Senkosam

I'm thinking of becoming a distributor for glitter. If I did, and the price beats LC, and even a better color selection was offered, would I get you're business? Got to know because the min. per color and size is 10 lbs., which would be broken down into a standard $/ounce. (S&H extra). Sam

Thanks Kidlizard, it's good to know it's not my imagination. I will continue to search for alternative suppliers of glitter and dye. Del's Calhoun plastic is the best priced plastisol and they get my business for that alone. Wish he also sold softner and hardner. One site replied by mail as a possible glitter wholesaler and has every size and color we need. Pearl powder is too expensive no matter where you look. Sam

Check out tacklemaking.com. Sam

Janns doesn't have different flake sizes and are more expensive than LC.

Two-part plaster mold. But I'm going to extend the tail-to-knob and make it thinner, just like the Trickworm. I now have 3 sizes - 4.5", 5.5" and 6.5".

They worked. Caught three bass (dinks) under post-cold front conditions. Sam

Here's a new design I thought some might find interesting. Ever since I've used Zoom's Trickworm, with it's elongated knobbed tail, I thought, 'why not add the knob to a stick. The knob offers a unique wagging/whipping action to the end of an appendage or tail. Here's a hybid I call the Trick Stik. Watermelon/ yellow pearl Sam

According to Lurecrafts catolog, p.5, add 3 oz. per 1 gallon or 1 teaspoon per the 12 oz. capacity of a Lee Pot. LCIt really does work! Sam

Chirmy, now that you mention it, I've noticed the same problem. One other thing I didn't mention about Dave from Lurecraft is that the orders are frequently wrong and in their favor. I recently ordered 4 dyes in the 1 oz. size and received a fifth that I already had and was charged for. I only asked Dave a question about how come the motor oil that I already had wasn't irridescent. I received and was charged for 2 oz. for every color even though I quoted him the A at the end of each number which represented the 1 oz. size. I guarentee that when I call back this pm I'll get the same answer as the woman in his office gave me- send it all back (at my expense) and we'll credit you for another order. I wish Delmart would start selling color and flakes along with the current supply of Calhoun plastic. I know all of us would give him all our business, even if he was a little higher than LC. He would get my testimonial. Sam

Is there any place else other than LC to get glitter? I'm getting fed up dealing with them. MF has .062 but in limited colors unless you order a massive amount. .035 is about two bucks more expensive than LC for 1/2 lb and 1 lb. Dye is much more expensive through MF. Sam

Luirecraft has a glue-gun that supposedly shoots plastic colors for making dots, stripes and veins. Wonder if a regular glue-gun will work.

Got the baits today and all I can say is, Wow! Hope no one was disappointed in mine in comparison to the great quality and unique designs of all the lures received! Good job guys - looking foward to next years swap. Thanks again Mercury for taking on the distribution. Sam

The worm in the forground is the penworm. (By the way, the only way to transform LC's motor oil into a real motor oil, was to 1. add chartreuse dye and 2. dip the worms in Spike It. Sam

Thanks Hide, but I did it successfully with thick solder wire, wrapping it around the pen - close at the ends, spaced in the middle. But since you've brought up the segmenting worms, it occurred to me that I was never fond of one part molds, even if I overpoured the flat top surface. Thus, the iron. The unnatural and not-as-hydrodynamic form is transformed into a beautifully textured, rounded bait. ("beautifully textured"?; man, I better start venting the fumes!) I also decided to make a sample to send Dave concerning his motor oil color which is more watermelon than anything else. So I put some worm oil on cardboard and let it run, forming a rounded skin. I shaped one end of the tear, and connected it to a 4" LureCraft stick with a candle melt. Wella! - a short Speed-Worm. (see pic - (top worm);(the next-to-bottom worm was from a felt tip pen mold) Note, segmenting brings out subsurface glitter by bringing it close to the surface. For all of you that like to imagine realistic characteristics about your worms that fish actually recognize, how about the intestinal tract of a real earthworm or translucent minnow. It's intestines look like black squiggly lines that contrast when viewed against a light. Well 'so what?', you ask. The large internal black flakes give that appearance. Not only does the worm move seductively, but so does it's bowels!! LOL (Got to stop sniffing those fumes!) Sam

Just thought of an idea for adding permanent surface glitter in the form of stripes, dots, eyes, lure backs, etc. Apply Spike-It paint and use a glitter of choice to sprinkle on the wet Chunk Paint. The paint cannot be removed and the glitter will stick indefinately. Plus the paint cannot bleed, like the dye. http://www.ispikeit.com/ for colors BPS doesn't carry or BPS for much cheaper price. Sam

I've found two things that work much of the time. 1. Like you said, always tilt when pouring. 2. Take a wooden ka-bob skewer or coat hanger wire, and poke into the filled end to break the air bubble. Pour into the cavity. This assumes the plastic is hot and runny and chunk-free. Sam

M-F is expensive for everything related to pouring. I've compared all to LureCraft and M-F is definitely higher. Craig, no matter how little I use, it still comes out like cinnamin or pearl copper and not even close to amber. Sam

If there is to be a swap in the future, I think a postmark/ date received deadline is in order. If a participant can't make the deadline, he should e-mail the organizer and drop out or be automatically dropped if his baits aren't received my a certain date. Granted, unforseen circumstances do happen, but as Big Splash mentioned, some of us hustled to make and ship the lures well before the deadline. To make 21 lures x 5 or 6, wasn't easy for the low volume pourers, especially striving for consistancy. If someone changed his mind, for whatever reason, he should contact Merc and drop out as soon as possible so that someone else can contribute. I have a friend who sells plastics and could whip out +100 lures in one day and wanted to for this swap. Sam

Thanks Al. I wish they wouldn't misadveritise products. I'll call Dave tomorrow and see if there is an amber powder, otherwise I'll purchase yellow pearl and mix it with this stuff or try to get credit. I'm trying to get Riverside or Zoom's firetiger which is a flor. green/black flake/pearl laminated to a flor orange/amber pearl. Sam

I poured clear with pearl amber from Lurecraft. I was a little suspicious from the powder's appearance - almost reddish copper. Of course the worm turned out the same way - redish copper-pearl. It caught bass and picks today but that's not the point. I thought amber was brownish-yellow, not copper. What's up with that? I haven't contacted them about their motor oil color yet. Sam

Remind me to bring a pack to the next seminar. Frank

The cap was left on. I further tapered the ends by using a flame and gravity and added the rings by gooving the worm crosswise with a soldering iron. I will make a mold of the worm in the picture so I don't have to go through the hassle of modifying. The picture shows the pen along side the worm. The original worm was smooth and a little over 5". After catching bass and pickerel, I had to cut the worm down and reinsert the hook. Rather than use the plastic as a remelt, I tapered the ends and grooved the plastic as mentioned. The grooves are more for texture than anything else. I've found that acceptable stick sizes are from 4 /14"-5 1/4"; slim form for any size; thicker form for only 5" or more worms. Sam

Thanks S.F., I figure if they don't want it longer, they want it thicker! LOL Here's the bait with 5/0 hook Sam

Remember the variables talked about in the post about variables? Here's a design you might find useful and how it was producd. 1. Take a Sharpie Pen and make a 2 part mold. 2. pour the plastic 3. groove the plastic with a soldering iron 4. use with a 5/0 wide gap and catch fish! The bait is 5 1/4", full bodied versus slim, doesn't require as much salt and still has the walk of a slimmer design. Sam

Two things come to mind as per Craig's reply - size and texture. If fishing a 4-5" grub on a 1/16 oz.-1/8 oz. jighead, most of the time, is a finesse approach, then that's how I fish 90% of the time. Look at the classic won down in Florida. A short 3" craw with a 1/2 bullet weight was used to punch through heavy, floating, weed masses. This guy was pulling out hogs from early on. Sometimes size counts, but the other way. But, for the first time since I've been using grubs and shads, my handpours are on the fat-and/or-big-action side. The grubs you'll receive, I guarentee will catch fish of different species! Overall length is still small, considering the large 7-10" worms used with 1/2 oz weights, but the profile is mouth size. It's possible that a fish sees this tubby waddler and is convinced it can't move fast enough to get out of it's own way. Plus, it seems too stupid in it's actions, not to be at least subdued in it's appearance and behavior (action)-(a big no-no in nature!) The less-noticed survive; the injured, flashy, grossly-moving or subtley-moving-but-stationary, and/or stupid and unaware, don't! Hey, two approaches to using lures - flashy and stupid versus maimed, injured, weak or drunk! (Lions and their prey come to mind when they decide which animal to take down. What a concept!) As far as texure/ softness is concerned, retention of soft baits is a no-brainer. But, a harder plastic worm (salt filled-no softner), in my experience, is held just as long. The time to strike may not be as long as Craig's softies or Senkos, but far longer than most hard lures. When you think about it, most things consumed by fish are hard! Craws, shads, threadfins, perch, madtoms (with it's spikes), frogs (back-bone, head and extremities)etc., are all hard. The lesser consumed items (slugs, worms (usually only seen under a bobber),eels and leeches, are the only prey that are very soft. Even snakes and lizards are hard and crunchy. From this perspective, matching size and softness, may be the most attractive thing about plastics. Taste may also contribute to retention but not attraction. (Applied scent is a personal preference in my opinion, but salt and cooked-in scent could be detected by taste buds beacuse the time in the oral cavity is much longer because of it than, say, a crankbait or spinnerbait .) (Happy Craig- I concede that scent may be a positive reinforcement for holding on longer, but fish still have no idea what they're tasting! LOL) Time to make up a batch of Slider Worms. Talk later. Sam