Good Fishing

Chartreuse with a red core has been my favorite for years.

Just confirming our plastisol is indeed sourced from Calhoun's. Matt Barlow

This is most likely a plain black base coat with a pearl or metallic airbrush paint sprayed on top of it using a scale stencil pattern.

We stopped carrying this tool around 3 years ago because we rarely, if ever, received them from the manufacturer. Matt Barlow Barlow's

Are you wanting a finished lure or a cedar body?

We've mixed plastisols from most of the well-known retailers without issue. Hardener is the best way to go, but only because it will require less to achieve the stiffness you want. Test mixing small amounts of special formulas like sinking, bounce, or stretch plastisols. They'll most likely still blend fine, but some may have different base ingredients or may include additives that could cause issues.

Check out the Stardust powder paints available from us and other retailers. There are a number of camo type colors that may be close to what you want. Stardust is different from powder paint - it creates a thicker, rubber-like coating - but we've been impressed with the colors and the application process is similar to powder paint.

Createx makes a great line of Wicked pearlized and color shift (they call them "Flair" colors) paints. We've haven't had any customers indicate they've had issues spraying them.

We'd be happy if we could just get him to stop buying Beanie Babies on eBay. We keep telling him the '90s are over!

Happy to be here, and we're grateful to LPO (the owners of this forum) for allowing us to participate. Not many competitors would tolerate that, and it speaks volumes to their commitment to the craft. And thanks to all of you for the engagement. Over the years you've helped us identify ways to improve our service, suggested products that have sold well, and been an incredible resource to us and our customers. We try to stay engaged here and on other forums, though it's sometimes tough to keep up with everything, especially during the busy season. You can always email me at mattbarlow@barlowstackle.com or call at 972-231-5982 with any questions or needs.

This is correct. Unfortunately, with mail order it's simply not possible for us to make much, if any, profit on orders below $15. We run a very streamlined business, but even small orders have to pass through at least 2 to 3 people before they're out the door. Larger organizations can afford to simply take the hit on small orders (or they haven't done the analysis to determine if it's profitable), but we're small (around 15 employees) and plan on staying that way, so we have to be more diligent on issues such as this. We recognize this is frustrating, but we do try to be upfront and honest about it. We're also always looking for ways to better serve all of you, so if we can identify a way to fulfill smaller orders without losing money on every one, we'll certainly make it an option. Matt Barlow

We have them back in stock. Available in 25, 100, and 1000 count packs.

I've poured Do-It Essentials plastisol and MF's plastisol a lot over the years (we sell lots of both). Both are great products. I recommend the Essentials to all our beginners. It heats very clear and has a great medium consistency. At times, I've had some sitting on the shelf for nearly a year without any hard packing. I have found it to be slightly more prone to yellowing when heated repeatedly than MF plastisol. I suspect that's a function of the amount of stabilizer in the mix, but I don't have any evidence to back that statement up.

MF has been unable to source one of the key components in their Motor Oil color. Last we spoke with them, they were still working on reformulating it, but hadn't come up with anything they were happy with. We haven't found any alternatives that are very close to MF's version.

We've found a medium grind will discolor less and affect consistency less than a powder grind. You could also try sandblast beads, which won't affect color at all.

If this is the new Victory 6317, our understanding is there most likely won't be more available until November.

Looks more like hi-lite blue than violet to me, but it could go either way.

Great solve for a somewhat common problem.

Always happy to help!

Andrew, Based on our test, the 291 will work in Do-It Mold SRH-6-A. It's not a perfect fit -- see the attached image -- but, at worst, you might have leakage around the hook eyes. Size-wise, here's what we think will work in each cavity: Size 2 - 1/16, 1/8 Size 1 - 1/8 (better fit than size 2), 3/16, 1/4 Size 1/0 - 5/16, 3/8 (3/8 is a little tight) Hope this helps.

This is my personal, highly unscientific opinion, but, having fished both a lot, I find that the blades with bubble holes (we call them "turbo" blades) have a sharper, tighter hunt pattern than the non-bubble hole blades. I prefer the wider, slower hunt of the standard blades, but we sell lots of both.

Did you have any trouble applying the Createx with a brush, or was there much of a learning curve? We've had a number of customers ask about doing this, but it's something I haven't gotten around to trying.

Look for non bleed liquid colors. They're typically made with pigment (instead of dye), so they're more opaque. Generally speaking, they also don't bleed like some dye-based colors will (hence the name).

Do-It's CNC Ripper mold is available in 2" and 2.5"

Having multiple sales channels can help ensure steady revenue/growth. It's what's kept us in business for so many years. At the same time, retail is a very different beast from selling online. Leasing/owning property, inventory management, staffing, etc, are all tremendously time-consuming. If you're considering going down this path, just be very deliberate in identifying what you expect to get out of it. More sales? If so, is opening a retail location the best path to achieving your business goals, or would you be better off focusing on growing your online business? Or do you simply love the in-person interaction with other passionate fishermen? If that's the case, you may find better exposure and business opportunities attending shows, etc. Crunch the numbers, then crunch them again. Be realistic and very conservative about your revenue expectations. Be very leery of debt -- it kills lots of businesses. Finally, think about where you want to be in 5 years. Changing trajectories is much easier with an online business than a retail location. Best of luck, whichever path you decide to pursue.