s4il Posted January 26, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2015 Well i just did a 2.5 Friday night with BSI 30m base coat, let that dry overnight, than i went over it with E-Tex, put it on the wheel over night and this morning its nice and clear, but somewhat thick, but i like that considering its a crank bait. now i have to wait until all this ice goes away here in Illinois to see how well the bait tracks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bass100 Posted January 26, 2015 Report Share Posted January 26, 2015 Ok, I just got off of the phone with the makers of D2T. There is no chalk in their epoxy but you can add chalk to change the color. The cloudy streaks that has been seen is from crystalization and usually only happens in the winter months. Crystalization happens when the product has been exposed to very cold temperatures for an extended period. The crystalization will not go away until it has been heated up BEFORE MIXING. I always heat mine with a hair dryer before I mix it. I was told that if you buy a bottle of D2T and you can see the hardner has any white in it then you can take it back to the store for a refund or you can just heat it up. Devcon is the same reliable product that it has always been. On another note you can color your epoxy with this stuff here. There is alot of cool stuff on this website. http://www.braxton-bragg.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/store7catalog.level/bc/0,8447,8500,7234/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bass100 Posted January 26, 2015 Report Share Posted January 26, 2015 Forgot to mention to take the cap off of your epoxy before heating. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bass100 Posted January 26, 2015 Report Share Posted January 26, 2015 Also recieved this email a minute ago from the company: Drew; Thanks for making my day! Like you we have a big snow storm, so that's all of the conversation. Why would we say clear with 2 Ton and then try to make it cloudy. 2 Ton Epoxy is the number one product for fishing lures and knives, so we would never change that product. Once in a while you may get old product and the hardener does get darker with age but when you mix it normally it's still clear. We have not changed anything with 2 Ton---"Scouts Honor"! Be Well! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
s4il Posted January 27, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 27, 2015 (edited) WOW! so all it was the entire time was the epoxy was cold from the temp here in Illinois, that makes sense, wish i would of known that earlier, lol..........(digs through garbage to find box of devcon) thx for setting that straight bass100, ill try heating it up first before i clear any baits, i guess the warm water i was letting it soak in for a while was NOT doing enough to the top portion of the bottle, that was probably a bit cooler than the bottom area, ill do the hair dryer and see what happens. Edited January 27, 2015 by s4il Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RayburnGuy Posted January 27, 2015 Report Share Posted January 27, 2015 When it's cold enough to make the epoxy thick I just lay the bottle on it's side and roll it back and forth while warming it up with my heat gun. I'm sure a hair dryer would do the same thing although it might take a tad longer to warm it up. Just be sure to feel the bottle as it warms up because excess heat will make it almost as runny as water. When the resin and catalyst are warmed up you need to have your ducks in a row and not be messing around as the warmth can start the epoxy faster than normal. Ben Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bass100 Posted January 27, 2015 Report Share Posted January 27, 2015 OK, guys here is some visual proof. I bought 2 tubes of Devcon 5 minute epoxy the other day they both were crystalized. This is a picture of a tube that is crystalized. Notice that the hardner is all white. I then took the cap off of the bottles and heated with a hair dryer. It took about 4.5 minutes with the hair dryer on high. Notice that the hardner is clear now. This epoxy is now fine and won't crystalize again unless it is exposed to below 40 degrees for a lengthy period of time. If you have larger bottles make sure you allow a bit of time to heat them up. I have been using Devcon for over 10 years now and crystalization is nothing new. We just didn't know that it was crystalization. I have always heated my epoxy so I have not had any problems. Epoxy is easier to mix and apply when it is warm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted January 27, 2015 Report Share Posted January 27, 2015 There are lots of different types of epoxies out there. I hope this will help you to pick which type of epoxy will work best for you, not to recommend a particular brand. In my experience, there are two different types of epoxy that we use for lure coating, and they are different. One, like D2T, is, first and foremost, a glue. It is designed to fill small cracks between things, and to be very strong and rigid. Creep, which is movement over time of things that are attached, is a bad thing in a glue, where you want a joint that won't fail under load. But it is brittle when spread over a large, flat area, because it wasn't designed for that. The other type of epoxy we use is a decoupage epoxy, designed to cover large wooden surfaces, like table tops and bar counters. Etex is an example of a decoupage epoxy. It is designed to remain flexible, so it can move with the wood as it expands and contracts in reaction to temperature changes. When I first began building jointed lures, I tried using D2T as a top coat. What I found is that, because my baits had large flat sides, the D2T was very liable to crack if I hit anything like a rock or dock, and come off in large pieces. I switched to Etex, and never had that problem again. But the Etex did dent when I hit rocks, because it was not as rigid at the D2T. For smaller baits, like crank baits, and for more rounded surfaces, the D2T held up just fine. But for big, flat sided baits, Etex held up better. I think there are probably more threads on this forum about top coats than any other topic. We're all still searching for the holy grail, a perfect top coat that does it all, preferably with a built-in perfect paint scheme. I'll let you know when I find that one! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skeeter Posted January 27, 2015 Report Share Posted January 27, 2015 If there is no chalk in the product then why do they say it on the label? It is the long cure epoxy that I bought that had it. Not the 5 min. Maybe they just did it to the syringe packages. Maybe the larger quantity bottles don't have it added. However, I know that they will loose some money from me. Lord only knows how much Devcon I have bought in 15 yrs. I have a few baits that have been waiting for a clearcoat. I am about to order and try something else. Hopefully, it will work just fine. Skeeter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bass100 Posted January 27, 2015 Report Share Posted January 27, 2015 No where on the label does it say there is chalk in the product but it does say that it may be tinted with chalk or pigment. In other words if you don't want to tint it then don't add any chalk or pigment. I agree they could have stated it on the package a little different but that is what they meant and they will tell you that if you call them. As stated in the phone call I had with them and the email which I posted they have not added chalk to the D2T epoxy and never will. The 5 min epoxy is just what I had here to show everyone what crystalization looks like and how to fix it. You can call them at the # I listed earlier. I don't care if you use D2T or not but there is thousands of people that come to Tacke Underground to learn and I think they should have access to the correct information. I don't want a new lure maker thinking they can't use D2T because they think there is chalk in it when in fact there is not. Again don't take what I am saying as fact just give them a call. This is not meant to call you or anyone else out but to simply get the correct information to the TU members. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobP Posted January 27, 2015 Report Share Posted January 27, 2015 "May be tinted with chalk or pigment" That may suggest that the user can tint the epoxy, or may mean that the epoxy you get may be tinted with something. I assume you would be able to see it if you were buying pre-tinted epoxy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bass100 Posted January 27, 2015 Report Share Posted January 27, 2015 I agree Bob that It could have been worded better on the packaging and we would not be having this post and could focus more on what is really causing the problem. The company has stated there is no chalk in their epoxy and never will be. Since they do not have pre tinted D2T if it looks like you have white chalk in it then, according to the company, it is from crystalization. I hope this clears up any confusion about chalk in D2T and we can focus more on what is really causing this problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skeeter Posted January 28, 2015 Report Share Posted January 28, 2015 Very well..... hope everyone enjoys using it. Skeeter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skeeter Posted January 29, 2015 Report Share Posted January 29, 2015 Just did some experiments and it appears that bass100 is right. I took a hair dryer to two tubes of devcon and they cleared right up. One tube did just fine, both sides stayed clear. With the second syringe, the opposite side of the syringe (the one that did not have the crystalizaion) started to get a light yellow tint to it. But I don't see any problem with it. The time that bass100 stated (4.5 min) is dead on also. That is exactly how much time it took for the syringe to clear. It was like watching ice melt in a glass of water. Once I started seeing the crystalization decrease I took the hair dryer away from it. I thought that after the tube got warm the crystalization would continue to dissapate. But it did not. You have to keep the heat going to it. Heating the devcon really turns it into the consistancy of water. You have to leave the tube upside down until it cools down. So once everything back in the tube is back to the right consistancy I am going to try and clearcoat a bait. Let's hope it all works. Keep your fingers crossed. In all of the years I have been using devcon I have never seen this happen. Seems weird to me. bass100..... thanks for doing the work for us. Bravo! Skeeter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bass100 Posted January 30, 2015 Report Share Posted January 30, 2015 Thanks Skeeter. That is what I love about this site, enough people get involved in a problem and then somebody steps it up to solve it, this time it was my turn. You have done your share of stepping up to the challenge and solving others problems over the years. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gman24 Posted February 18, 2015 Report Share Posted February 18, 2015 Thanks guys, I clearcoated my first paint job today. Used this Devcon 2T, after seeing several videos and reading about it on here. I did notice when mixing and applying that it had a CLOUDY appearance unlike the videos I had watched. I thought i had done something wrong or maybe got the wrong kind. Most of it cleared as it was drying but there are a still a couple of cloudy areas on the bait of which I can live with. I was concerned enough that I did a search and this is what popped up. I did get my tube and it did have a somewhat Cloudy appearance to the tube. I will know what to do before my next use. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
