fatfingers Posted January 19, 2007 Report Share Posted January 19, 2007 I like to use film containers for mixing small batches of paint. The 35mm plastic film cannisters are available free from the photo department at Walmart and elsewhere. (They throw them away, so you're recycling too). You'll be pleasantly surprised at how long paint will keep in those things. I also put a dab of color on the cap so I can easily tell which is which when I'm switching from one color to another. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ernel Posted January 19, 2007 Report Share Posted January 19, 2007 You can pick up empty drop cable reels from the cable company to use as drying wheels for finishing the top coat. Rg-6 reels will work for smaller bass lures and larger lures upto apx 8 inches. Over all width is 11". Eric Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shade_skyhi Posted January 19, 2007 Report Share Posted January 19, 2007 i took a dowel rod made it 36 inches long and every 4 inches i carved a plug of different sort and then used paneling nails every 3 inches down on 1 side then the other mounted 1 end to the wall and then tied a line to a screw eye in the mouth of the llast plug tied it back to wall at a 45 degree angle and then i dip my plugs and hang them up to dry above and out of the way of my work bench be blessed everyone your work is outstanding which of you is the easiest to ho a plug from leave me a pm like to have a few from the greatest even though your all great just like to start a tackleunder ground wall of fame thanks in advance........al Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fatfingers Posted February 5, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 5, 2007 A tip from Bman for cutting thinner polycarbonate lips..... Thanks, Bman ================================================= Hey guys, as I'm watching my wife clean house I decided to recut alip because I wasn't happy with it. I thought I would try cutting it with a pair of those heavy duty scissors that are suppose to cut a penny (like in this picture) and they worked awesome. They gave a REALLY clean cut with great control and required minimal sanding. Try it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fatfingers Posted February 5, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 5, 2007 If would be great if this thread were made a sticky again. It was lost along with a lot of tips during the recent site crash and burn... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DUCBOS Posted February 5, 2007 Report Share Posted February 5, 2007 I use a cheap bathroom vent from the big Orange store, with 3" flexable tubing run into a 5# bag of charcoal to vent odors from my homemade painting hood. total cost about $16.50, no complaints from wife about odors - priceless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bman Posted February 5, 2007 Report Share Posted February 5, 2007 I use a cheap bathroom vent from the big Orange store, with 3" flexable tubing run into a 5# bag of charcoal to vent odors from my homemade painting hood. total cost about $16.50, no complaints from wife about odors - priceless. Sure wish I knew about this while I was in College:lol: ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vodkaman Posted February 6, 2007 Report Share Posted February 6, 2007 Epoxy has been done to death, but I can still think of two points worth a mention. 1. Work under a strong light. This makes it much easier to spot the missed patches and the lure can be rotated above the lamp to utilise the heat to keep the epoxy fluid while examining the lure. Do not apply the epoxy over the lamp, if you drip, the bulb could burst. 2. Always mix too much epoxy. The stuff is not cheap, but compared with the time some of you guys put in on the paint job, why risk it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Husky Posted February 6, 2007 Report Share Posted February 6, 2007 Until Jerry gets the picks up, check this out. I will delete this when the tutorials are back up with picks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T-Bone Posted February 6, 2007 Report Share Posted February 6, 2007 Being a newbie I had a hard time measuring etex resin and hardner equally in seperate cups and I always had resin left over in my bottle and my hardner bottle would be empty so---I started measuring with a digital food scale, I pour 40 grams of hardner and 40 grams of resin, no mixing using 3 cups etc. seems to work pretty slick, no waste and I get a great finish every time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kenshomi Posted February 6, 2007 Report Share Posted February 6, 2007 Sure wish I knew about this while I was in College:lol: ! B man --- you know thats right! 20 years later I hear about it! All I needed was my paint box with an exhaust fan - Could jhave saved me a lot of trouble with the RA....... K Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kenshomi Posted February 6, 2007 Report Share Posted February 6, 2007 Also why don't more people use dick nites lurecoat? I've palyed with epoxy all my life and I'll take any chance I can get not to use it on lures. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doomdart Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 A simple long skinny finish nail works great for drilling screw eye holes. The whole box of nails costs about the same as a drill bit of the same diameter. You can control drilling depth (IMO) better with the nail, and you never need to worry about snapping one. Also, no more dancing drill bit since you can stick the nail into the wood before you drill. Precise placement, correct size, and controlled depth. Plus you can unchuck the drill and leave it in if you want to grip the bait with pliers or vise for painting, topcoating, or clipping to a drying wheel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
braveviper Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 I just made a worm mold from 1/8 lexan.On my band saw I cut three 1 inch strips.One strip lays flat,the others are the walls get hot glued and clamped.On the inside I painted the corners with pvc glue used to fasten pvc pipes.Two 1 inch squares cap off the ends are fastenend the same way. I now have a 1 inch "box" with the top open.The thin profile will cut down on rtv being wasted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobP Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Building good crankbaits is about getting the details right. Buy a $20 digital gram scale off Ebay. Weigh all your components and the finished weight of your crankbaits and write it down in a notebook, along with notes on features that you used in that batch. I weigh components to a 100th of an ounce. It's the best way to get real quality control over building and tweaking later versions, or recreating crankbaits that turned out to be good performers. It also gives you a index to compare things like different trebles, split rings, epoxy finishes and diving bills. Believe me, after you build 20 crankbaits you will not remember exactly how you did the first one. If that one was the "wondercrank", you'll be one sorry son-of-a-gun if you don't know how to do it again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 I also keep a log on each bait I make. I take it one extra step that I feel is important for me. I will build a crankbait, assemble it ,topcoat with devcon, install hooks . Instead of painting the bait, I use a colored marker and make one side green and the other side red. This way, as the bait goes through the water, I can see just what is happening as far as the side to side movement goes. After I am satisfied with the performance of the lure---I take it apart and duplicate the entire process on a new bait. If all goes well, the new bait will require little or no ajustments. The original bait ( now in peices ) goes into a numbered bag that matches all the spec info in the note book. Note: keep the log high and dry so that you will not have a need to start from scratch if flooded by a hurricane as I was. Trying to rebuild 25 years worth of information is tough! Good Luck, Joe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lure--Prof Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Also why don't more people use dick nites lurecoat? I've palyed with epoxy all my life and I'll take any chance I can get not to use it on lures. + a kaxillion times infinity!! ...but when you have to use epoxy for something, nothing beats using the concave bottom of a can and a piece of wire rounded to about the shape of the can bottom for mixing. Some prefer a particular brand of beer, Maddox Bay says he always has a Mountain Dew can around, and I use an aerosol can tuned upside down in a glass jar (for stability). You can easily minimize the bubbles by keeping the wire on the can bottom, and also get 100% mixing. I clean up with alcohol afterward and am ready to go for next time, with no waste or expense. This method works for any epoxy but is especially good for E-tex, because the epoxy keeps working toward the center, and you can thoroughly whip it with the wire. Allowing it to stand a few minutes before use while blowing on it a bit easily gets rid of bubbles. It is also a good place for a puddle of alcohol in which to clean a brush used for epoxy or dicknite's clearcoat. After this take the brush to the kitchen sink for a little dish soap scrub and you can preserve your cheap little brushes for a long time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Husky Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Spray Caps that turn Rattle cans to become adjustable spray mediums. Here you go. I don't know where I saw the info that linked this to me but it was either here or on SOL. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobP Posted February 8, 2007 Report Share Posted February 8, 2007 A Dremel tool chucked with a straight piece of ss wire is a quick way to remove epoxy or polyurethane from hook hangers. Two tricks can maximize the holding power of epoxied bills. Drill a small hole in each corner and fill them with epoxy when the bill is glued. The epoxy forms 2 posts. Second, sand the bill area that will be epoxied. It removes any contaminants and gives the epoxy much more bonding surface than a slick bill surface provides. It's a tip borrowed from rodmakers who sand the parts before gluing up reel seats. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rofish Posted February 8, 2007 Report Share Posted February 8, 2007 To maximize the holding power of the lips, you can do as BobP does, and, I think, as the majority of the crankbait builders do, or, you can take a needle file, triangular one or similar, to make "V" shaped cuts at the end of the lip. I prefer this solution, since I do not have a workshop where I could have the necessary machines ready to use, so it saves time for me. The sanding of the lip in the epoxy area is a must. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobP Posted February 9, 2007 Report Share Posted February 9, 2007 Cut a piece of bill material as wide as your bait and about 1" long and drill a hole in one end for a wire hanger. Stick it in the bill slot and use it to hold and hang the bait while undercoating, airbrushing, and while the paint dries. It's handy to grab it with locking forceps while airbrushing, and it keeps paint out of the slot. Apply a little blue painters' tape to the false bill to get a friction fit if necessary. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rjbass Posted February 9, 2007 Report Share Posted February 9, 2007 For those of you that do foiled baits, try this. Get some wire form mesh from any craft store, I got mine from Mister Art on line. http://www.misterart.com/store/view/001/group_id/174/AMACO-WireForm-Metal-Mesh.htm It comes in different diamond patterns from 1/16" to 1/4". After you have foiled your bait, cut a piece of the mesh to the size you need and wrap it around the area you plan on detailing. Take a burnishing tool and rub the mesh pushing the pattern into the foil take your time and keep the mesh tight and you will produce a raised scale effect with a nice diamond pattern. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vodkaman Posted February 13, 2007 Report Share Posted February 13, 2007 I've just re-discovered my old fishing hat, with the LED lights on. My eyes are not so good any more, it's perfect for intricate dremelling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
braveviper Posted February 13, 2007 Report Share Posted February 13, 2007 I just made a mold out of an old CD case. Use one side as the base and use the other side to cut up 1 inch strips for the walls of the mold. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skeeter jones Posted February 15, 2007 Report Share Posted February 15, 2007 I'm just getting started and needed a place to paint the lures and store equipment. I saw some articles on making a paint booth. I decided to purchase a used computer cabinet that has doors on it. I got one at a thrift store for 50.00(wal-mart new 154.00) I can put a fan an filter on the back side, Install a small light inside and build some shelves on the inside of the door for paint. It has several drawers and compartments for storage. When not in use close the door and the mess is hidden. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
