Husky

I see Sluggo offers lures with rigged hooks cast in. My question is what damage will the heat do to the line used for rigging and does anyone successfully cast rigging into their lures? TIA

Just a hunch, but I think when you add the wire, it blocks the air from escaping the mold, hence, impeeding the fill. Try scoring some fine lines from the cavity to the outside. High quality molds fit very well but that means they may have some minor venting issues. JMHO

The parting lines are very thin and can be "erased" with 220 paper. I cut off any protruding parts and sand what's left. No messy clean up to speak of. I use clear 3 0z cups to mix in. I use a marker to measure out how much resinI need, iow 4/16's" in each cup, I write the formula on the molds. i.e. my large FoTins take 4/16's of each resin and 6/16's of art sand. (I keep the measurements in 16's to remain constant. It also allows me to cast two different lures from the same mix, w/o having to convert fractions.

These never pull out!

According to the Folks at Dascar, their RP-40 is used by the Auto industry for tooling up parts. My experience has found it, as well as the Shopmaninc.com product to be very strong, and that's considering I made some lures with a 50/50 mix of UR amd MB's. For my FoTins I use artist sand in lieu of MB's to make the lures heavier, and they seem to be bullet proof as well.

I also used the Resin from Shopmaninc,com I liked it a lot but it's priced $30 higher than the $69 I pay for the RP-40, The only difference I see between the 2 is a slight color variation, the RP-40 being an off white. I can't speak for the Alumilite brand but I know of guys who have. I won't post what they said as it would be hearsay,

This is possibly the best MM videos available.I'll put the RP-40 up against any resin, To float it, it'll take Microspheres.

I thought I posted this already, but here goes. Google DASCAR RP-40 ($69 for a 2 gal kit and is great stuff) on Ebay and Order MB's from Shopmaninc.com( Get the large size as handlong is $10, eitehr way).

Bob, I've never fished the same lure for several hours in a row unless it was getting hammered, which would skew the results. The key I found with the Target coatings is to keep them thin. They're made to be sprayed so dipping causes them to go on thicker than intended, For a lot of guys, that's worked out well, but I prefer to brush it on. It stays fluid enough to not have brush marks yet goes on thinner and dries harder, IMHO, Sealing the baits well is very important with these coatings.

Necessity is the mother of invention. BTW the ratio was appx. 5 or 6 Etex to 1 D2T. That's not to say that's the ideal mix, but it is what I did in that instance. They are compatible so it's worth experimenting with. IOW, make an Etex mix,coat a plug, then add some D2T, coat another, then add more D2T for another, then compare. I give my FoTins a base of an Epoxy coat and a few coats of SC 9000. FWIW, I noticed the drip off was much less with the Epoxy mixture than with Etex alone

Recently, I added some D2T to Etex because I needed a bit more than the Amount of Etex I metered out, and It was easier to squirt the D2T than measure out more Etex. Well, the mixture set faster than Etex alone, and was harder than the Etex. No thinner was necessary.

Have a fun and safe trip! I'd love to hook up with you. I'm overdue to visit an Old friend in your neck of the woods. When I do, I'll touch base with you. Do you ever head south and fish Baha? I hear they have some good fishing there, too.

Welcome to the "We Throw Nickles Around Like They're Manhole Covers Club"! Do you use water at all? Got Pictures of the molds and Finished products?

Devcon 2 Ton Epoxy.

My eyes are old, so I find the white background easier on them.

That's pretty inovative. I hope it does exactly what you want it to do, and am anxiously awaiting seeing the end results! One modification I might want to consider adding is to put a rigid backing on the silicone half for stability. Just use straight sealant to glue on a sized piece of wood or other hard substance to it.

Target Coatings Waterborne Urethanes. Super Clear 9000 is the one most here are referring to.

Absolutely true, but not in keeping with the "we throw nickles around like they're manhole covers" theme of this thread. Making a MM will aleviate any anxiety of "losing" a great producing mold, and is something DIY mold builders should embrace, If just for the sake of increasing production rates by adding the amounts of pours in any given time.

Many of the Pros are sponsored by commercial builders and may even give credit to their sponsors products, even if it "ain't" so".

I was dipping but went to brushing . I found it went on easier than dipping as there was no heavy build up and waiting for run off, and only took seconds to brush on. You might get one or two drops at most. Water cleanup doesn't hurt!

LOL! I've caught more fish on lures that look like nothing in Nature than I dare mention.

What he said. To me, it's a hobby within a hobby. Of course you could "save"some $ on individual lures but I can pretty much guarantee you'll spend more on building supplies than you normally would have spent on lures you would have purchased.

This thread got a tad longer than I anticipated. So, at the risk of repeating myself, this is how I make a Mother Mold, so I can make quick and easy back ups. When I get a well performing RTV mold, I box the mold in, cavity up, and pour a well mixed, lump free POP mixture over it. When it sets, work the RTV mold out. Let the POP totally cure and seal it. I use D2T mixed with alcohol as a sealer. When that is cured, you can fill the POP mother mold with the RTV of your choice and when that cures, you'll have a clone of your original RTV mold. I had a project where a fellow was making custom chocolates and needed appx 10000 pieces so I made two MM's and many subsequent RTV molds from them to speed up the process. In the picture bellow, you'll see the orange Master and the white clones cast from the MM's (They're the POP squares@ the upper left) The point is that once you have a good RTV mold, you can have as many clones of it as you desire, with a minimum of work.

The rerason I asked was because some unused line on a reel I never use was useless. It was like a slinky! Maybe it was the brand of line or a trait of mono in general. In any event, if it coiled on the reel wouldn't it do likewise on the original 1/4 lb?

I have quite a few 1/4 lb spools that are getting on in years. What's the longest it can be stored before it takes on a permanent coil?