Coat for Rapala wood

[BassBandit31]

I accidently sand the Rapala Shad Rap down to the wood, so I went ahead & sand the whole thing. Not sure what kind of wood it is, so what kind of seal should I apply on the wood before start priming it? Thanks.

[Skeeter]

The wood is balsa. You can prime and paint the lure. Just make sure that when you clearcoat the lure that it is completely sealed then. If you use a quality clearcoat water will not get to the lure.

Skeeter

[BassBandit31]

I take it that Rust Oleum Plastic Primer will not work for this? If not, what brand should I get for this application? Clearcoat like Devcon "2 ton" ???

Thanks Skeeter.

[Skeeter]

Personally I do no use primer. What I do is wipe the bait with a rag dipped in polyurethane. All you need to do is wipe it on. It doesn't need to be thick. This will kinda toughen up the balsa and make it easier to handle without denting it. It also seals up the pores in the balsa a little bit to cut down on bubbles caused by trapped air in your white undercoat. You can then use a fine grade of sandpaper to smooth the bait out. Something aroun 320 grit. Just sand it lightly. Then just shoot the white base coat untill you have a good even surface. Then you can just finish up with the rest of the painting that needs to be done. There are different ways to paint and refinish a Shad Rap...... but the lure is made to be extremely light to begin with. Layering a bunch of primer on the bait would just ruin the action. I would use a regular flat white house paint. It sands well and is cheap to use. If you use a water based paint to shoot it with it will work just fine. On the clearcoat I would use an automotive clearcoat. Devcon and Etex will work........ but most folks put devcon on too thick. I like a thick coat myself. It will add weight. Etex for me is too much trouble and time consuming. Since the bait is extremely light to begin with then a high quality automotive clear should work fine. You can spray it through the airbrush and the bait will remain light. It will take about 2 to 3 coats. We all look for tough in a clearcoat. But the Shad Rap is a light bait and when it comes in contact with something the shock to the clearcoat is not that bad. A heavy wood or heavily weighted balsa lure generates quite a shock to the clear when it hits something. The automotive clear will protect this type of bait well enough. It is also very easy to refresh the clearcoat if you need too.

Skeeter