question for darter guys...
 

...or anybody who wires their plugs before painting.
what do you use to keep primer and paint off the wire? i've been using painters tape over the line tie, swivel and tail loop but with my large fingers it's a real pain covering those little parts.
thanks.

I've always wired plugs after they are painted and cleared. On the handcarves that I don't, I just scrape the paint off (if I even bother) after the plug is done.

i always had a problem epoxying the wire in on my darters (and those musso type bottledarters)without getting it all over the place so i started wiring them first. it looks good when it's done but what a pain.
thanks

scrape it off with a single edge razor blade, utility knife, or Xacto knife

I paint the wire and leave it. It's going to get rubbed off with the hook swinging anyways.

I use glue syringes from Jamestown distributor to squirt epoxy into the hole. It hardens fast in the syringe, however.

Probably you know this, but in case not..... if your plug has been cleared, you can clean up unhardened epoxy very easily with isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol.

Thick CA glue and a spray flash accelerator. It will be so strong that just a piece of wire inserted in the plug will be impossible to remove without destroying the wire. When I first tested this I literally ripped the loop off the front of the darters with a pair of pliers and the glue never wimpered.

Scone i know some guys use straws cut to length to protect the swivels, cheap and effective.

On the ones i wire before paint, i just hit the wire with some sand paper to remove the paint, or just leave it, seems to flake off once to add split rings and hooks.

You building more of your killer darters?? :love:

thanks for the help fellas, guess i'm probably over thinkin' this.
yeah chris, finally got kind of set up in my new place (i wimped out, i've got real heat this time) and am finally back on the lathe.

Straws around swivels and masking tape over wire
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Nice!! That small and fat darter you had when we were in montauk was awesome, let me know if you have any or when you make some.

Walmart has a couple sizes of th staws. They work some sweet. Once the paint or epoxy starts to set up just remove them.

I have a few different sizes of surgical tubing -- the air hose tubing for fish tanks is nice and pliable and stretches to fit over different swivels are wire-formed eyes.

thanks fellas!

Scone, I paint, then wire, then clear. After I wire I will wipe the plug down with A paper towel dampened with alcohol. Let the rubbing alcohol sorta flash off before wiping so its just damp not wet. Otherwise it will wipe paint off. Doing this gets all the oils from your skin off. Ive tried wearing gloves but i end up tearing them when wiring so i end up wiping with alcohol. No fish eyes

I also paint them, than wire them , than clear them and I put the cut pieces of drinking straw to protect the swivels....
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