Fishwhittler

Thanks guys. Now I'm having a hard time stopping! ;D

Well I finally got an airbrush, a TC-20B compressor with a Master G22 airbrush. I did some painting with it the other day, and here's the result (no topcoat yet). Airbrushing is so much easier than rattle cans it's not even funny.

@ MarcDavid, thanks for the review. I'll be steering clear of U-POL. @ idlov2fish, when I posted this topic I was busy painting plastic knockoffs and I was looking for a topcoat that was thinner, faster and easier to use than Flex Coat. I'm not doing the plastic cranks much anymore, so I'm going to stick with epoxy. The only reason I would want to switch from Flex Coat on wood or PVC baits is it's price. It's not really expensive, but it does cost more than some epoxies such as E-tex or U-40.

A good place to start is to start reading through the old threads in this forum. There's loads of info there on just about every aspect of lure making. There are also several crankbait making and painting tutorials in the articles section at the top of the page. Making crankbaits Crankbait Making Tutorial Part II Creating Crankbaits Painting Masterpieces Another good website is tackleunderground.com.

Awesome baits! I like #2, #3 and #5. 8-)

Very nice! I like the jointed bait. 8-)

This what you're looking for? http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1270423860

Very nice! The realism is amazing.

That's a real nice looking color. Great job! 8-)

Very nice! 8-)

Thanks guys. I took the trout and the R.E.C. out today, and I almost got a bullfrog on the craw.;D The bass weren't biting cranks though, so I didn't get anything. I did eventually catch the bullfrog, although not on the crank. I came back with a plastic craw and he went for it.

Thanks! I use Flex Coat Ultra V high build epoxy. Most of these have only one coat; the trout and the Emerald Tiger each have two. I'm probably going to put a second coat on the others, as there are some small flaws in the finishes that I need to correct. Anyhow, the additional protection of a second coat doesn't hurt anything. I'm going to leave the red eye craw with just one coat to see how well it holds up.

Blanks from predator, rattle-can painted. Top to bottom: Rainbow trout, Crackle-belly shad, Tiger, Flame Tiger, Flipside Emerald Tiger, Red-eye craw.

Thanks! I may give it a try. Actually, using a low-build epoxy might be the best way to go. Trondak U-40 rod finish looks like it might be what I'm looking for.

Is this stuff any good on lures? There's an old thread, "Aerosol Clear Coats" where this was mentioned, and I'm wondering if anyone uses it. Also, will it react with aerosol spray paint?

Those splatter-backs are killer!

Awesome as always! I really like the shape of the bottom bait, and the color patterns on the second and third baits are amazing.

Thanks! The top two baits each have about four coats of epoxy on them. I didn't mean to put so many coats on, but I kept having to cover up mistakes. ;D You can't really tell from the pics above, but there's crackle on the throats of the top two baits.

Some photo-finished and painted cranks, as well as a dog-walker. The two painted cranks are half the size of the other two cranks in this batch. The large baits are 3" long and the small baits are 2 1/4" long without the bill.

Thanks guys. Photo finishing can be very annoying when you're trying to get the photo to lay flat, but it looks great when it's done.

I tested the popper with the lexan lip. It throws a huge splash when the rod is jerkeed at about a 45[ch730] angle. With the rod angle much higher than that it may jump out of the water, and if the rod angle is to low than the lure rolls on it's back and dives. On a steady retrieve it burbles (for lack of a better word) on top, creating a considerable wake. I need to do some work to get it working the way I want, but for a first try it works pretty good.

Just finished this guy. 4 1/2" long, weighs 1 1/2 oz. I photo-finished this one, and I really like how it turned out. It has a very nice action, but I think I'll lower the ballast a bit on the next one I make. The action isn't wide enough to make the bait roll-out, but it could definitely use some tightening.

X2

Very nice! I like the first one and the royal shad. 8-)

Thanks guys. @ M and M Fishing, it has a fast, moderately tight action. It moves quite a bit for a bait with a body this wide.