nova

Actually if you sort out the baits by colors; greens,browns etc; and melt them separatly you will get a variety of colors to use. www.novalures.com

I use POP as mold material and I make my masters from sculpy clay or I carve them from wood. The wooden ones I coat with clear nail polish to seal the wood and give it a very smooth finish. I don't mean to disagree with Dave but I never use a release agent on my masters when using POP as the oil will bead the water between the master and the POP causing voids in the mold. Dave is correct about the heat though especially with resin molds. www.novalures.com

I haven't poured many "old school", side by each laminates since I started using a spit cup. I like the way they look. Even in an open mold the results can be interesting.(you have to pour very close to the mold and at right angles to the opening so that one color lays under the other). www.novalures.com

I'm with you except for the beer;lol. I do have 5 aluminum molds and a few rtv that I very rarely use(thinking about selling them). 99% of my molds are pop and are of my own design. Old school is the way to go for my money; the "latest and greatest" is not always the way to go. www.novalures.com

Some folks could be getting an allergic reaction to the fumes while others are not effected at all. That being said it's still a good idea to wear a mask and have ventilation. www.novalures.com

Take a look in the softbait gallery under my name; nova. You will see a swim-type bait that has highlights brushed on. The effect is more dramatic than if you put the highlight in the liquid plastic; but it will give you the idea of what it does. www.novalures.com

Go to an automotive type store and ask for sheet gasket cork. Dave I think he's looking for something that will move with action of the bait and still give bouyancy. www.novalures.com

Welcome to the madness;lol. As far as books go, you really don't need one now that you're here. Not to brag; but there are more than enough minds here to help you with any problem you might have. Can't help you with women though; 60 years and I'm still learning about them; lol.(don't tell the wife) www.novalures.com

No matter how you break down the words "big business" you can't spell "fair" or "honest". Unless you have a large sack of money, patents at our level are all but useless. Big companies know that we don't have the money to defend the patent; so they are just going to do what they want. The fair and honest thing for them to do would be to offer to buy the rights to our designs; but don't hold your breath. Just my 2 cents. www.novalures.com

Mark, I shop at the dollar store as much as possible; lol. The 2 part epoxy doesn't have to cost an arm and leg. I do the coating in stages. The first coating is very thin, almost like water. This coat soaks into the pop and forms a good foundation for the mold. The next coat is just a little thicker and the third is a little thicker again.(don't make the coats too thick) In between the coats I cook the mold in the oven at 150 to 200 for until it's fairly set up. I can start mixing pop at 9 AM and be pouring from that mold by 3PM using the same "oven process" to dry the pop. PS: Thanks for all the nice comments about my work guys. www.novalures.com

Here's a couple of ideas for you guys. Pour out some plastic on a metal tray making sure it's level and the plastic is thin, say 1/16" thick. Cut it in 1/8" stips. Wrap this around the insert like a barber pole; then pour the bait. This may look like a string of guts insde the fish. Another one would be to paint the insert with highlite powder and then pour the bait. I love a mind challenge. www.novalures.com

Like Frank said 1/4" at the opening to the mold and about 3/4" at the top of the sprue. Good luck and post some pics when you get going. www.novalures.com

You may have to add more vents to the mold. If you do that don't forget to seal the pop again. The other thing is that you have to make sure that when you pour you get a nice narrow even flow of plastic directly into the sprue opening without hitting the sides. www.novalures.com

I have a bunch of LC's fluke mold because I pour a lot of them for customers. They work just fine; you'll like them. As for the other molds I have, I design my own baits and make the molds from POP. I do have some alum. stick molds as well. www.novalures.com

I use super glue that I buy from the dollar store. www.novalures.com

That's an awful lot of money tied up in scrap Mike. www.novalures.com

There's nothing wrong with thinking outside the box; don't stop doing it if something doesn't work. The foam will probably not handle the heat plus the cavity will not be smooth. Not to mentiom how will you get the master out of the foam; that stuff will stick to just about anything. Plaster of paris is probably the easiest and cheapest to start making molds with. Do a search here; there are many threads on the subject. www.novalures.com

You sure could but the amount of oil in one can of sardines is not going to be much. You would have to "save" the oil from quite a few cans to make it worth while. www.novalures.com

I think you'll find that there is still some water in that as well. www.novalures.com

Always oil only. WIth the homemade scent I suggested above you have to scoop the oil off the top of the water then heat it to get rid of the water. After that you should be left with only the oil. www.novalures.com

Always good to see new people here. www.novalures.com

Just take the coffee and put it in a coffee filter. Then pour softner through it catching it in a jar. You may have to do this several times to disolve enough coffee to get a good strong scent. The filter will collect any bits a pieces from the coffee. www.novalures.com

Get your hands on fresh herring(enough to fill a 5 gal bucket). Add some coarse salt, maybe 5 lbs. Put the cover on tight and set the bucket in a place where it will get as much sun as it can. Just make sure it's outside;lol. By the end of summer the oils from the herring will float to the surface. If you can't get herring; any oily fish will do; bluefish, mackeral etc. www.novalures.com

There are definatley things that you can shortcut in the soft plastic hobby and things that you shouldn't. We've all tried some shortcuts that we shouldn't have tried and it cost more $ in the end than if we did it the right way the first time. That being said; if you don't try your ideas out you will never know if they work. So, don't give up the "brain searching" for new things/ways. Bounce them around in here and you will be surprised how many folks have thought/tried them before you. It can save you $ and tears. www.novalures.com

A lot of us have "cut and pasted" as you put it; but the ultimate goal should be to create your own designs. If you are somewhat artistic you will find the evolution quite easy to do. www.novalures.com