Adding Paint

[j bab]

I have a solid black 9" MS Slammer (lots of surface area!) coming in the mail, and I'm headed home for the holidays this weekend, so I'm about to have a lot of down time.

I'm wondering if I can add paint to the already existing solid black paint job. Do I need to do light sanding first to get the clear off?

I don't have an airbrush, I would be using spray paint or nail polish or both or whatever else you recommend. I'm not trying to compete with Megabass finishes here, just maybe adding a simple scale pattern or gills or something just for fun. I don't even believe that I will get bit more often if I add paint, I just want to do it for fun.

Thanks everyone.

[Bluebasser86]

Sharpies come in a ton of color and can add color to most any bait.

[j bab]

2 minutes ago, Bluebasser86 said:

Sharpies come in a ton of color and can add color to most any bait.

The times I've used sharpie it seems to come off easily. Should I use a spray on clear coat afterwards?

Think they would show up okay on a black bait?

[Bluebasser86]

Honestly, I wouldn't bother adding any color to it. I like the black Slammer just as it is. I really don't think the color matters much though, it's more the profile and commotion that gets their attention. 

[j bab]

14 hours ago, j bab said:

I don't even believe that I will get bit more often if I add paint, I just want to do it for fun.

@Bluebasser86 I'm aware, I just need stuff to do to kill time over Christmas break at home alone and this is a nice big canvas  

[Bluebasser86]

I had a golden shiner colored 9" and decided to mess with it and it never worked the same again. I'm not saying it wasn't just something I did that screwed it up, but in my head that's what screwed it up. Wood baits just seem to be touchy on what you can and can't do to mess up the balance of them. 

One of these guys that paint a lot of their own baits will be able to give a more definitive answer than I can. I paint lead and touch up cheap baits and that's it.

[j bab]

33 minutes ago, Bluebasser86 said:

it never worked the same again

Well that's certainly good to know... I'll hold off until I get a definitive answer then, thanks for sharing.

In the meantime I'm just going to replace the stock hardware and wait on the paint (I was also thinking about dressing at least one of the trebles too)

[Damn Yankee]

I have 10 or 12 colors of nail polish and am always tweaking colors on my lures.

[Baitmaker]

You may find that colors will not show up well unless you first lay down a white base coat. Black is especially tough to cover. My advice would be to test out your paint on a white surface and then a black one to get a better understanding of the finished appearance. 

[j bab]

On December 14, 2016 at 4:15 PM, Baitmaker said:

You may find that colors will not show up well unless you first lay down a white base coat. Black is especially tough to cover. My advice would be to test out your paint on a white surface and then a black one to get a better understanding of the finished appearance. 

Thanks! Do you think paint will affect action?

[Baitmaker]

28 minutes ago, j bab said:

Thanks! Do you think paint will affect action?

Paint, not so much. Epoxy top coat may have an effect. Especially multiple coats on a smaller suspending bait. It adds a little bit of weight. 

[j bab]

41 minutes ago, Baitmaker said:

Paint, not so much. Epoxy top coat may have an effect. Especially multiple coats on a smaller suspending bait. It adds a little bit of weight. 

In this case it's on a 9" bait that's around 3oz

[jr231]

Let's see it !

[j bab]

7 hours ago, Yeajray231 said:

Let's see it !

I haven't tried it yet, if/when I do I'll update here

[Baitmaker]

You may want to take a look at the angle of how the bait sits in water and take a mental note of the water line before painting or modifying. Then compare when you are done. They are designed and weighted to have a specific action, but that doesn't always mean that slight changes is a bad thing. (Usually isn't good) It is common for guys to drill holes and add lead to some wood musky baits that they use here at my local lakes. All done by a lot of trial and error and learning what works and what doesn't.