A Newbie Loving The Info On This Forum

[ChilliSpoons]

Hey Guys and Gals,

I'm new to this plug painting thing and relatively new to painting spoons. It seems that every time I search online for info it constantly leads me back to you fine folks on Tackle Underground.

I've been airbrushing spoons for about a year and recently have started playing with used plugs from west coast commercial salmon trollers. Where I live in the South west corner of British Columbia my target species are Salmon in the ocean or the lakes for large Rainbow Trout and Dolly Varden.

Over the last couple of weeks I've read countless posts and have been very impressed with the knowledge and talent of contributing members. Equally as impressive is the willingness to share that knowledge without making the less experienced feel foolish.

And like many others I'm looking to find the perfect topcoat for my plugs and spoons. But I've read enough to know the perfect one, if it ever existed, is different for each individual.

My artistic ability is not even close to what I've seen here but I believe the detail required to catch my target species is less important. Plugs and spoons are generally trolled in depths from 30-150' and at speeds if up to 4mph. Water clarity and sunlight penetration defiantly is a constant issue.

My perfect topcoat needs to be........

1) relatively easy to use. I like easy

2) affordable. This is just a hobby.

3) durable. My plugs don't bounce off of boulders or get ripped through brush pile. I just want them able to bounce around a tackle box without getting damaged. Plus the Chinook Salmon have teeth too.

4) have a decent shelf life.

5) and my biggest concern is this........

The plugs I use are plastic and have all the mounting hardware removed. A small hole runs through the plug where the leader line slides through to a bead, a swivel and the hook. The trollers typically remove the hardware and prefer this setup. Should your line break the plug will float to the surface as the Salmon swims away with just the hook in his mouth.

To paint a plug or topcoat it I need to either hang from a wire or screw a hook into one of these holes. The screw hook is less desirable as it enlarges the hole more than I like. And after I topcoat it I would need to remove the wire and be able to have the hole clear.

Would the wire be epoxied into the hole? Could I heat the wire to remove it?

The plugs are Tomic.

Any ideas or suggestion????

Thanks,

Terry

[diemai]

@ ChilliSpoons

 

Welcome to the TackleUnderground , ......hope you'd enjoy yourself in here !

 

Years ago I've encountered a similar problem with some homemade Devon spinners consisting of aluminium square tubing , really no way of attaching a wire hook for hanging nor something to hold on whilst painting by hand brush .

 

Anyway , ....made myself a wooden square dowel to fit into the aluminium tubing real snug , this way I could hold it by the outer end of the dowel and also attach some wire to the dowel end to hang the painted and topcoated lure to dry.

 

The portion of the dowel positioned at the end(or the exit) of the aluminium tubing I had carved a bit thinner than the inner part , so that it would not touch up with the workpiece , impossible for paint or topcoat binding the aluminium tubing to the square dowel .

 

In a nutshell , ........probably you could use a wooden dowel to push into that hole through the bodies of your "Tomics"(I'm familair to that plug) , taper both ends of the dowel , but leave somekinda knob on the ends , so that you could wind some thin wire around for hanging and won't slide off .

 

The tapered ends serve the purpose , that the wooden dowel would not touch up with the exits of the bore not to bind with paint nor topcoat , as this might most likely ruin your work at this particular location when finally removing the insert .

 

BTW , .....I would not go with epoxy nor heat , as this might ruin your work , too , .......just a snug fitting insert with a relief on either end not to touch with the bore exits to avoid binding , ....a wooden dowel could be carefully and easily drilled out , in case it would be too hard to pull or push it out again .

 

Only drawback is , that the bore has to be large enough in diameter to get a sufficiently stable dowel , ....but I guess , that on bigger "Tomics" it is .

 

Good luck , diemai

Edited December 12, 2013 by diemai

[BobP]

http://www.dicknite.com/TU_Lander.htm

 

In my experience, the absolute best topcoat for spoons is Dick Nite S81 moisture cured urethane, which is sold via the above URL at a discount to TU members.  It's a thin coating, very slick, hard, and durable.  Dick Nite uses it to topcoat his spoons, which are the primary product of his business.  Dip it, hang it, DONE.

 

It tends to soak into acrylic latex paint and bond with the underlying surface.  I don't know whether that quality would be a problem with plastic spoons, but it works great on metal.  Caution - it requires heroic efforts to keep it liquid during storage after you use it - read other threads on it carefully before you leap.  And it's not inexpensive.

 

I use temporary wire hangers when I topcoat spoons.  If there is any in the hanger when dry, I zip it out with a micro drill bit clamped in a Dremel tool.

[ChilliSpoons]

Thanks Fellas.

The spoons are metal while the plugs are plastic.

The Dick Nite product definitely sounds like the current top dog for finishing. But of course the downside is the cost, curing time and shelf life. I won't be popping out dozens of plugs and spoons at a time and I wouldn't wanna see the product expire. My finished product isn't picture perfect but I do want a nice hard protective topcoat. I was leaning towards Solarez although I've read about the issues with haziness in the final finish. But I like the quick curing process, coat and somewhat ease of use.

The dowel technique may be tricky with the plugs based on the hole sizes. The holes on the sizes 5" and under would barely fit the end of a toothpick. But it does get me thinking that I could hold them with the toothpick then later drill out what gets stuck in the plug. (????)

Once cured, how hard would these products be to drill without making a complete mess?

If it makes a difference I paint with Createx, AutoAir and Faskolor paint products sprayed through a Paasche Talon. My work space is in the basement and I'd be applying my topcoat in the garage when the weather warms up.

And Yes I am very much enjoying my limited time on TU

[RayburnGuy]

You might want to read the threads on concrete sealers. Someof the guys have been swearing by it and it doesn't seem to have the storage issues associated with moisture cured urethanes. And from the look of some of the pictures that have been posted by the guts using it the finish is crystal clear. And it's not that expensive. Not sure what your options are on Canada, but it would be worth checking into.

 

And welcome to TU.

 

Ben

[ChilliSpoons]

I have read a bit on the concrete sealers. I don't know if the GST product is available locally but I'm sure there is a close substitute. I did have some leftover acrylic concrete sealer that I sealed my driveway with 9 years ago but the label says it only has a two year shelf life. I didn't want to risk using it with negative results.

What should I look for on the label when looking for a similar sealer for my lures?

Once again the biggest issue will be keeping the holes clean or having the ability to clear them after the topcoat is cured.

[Nathan]

Chillispoons,

Welcome to the site...When looking for concrete sealers you want laquer based .And higher the solid content the better. Another concrete sealer that works is Eagle Supreme...I think it is very similar to GST ... Nathan

[woodieb8]

hi tomics very cool. if your looking for a clear coat not a sealer correct.

.

clear acrylic will work. from a rattle can.

if your really into it try an automotive clear coat..

automotive clear thru an airbrush is thin but very durable will work on plastics and woods/metal spoons..

you need ventilation,or you will get buzzed

[ChilliSpoons]

Sealers/clear coats???? I kind of assumed that they were the same. Or at least similar. I guess I still have a lot to learn.

I've used clear coats from a rattle can on my spoons with good initial results (Krylon, Rustoleum). Over time and fish you could see it losing its effectiveness.

I was hoping for something way more durable in a topcoat.

[diemai]

@ ChilliSpoons

 

I'm applying three layers of epoxy clear coat onto my lures , buying it from a supplier of different kinds of resins . I can chose between three different hardeners , which do take influence on the curing time .

Since I do not have a rotisserie , I'm taking the fastest catalyst , resulting into a processing time of about 20 minutes , have to flip over the lures only a few times this way to avoid dripping .

Smallest pack would cost me about 25 Euros(shipping included) , shelf life is rated at about one year , but most likely exeeds at least 6 months longer .

 

Note that not all topcoats are suitable , some might affect the paintcoat underneath and ruin it , especially when consisting of solvent based paints .

 

Greetz , diemai

[ChilliSpoons]

For some reasons mixing epoxy sounds complicated and I like simple. Maybe epoxy is something I may try in the future as I progress through more advanced techniques.

 

If I was to try a concrete sealer would I need to spray a rattle can clear coat over my paint prior to brushing on the sealer? I'm still a little confused about the whole sealer/clear coat thing.

 

I'm sure this has been discussed but I don't want to reread through 8000 different posts to find the answer. I'm kinda lazy that way

[RayburnGuy]

Sealers are just what they sound like. This term is usually used when talking about sealing wooden lures to protect against water intrusion into the wood. Since plastic, or metal, baits are waterproof they don't need to be sealed. The clear coat is the last step in the process. The top coat protects the paint from whatever the bait might come in contact with whether that is water, stumps, rocks, etc.

 

Ben

[ChilliSpoons]

I think I'm slowly catching on, lol.

So top coating with a concrete sealer is a waste of time or does it still make a durable top coat/clear coat? Or should I look more at products like Solarez, Dick Nite or Automotive clear coats?

And remember.......I'm not just a slow learner, I'm lazy and cheap as well

[Krash7172]

Buy a pint of DN for $25. Something tells me you are like the rest of us and have already spent much more than that on your hobby

 

Seriously though, I started a search for information like you earlier this year. I ended up here and tried DN first. I followed the info (plenty of it) on this forum and I found it relatively easy to use and store. It's tricky to do multiple coats but you can build up a tough as nails top coat if you wish. I do three coats and couldn't be more happy with the results. I shared some of my lures with others in a recent tournament and they had trouble believing the finish wasn't commercial.

[diemai]

@ ChilliSpoons

 

Not quite sure about concrete sealer , ........but I know , that in Finland many carvers use concrete laquer to topcoat their wooden baits , applied onto the lures with about 8 to 10 dips .

 

That laquer is originally used to apply to concrete walls and especially floors and stairs to achieve a durable and resistant surface .

 

Not certain , whether both terms refer to the same stuff , .......but what I know is , that the Finnish homemades that I own , and treated this way , do have a rock -hard surface .

 

Greetz , diemai

[woodieb8]

in Canada you still can buy clear lacquer. its fast downfalls are.

brittle

does not play well with many paints.

that why I suggested clear automotive urethane clear coat.

you can purchase it at autobody supply stores mix is 4-1.

average cost is 37.00 a litre including the accelerator.

that product works very well with metal-spoons ,lead products/plastics.

as for woods epoxies seem best as wood can have movement/swell..

I have painted hundreds of j-plugs/tomics luck louies for folks thru the years..

hope this helps your efforts. im on the other end of Canada in Windsor ont.

funny though my family originated from fernie b.c.

[ChilliSpoons]

Awesome feedback guys, thanks.

Now I just need to wade through the options and decide.

I've never sprayed anything but water based products and all this is done in my basement "Lab". So far I've been reluctant to spray anything else because of the fumes and ease of cleaning. A urethane clear coat may be the answer but I'll have to set up a work station in the garage. And maybe even buy a second airbrush. Shhh, don't tell my wife

[ChilliSpoons]

I know this isn't the intended way to use automotive urethane clear coats but could you brush it on?

[woodieb8]

I imagine it can be brushed. I can be dipped. I recommend NOT in your home. dry time is fairly quick. its rock hard but not brittle. imagine your car. it stays shiny after years of outdoor abuse. that's the same clear.

[fatfingers]

For some reasons mixing epoxy sounds complicated and I like simple. Maybe epoxy is something I may try in the future as I progress through more advanced techniques.

 

If I was to try a concrete sealer would I need to spray a rattle can clear coat over my paint prior to brushing on the sealer? I'm still a little confused about the whole sealer/clear coat thing.

 

I'm sure this has been discussed but I don't want to reread through 8000 different posts to find the answer. I'm kinda lazy that way

Mixing epoxy is not at all complicated. Mixing is often discussed here and elsewhere not because it is hard, but because thorough mixing is important to a fine finish.

It is like a lot of things you will read about on this forum and others...describing the process in writing makes it sound more complicated than it really is,

[BobP]

I just topcoated some wood crankbaits with Solarez and was happy with the results.  Like most topcoat products, there are do's and don'ts associated with Solarez.  I had bad results when I tried dipping lures in it.  This time around, I brushed on the resin, placed the lures on a rotator to level out for a few minutes, then cured them in a nail salon UV light box for 3 mins each.

 

Solarez contains wax flakes which you can see on the surface of the resin in the container.  The wax is necessary for the resin to cure hard.  In an earlier test, I dipped lures and hung them up to level out, and the wax flakes tended to migrate to the bottom of the lures and clump up, which resulted in a white blush when I cured the resin.  The Solarez also tended to sheet as it hung after dipping, causing waves in the finish.  Putting them on a lure rotator to level out before curing seems to have fixed the blush and sheeting problem.  I have to note that all the lures in this last "good" bunch were painted in a light shad pattern.  I can't see any blush in the topcoat but if any was present, it wouldn't show up much on the light paint like it would on a dark painted bait.

 

I used 2 coats of Solarez to undercoat these baits, then 2 coats for the topcoat.  The Solarez seems pretty durable but only time and getting chewed on by trerble hooks and fish will tell the tale.  It is a cost effective coating compared to DN, auto clears, or epoxy.  No storage limitations.  The one caution I have is that you don't want to over-apply it or you can get runs in the coating that are hard to see and will show up after it is cured - and will need to be fixed.

[ChilliSpoons]

I was able to obtain some concrete sealer sample from a concrete finisher. This will be the first new product that I'll try as a top coat. Unfortunately mother nature may not allow the temperature to warm up enough to apply for a couple of months and I can very impatient.

 

Does the temperature have to be over 70 degrees for the whole cure (48 hrs) or can I can I just keep it warm for the first few hours? After a couple of hours could I move the lures inside or would the fumes still be too strong?

 

I was thinking of rigging up a source of electric heat, a low speed fan and a wind tunnel setup to vent the fumes. Or I could always use the boiler room at work.