Senkosam

Just an idea, but one that will allow the finer cavities to be poured without clog. 1. Metal molds are cold and they cool plastic fast the further it has to travel (prime reason for injection poring). 2. Heat stabilizer helps thin plastic and allow for a higer pouring temp. The problem with going over 325 is the effect on glitter shrinkage and bleed for some colors. 3. I have a one part aluminum Beaver which comes out full-round with two pours, but the first thing I do is pour the central flapper tail first. It has to be thin anyway, so tilting the mold towards the body helps keep it thin and maintains the openings for the side appendages. (A technique I use for large, wide curly tails.) 4. In the case of a two part, close the mold once the central tail is poured and then pour the body and flappers. Texure on both sides of the paddle tail isn't necessary and the action will still be the same. A pain in the a... , no doubt, but it should do the trick.

Bob's site's new design is great. Now if he would learn how to use a camera...! LOL

M-F and Del have the best watermelon colors.

Any time.

Agree. Everyone has got to start somewhere and many who have poured for a short time, after having been here for a few months, may feel they have nothing to contribute of interest. If 310 had posted a problem pouring or molding, most of us would have contributed 10 recommendations, no questions asked. But I do agree with EW about someone coming on board and trying to get others to contribute new ideas when they have not participated at all. None of us minds sharing new discoveries with fellow lurecrafters and take pride in the final product, but coming up with new ideas is not something that occurs all that often. The TU gallery has hundreds of pictures of all types of lures to get ideas from and is a great place to browse. The archive of tutorials is also a good place to get specific info and Del's site has an excellent recipe book for basic color combos and a forum where Del will answer any questions. There are few sites that have 10 new posts per day and since this is a specialty how-to site, not as active, especially in the summer months when everyone is out fishing.

You have to coat the top surface and cavities with something that will withstand heat and moisture. I use Valspar, others use epoxy.

Millsryno gave an excellent starting point for sticks and other softer lures. Del also has one that's similar (search this site for his reply to the same question). M-F does have an excellent soft plastic formua and the plastic is totally bubble free. (Poured 20 baits last night in a damp basement and not one tiny bubble!) If you add salt, you must add softener if you must have the same softness. But consider this: Hard jerkbaits catch fish and their action hasn't deterred the strike since they were first introduced half a century ago. Soft jerksticks still have more action because of the stick's bend and you can even catch bass or picks on sticks made from saltwater plastic. (I have.) If you use regular-soft plastic, then of course add softener to suit. The more important the horizontal drop/finesse action, the more softener needed; the faster the stick on the horizontal jerk, the less softness needed. With sugar flakes used for weight, you need less salt and therefore less softener and the plastic formula approaches that of the Senko in texture. To pour consistent lures, you must have a recipe for each application the lure is to be used for.

3lbs and over, free shipping. I do this only because of low demand and to get guys started who mostly want small amounts of various colors and sizes. You already know how expensive 2oz can cost through M-F (plus s/h) and it adds up. I like helping fellow lurecrafters and enjoy the sharing of info on this site (which is one of the reasons I wrote the tutorial on mold making) and the fact that all of us are specialists in a subspecialty of fishing. Best go to M-F, Del, LC and Ozark for the best per unit cost, for larger quantities.

I guess people must thinks it's worth it because they keep coming back. I use it all the time and like the way my lures look, plus I can duplicate anyone's color scheme to a T. Offering more colors and sizes, give everyone an opportunity to experiment, copy and honor requests for those that want custom made lures they can't buy anywhere else. It's also nice not paying ridiculous per unit prices and shipping for smaller amounts. As I said before, I like sharing color schemes with fellow lurecrafters and send example baits with orders so people get some ideas of what certain colors look like in colored plastic. I'm more than happy if a new supplier can provide us with good product, low per unit prices and shipping, plus good service. It's a great hobby if you can afford the start-up costs. (No problem Saint. Good question/ interesting problem. Hope you get good results from stirring, but note how much is coming over the pyrex lip when pouring. It should be a uniform amount and stay suspended in the quickly cooling plastic.)

Come to think of it, I wish my glitter would sink -- that would produce a great laminar effect!

Huh???

Regardless of whether you're using a pot or pyrex, stir well. Glitter doesn't usually settle regardless of size. Stir in between reheating just in case there is any settling.

I order glitter from two distributors - one which has better heat resistant glitter, but less colors in the sizes commonly requested. It should bleed if you get the temp above 325, the same for violet. One thing you guys have got to try:If you use jig trailers, heat some medium smoke plastic and put .015 gold hologram and .040 black flake in it. I poured some smoke Power Grub copies last week and clobbered 6 species on Fri. I also dipped a few of the tails in chartreuse dipping dye and the effect was superb! We kept 19 lbs of yellow perch, I caught 8 bass on the same smoke/ gold holo glitter grub and threw back over 40 fish. Get the holo from anyone, but do try it! I know that a trailer with this color will go well with my weedless jigs. (*Guys who've fished with me know I don't embellish on numbers or size!) lol

A quick way to seeing the effects of different sizes of glitter in plastic is to look at pre-made baits. Glitter is commonly used in three sizes - .015, .025, .040; .008 is used in place of dye in clear plastic or in light tints. Zoom color #54 uses .040 black, .015 black, .025 red and .008 red in watermelon. Zoom also uses .062 in some colors, though sparingly, along with finer glitter. Recently I've had great success with .015 gold holo in smoke and don't want the effect of .040 gold holo in this particular color or for the type of baits I'm pouring (finesse worms and jig trailers). Bass and other species can't see .015 or smaller and the only reason I use smaller glitter is for color flash and sheen. When a fish looks up at a falling lure, it probably can only see .040 or larger in contrast against the overhead available light. For this type of bait, I always use .040, .062 or .090. For all I know, the black things in the bait might represent prey intestines. LOL The smaller the lure, the smaller the glitter. Kalin grubs have shown me a number of great combos in their 3" grub and all sizes used were .015 and .008. If you go the route of craft glitter, note the single size it comes in, the dollar amount for one true oz. (including tax) and whether it can stand up to plastic temps over 300 degrees. Most burn on reheats and turn plastic brown. Tip: Lately I've been using dipping dyes to color plastics. (Spike-It, Hawk or Colorite) It saves time in having to pour 2 different colors for tails or tips. All colors are true and look like they have two colors of plastics. Glitter shows through as well as in dyed plastic and concentrations of color depend on how many dips.

Thanks. I'll see which one has a better deal on shipping and price for 5 gallons.

Can't ask for anything more!!!! By the way, what is the consensus of LC's plastic in comp to M-F?

Consistently bad service given to too many customers deserves a bad rep. When Dave had LC, the bad service to some of us was noted and notes were compared. Some of us have had problems with Calhoun's plastic and compared notes on this forum. It is a consumer's perogative to ask others if they've had the same problem and then act on it if the company doesn't respond. People paying for products and services, will we go where they can get the best of both and as far as I'm concerned, three strikes and you're out, but only after three strikes and the company has been given a chance to rectify the problem and take responsibility if if the wrong. Granted, some people never have a problem with a particular company's products or service, but a rep consists of the good and the bad, and people want to know how much of each to save time and money. It's the reason I don't purchase much from BPS anymore and I'm not alone. Sponsors are not sacred cows, including me, but do deserve a chance before getting to third base.

Good to hear! I was getting worried that the service was beginning to suck as bad as when Dave owned LC. Still curious about their full round Senko mold.

http://2005effectivehybrids.blogspot.com/ http://senkosamsothercreations.blogspot.com/ http://www.zipperworm.blogspot.com/ http://senkosam.blogspot.com/ http://morecabinfevercreations.blogspot.com/2005/03/thicker-body-hybrids.html As you can see by the above collection of hybrid lures, fish are not only opportunistic, but very, very curious. Who hasn't caught different species on lures that look like nothing in nature? How many multispecies lures are out there that will catch a 7lb bass or a 1lb crappy in the same hour? You are on the right track regarding design - the parts make up the whole. If I've learned anything in the last 8 years of coming up with different designs, it's that one simple fact. Here's a prime example: A Sassy shad has a wagging boot tail. Slider grubs have a flat T-tail that wags. Both work, but there are times that the Slider tail works much better in that it doesn't vibrate the body near as much and falls more into a finesse action tail. Put the Sassy Shad tail on the end of a Fin S Fish, and the whole body shimmies just like a minnow. Fantastic action that gets bit far more often than a SS. Now you see three basic hydrodynamic concepts at work in three totally different actions. Plastic consistency can even make a difference. Wave Worm Tiki sticks are far too firm for my taste and I either use M-F soft plastic or add softener. Even at 30 cents a stick, they are not worth the money. Leave salt and softener out and you now have a very durable jerkstick that still has more action than a hard jerkbait even though it doesn't have the softness of the 1bass/1lure Senko. For the finesse action on the horizontal drop, definitely add salt and softener, but for split shotting the firmer bait, no additives are needed. Again, different strokes for different types of fishing. The paddles on the Sweet Beaver are not anything new. Riverside had them on a bait a few years before. Are Beavers superior? Depends. Now everyone is making a version that is basically a copy, but still unique. My advice - observe what different lures do based on their overall shapes and the shapes, sizes of the parts and ratio of part size to body. Imagine changing any of the variables and how that might change the lure's action. Note that parts can be finesse or extreme (Kalin tail vs a petite screw tail) and that the range between finesse or extreme is what the designer is after, along with uniqueness. As always, testing in clear water is a must, regardless of whether you are fishing with the lure or not. If you like the action, you or another angler will impart a special action that makes that lure work. As far as getting realistic, Mad Man Craws are the most realistic bait I've ever seen, but it catches the least numbers of fish that another unrealistic lure design will shine at 100 percent of the time.

Popcorn salt is way too expensive! Regular salt, ground to a fine powder with a small $10 coffee grinder works great and the powder suspends nicely in sugar flakes. I store my ground salt in Zip Lock bags and it pulverizes easily if small chunks happen. The more concentrated the salt, the more opaque the plastic. Note that all yammie plastics are opaque that contain salt (and a mixture of flakes similar to sugar). Sugar allows more light to pass through, but like salt, the more you use, the more opaque the plastic and especially when used with dark concentrated colors. Jim and I have had the same experiences using clear flake and salt; others may have different experiences. But one thing is for sure - sugar clogs a Lee Production Pot spout far less than medium grain salt.

Pearl is a highlight to a lighter tinted to clear plastic and not much is needed. Don't waste it on dark plastic or by adding too much and try to take a sample into the sun to see what is reflected internally.

Also remember, reheated plastic takes less time and needs more care to avoid burning it or killing the glitter. I recently poured some jig trailers using smoke and .015 gold hologram. Example: The third reheat, the holo started to fade in color and I added more.

Nuke it! or an electric pot for pouring many lures in one color, but with fine salt or no salt (clogs spout). Stove top requires a lot of monitoring to prevent searing the plastic.

http://www.colorite-glowmaster.com/index.html The best prices and they have a soft plastic coat that will make black plastic white on it's surface, as well as glitter and metallic coats. They also have glow-in-the-dark coats that really work. I use them with glow powder paint for jigs. Hawk is another company that beats Spike-It's web site for buying direct. Of course the more you buy, the more reasonable the shipping. (Just don't get Bruce talking or he'll run out your cell phone minutes.)