Big Epp

Welcome! Check out the Hard Baits section of this site, as many of these questions are addressed there in depth. Start there, and bring up more questions as they come up or you find gaps in the information.

Looks kinda like it. Never held one though. Or seen one at the store in real life. So maybe I'm not the best source on this...

Welcome to the hobby! After you get a lure carved out, line tie and hook hangers in place, and lip added, it's a great idea to test swim it before you paint it. Seal it with either super glue, poly, epoxy, or some other sort of waterproof sealer. This will also give you a smoother base to paint on. As for paint, I think many paints work. It's the final top coat that holds it together, protecting both the paint and the lure in general. I started with spray paints, have used brushes on acrylic paint, airbrushed water based paints, and even used nail polish. Each medium has strengths and weaknesses. Airbrushes are nice and provide the easiest medium for blending colors, fading colors, and adding fine detail. Most people use epoxy for the top coat because of its strength and durability, as well as relative easy of use and accessibility. Other top coats work. Like paints, each option has strengths and weaknesses.

No worries! I bet it was quiet up there for a while. Finally made it up there this past September. First time up in over 10 years! I got some nice smallies and a mid pike on a homemade wake'n'crank, and put my kids and wife on some decent fish too. My wife got a 17" smallies, which is her PB. It's definitely building season again. We had a gentle fall, but are frozen solid now.

I was thinking a large brass bead might help with that. The internet says it's difficult but possible...could you solder (or epoxy) in a metal rattle chamber?

I looked up "lake Erie flutter spoon," and while I did not see any quite like those, many of the ones I saw had a pronounced eye spot right where those holes are. Northland tackle makes a buckshot spoon, and the red eye has those beads, maybe you could add different beads for eyelike flash and some extra rattle? I love the idea of adding some sort of light, maybe a bright glow bead?

I'm not familiar with this supplier, but would a powder coat like this work?