paint adhesion

[RayburnGuy]

When repainting baits with a smooth body I just rough up the existing paint job with sandpaper to make sure the new paint will adhere to the old finish. A friend is wanting me to repaint some baits that have a textured finish. It has a diamond hatch pattern etched into the body of the bait. I assume to resemble scales. If I use sandpaper to rough up the finish it will damage the textured surface of the bait. What can I do to make sure the new paint will stick to the old without damaging the textured surface? I'm using Createx water base paint if that makes a difference.

thanks guys,

RayburnGuy

[diemai]

@ RayburnGuy

I have recently refurbished a plastic lure , that I had accidentally recovered from it's wet grave from under a bridge .

As it had water inside , I had to get off all paint to find out , where the leak was , .....I have used my "Dremel" with a very fine grade bristled brass brush chucked , it was time consuming , but I got most paint off , down to the plastic .

On some spots only down to the primer , as I did not brush too hard not to overheat finally and damage the scale texture .

Only roughening up this way should still be easier and less dangerous for the texture , I guess ?

That particular lure is somewhere amongst my recent gallery uploads , I guess , ....I had plated it with aluminium tape to additionally close the small leaks at the seam between the two plastic halves .

good luck:yay: , diemai

[BobP]

Depends on the lure. On most, I think you'll be fine lightly sanding with 400 grit and giving it a washdown. I've never had a problem with paint adhesion on lures with 3D features (the uneven surface actually helps adhesion) but you have to be aware that acrylic paint and the topcoat will tend to fill in fine patterns. If it's something with pronounced relief, like a Diamond Shad rattlebait, sanding isn't going to help much. You might consider getting some Bulldog Adhesion Promoter. My basic attitude is that a finish will hold up as long as the topcoat does but won't last long if it doesn't. You aren't in much danger of water infiltration on a plastic bait, so they tend to be even more durable.

[RayburnGuy]

Yes BobP, it definitely has a "pronounced relief". The bait is an Xcalibur One Knocker that has the diamond pattern etched into the body of the bait. That's why I didn't want to try sanding it. Seems to me that any sanding at all would only damage the relief pattern. Think I'll give bait a good scrubbing and then give the Bulldog Adhesion Promoter a try.

thanks guys,

RayburnGuy

[68KingFisher]

Thats when something like a Soda blaster would come in handy.....I've looked a few of my baits that had a heavy relief pattern cut into the sides and wondered how i'd prep them....let us know what you end up doing.

[Frank]

Use a skuff pad to get in all the details as well as the entire bait. These are available from an automotive paint store. 3M makes a gray green colored one that is exellant for this aplication. These pads put very fine scracthes in the surface and will get in all the details. If you can get a product called sand fix from the same place it is grit in a paste form that you can use with the scuff pad wet. Dip the pad in water squeeze a little sand fix and then rub on the entire bait. Rinse well and you will be ready to paint. Bulldog will work well only if the surface is prepared right. There are other colors of pad that will be available like red gold white but the gray green is the best for this.

[RayburnGuy]

Thanks Frank. A friend had also suggested using the scuff pads. The paste with the grit in it sounds good as well. I know the scuff pads are available locally so I will give them a try before ordering the Bulldog. thanks again.............

[KB Tackle]

You can slightly roughen with steel wool or scrubbing pad. I've had excellant results using Krylon Fusion Primer (rattlecan) holds up great. Works so good thought about trying on a bait without roughening.

[Borch]

I use the Kylon Fusion without sanding repaints of plastic baits and have yet to have a paint failure.