Securing eyes experiment

[Lost Pole]

Wanted to try to with just clear powder and while it DID work and the eyes are never coming off, the initial heating to apply the clear after the first cure, distorted oblong eyes into straight slanted eyes. The second cure locked em in forever though and didn't change their appearance any further.
Can throw em on the ground and they ain't budging.
Gon figure it out bc I'm tired of polish, glues n epoxies.

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[toadfrog]

Amen to tired of glues and epoxies .

 

[LedHed]

lower temp - longer time - make sure chamber temperature is stable before you put the jigs in

 

[AtticaFish]

Love the colors, black/silver with red accent is a staple in my box since it matches nature so well. Cool paint jobs.

You can get the stable oven temp fairly easy by starting out your temp low and slowly raising it till you are just under your target temp. I keep my thermostat under my actual target since my oven can go so far off. Raising the temp slow with the jigs in the oven also seems to set/cure heavy multi color paints some in place before it hits the target temp so less slipping and sagging. But i put my jigs in from the start and raise the temp which is a little different than LedHed mentioned.

lower temp - longer time - make sure chamber temperature is stable before you put the jigs in

Lower temp, longer time.......... i have yet to find a "low and slow" temp/time that cures as well. Mine always seems to chip easy. I know different paints go for different times, but do you have a general temp/time range for a simple ProTech paint LedHed?

 

[Shoemoo]

Interesting look on those eyes after they warped. I've tried curing the heads with the eyes in place, but I think the temperature was too high because the eyes melted during the baking process.

On my latest batch, I've been experimenting with brush-on superglue. While I haven't fished them enough to determine durability, they seem rock-solid in the hand. The key to this method is to brush it on in a very thin coat over the top of the eye then hanging it up to dry without touching the glue.

 

[toadfrog]

It's been my experience that super glue will cloud when you apply it that way . Exposure to sunlight won't help matters either .I think I hate super glue more than anything . Shelf life really sucks on that stuff . Bet I have 5 dead bottles in different places around here .

 

[Shoemoo]

They haven't clouded up on me yet, but you have to be careful not to touch it before it sets up and apply a very thin coat. If there's enough to form a pool around the corners of the eye socket, it won't dry smooth.

Not too worried about exposure to sunlight, since I keep my jigs in a plastic tray in my tackle bag when I'm not using them.

I agree superglue is a pain to work with, but not as much as epoxy. I tried the Loon UV gel because I found a pack in the clearance section at Cabela's, but it exuded some kind of grease and the eyes detached after a few days. Other UV cure products might be better, but that's expensive stuff so I don't want to spend $20 and have it not work.