Kasilofchrisn

So I tried the dip flip then dip the other half. It worked OK but on some of them it definetly left a seam because I couldn't be precise with the overlap. so part of it in the center had more paint then the other parts. Then I made some 12" tall cups and I was really happy with how that worked. So I guess taller cups was the best answer.

No I havent made any yet but I did make some 25oz butterfly type jigs and some of the fish jigs from the Shawn collins mold. I'll send you the pics in a PM.

Pipe jigs are used a lot for halibut. We were just discussing making pipe jigs on an alaska fishing forum. A poormans jig that can be made to any desireable size relatively cheaply.Scrap copper used to be easy to acquire but not so much anymore with the price of metal at the scrap yard. A lot of butterfly style jigs are rigged with the solid ring and split ring for the assist hooks. You need the solid ring because split rings have a small possibility of cutting the assist line. Assist hooks run from the top eye which is also where you attach your line is good for several reasons. One is less lures snagged on the bottom and lost. Also many fish like to attack bait fom the head and some like to eat them head first. Fish can't swim backwards so a struggling baitfish in their mouth only swims farther into their mouths. So more hookups on those fish with hooks from the head of your bait. Also the assist line, instead of a straight split ring and hook, eliminates a lot of leverage a fish would use to pull a hook out. The line twists instead of the whole jig twisting. Either way I do like butterfly jigs.

I realized I forgot to post a pic of my butterfly style jig. I use a #3 long stainless eye. They are 1.3" long. The stainless #3L eye on top comes down to about the center of the 3D eye on the jig. I havent tested these yet But I don't forsee any problems with them pulling out at all.

I have a 25oz butterfly type mold (Thanks Bob) that I just used to make a few jigs. I use the #3 long eye in mine and I am not worried about pulling out. The eyes are flared on the end so they should hold well. I think alot depends on how thick your jig is. In a Do-It fluttter jig the jig has a thru wire that isn't twisted closed and they hold up real well. But they need the thru wire as the jig is thin. Mine is a bit thicker. Also I used wheel weight lead for mine. I will be trying them on Halibut this summer. I hope to land a 100+ pounder (or maybe 200)on one of mine.

I already have the PVC bought for the taller cups so it will be easy to cut them. I hve a bigger than usual Aquarium pump so I hope I have enough air. If not I guess they make bigger ones. Like I said this will mainly be for a base color and possibly a UV blast coat. The accent colors will be with the powder paint airbrush.

Thanks Andy I figured you might have some good advice. I will try both of those. Thanks. I have some jig holders from TJ's tackle for my small ice fishing jigs. Have you ever tried making one for bigger jigs like this? I guess it could be as simple as a couple pieces of angle iron and a couple of vice grips. That way any excess painy runs down the hook shank where it is more easily removed. Curious of your thoughts on this.

I use the protec super glow powders. They do glow the base color. I have the white, blue, orange, and green. I like them. I bought mine by the pound from TJ's Tackle.

The plan I have is to do the base color in the fluid bed then the accent color/colors with the spray gun. White with a green or blue back are a couple of popular patterns up here.

I have considered the rectangular fluid bed. The problem is the fluidizing plate I have is only 8"x8". So I would have to splice two pieces together. I worry the joint may be a problem area for the paint to fluidize properly over the whole length of the jig. That and the whole idea of fluidizing that much paint in general. If I do make a rectangular one I may have a buddy with a good wood shop make the base and router in some channels so the plate will just slide in . I don't know for sure more to think about I guess. I think at least for starters I will flip and dip. Thanks for the advice.

So last year I made some 24oz Hilts Big Mojo Bullet head jigs. They are a standard in my area for Halibut and Lingcod in the saltwater. This year I also plan to make some 16oz versions of the same thing. The problem I have is the flat part on the back of the jig holds too much powder paint on them when I dip them in my fluid bed kinda like a shelf. The jigs are too large to quickly dip and tap off the excess like I would on a smaller jig. The fish didn't mind and neither did I really but I want to make some of these for coworkers and friends of mine and I would like them too look a little nicer without the paint runs. This might also save me a little paint. I may try not dipping them in as far to try and get less paint on the back of them but it is difficult to get just right. I would prefer to continue using the fluid bed and powder paint as the jigs are a bit large for the hobby sandblaster spray gun I have but I am open to suggestions. Any other ideas?

So I am going to make my fluid bed with Vibration (there is another thread on this in this forum) and I got to thinking about how deep to make my cups. I have some 8" tall cups now and they work pretty good. My new jigs are butterfly style and the longest one is 10 and 1/2 inches long. The question I have is should I make my cups 12" tall and dip once or stick with my 8" length but dip the jig halfway then flip it and dip the other half ? I was thinking I would use less paint dipping half then flipping and have a reduced risk of getting too much paint on the jigs. If I make the taller cups the bottom of the jig may be in the paint too long and get too much paint on that half. The jigs have a stainless #3 eye on each end and I have bent some tig welding wire so I have some hooks with handles to use for the dipping process. So I would dip ~half then put another hook tool in the other side remove the first tool and quickly dip the other half. Any thoughts/ideas on this?

I have and use the Protec super glow powders. The blue, green, white, and orange glow. They all seem to glow the color of the powder for me. The blue and green don't seem to glow as bright as the orange and white do for me but they all do glow. Now vinyl paints never seem to glow the paint color. They always glow the standard glow.

Yup slow for me as well. I am all for a small fee for site upkeep if it would makes things better.

A lot of times people figure the cost of materials but forget to add in some $ for their time. Then they find out they are making minimum wage or less for all this time making stuff. They also often forget things like the time and expense of smelting old wheel weights or other cheap lead sources. Those free tire weights you may have are not exactly free as they do not turn themselves into ingots. Also anytime spent making jigs is less time spent with family,friends or doing our favorite hobbies such as fishing.

I would have to agree with what others have said. It is not what they are willing to pay but what you are charging. Figure out your cost add a small profit and that is your price. If they want what you sell for your price then make the order. If not then it wasn't worth it to them or you. When you order supplies they don't ask what you want to pay. The catalog or website has a set price and you can accept it and order or go elsewhere. If the quality or service is lacking then you can make the decision on whether or not you will continue to deal with that vendor. I don't always order from the cheapest vendor. Service and quality make a difference to me and those things cost them more money. Set your ow price and stick to it. Is it really worth it to break even just to sell a few jigs?

It's called fluidizing plate. I recently bought some on EBAY. Check out this thread. http://www.tackleunderground.com/community/index.php?/topic/25695-fluid-bed-plate-source/

I haven't had time to test it I am out of town for work right now but I will before I get to using it. I do have a hardness test kit for rocks (wifes an agate collector) I can use to help me figure it out as well. Thanks guys for the reminders about ways to test it. I should have remembered those when he dropped it off.

Thanks guys I kind of figured I should flux them anyway. I have plenty of wax and it is easy to do. Since I have no way of knowing what alloy they are I will most likely blend them with some of the wheel weights.

So a coworker of mine recently brought me some lead to use. We made a deal where I will make him some Halibut fishing sinkers with his share of the lead and I can use my share for whatever I want on a 50-50 split. If I make him some jigs I will certainly get more of the lead for my costs and time. There are about 100 pounds of wheel weights and also some large lead ingots. The lead ingots are large and attached together in 3 groups of 5 and one group of 4 ingots. He apparently bought them off of craigslist a few years ago. The ingots are marked Doe Run. I am assuming this means they came from the Doe Run mine in Missouri. So I suppose they made these out of pure lead. Is that correct? Also at what ratios should I mix these with the wheel weights? I have made lots of ingots before from wheel weights and lead pipe etc. I just have never seen the mine ingots before. I suppose I should flux them with beeswax like I do my other lead but is it really neccessary on these larger mine ingots? Thanks guys.

Yes I believe all Tyvek whether its mailing envelops,chemical suits,or housewrap is made from layers of spun fibers.

I guess the key is to find what works for you and use that method. If Tyvek solves your problems with your problem colors then use it. I sure hope it solves some issues for you. I am going to try fluidizing plate on my next batch of fluid bed cups. The stuff I bought on EBAY and cut up into circles. This is mainly to prevent making a mess when painting larger jigs in the event one gets dropped in the fluid bed. A hole in your filter media does indeed make a mess.lol Other than a couple of hard bottom cups from Barlows I have been using vaccumm cleaner bag material on the cup bottoms using the test caps and that has worked real well for me with the exception of the one ripped bottom I had. I only make stuff for myself and friends so I don't do large runs of one color so I like to have multiple cups handy with different colors. I will remember to try the Tyvek in the future if I have problem powders. Thanks for the info.

Glad to hear you got this problem powder figured out. I have read mixed reviews on using Tyvek. Some say it isn't layered evenly so it doesn't spread the air out as evenly as a perfectly flat fluid bed media does. Obviously it worked well for you. Do you find a benefit to gluing on the filter material vs using the test caps to secure it?

That is basically what i was already trying to do. I had trouble getting the edges completly painted though. And if the jig wasn't quite hot enough the heat gun blew the powder right off of some of them. I do like Cadmans idea of using lacquer thinner to remove the little bit of uncured paint that gets on the back of the jig after tapping on the paint with a brush. Seems like the most logical solution so far anyway. I will post on my results after the first when I get time to get some more made.

I got the springs and I have had the vibratory motors for awhile now. I bought all the other parts I need including a small piece of Aluminum plate for the base from Home Depot. Unfortunately i have been busy with holiday stuff and family matters so have not found the time to get mine assembled. I did find time to make a few icefishing jigs and the same colors that give me trouble in my taller cups were not that bad in short cups. I do think the springs I ordered are going to work good. The conical springs I ordered from Grainger are 1x0.975. Good luck on your vibratory fluid bed. I will keep you updated awhen I get mine assembled and tested. I won't be home until January 1st so sometime after that i will try to find time to get this done.