I saw Paul in line shivering Saturday morning, so I have to agree with him on this one ;)

However, if the "jerkbait" actually "worker" according to Paul maybe I'd have seen George next to him. (that would mean George is actually a jerk) So the plug is in the wash....

Still refining it, but I am finding this build to take less time than darters so it's a fun build. I still love building darters, and don't fish much else with the exception of spring. and then its needles and darters.

I picked up googooman's darter saturday and threw that too... "oh my" is all i have to say.

Thanks Ryan, yah the design is similar to a musky bait. Those guys use a lot of jerk-baits ... dive and suspend or dive and rise. Mostly a boat situation.

I was looking for something that dug fast and could hit 8' depth and rise after hitting structure (but from the beach, rock, etc).

Nice I could see how that might come in handy

More painting , accents and combos.

Twas the week before plugfest and all through the house,
The paint fumes have killed all as small as a mouse.
The sun may be shining or the sky full of snow,
but down in the basement there is no way to know.
The woodchips are knee deep, with more shapes to mull,
The lathe keeps on spinning, though the tools are too dull.
And wires and swivels are scattered around,
With the correct sized lips, nowhere to be found.
And the airbrush is clogged, from its cup to its tip,
and spits paint like a drunk, choking on a nip.
But there's no time to clean it, when you gotta be quick,
So you crank up the pressure and lay the paint thick.
The epoxy is pock marked and full of dust flecks,
but the damn things are for fishing so who gives a heck.
And your friends show they up, to "just say hello",
when you both know damn well, they come to plug ho.
And you wife is annoyed, alone in the bed,
While the epoxy gets laid and the spinner gets fed.
And so it goes at this time of year,
'Cause nothing else matters as plugfest gets near.

Classic.
I have finished nothing so I will be in full ho mode. Did start painting yesterday though.
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Im still working on refinishing a big batch of plugs to get them back in the rotation. I've got those sealed & primed. While they were stripped I tweaked weighting on some of the needles. Will be nice to get the winners back in the plug bag. I intentionally did not fill hook swings or tooth holes, figured I'd be able to find my old favorites easier that way.

In between doing that I've been messing around with some maple scraps I've had kicking around while but I need to hit a lumber yard soon and pick up some more maple. The only plugs I've finished so far are 4 needles I made out of an old piece of tiger maple I found when I was going thru my stack of wood looking for soft maple. Funny I did a search of this forum yesterday to see when I was playing with that (and it was back in 2008). I ended up reading some old threads from back then for a couple hours, pretty entertaining :)

I also learned the hard way that the jig I use on my drill press for thru drilling the starter holes from each end was out of alignment. I did turn a batch of needles but ended up misdrilling almost 1/2. Next year I will have to remember to test 1 first before drilling the whole batch.:gorez:

I was finally able to get a resin plug poured... and I'm pretty happy with the way it came out (although the sink rate is a little fast for where I typically fish.)

I'll be trying again soon with more microballoons to see if I can get the sink rate a bit more dialed in.

I like this style of lure building... exercises the scientist in me!

(If I ever get to a computer I'll try to upload pics)
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Played around with some new spray paint colors and brands, got some graffiti style sprayers.

Found a nice BI green and parrot combo and some transparent colors which are killer.

Sprayed some plastic lure bodies from eBay to test, digging the results

Need to get some pikies sealed and Sanded this week
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http://i1227.photobucket.com/albums/...psho2te15p.jpg

Finished this project up yesterday in between taking flu meds and sleeping.

Full redo, stripped, sanded, heat epoxy sealed twice, eyes removed and re drilled, hand painted red eyes, lots of hours into it.

Was for a buddy that freshwater fishes and throws swimbaits and big baits exclusively.
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Got these two plastic swimmers epoxied too, redhead parrots, some new paints, they blend awesome and the epoxy lays great on em.

Mamba minnow and savage gear copies from eBay, $2 each, nice way to test paints and epoxy

http://i1227.photobucket.com/albums/...ps3zj8s4wj.jpg

http://i1227.photobucket.com/albums/...pson9k4mjg.jpg
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Nice Chris!
Test swam some stuff the other day when it was in the 50's. I like the way the small predators swim unweighted, could only get them to dig down about 2' but I was in an area with not much current.Also swam a skinny musso Sr. with a lefty 2 hi slot lip, Really like the snake like action and it will start swimming on the slowest of retrieves. Got high hopes for that one. Should be priming and painting stuff this week.
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That mouse thing is awesome!

Wired a dozen or so pikes. First coating S3 today. Wish me luck. I'm also going to do a few with my clear coat baseball finish, 1 part KBS clear coat. 2 coats 3-6 hrs apart to chemically bond the 2 coats. The bats get 2 coats with a scuff w/gray pad prior to 2nd coat. Hard as nails. JLH use same with 1 coat and other than hook rash, no noticeable problems.

I've got a can of that stuff and have been afraid to open it. I really want to use it instead of epoxy.

Are you spraying it? If so, what sort of gun/pressure/thinner?
What sort of vent system?
I think that Mike (M&D's) used it for a while but had some health problem attributed to it .......I think it was elevated liver enzymes.

Supposedly there is also an issue with it drying once opened. Are you using the sheet metal screw in the side of the can trick, the marbles trick, or some type of argon spray?

This is the third building season that I've been using it. Like Billy said I just use one coat which covers and protects the paint well but it doesn't provide a lot of protection against hook rash like some of the thicker epoxy coats do.

I just brush it on with a foam brush and personally I wouldn't spray it without a very good ventilation system as I've also heard of health issues from working with it and that along with problems breathing the fumes it can be absorbed through the skin. I like that it's just one part and I don't have to worry about mixing, spinning or temperature very much. Its very thin and easy to brush on and a little bit goes a long way. I'll wait for a warm day to use it and generally setup in the garage with windows and doors open or right on the basement steps with the hatch open and always wear a respirator and rubber gloves. It will harden in lower temperatures, I think KBS recommends over 50 degrees, but I've used it on mid 40 degree days without issue. It seems to stop gassing off after around 8-10 hours and is hard enough to handle after 24 though I'll usually wait 48 hours to wire plugs.

It does harden up if exposed to air but using the sheet metal screw trick one small can lasted me two winters.

I spent the last few sessions working on some glide baits for the coming season. I made a couple variations at the end of last winter and had one that fished well that I'm working on reproducing it. I would have probably fished it more last year but only having the one I didn't' really want to loose it. Fortunately it survived the season and I actually remembered to take notes on how I had build them last year so hopefully these will work...

Well I system 3 10 plugs first coat. Hung them with 2 heat lamps c lose by. They are already touchable . 9 hrs. Did 1 pike with KBS. 2 coats. 6 hr between. First coat was dry to touch , very little tack. Second coat covered a y voids and gave it a deeper finish. Also did a few bats while I had it out. Punched a small hole in b otto and resealed sith screw, the left over fi is will solidify around the hole helping to seal out air,. This stuff hardens with the co er on. They sell a b "burp" spray to replace e air in a i.le. argon. Nice t n I g with small hole you squeeze out just enough. Never used the screw method , (thanks J). Always repacked in a Mason jar and vacuum pa ked it. Real PIA. I'll keep post results of plug fi is and pot life in can.

I've had a good couple weeks. I made it to downes and reader and picked up some more soft maple and white pine and have been messing with that. I've sest swum and tweaked some darter/slope headed stuff Ive been messing with, and I've got the rest of the stuff I've turned sealed. I've got too much in process and have to start finishing some stuff but I still want to turn more needles and maybe mess with gliders those look like fun.

I Had a small mishap with the spar varnish . The container I use lives under a workbench and must have got kicked around and cracked and with all the old dryied varnish coating it I didnt notice it till I was in the middle of a very sticky flood.

I Started painting the pencils I am refinishing this morning, it will be good to get those done and out of the way. Just going with 4 basic color schemes on those. Most of the pink will be pink mac's but I need to make a new stencil.

Painted some plugs today, musso Donny's that I did a jointed version of, weights drilled in on the ends under the thru wire, some odds and ends, like a pichney bootleg, random pencils, a some needles

Worked on some new paint blends, trying to get down a silver ghost 👻 ss pattern and a nicer parrot, getting closer every time
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Damn. How'd you wear out that many pencils?

System 3 coat remaining pikes. Drilled out a few more pikes for spares and emergencies. Once they're down I have some mahogany Wadds to do.
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Bought a copic airbrush... me likey!

Also, what do y'all use for primer? I have Rustoleum spray primer and some alkyd primer which I use for trim and it sands nicely... for the resin stuff I don't need primer but I'm finishing/refinishing some plugs and want something easier to work with and that lays nicer...
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Rustoleum painterstouch 2 ultra cover. On the resin , u may need a primer to have the finish color to vond. Krylon fusion may do w/o primer.

The last few cans of Painter's Touch Ultra Cover I've bought have been different. Much thinner and runs very easily. Been forced to do two lighter coats.

I use and absolutely love Zspar marine undercoat. Thick as mud, put it on with a foam brush, dries overnight, grabs createx like Paul does beef jerky.

Ha. Where does one buy this mud.
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It sure wasnt last year. Most of those had been hanging in the rack for quite a while. I usually beat up 1 or 2 of each color each year so doesnt take long to add up. I really havent done the canal day light stuff very much the past few years, sticking almost exclusively to night.

Funny thing is I think the only actual good day I had with top water last year was the day last fall I bumped into you and Alan.

Not sure why you'd care since whatever you use works just as well.
I'd buy it at any local marine store (Z-spar #105) but it looks to me like it may have been discontinued since Pettit bought out Z-spar. My guess is that this product is similar. I'd suggest you buy it and try it on a whole batch of plugs then let me know if it worked before I run out of the good stuff. Thanks.
https://www.jamestowndistributors.co...t.do?pid=97752

I just may try it cause I am going to experiment with some new to me epoxy they have an need to place an order.
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Ive been reading this thread for 10 minutes and keep getting interrupted by my laughing out loud at this comment
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The stuff you have, does it sand well?
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Great. Think how realistic your plugs will look. Just like a dying fish with the skin coming off!

Yes, it is great after it has dried a day.

I note also that Pettit makes a high build primer that will go over epoxy which might be useful for those who epoxy seal their plugs.

https://www.jamestowndistributors.co...t.do?pid=97752

I just recently ran outta Rusto Painters touch rattle can primer so was thinking of going the brush primer route. Was going to pickup some zinnser oil base cs then I came across this stuff while browsing the paint aisles.
I know it says above waterline,I think the only difference between this and bottom primer is the antifouling copper or other biocide additive I'm not worried about barnacles growing on my plugs..

Ryan I'm sure any oil base primer works. I've use many and don't seem to have problem with acrylic paints lifting. Painters touch is my choice when I can spray outside and when force inside , Zinseer gold label oil base primer brushed works fine. 2 coats scuff with gray pad or 220 grit paper if you need to smooth out the brush marks. They also sell the Zinseer in spraycan.

Thanks Billy I'll probably go with the gold label Zinnser. Appreciate the help.
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was out to pick up some painters touch at lowes this morning and found
Rustoleum universal bonding primer- on the back it says it works especially well over two part epoxies.
I haven't seen it before but i dont epoxy seal. just a FYI for you guys that do.

A few places are doing away with the Painter's Touch flat white primer and just carrying the paint which is supposedly primer and paint in one can.