Clear Coat

[bigbassctchr101]

FAMOWOOD® Dura-Tuff

Clear Coat

Polyurethane Coating

http://www.creative-wholesale.com/Dura-Tuff.html

Could you all tell me if you could use this for a clear coat on crankbaits? Could you pop the lid, dip it in and set it on a drying wheel? If you can't, please let me know why not.

[BIG M]

I've never used that product but if it dries clear and is water proof then it should be fine. I would dip and hang the bait first to see if that method works. I think a drying wheel might cause problems due to the viscosity of the product. I'm also thinking you will need at least 2 coats. You might want to scuff the baits with steel wool between coats. Sorry I can't give you better answers.

After reading the product info again, this stuff looks very much like Dick Nite's product.

Should be just a dip and hang process for your baits. BobP will be able to help with this one.

[BobP]

I have used the Famowood and it works fine, although I prefer Dick Nite S81 clearcoat. Both of them are moisture cured urethanes (MCU). Best practice (and simplest): dip the lure and hang it up over a newspaper for the excess to drip off the tail, then let it cure for at least 4 days before fishing it. You should not put a lure dipped in Famowood on a lure turner. MCU forms a skin very quickly but there is usually liquid urethane underneath the skin. On a turner, the liquid tends to collect in one area of the bait and cause bubbling and delamination of the paint. Just hang it up to dry and all the excess will drip off, avoiding the problem. I like MCU very much for crankbait topcoat; it's very durable, very thin, very clear, and simple to apply. To me, it's the closest thing to a "factory finish" you can put on a crankbait (in fact, it is used by Dick Nite to topcoat the trolling spoons the company produces).

If you haven't used a moisture cured urethane before, I suggest you bone up on its storage and application procedures. It works great but is hard to keep from curing solid in a storage container because any atmospheric moisture, aka just plain ole air, will eventually cause it to begin curing. You need to exclude air from the storage container. Rather than write an encyclopedia here, I suggest you cruise over to tackleunderground.com, navigate to the Hard Bait forum there, and conduct a search on Dick Nite - which has been extensively discussed there. BTW, it you access the Dick Nite website from tackleunderground, you can buy the finish at a decent discount.

[bigbassctchr101]

Great info!!! Thank you alot. Is there a reason why people use the devcon epoxy and other things like that the require mixing and quick application? I'm new to this and it just always made me think. Is the 2 part epoxy stronger, more chip resistant??

[BobP]

Epoxy is actually a little more reliable in terms of aesthetics than moisture cured urethane (MCU), so some guys prefer it for that reason. As far as performance, both, along with automotive clearcoat, are excellent alternatives. Every clearcoat has a learning curve. Many guys who started out as hobby builders started with epoxy because you can buy a double syringe of Devcon Two Ton for a couple of bucks and get excellent results. Many of those guys figure "if it ain't broke don't fix it". They're right but I like to experiment and I regularly use MCU. I especially like it on plastic lures because it is very thin, durable, and clear and most resembles a "factory finish". It will not gloss over any 3D detail on the bait like epoxy will tend to do. Epoxy is almost traditional on balsa wood crankbaits because it levels out well over minor surface irregularities in the wood to create a beautiful finish. Two part catalyzed automotive clears are also a good choice but are poisonous and require safety equipment to use, so are less popular. IMO, there are no bad choices; some just tend to be a little better or worse in aesthetics, application, storage, etc for particular crankbaits.

[jbass]

Like BobP said, "If it ain't broke don't fix it." D2T has been a staple in my arsenal for a while, yet I'm still in the learning curve, I would be open to any new finishes that will last and is resistant to checking and the like. I built a twitch bait that really came out great. Fishing it in one of our local waters; I whacked chain link fence post. I though for sure it was damaged but I could not find the spot where it hit. That's why I'm sold on D2T.

[BobP]

I don't think there is any "clear winner" among the options as far as performance goes. I've chipped balsa baits topcoated with Devcon Two Ton on rocks, etc. Some guys say Envirotex Lite epoxy has better chip resistance. Fishing in cold weather makes epoxy a little more brittle. For topcoating plastic baits, I do think MCU, and particularly Dick Nite S81, is superior. It's solvent soaks through dry acrylic paint to the plastic underneath and makes the finish a very durable integrated whole. Epoxy sits on top of acrylic paint but doesn't penetrate. It works like a tough plastic jacket and is fine as long as it is intact. But If chipped, water tends to infiltrate the acrylic paint and expand it, delaminating the finish. I've used epoxy on hundreds of wood baits and will continue to do so, especially when I want a thicker topcoat that I know will look "perfect" when hard. But I'll also use MCU when it fits the bill. I love it's simplicity. Dip it, hang it, DONE. The five second finish!

[Godinez77]

I don't think there is any "clear winner" among the options as far as performance goes. I've chipped balsa baits topcoated with Devcon Two Ton on rocks, etc. Some guys say Envirotex Lite epoxy has better chip resistance. Fishing in cold weather makes epoxy a little more brittle. For topcoating plastic baits, I do think MCU, and particularly Dick Nite S81, is superior. It's solvent soaks through dry acrylic paint to the plastic underneath and makes the finish a very durable integrated whole. Epoxy sits on top of acrylic paint but doesn't penetrate. It works like a tough plastic jacket and is fine as long as it is intact. But If chipped, water tends to infiltrate the acrylic paint and expand it, delaminating the finish. I've used epoxy on hundreds of wood baits and will continue to do so, especially when I want a thicker topcoat that I know will look "perfect" when hard. But I'll also use MCU when it fits the bill. I love it's simplicity. Dip it, hang it, DONE. The five second finish!

Where can you get the MCU?

[BobP]

Google Moisture Cured Urethane and you will find several sellers online. The brands I most often see are GARCO and FAMOWOOD. Dick Nite S81 topcoat is also a MCU. See above post if you are interested in that brand.

[EJVH3]

I only use Dev-con 2 ton epoxy myself.