DingerBaits

You can epoxy the bills, you can dip them in auto clear, if you dip the whole bait with your clear (if you are using a moisture cure such as DN or KBS Diamond Clear) the baits will have a clear bill. I have also heard of people actually taking the time to polish the bills (similar to buffing).

I have had real Lucky Craft 1.5's and 2.5's blow up on me due to high heat and being in the sun. The way I look at it is the bait is a sealed chamber with air. As air gets hot it expands and needs some where to go. With the plastic also being hot it can only expand to a certain size before the seams burst.

No one is making Rock Crawlers, you can buy them from tackle warehouse as a clear color though. They actually have one that has no paint on it.

They should be here in a couple weeks. they do have a gill plate on them for a little depth. They are a 110 model so just over 4.25"

There will be soon.

I do have some. I can add them to the site when I get a count tonight. It has been a hectic few weeks and I am trying to keep up as best as possible.

9mm cut in half work from what I have been told.

MB has a patent application in for the bait. Bait was pulled by choice (for now). We will keep it at that

Check into Pad Printing Machines. A lot of big name suppliers will use those.

Helix 9 has been the new big seller with Humminbird for us. The down imaging will be an image similar to what your standard depth finder will read but it will be in much greater detail due to it using a different frequency than just the regular depth finder. Side imaging will show right and left sides of the boat showing more contours, picking up objects that you wouldnt be able to if you are just going in a straight line. You can only do the Side imaging at slower speeds, and if you have a dual frequency transducer for the SI you can get better images. Biggest issue with the Humminbird units is that you need to get a high speed transducer and a Y cable with each one. If you don't you will lose the picture if you travel over 20-25mph due to the transducer not being able to keep up. They are great units for the money, but do have their limitations.

What info do you need? I am in boat sales besides my lure business. I also used to be a Tech at the dealership I work at. Which Humminbird units are you looking at?

I will be honest, I can buy the same blanks BPS has and Cabelas has. They do have a few decent ones, but some are not as quality as others.

Baking soda blast them...

Biggest I have seen is Predators CBD20 and my D87 for deep diving larger cranks.

I had to paint up an ice fishing camera for a customer and used that as a clear. Used Testor's Aztek, and has held up. Unsure if I would use it to clear a bait though. Possibly bills to get the cloudiness out of them.

Joe, I may not be a true redneck, but I can jimmy rig darn near anything.... redneck baking soda blaster.... Air nozzle, small clear plastic hose. Cut slit in plastic hose, insert air nozzle tip into slit. Cut a 45 degree angle at the other end of the hose, stick it in a box of baking soda, hook up air nozzle to compressed air (I use 80-90 PSI), pull the trigger and let science do the rest....

Baking soda blast them with my redneck made blaster.

Suggestion, if there is a Hobby Lobby or Michaels by you, get the 40% off coupon and buy a decent gun. You can get a decent one for 50-100 with the coupon.

Use Daylight bulbs, I believe they are the 5K or 5700K bulbs. Makes a huge difference. I have a 4 strip T8 Fluorescent bulb (5700) fixture then 4 recessed lights with 5K bulbs in it. Colors look the way they should.

Some times I will cut the bait in half and do a stencil that way on the larger bodied ones.

I use Plano 3700 boxes for most up to 7mm, the long sheets of eyes I actually use a binder with clear plastic page protector sheets that I can slide the eyes in

I am not going to lie, this forum is like beating a dead horse. People will order from only who or what they know. I would rather choose quality over cost. All I know is that Predator, Unpainted, Dakota, Get Bit, and Dinger have great quality. I don't mean to leave any suppliers out, I just haven't ordered from any others or if they weren't mentioned, i have ordered from them and don't think quality is in their vocabulary.

Muskie fishermen are a different breed.... Coming from a guy who knows a lot of them.... Big bucks for big baits and a sore shoulder from all the casts.... Welcome to the TU.

I am a huge fan of Testors Aztek, very little thinning if any, flows nice though my Eclipse HP-CS at very low air pressures. I do still use Createx and Auto-Air for some colors, I got away from Com-Art due to the lack of consistency in the paint.