barrysbaits Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 I know alot of you guys build your own fluid beds The discussions going back and forth are mainly about vocanoes and filters. My question is, If I buy one off the shelf from a supplier can I expect these same qwirks or will it be ready to run? Also, If I build my own, Do the suppliers offer replacement filters I could use in my construction? Barry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cadman Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 Barry, The only person I would recommend that makes and sells a good fluid bed right out of the box for a resonable price is TJ's Tackle. As far as his fluid bed having volcanoes, I can't answer that. Now if you are handy and want to make one I have plans I can send you. When you talk about the filters, these are attached to the bottom of the cups, so all you need to do is make several extra cups. Many guys use different filter media, because defferent media works better for different powder, with white powder being the heaviest. You will get more answers here shortly. As far as volcanoes go in your home made one, all you have to do is just swish the powder in the cup with a spoon and it will take care of the problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barrysbaits Posted September 14, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 Hey Cadman thanks for the info. I would really appreciate a set of plans. barrybatchelor73@gmail.com Thank you. Barry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jig Man Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 (edited) Cadman is the fluid bed guru. I personally am not very handy and was able to get everything at Wal Mart and Lowe's to build mine and had enough material for 12 cups. The total cost was about $30 and all I needed was a drill, some pliers and silicone. The filters mentioned can be made from lots of stuff. Mine are brown paper grocery bags, shop vac filters and coffee filters. Edited September 14, 2012 by Jig Man Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barrysbaits Posted September 14, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 Yeah pretty sure I'm going to build one from Cadmans plans. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grund-l Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 Cadman, can you also send your plans to jasonahartz@gmail.com? I have built a multiple bed version but am having problems with it.....i would like to see how you engineered yours if possible.....thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smalljaw Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 I took the easy way out and bought one from TJs tackle and that was quite a few years ago but it works fantastic and I may be wrong but I think he sells the the board filters he uses on his fluid bed. I can tell you that certain colors will give you volcano problems no matter what kind of bed but all you need to do is just grab the cup and give it a swish and dip, it takes an extra second to do and it will give you the nice even coverage you expect from a fluid bed. What happens is certain pigments are denser than others and the top layer only fluidizes in a few spots and that is what we call volcanos but the powder underneath is fluidized and just giving the cup a swish you will quickly see that the powder is nice and loose. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cadman Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 Guys I will e-mail the plans to you later on tonight, as I din't have them with me at work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cadman Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 Barry and Jason, I sent you e-mails with the fluid bed tutorials. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy1976 Posted September 16, 2012 Report Share Posted September 16, 2012 I powder coat a lot of big jigs and do many colors. I've found that cleaning the filter with a shop had keeps it to minimum. I can say sometimes that all colors seem to volcano for me. Usually fix it with a spoon and if it continues I clean my filter. I like candy powders both for looks and ease of application. I have the hard filters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...