quickdraw

Setup an account on photobucket.com and upload your photos there then just click the image link and paste where you want it. Very simple and full size photos instead of thumbnails.

That's the flashlight I bought. I posted it 1 page back.

On the pins I drill the holes slightly smaller than the pin so they already have a snug fit. I can use any kind of filler but lately I've been fitting the pins to the exact length and put a dab of superglue on them when I slide the last 1/4" in. Clearcoat over the top. I like thid because if I need to disassymble in the future it's easy to see the pin and drive it out with a punch. Screw eyes is a dab of superglue on the threads before they go in and again they are in before paint and clearcoat.

That's why I went with the flashlight I found on Amazon. It has 51 LED bulbs in it and cures the Solarez quickly. I hope the UV LED's last as long as normal LED's do. In any case for $13.55 I figured it was cost efficient enough to give this stuff a try. Most of the time like today when I was doing some repair work I'll just take the swimbait out into the sun to cure and with the sun here in the desert SW it is very fast. On the 2 - 3 days a year that we don't have sun I'll just plan to be fishing.

They never replied to my Email but then I got tracking info so I bet that is the replacement order. I ordered right off of the link on the 1st page but there is no way that this is a low odor formula. I always put my lures on a lure turner and apply the finish as they turn. With this finish I'll put my UV light on 1 side at a time so they will slow cure and maybe get a more clear finish, I hope. Once they are somewhat set I'm move the turner into the sunlight and let them spin for 10-15 minutes which should finish them off. All of my swimbaits are in the 9" to 14" range. Big Stripers aren't very toothy but they definately abuse their prey. I would think that several thin coats would be stronger and more durable in any case.

I got my Solarez yesterday and it arrived leaking inside and outside the bag the bag as others have posted. I sent an Email yesterday but no reply. I also ordered a UV flashlight http://www.amazon.com/LEDwholesalers-Ultraviolet-LED-flashlight-7202UV395/dp/B001Q70A0G/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1351907809&sr=8-2&keywords=uv+light and decided to try it a bit on a small tough-up job in a hinge area of a 2 piece swimbait. This is so much easier to use in these tight areas that normally get gummed up with the other topcoats because I could use a brush to cover the area and slowly move the joint while the UV light setup the Solarez. In the past I needed to use a pick to try to scrape off the cured topcoat and would many times poke through it into the wood or chip off a piece and cause a leak. I also use small pins to hold on the rubber tails and then need to seal over the pin head, once again this works great in this application. I also bought a weinnie so no more wood putty for me on wood touch up. I can use this on my wood and poured resin swimbaits. This should work great as a topcoat and I will need to finish a complete swimbait to see. It's definately easier and faster to use but it has a strong and potent smell, my previous topcoat was almost odorless. I can deal with that though.

This could be some good stuff right here. I'll stay tuned for the final word or a few weeks before I need to order more CC

It looks like you may be confusing wire diameter with screw length. 13/16" is a common screw length.

Amazon has bunchs of them in different sizes. Mason is a type of jar probably named that because they started making them first. Ball seems to be the big player in them nowadays.

I've been using Alumilite HS2 for my molds and it works good for the big baits that I use. It captures details well and no bubbles. I wish it set faster but such is the life of a lure maker.

I use one like the one you posted just to reference and send me in the right direction when mixing.

The 4 I built so far sat for a few days and then after I painted them I hung them in the sun for a day. Here in the Mojave that was 114* in the shade so these should be OK. Thanks for the heads up though. I'll keep that in mind for future builds.

I used the Alumilite powder brushed into the mold and it comes out OK and durable but you can't real do any detail work. I put a sprayed only piece in the pool for about 16 hours and the heat-set paint stayed on well. Rubbing it with my finger didn't take it off but rubbing with my fingernail peels it right off. After it dried off it was just like before it went in the pool, tough and can't be easily scraped off. So I determined that it still needs some kind of protectant topcoat to protect the paint although not the swimbait body as it's resin. A rattle can spray with a poly might be enough to do that but I did a single coat of 2 part epoxy topcoat. It looks great and should be very durable. These new resin swimbaits came out even better than I hoped. They have great action. Now instead of 2 hours of wood work it is a 30 minute pour process. Assembly is the same but no sealing the wood and wait to dry and off gas, the base coat and wait to dry and off gas. Final painting is the same but with only 1 coat of epoxy and not worrying about all of the tight joint areas getting gummed up and cleaned out it goes much faster. Before a build might take 4 days with the wait time for paint and epoxy, now I could start a new swimbait in the morning and be fishing it tomorrow. No blow-ups either.

I took 1 of my jointed swimbaits and made a mold using Alumilite HS2 and poured their 2 part white resin. I painted few today using some Com-Art and Createx acrylics, heat set them and hung them in our 112* heat for a few hours. How would the paint hold up if I didn't topcoat them? Because these aren't wood I only need to protect the paint so is the 2 part Epoxy I normaly use really needed?

I use Basswood. It is like a heavier Balsa. http://www.nationalbalsa.com/default.asp

I put my eyes on before I topcoat so they will have at least 2 coats over them and they don't pop off. Right now I'm repainting a swimbait and I use draftsman's masking tape to cover them. It's very flexible and sticks well even around the edges.

And what we've found is that the choice of a topcoat is purely subjective. My first post was pretty much right on target. Most aren't UV stable and the one's that are have other drawbacks. It's just a matter what each of us will put up with based on our needs.

I turn big plugs for Stripers, 1 1/2-2" x 6-10" so I know what your talking about. It is very easy to leave them .1 or so over and then just use a foam sanding block to finish the to final size on the lathe. It's easy to take down.

I decided to go with the Iwata-Medea Eclipse HP CS Dual Action Airbrush Gun / Gravity Feed. I like my other Iwata airbrush and this one is a step up. Thanks for everyone's input.

I just ordered some Target EM9300. I'm still skeptical about it as a Topcoat but it is worth the price to check it out. Either way I can still use it as a basecoat sealer if nothing else. My current sealer is a 2 part epoxy and it would be nice to be able to use a 1 part waterbased sealer. when I get it I'll seal a piece of basswood, cure it and throw it in the pool for a few days.

I ordered a bottle of this to start using on my hardware. Thanks

I already have a Iwata Media Revolution with a .5mm nozzle/needle (http://www.amazon.co...ils_o06_s00_i00). It is great for spraying all of my base and background paints but desn't cut it for finer details like fins, gills and spoting. I am looking at an Iwata Media Eclips HP CS with a .35mm needle/nozzle and need help to decide if this will do a good detail job for me (http://www.amazon.co...d=ATVPDKIKX0DER). Most of what I'm shooting is either Com Art or Creatix acrylic airbrush paints. Thanks for the help.

No problem, I'm sorry about my tone. I did take a plug and hang it outside yesterday to put it through a UV nightmare. We have a UV rating of 10 everday here so it shouldn't take long to see what is going to happen. I put a piece of tape over 1 area to get an area that shouldn't change. I would guess a week in direct sunlight, 12-14 hours a day without any water to filter the rays should equal close to a years use. I'll check it every week or so and if it is slow yellowing I may give it a month.

From what I can find the Nu-Lustre 55 isn't UV stable but the Nu-Lustre 57 is UV resistant and is used for marine use. http://www.swingpain.../1557us_can.htm

Doing a little research I found this posted here last year.