Extex problem!

[BrettAC23]

Im having a problem with etex I hope you guys can help me sort out! I mix the parts by weight and stir well using a paint brush handle. I get good coverage and usually only put on one coat. Everything looks good but after some time the clear coat gats some big nasty cracks in it! I can post pis if you need to see. Im using wasco water pased paints. Anyone else have this problem and if so how did you fix it?

[thogan6]

I have found that e tex cures almost to hard and does not stand up to the challenge of devcon 2 ton. 2 coats of devcon over createx paint is what i use. You can try this though with e tex mix very well for about 5 min then put it in the freezer for 20 min then apply it cold I know it sounds silly but it will make it a little more plyable and crack less!!!

[A-Mac]

I've always mixed e-tex by volume using syringes. I've had no problems yet.

[whittler]

Mix by volume and mix thoroughly, when all else fails follow directions.

[BobP]

I've never heard of this particular problem. You didn't say how long it was before the epoxy cracked. If the epoxy is hard but cracks before you use the lure, there may be something wrong with the batch or you may be doing something during mixing/application to cause it. But what usually causes epoxy to crack on a bait is the lure body swelling for some reason, most often because it has absorbed water during fishing. Like any domed surface, epoxy on a lure resists outside pressure much better than it can resist pressure from inside.

[jameso321]

volume! the parts to etex do not have the same density

also, buy a new batch of etex just in case you are using bad etex

Edited September 17, 2009 by jameso321

[Lure--Prof]

I have found that e tex cures almost to hard and does not stand up to the challenge of devcon 2 ton. 2 coats of devcon over createx paint is what i use. You can try this though with e tex mix very well for about 5 min then put it in the freezer for 20 min then apply it cold I know it sounds silly but it will make it a little more plyable and crack less!!!

If your Etex is too hard, you aren't mixing equally by volume. Etex mixed correctly, and this is one of its advantages, has some give to it, and is much less prone to cracking than Devcon and other harder curing epoxies. This has long been established on TU, (and other sites) by many lure builders over many years, and is one of the reasons that it is a favorite coating of many Muskie lure builders. Its resistance to cracking is one reason why I've used it for years as a seal coat for many balsa lures, although I still will use a harder curing epoxy if a very small and thin flatside lure needs some added stiffness.

I've never had E-tex develop big nasty cracks as Brett describes so I suspect that Whittler and others are right on the money with their advice to measure precisely by volume, as per Envirotex's directions, and not weight. And like BobP says, expansion caused by water swelling will also crack epoxy coatings. That he has never had this problem suggests that this is caused by unequal volumes, as in more hardener than resin. Thoroughly mixed using little too much resin results in an almost rubbery quality to the coating, that, while completely cured per se, never full hardens.

Dean

[woodieb8]

you have either not sealed your baits,,,or have not let the water based paints cure. its 1 of the 2.. remember to pre-drill all your screw hook holes and make sure the lip slot and eye holes are sealed.

[BrettAC23]

Sorry guys I guess I should have told you I was repeinting plastic baits. It seems to do it after the baits have been really hot. I thought maybe the baits themselves were expanding causing the problem. How many coats of etex do you guys usually put on your baits. Ive been trying to put it on really thin so I dont change the action of the bait. Thanks again for all your help.

[woodieb8]

ok. now i forsee another problem. some recycled plastics will not acept heats as others. theres a famous musky lure co that went this route. they expand when exposed to direct enclosed sunlight.. your baits must be very small to have the etex put on very lightly.. when painting lures by spray its only microns .

[mark berrisford]

I have found that e tex cures almost to hard and does not stand up to the challenge of devcon 2 ton. 2 coats of devcon over createx paint is what i use. You can try this though with e tex mix very well for about 5 min then put it in the freezer for 20 min then apply it cold I know it sounds silly but it will make it a little more plyable and crack less!!!

Had to go out this morning in the middle of coating some lures and remembering this post stuck the e-tex in the fridge till i came back,it was still usable 1/2 hour later and went on really well-thank's

[BrettAC23]

Here is a pic of my problem guys!

[BrettAC23]

PS I checked the bottles and I have used the same amount out of each bottle so I must be mixing equil amounts!

[mark poulson]

Brett,

It sounds to me like the plastic lure bodies are expanding when they get hot.

I've run into that with some brands of lures.

And with different paint schemes on the same brand of lures.

I have Spooks with a lot of different factory paint jobs on them, and one, a solid white and green frog scheme, has had the green part crack, exposing the white undercoat.

It may be that whatever paint you're useing doesn't allow a really good bond for the Etex, so it slips a little, but unevenly, when the lure heats and expands, and it cracks.

I found heat, not sunlight, makes this happen, which makes me think it's a heat expansion problem, and the cure is to keep your lures out of the heat.

I also found that stripping a lure whose finish has cracked down to bare plastic, and then repainting with Createx, followed by Etex, has solved the problem.

For wood lures, if you don't have the wood lure body totally waterproof before you paint, any water intrusion will doom your paint job and top coat.

Do a search here for waterproofing lures, and you'll find a whole slew of threads where we all put our heads together to try and get the best waterproofing for wood lures.