nova

www.elmers.com This is their website. Not sure of the chemical composition. I'm sure there must be a comparable product where you live. www.novalures.com

From what I see there's nothing wrong with those baits. Glad we could help. www.novalures.com

Years ago I used plasti dip but I found that it would break down and get greasy when it came in contact with the unheated plastic. I thought about taking cloth and epoxying it to the bottom but never tried it. I think the pegboard or similar product is a good idea. Don't know if it would help to much if the mold fell from 2 or 3 feet; but it would help with the everyday bumps. www.novalures.com

Cal; when you made the 2 part mold with the frog, how did you get him to stay still till the POP set up? www.novalures.com

I start mine at 1 1/2 minutes; take it out and stir it. Put it in for 1 minute; and then stir. After that it's 30 sec bursts till it comes up to temp. Don't try to do it all at once. Also; each micro is different so you may have to play with the times I gave you. Good luck. www.novalures.com

Salt is salt, is salt. It just changes sizes by companys. You can flour any salt. If you're concerned about the amounts then start by using say 1/2 of what we say; pour them out and see if you like that. If not then increase the salt. Remember measure everything and mark it down as you go. Don't trust your memory. That way when you finally decide on one combination you already have it written down. Then destroy all the build-up notes so that they don't get mixed up with the final notes. You can adjust the fall rate of the bait by adjusting the amount of salt. www.novalures.com

I think that you are not heating your plastic long enough by what you are saying. The hotter it gets the runnier it will become. Of course you can heat it too much and burn it. That's where the learning comes in; and it never stops. I'll burn a couple of pots a year; but I like to push the pouring. Some things that I do require a hotter temp than normal. Any way; keep at it and don't be depressed if you burn a pot or two. We've all done it. Keep going and it will come; it's a great hobby. www.novalures.com

ALex; I used to use epoxy to coat the molds but since we found out about Elmer's glue that's what I've been using. Works great and very easy. www.novalures.com

The only time that happened to me Frank was when I scraped my fingernail on the top of the mold.(I coat the top a couple of times to protect from spillage sticking to the POP.) I've been waiting for something to happen because in my experiance something that is this easy to apply must have a down side.lol Haven't seen it yet though. www.novalures.com

I agree Tally. Fish use their lateral lines much more than their eyes. Actually fish will detect prey with their lines first; their noses second and the eyes don't come into it until they get close to the prey.(and that distance can vary depending on the water). How many times does a guy throw a spinnerbait to one spot 4 or 5 times before he gets bit. I have to laugh when I see guys make one cast to a spot and then move on if they don't get bit. I've come right behind them and caught nice fish in the same spot a couple of miutes later. It takes time for the fish to identify where the sound is coming from and then to get there to see what the heck is in his territory. I'm a little off subject here; sorry. Anyway, what I'm saying is that fishing really does not have to be complicated; lights, buzzers, electonic swimming lures, etc are just bling bling for the dum dum.lol www.novalures.com

Frank, I never grease my molds. I used to seal them with epoxy but recently I've been using the Elmer's glue(3 coats). www.novalures.com

You have to be careful with artificially lighted lures as they are illegal in some areas. Better to check with your local DNR first to be safe. www.novalures.com

I use 30 to 40% salt by volumn. eg: if you use 1 cup of plastic and add 1/2 cup of salt that is 30% buy volumn. My salt is floured and it will change the color slightly. The adjustment you will have to make will be minor if at all. Any recipie in the sticky that I posted is all ready for salt. Salt will take away some of the brightness of the colors and you certainly will not be able to see through the bait as you can with no salt. If you want to see what it really does then don't add any color to the plastic and salt. It will come out sort of like frosted glass. It's just the price you will pay for that amount of salt. www.novalures.com

Phil; I bought some books years back on hardbaits(antiques) to get a look at colors and I saw the same thing. Not much on color but a big emphasis on the business end of things;lol. Some of them really look mean. I've got one bait that's probably 100 years old with origional hooks and they are still sticky sharp. www.novalures.com

I'm farther north than you are and I pour in a shop attached to my garage. It's insulated but not heated very well. I don't have a problem. I think maybe you aren't getting your plastic hot enough and/or you are taking too long to pour and the plastic is cooling in the pot. I take it that you are using a micro. It's much easier to learn with a hotplate because you can maintain the temp of the plastic. Where with a micro you have to give bursts every now and then to keep the temp up. www.novalures.com

I haven't had one in my hand but from the pic on my screen it looks like a light smoke with black and gold glitter. The salt will give it that opaque look. Try 4 oz. plastic with 2 drops black(LC) and the salt, then work from there with the amount of color. Always start with small amounts and then work you way up checking as you go. Once you put the color in you can't take it out. Looking at the pic again there might be a pinch of blue highlite in it but I wouldn't add that at first. Let us know how you make out. www.novalures.com

Mike; my master mold had to be made in 2 pieces as I also carved a master from pine and sealed it. Nice looking baits by the way. www.novalures.com

Ok; now it makes sense. Thanks. www.novalures.com

Much easier if you post a pic. www.novalures.com

I don't understand. You say it's for everyone but you think it's a hardbait subject? If the hardbaits guys want to set something up for themselves that's fine; but don't say that it's for everyone on TU then ignore everyone else. Sorry if that sounds harsh; not meant to be. www.novalures.com

Frank, I just finished 4 POP molds of a 5 1/2" shad that I designed and the tail comes out quite nicely. You can't just rip it out; but if you take care it comes out no problem. I've also come up with a neat way to pour it. I'll post some pics in a few days. www.novalures.com

What threw everybody off was that it was posted in the "hardbait" section when it should have been posted in the "Docks". www.novalures.com