Base coat and epoxy for repaint of rapala dt

[deweyh04]

What is the best type and brand for the base coat and top coat when repainting rapala dt. Also what brand and type of paint would you use in a air brush to paint the dt. also do you brush on the base and top coat or use the air brush. Has you know I know nothing about painting fishing lures . This site is great and I would appreciate any help. Thanks

[BobP]

Createx is good and is the brand most often carried by hobby stores. I also like Smith Wildlife colors, which I order on the internet. Google the brand for sources. The color basecoat I use is simply white acrylic airbrush paint, sprayed over the waterproofing coat. The brand is no big deal to me - I just use a white that is described as "highly pigmented" and may have a name like "Cover White" or "Superhide". You can also use Apple Barrel flat white thinned with water and shot through your brush if you have a large size tip available. It's cheap hobby acrylic paint you can buy at most hobby stores. Hobby acrylics can be used in an airbrush if they are thinned with water to the consistency of milk and if your airbrush has a tip big enough to handle them. Their pigment particles are larger than airbrush paint and they don't contain flow enhancers but they come in a wide range of colors. Airbrush paint is easier to use, runs through an airbrush with fewer clogs but is also more expensive. After painting baits awhile, most guys move toward using airbrush paint only. A bottle of airbrush paint lasts a long time since you use tiny amounts of it at a time, so buying the best isn't actually very expensive. After applying the waterproofing coat (aka primer, undercoating, etc), everything I do is with an airbrush until I brush on the epoxy clearcoat.

Edited January 5, 2009 by BobP

[red sox 58]

I really like model masters paint but you have to thin it way down. I recently picked up a bottle of Cretex airbrush paint and like it also.