Ventilation
Our vinyl paints are considered flammable, so always be aware of your
surroundings. Extinguish all sources of ignition, such as pilot lights
or open flames. Ventilate the area where paint is being applied by
allowing fresh air to circulate. Open windows or use an exhaust fan
with a motor designed to be operated in a hazardous atmosphere. For
personal protection, use a NIOSH/MSHA-approved respirator designed
for use with paint solvents or organic vapors. See can label for
more details.
Surface preparation
Surface to be painted should be free of oil, dirt and moisture. Remove
all release agents from cast jigs by rinsing with a strong soap solution
or solvent, such as CS Coatings’ Thinner. Highly polished surfaces
like nickel, chrome, or silver may require a base coat of clear powder
paint or etching to allow for proper adhesion. Paints should be applied
between 70–80° F in an area of low humidity.
Priming
All Vinyl Paints should be undercoated with our White Vinyl Paint,
which is specially formulated to act as a primer and a reflective
base for fluorescent colors. Where a white base coat is undesirable
(e.g. highly polished surfaces), a cured coat of Clear Pro-Tec Powder
Paint can be used as a primer.
Dipping Vinyl Paint
The main advantage of dipping
is the ability to get true one-coat coverage with most of our vinyl
colors. The secret to achieving one-coat coverage is to avoid thinning
and when necessary, thin very little.
Step-by-Step Instructions
For best results, make sure the paint
temperature is between 70–75° F.
Use a wooden stir stick
to thoroughly mix in pigments from the bottom of the can. A wooden
stir stick prevents the can’s
protective lining from being scraped off and contaminating the
paint. Electreflects should also be stirred to achieve proper
viscosity. Do not shake paints to mix. If paint still appears
excessively thick, warm before thinning.
After stirring white
base coat, dip jig and hang. Paint should drip off without leaving
a long string. If a string does form, a small amount of thinning
is required. Start with approximately 5% thinner and stir thoroughly.
Remember, more thinning means less coverage so keep to a minimum.
After
2 or 3 drips, a round drop will form at the bottom of the jig.
This can be removed by dabbing the drop with a small piece of
stiff paper about 20 seconds after the final drip. This process
will leave a small space on the bottom of the jig that will fill
in as paint continues to flow down. If another drop forms, you
may have dabbed too soon.
Allow at least 15 minutes between each
coat of paint. Fluorescent vinyl colors dry flat and require
a coat of Clear or Epoxy for a high gloss finish. For best results
when two-toning, dip entire jig in lighter color first, then
follow with a darker color.
Always allow jigs to “cure out” for
at least 2 to 4 days — depending on humidity, number of
coats, etc. — before
allowing lures to come into physical contact with one another.
This prevents the solvents trapped under the “flashed” surface
of the lure to re-soften the paint and cause the lures to stick
together. Solvent drying time can be reduced by exposing painted
lures to mild heat. For example, 8 hours at 130° F will completely
cure most lures. Remember to always provide air movement to carry
away solvent fumes. DO NOT use an open flame as heat source.
Heat lamps or electric baseboard heat work well.
Spraying Vinyl Paint
All of our liquid paints and top coats can be sprayed with an airbrush
or larger automotive spray gun. Always try to spray when the temperature
is between 60–80° F with
a humidity of less than 75%. Under highly humid conditions, the
wet coat of paint may “blush” (pick up moisture from the air),
resulting in a poor finish.
This occurs because the rapidly evaporating
solvents in our paint cause the surface temperature of the lure
to drop, which, in turn, promotes condensation.
When used in conjunction
with lower humidity, our Retarder Thinner (09R) will help eliminate
blushing. Retarder Thinner also helps reduce “cob-webbing,” which
occurs when paint dries too quickly out of the tip of the gun in
extremely warm conditions. Many manufacturers choose to use Retarder
Thinner in their operations all year long.
Thinning for airbrushing can vary
from 30% to 50% depending on tip size and air pressure used. It’s
important to remember that the more you thin, the more coats you
may need to get desired coverage. Always try to thin as little
as possible.
When spraying our Electreflect colors, be sure to ask for our
special Spray Formula. It allows for better coverage when thinning.
If you are spraying our Glow Paints, make sure you shake your gun
every few seconds to keep the extremely heavy glow particles evenly
mixed. Also, do not thin more Glow Paint than you are going to
use at a given time. Any thinned Glow Paint that is left unused
will settle rapidly, forming a lump of particles at the bottom
of the container that may not be reusable.
For best results, especially
in critical spray applications, always use CS Coatings’ Thinners.
