I used some for making some crankbaits. The stuff is bouyant so I had to allow for ballast to make them neutral float or sink slowly.

I also tinker around with building fishing rods. I made a power wrapper using a sewing machine type motor with foot pedal speed controller. Some things to consider: The motor I used is an AC/DC type motor bought from Granger. (foot controller too). The motor will turn out some RPM so some way to gear or belt drive a dryer shaft will be necessary (unless you want to sling off some finish). Take a look a power rod wrappers on internet and you will see they all have belt drives to a rod turning chuck. My rod turner is direct drive and I have to barely press on the controller to get a slow speed. Also the foot controller heats up some. I would worry about continuous use while lure finish cures. I have a separate 18 RPM rod turner to rotate the rod for wrap curing process. That motor is a small geared motor. Not saying it cant be done but some things to consider. So if anybody like to tinker - go for it and show some picks. The main problem for me is budget. I got a lot of scrap in the 'not so good of idea after all' pile.

What is the clear plastic material and where can it purchased? Cool setup (pun intended)!

@Mark - http://www.tackleunderground.com/community/topic/2594-hard-bait-cookbook/ BobP did the post. See page 1, post #9

Check out Hardbait Cookbook

Rod building guys have used Testor's Model paints. Don't shake the bottle and the color pigment will settle to the bottom. Pour off the top layer leaving pigment. Some use it to do marblizing patterns with epoxy.

Its interesting to me how many people put their personal email addresses out there for the world to see instead of sending cadman a private message to get plans. Guess they want to get more spam mail.

Ronny - What do you mean best? There are many criteria and there are many opinions about what is best. Like BobP has suggested spend some time using the search feature of this forum. There are loads of information to peruse through. Only you can really determine what is best for you. Some use cheap harbor freight throw aways while others use Iwata's. Just remember - bait painting can become additice and practice, practice and then do more practice. Soon you will be satified with your improvements. Just hang in there.

Mike -you and your mom are in our prayers. Praying for the best.

Possibilities: -paint too thin -too high of pressure -not cleaning tip of airbrush( often carefully check the needle tip to make sure it's clean with no buildup) -Bent needle tip (catching paint till a blob builds up enough to get blown off) I keep a scap piece of paper (newprint, paper bag, fiberboard,etc) next to my lure painting and do a test pass with the airbrush before shooting the lure to make sure the spray pattern is not too thick, too thin, doesn't spatter. It also give me a pass at determining how close to hold the airbrush to the lure (useful for spraying thin line). Helps too when you change colors to make sure the brush is cleared of the last color used.