Bois d'Arc

Just wondering what, if anything, others do to prepare a plastic lure blank for painting? I'm speaking about sanding, cleaning with alcohol, dipping in solvents, washing with soap.....whatever is done before the first paint is sprayed on the unpainted blanks. Thanks for any responses to this question.

Thanks for this information. It looks like 70 micron 220 grit composite media is about the equivalent that is used in a small blast cabinet. Always good info on this site.

What abrasive media are you using for plastic lure bodies? There are several types: maintenance, rust removal, etc. I'm thinking 150 micron maintenance media would be best.....hope its not too aggressive for plastic lures. Any info on this would help.

I tried the brake fluid method first. I put a few old Norman lures and a few newer Academy lures into a coffee can filled with brake fluid and then put the lid on the can. Two days later ...nothing on the Academy lures but the Norman lures were losing their clearcoat. At four days the Norman lures were almost ready the Academy lures were just beginning to lose the clearcoat. After a week the Norman lures were easy to clean...just wiped them with a clean paper towel and the paint came off. The Academy lures still had paint and clear that wouldn't come off. Ten days and the Academy lures were ready to be wiped down. There's still some kind of white film on the Academy lures. One of the Norman lures got soft and was ruined. With some practice this could work. Next up ....Soda Blasting. Gotta go to Northern and get the media everything else is good to go. More later

Ben ....Do you do standup comedy? If so let me know when you'll be in Dallas. at the patch comment so hard I spilled paint on my shoe! Good comedy!

Took Mark Poulson's suggestion and bought a pint of AC1315.....works great, no wrinkles or defects in the finish. So far 12 lures with two dips each and the finish on all of them looks great....not sure how many dips I should do?? Very nice, thanks to Mark for the tip on a great product .

Haven't used it yet but I will be buying a quart of AC1315 today. I saw your gallery photos (lures dipped in AC1315) and I'm convinced that I need to give it a try. Great paint patterns by the way!

Just when I thought I had it all worked out........I'm finding the Minwax Polycrylic undercoat has to be very...very....very dry or the topcoat stays soft and MCU/Concrete sealer will chip off. This isn't happening with the Pledge undercoat only Minwax...so far the Pledge then MCU/Concrete sealer is rock solid. Just sayin...

Outstanding responses here....I've been looking for a good way to strip old lures for months. I have an old blast cabinet and I think I'm gonna spend a few bucks on the eastwood gun bass100 referenced. Brake fluid method is already in process....thanks to Sonoman for the details. If I can't strip a bait with one of these two methods it's not worth the trouble.

I wonder what thisiscolossal (Keng Lye) gets for his work. It's awesome!

Good response Rickimaro....a little detail on what brake fluid does to a lure makes all the difference. I'm gonna soak a few plastic lures and see how it goes. Also looking at soda blasting to clean lures....anyone have any details on how well it works and what's needed to get started .....on a budget?

M&R.....good catch. M&R Lures is unpaintedlures.com

Sonoman........brake fluid removes clearcoat also? How does this work?

I've been using knockoff baits for a few years now. I paint my own patterns according to the lake's I'm fishing, the predominant forage and the season. Most of the lure blanks I use come from Dakota, Predator or M&N. I pick a blank I like and buy a test batch (2-3) before buying a bunch of them. If I like the action and overall quality I buy more, if they don't fish well I don't buy them. You really have to search for baits that fish well and you enjoy painting. If they work for you chances are pretty good they'll work for other fishermen. I have a guy who fishes tournaments and has friends who guide on local lakes that use some of my lures/patterns. I get honest feedback with tournament tested results from guides and serious fishermen. It helps me weed out the not-so-hot lures and paint patterns from the ones worth keeping....and make a few friends along the way. The folks on this forum are a great resource and have lots of experience at this stuff. Your on the right path, just find your groove and go with it. Hope this helps.

Have the same problem with that ice pearl color...love the color, hate the way it sprays.

G-Loomis spinning rod and Diawa spinning reel for me. I use light weight braid with a fluoro leader and about the only problem I ever have is wind knots in the line.....I like the braid since I fish in the sticks. I've pulled some very nice largemouth out of junk using light lures on this rig.

Let me know when you get the Excalibur Fat Free Shad KO's going.....I'll buy a truck load....small truck load !

What crankbait do you currently own and use to get below the 10 foot barrier?: LuckyCraft CB-12 & 20 KO's. Rapala DT-16 KO. Both get deep, have a different action, any pattern I can paint, and catch bass (I fish mostly for Largemouth bass.) What rod, reel, line do you use?: Depends on the situation....Shimano Curado 5:5:1 with 16 lb. Sunline fluoro on a MH action 7' BPS Crankin Stick when chunkin' 1/2 - 1 oz. lures. Casts a long way, gets deep. and has enough backbone to handle pretty good size fish. Shimano Curado 6:5:1 with 12 lb. Sunline fluoro on a M action 7' BPS Crankin Stick for 3/8 oz. or less lures. Same as the MH action....long casts, good depth, plenty of action with just enough backbone to pull fish out of the sticks. I fish around lots of timber and brush. These rigs also handle spinnerbaits very well.