Soft UV craft resin review

Northern

Northern

Seeking SMB
Forum Supporter
Hey - I've been playing with a new (to me) UV product:
I tie a lot of bass poppers, and while I leave some as bare foam, I do like to coat the fancier ones with resin or epoxy to protect the paint job/eyes, make them glossy, and a little more shred-resistant when I bounce them off a rock face.
The 5-min rock-hard clearweld I had been using looks great, but gets brittle after being in the sun & water for a season or two.
So... came across this stuff (on Amzn) for crafting. It takes a little longer to cure - like 5 min per side under UV, then let sit ON to lose tack. BUT - it's soft and flexible! Dare I say chewy, even! No oily residue left the following day, and mostly odor-free by then.
Plus, it was around $14 for 100ml vs $15-20 for 15ml of Solarez or RaidZap.
It is slightly denser than the epoxy, so the popper rides just a tiny bit lower in the water. Haven't cast or fished one yet, but in my head it seems like it would have a more natural mouthfeel for the fish, and maybe give you another half second to set the hook.
Can't wait to float these over some bass!
1000008452.jpg

This is a test chunk of craft foam. The resin did not smear or dissolve nail polish, copic, or sharpie. It flexes easily with no effect on the finish, and feels kind of like a gummy bear. I squished it with a pliers for 30 sec; it bounced back and the serrated jaw marks faded away quickly, leaving no mark at all
1000008453.jpg

1000008449.jpg

Very clear
1000008457.jpg

I even used it to re-coat a favorite old epoxied one that had started chipping badly - right over the epoxy, leveling over chips
1000008455.jpg

I'll update after bass topwater season starts and I can evaluate it's ruggedness!
 
Thanks for sharing @Northern ! I’ve moved away from UV resins for coating popper heads for the same reasons you’ve described. The last few years I’ve been using clear glitter fabric paint to coat my heads but it takes a bit more effort to coat evenly, takes longer to dry and requires multiple applications. It’s super durable though and doesn’t add much weight. I’m looking forward to hearing your results with this product. I wonder how it would perform brushed over synthetic heads (craft fur, brush heads etc.)
 
SteelHeadDave said:
Thanks for sharing @Northern ! I’ve moved away from UV resins for coating popper heads for the same reasons you’ve described. The last few years I’ve been using clear glitter fabric paint to coat my heads but it takes a bit more effort to coat evenly, takes longer to dry and requires multiple applications. It’s super durable though and doesn’t add much weight. I’m looking forward to hearing your results with this product. I wonder how it would perform brushed over synthetic heads (craft fur, brush heads etc.)
Click to expand...


Leigh - given the cure time I'm guessing you are using the nail salon UV cure score? Nifty how the product stays so flexible......
 
Last edited:
Good info and thanks for sharing! I have some other flex UV product and was not a fan of using it due to the long cure times like you stated (but I don’t have the nail light). Sounds like you got that issue sorted out.
 
rattlesnake said:
Good info and thanks for sharing! I have some other flex UV product and was not a fan of using it due to the long cure times like you stated (but I don’t have the nail light). Sounds like you got that issue sorted out.
Click to expand...
I do have a faster-curing, fly-specific flex UV resin also, that I use for smaller stuff. Like most of them other than Solarez, tho (to which I'm allergic) it leaves a greasy/smelly finish that I dislike. When using any of those, I do a top coat of InstaDry clear nail polish. Fine for small flies that I don't really expect to last for more than a couple outings.
The big poppers, tho, use a lot of product, and some I've fished for dozens of hours - bouncing off rocks, yanking out of weed beds and getting chomped by bass - so I'm ok with a longer tying (construction?) process! The timed UV light helps a lot.
 
Have you tried flex coat rod building epoxy lately? I used to coat all my foam poppers/floating clousers (and even the belly and thread at the head of sinking clousers). I got away from tying a lot of those for a while but started again recently and went to use the RBE and it seems that they changed the formula enough that a single or even double coat on a popper isn’t overly hard like the old stuff used to get. Plus side is a good coating that doesn’t yellow, down side is you need a fly turner etc. But my main point is that I was surprised recently at how flexible the newer flex coat RBE is.
 
rattlesnake said:
Have you tried flex coat rod building epoxy lately? I used to coat all my foam poppers/floating clousers (and even the belly and thread at the head of sinking clousers). I got away from tying a lot of those for a while but started again recently and went to use the RBE and it seems that they changed the formula enough that a single or even double coat on a popper isn’t overly hard like the old stuff used to get. Plus side is a good coating that doesn’t yellow, down side is you need a fly turner etc. But my main point is that I was surprised recently at how flexible the newer flex coat RBE is.
Click to expand...
Oh, nice! I haven't built a rod in years, so I never thought of that - might give it a shot!
 
I also use closed cell foam for my surface poppers. Thanks for the heads up about the soft UV resin. I'll be ordering some for sure.
 
Northern said:
It takes a little longer to cure - like 5 min per side under UV, then let sit ON to lose tack.
Click to expand...
I was going to suggest sunshine until I saw your subsequent post.

I used to cure w a uv penlight, but then put in sunshine to fully cure away the tackinesss.
It worked well.

I recommend trying sunshine

Jay
 
fkajwg said:
I was going to suggest sunshine until I saw your subsequent post.

I used to cure w a uv penlight, but then put in sunshine to fully cure away the tackinesss.
It worked well.

I recommend trying sunshine

Jay
Click to expand...
Well, currently what sunshine we do have is also barely above freezing (which tends to inhibit chemical reactions)
But yeah - I do that in the summer sometimes.
I do worry that areas exposed to sun are also exposed to birds and other animals, so leaving "bait" with hooks unattended out in the open seems a little risky.
I guess I could build a "fly cage" lol
 
Northern said:
Well, currently what sunshine we do have is also barely above freezing (which tends to inhibit chemical reactions)
But yeah - I do that in the summer sometimes.
I do worry that areas exposed to sun are also exposed to birds and other animals, so leaving "bait" with hooks unattended out in the open seems a little risky.
I guess I could build a "fly cage" lol
Click to expand...

It does happen, though not often. I had a crow that took a liking to some baitfish patterns I had stuck on some foam and put out on my deck to cure.
SF
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top