RiverMan Posted October 15, 2003 Report Share Posted October 15, 2003 I'm building floats/bobbers out of a material similar to balsa. I have been shaping the floats, painting, then coating them with epoxy. The floats are very nice but I would like to find a way to get around having to epoxy each of them. I have noticed that many of the commercial balsa floats are only painted, well at least it appears that way. The material I am using absorbs water, is balsa the same? Are there paints that would seal the float material up for me thereby eliminating the need for the epoxy coating? Keep in mind the floats are not taking the beating a crank is so really a tough outer coating of epoxy isn't necessary. I want to find a quicker, easier way to seal the floats up? Thanks for any help! jed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeminoleFan Posted October 15, 2003 Report Share Posted October 15, 2003 I would try Thompsons Water seal. Sold at Home Depot or Lowes. Hope this helps. Rick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skeeter Posted October 16, 2003 Report Share Posted October 16, 2003 Balsa does not absorb water. It will get wet, but it will not absorb to the core like hardwood will. Balsa is used to line welding tanks for this reason. If you have an airbrush, then I would suggest moisture cured urathane. You can cut it with acetone 3 to 1. Three parts urathane and 1 part acetone, and shoot it through the air brush. You can clean the airbrush with acetone. It is the same a shooting lacquer paint. Shoot one quick thin coat. You will know if you have the mixture right because it will look wet as you shoot it. Wait about a minute for it to tack up and then you can lay the stuff on with the gun. If you try to lay it on thick with the first coat, it will run. This is why you let the first thin coat start to tack. You will not need to spin it or anything else. I will be dry to the touch after a few hours. I would let it set up a minimum of two days before use. For a bobber I think this would work good. For you cranbait nuts out there, I would not recommend it for your baits. It really takes about 4 to 6 weeks for the stuff to really cure hard. Once it is fully cured, the stuff is tuff as nails. I gets super hard. But it does take that long to fully cure. It is completely water proof and is clear. I did a bait with this stuff and the bait is over a year old and has not yellowed. But for over 4 weeks I could scratch it with my finger nail. You can get it at www.dicknite.com Or maybe you could get the same thing at Lowes or something. Skeeter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RiverMan Posted October 17, 2003 Author Report Share Posted October 17, 2003 Thank you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
