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Hello fellow rod builders. I’ve built 5 rods with no complications, except poor top coat results on my custom painted reel seats. I’ve tried a couple spray can top coats, all advertised as “durable” for outdoor use. I put masking tape on one last night and it peeled the paint and topcoat off. Any ideas or suggestions? Here my process. I lightly sand the seat with a scotch bright pad, clean with acetone, let it dry, prime with createx auto air auto borne sealer, allow it to dry to recommendation, paint with createx water based paint, 2-3 coats, allow to dry, then top coat 3x with recommended procedure on the spray can. I’ve noticed there is zero durability, scratches and peels off easily. Cant find any info online? Asked the manufacture of the reel seat and they recommended spar urethane, which I tried and it was the worst I tried. I would assume automotive top coat, but don’t have a good set up for that . Any one have any experience with this?

Who out there sands before each additional coat of KBS. Is sanding necessary between coats?

Wassup Guys!!! Sorry I have been MIA for a while. Got a new job and had a little girl a few years ago so time has not been spent in the shop. I recently got back out and building again so I am trying to see what the latest is on the all purpose, do it all, dippable, one coat, dries rock hard in 5 min no turner needed brilliant UV stable top coat. OK now that that is out of my system... I am fully aware that the best finish is purely subjective and probably never going to be found. Thus, I am looking to see whats the latest on top coats. From what i can dig up its basically still the same from 3 years ago... Epoxy, DN/MCU or in some cases concrete sealer. Well I have tried DN 4 times and never could get it to last even with utilizing all the bloxygen methods so I am kinda fed up with that stuff. Epoxy even decuopages have all cracked and failed over time and so it will kill me to finish a bait knowing it only has a few years to live. My go to 3 years ago was 2 part auto clear but now with California restrictions on VOC I cannot get the good stuff anymore! I went goodies shopping a last week and bought 2 concrete sealers to test. One is lacquer based and one is Acrylic xylene based. From my tests they both react to water based paints but very differently. The acrylic one is temperamental and if you do a good heat treat and put the createx top coat on it will be ok, but the lacquer is opposite if you use the top coat it tends to crack and react more. Both seem to produce a very hard finish but it seems both are prone to worm burn. Other than DN, Epoxies and Auto clear what finishes are not susceptible to worm burn? I still have my lure turner I can go back to epoxy if I have to but I know there is something I can buy in CA that is a better option. Also, I never liked water based finishes because they all seemed to turn white and soft if there is prolonged water exposure like leaving them on rain soaked deck. Maybe putting a final layer of polycrylic over a concrete sealer may work for the worm burn though? Advise and suggestions welcome...actually I am begging for them! Cheers, Matt

Looking to match a lure top coat on some spinnerbaits. I think it is a white base coat. Then a clear with a neon green and blue super fine glitter suspended giving it a holographic effect. I will be applying ot the body and blades I can't find a color chart for the Pro-Tec Glitter Top Coat. I can brush liquid or dip powder since I am only doing a few one offs. I will be matching this on twin willow leafs with a custom Silicone Pearl/Blk Flake Blue Tint Holographic skirt. The idea is for our western clear water lakes that have shad. The bass seems to respond to white willow leafs and ghost/holographic baits. Thanks in advance for any help.

I have heard of this Solarez. I am looking to get started in our making and trying to find the cheapest way out on everything that will also produce the best product for the price. I have heard this stuff does really good. So my question to everyone is what exactly is it, how is it applied/used, where to get it, price and how is the product?

I finally fixed the order problem for you guys! I built a new order page for TackleUndergrounders! No more of the old, "send an email, wait for a response and for me to pack the order and weigh it so I can send you a PayPal invoice, wait for a response, me get the payment, write up the order in the computer, put the shipment into the UPS software, print the label, and ship the order all while you wait again" process... Trust me, I appreciate the hassle it has been for all of you, and I assure it has been no cake-walk here either... Well, it's all fixed, in place, and ready to roll! Now, you simply go to the site, click "Add to Cart" for the items you want, enter your information for PayPal, click "Check Out" and it automatically gives you your approximately 65% discount, figures the shipping (using a flat $10 rate now - I'll eat whatever more it is in order to expedite this process), takes your payment, and sends the order directly to my shipping department! Orders should ship the next business day from now on! Here's the link to the new order page - it's the same as the old link: http://www.dicknite.com/TU_Lander.htm You might want to bookmark it, make it a favorite, or whatever it is called in your browser, because it is not accessible from the main web site. It is only for TackleUnderground members and their friends and families! You are still getting the same price large-scale manufacturers get. It's in the neighborhood of 65% off of retail. The prices listed on the site include the discount, so there are no codes to put in, or hoops to jump through. Since you are going there from TU, I know you are legit! I plan on adding a few things to it in the future, like clicking on each paint color and having it pop up a window with information about it, MSDS sheet downloads, and the like, but for now, this is going to solve the biggest problem we have had - you having to wait for this fat old-guy to catch up enough to get the orders processed manually! I really want to thank you all for your patience over the past several years. You have been more than generous with your understanding and I can't express how much that has meant to me. TackleUndergrounders are the absolute best customers I have! Thanks again, Dick