Travis

As soon as I saw the OP I responded then deleted, did that about a few times as I do on many subject matters I see discussed. Lure makers have a knack to spend a lot of effort and time to reinvent the wheel . Rarely are we honest to point out our wheel rolls like crap to readily available wheels however I am with Mark start with what is readily available. Now as far as color matching a specific motor oil going to be tough as mentioned as the color has changed so much. I always liked Del's motor oil (may be the same as others don't know) It really isnt' a color I use much anymore. Can you find a picture of the color as easier to match that way....however going by memory is often better as in the end most always get the color just the way they remember it.

Realistic patterns are the toughest in my opinion.

The Hag's tornado was the must have bait for a short time in some areas of the country but died off rather quickly. They held up about like any other ribbed worm in my opinion. I think many were really excited about the initial mold when it came out because it was really one of those baits guys could say injection was needed for (many still had issues injecting it at first) but I think they ended up machining the ribs thicker and got the kinks worked out. I never was really sold on it as other options seamed better to me. Texas rigged weightless or wacky I would rather use a senko. Carolina rigged...ho hum. Weighted texas rig was ok but still preferred a zipper worm at smaller sizes and still have some large Harville Disc worms. Used to tear the tails/head off them back in early 90's and fish them but not the same shape as the Hag's.

When it comes to molds simply more is often better. Waiting for molds to cool down just wastes too much time. That is the one of good things about making molds, cheap and easy to make the quantity you need to avoid these issues. I always wanted a minimum of molds that I could pour out the 4 to 6 oz of hot plastic in one go if microwaving. If I had to stop then that meant I as having to reheat. With a presto pot set up no reheating issues but I always prefer to use it as quick as possible also to eliminate risks of color variance in the batch.

Chemistry..... Epoxies utilize "amines" for hardners typically. I am not for sure how stringent they are on purity of these hardners and may have various other amines in low quantities and thus the end product react differently from batch to batch. They can react in the presence of water and metal containers. Mixing in metal containers (bottom of aluminum cans) and thinning with products that contain water (isopropyl alcohol, acetone, etc.. or even high humidity) may also be detrimental. It is also more prone to rear its effects in thicker coats. Your pictures appear to show the color more noticeable in those thicker areas (rear hook hanger), belly of baits, etc... I managed to get pink color years ago when using Devcon 30 minute thinned with paint thinner and a few times with isopropyl alcohol when mixed on the underside of an aluminum can but only thinned to seal molds.

I am fairly certain I could do it without any issues. Poured baits with much thinner appendages.... Grubs, beavers, etc... The only real issue i see is the air bubble that will rise in the side arm. Proper venting will take care of that. I don't see any issues with shooting the bait. I don't see any issues with molding more than one either, unless you are really slow. Open pour would be doable also but easy to find those for cheap anymore.

Hard? All dependent on ones skill set. I don't see it as being an issue. I would likely stick to a 4 cavity however. I think you do it either way but venting on the side appendage would definitely be needed for pouring and likely injection. The appendage is thick enough cooling shouldn't be a big issue in my opinion. If injection have the bait bottom fill with head down so plastic injects up the bait and out the tail.

First choice for me would not to do a through wire. Personally I would just do a two piece construction. Use double sided sticky tape or the old paper/glue trick to put the halves together to do all your shaping and carving. After done open it back in half then install the through wire, weights, rattles, etc... and glue back together. Just ends up giving a much cleaner bait to paint and makes getting weight layout placement of stuff easier. The cut off wheel is likely the most readily available if you are wanting to make a few slots but I find it my last choice for something like this as time consuming, difficult to get consistent straight lines, etc... but it is the cheapest and probably easiest to source way for a lot guys. Next cheapest (power method) is likely a slitting saw arbor and blade in your drill press (some negatives with wear on the drill press but for a few baits no big deal). http://www.grizzly.com/products/g1438?utm_campaign=zPage&utm_medium=link&utm_source=directhinge slot blade A lot of different ways to approach this issue. If you are set on the slot then a dozuk or ryoba sawi are a very fast way to get consistent straight cuts, but only practical if dong a few baits. Mark your needed slot on the bait and position in a vise. A few pulls either slightly angled to make wedge slot or vertical and then clear slot with pick. May take a little practice but one can get very clean quick slots this way. I have a tendency to use the dozuki but it has a very fine kerf. If you end up making a lot of these baits then likely a power method is the likely option. A router likely the best bet and safest. I have a router attachment for my dremel and attached centering pins (mortise centering base). With a spiral upcut bit you can make a few passes and get a good slot. Issue is the dremel just doens't have enough umph for the task. The dremel is not the way to go however and a palm router with a spiral upcut bit would work with the base and easy to make. http://www.rockler.com/mortise-centering-router-base I would look into a slot cutter bit and use my router table however. Once set up you could knock out a lot of slots in no time with a proper blank holder. There are ways to do it on a table saw set up also but need jigs and other safety features and probably not the way to go for most. Likely shouldn't even have mentioned it.

Same here Cami. For soft plastics however I directly mold into the plaster of paris (actually I use Durham's Rock Hard Putty as I think it gives a better mold). Search the forums and you will find a lot of information on the subject. . One can add all sorts of steps, if that is your nature, but I can tell you it is not needed (vacuum, vibrating tables, additives, heating in oven, and countless other things some do). Just takes some practice to get the consistency and work on your technique Not as much information on two part RTV but many of us have and do make them.

http://kellysbassworms.com/about-kellys/ These say sewn in and mention Trilene XL. Touchdown worms uses trilene also and I thought I was told injected by a pro staffer of theirs but at the time didn't think to ask if that meant the entire bait or just the worm.

Unfortunately that has been the highlight of the day on some of my trips.

Neat little concept. Don't figure it will last long as really doubt it is needed but will get a few of the gadget guys. I don't see the cost as being ridiculous...but then it doesn't take much effort to find guys with 100k + tied up in boat and truck, tackle, etc.. and can't put a boat in unless the ramp is equivalent to a football field but luckily they only need to worry about that less than a dozen times a year.

Most monofilament line is made from nylon, some other polymers. Dependent upon the nylon polymer used the temperature ranges from mid 300 up to past 600 °F. Cutting open and welding of worm would not be cost effective and would leave pour results.

To be honest I always ran into more guys that made much more of a a big deal out of using "custom" lures when it came to soft plastics.

For some reason I read 7/16...not 5/16. Link belt not going to be ideal. You need a K26 belt. Amazon one hard to beat price wise. http://beltpalace.com/k26.html Might be the cheapest and easiest route if that isn't where you ordered from earlier. http://www.amazon.com/TOOGOO-Industry-Mower-Black-Rubber/dp/B00HZY3EPM Less than 3 bucks hard to try that one as no real loss if wrong belt.

Just commenting overall many of the guys I know that have trouble are the need it in my hands type. Overall I find shopping online to be great as saves me money and more importantly time. Returns can be a problem at times. The few times I have needed to return something they just told me to keep it and sent the correct one or I just take it to work and have it sent out with our mail.

Nothing wrong with buying online just need to be selective in the places you shop. Also helps if you aren't one of those types that you have to have the object in your hand to determine if it is the correct part. Ace is where I still get Devcon and some other odds and ends but have to be very selective as Ace is a good 30% and at times more on the same or comparable items as other stores. There red hot sales aren't bad however. Last month the 12 inch Jorgesen f clamps were 5.99 a piece.

I switched to link belts years ago. No hassle as you just add or subtract links. Some performance gains to be had in vibration reduction. Harbor Freight (avoid it usually) carries them for around 25 bucks for 5 ft. Take the 20% off coupon and save a little more.

Was one of the more popular plastics for many years due to its heat stability, minor off gassing, and their soft formula. It had some hits and misses with consistency around 2004/2005 and some hits and misses here and there (not for sure if you can't say that about all plastic for the most part) but not for sure if some of that wasn't guys buying in bulk and transferring to smaller containers to sell or the plastic itself (likely on both accounts). Very faint yellow color on the plastic but very faint and very limited amount of black or blue would make it appear crystal clear. I still mainly use Calhoun's when I pour.

I always try to look at the bait shape and mold in a fashion so that the high spot has the vent. On some designs it becomes necessary to have multiple vents however.You can cut small vents in trouble areas to eliminate the capture of air. Lots of time just a very small sliver of a wedge need to be removed. So small all you really get is a small nub that can be quickly sanded out after. For some designs I just mold vents in various potential trouble areas from the get go and just deal with the little bit of extra surface prep work.

Check again and see if that O is fact an A, as in HALE. I thought the Hale craw is still being made and is a Stanley product or however that venture went.

I try and stay away from oils in general as just seams they always are messy and a tendency to get everywhere and seam to be more prone to have issues later with paint and topcoat. I used Johnson paste wax, Mann Ease Release, and talc and toyed with various other things but typically a good RTV mold and urethane foam didn't need to use release too often. Usually when became and issue just made new molds.

While not ideal you can make a mold with hard material. I could get around 75-100 baits out of my POP or Rock puddy molds on simple designs. The key is you have to design a bait that will not lock itself into place. I also was using a 16 lb polyurethane foam and typically used a mold release of some sort. With a little experience you can get away with some minor undercuts with foamies but need to pay attention to mold times as you can demold and it has a little give still but wait a minute longer and locked in. (search foamies for more info). As you can see around the gills in the top water there is no undercut just undulations around the gill as to avoid locking the bait in place. That top water and similar designs easy to do with hard molds. This style crank can be done also but molding the lip slot would not work well and will end up breaking off quickly in a hard mold. You would be better off molding it solid and then cut the slot after. Do you master right and you can mold in cut lines for the lip slot. However an RTV mold is much better solution. I first made a solid mold for testing while my RTV came in for that crank. A crank design as above would be no go. The claws would be problematic along with the underside in some areas and the recess near the eyes. RTV only way to go for your sanity.

http://www.lurecraft.com/DEL-MART-MOLDS/products/37/ It can be hit and miss with Del at times in regards to customer support. Can order direct from Lurecraft if they have it.

You want to use 30 minute Devcon if that the route you are going. Ace Hardware always has it from my experience. If you have a craft store near by Envirotex light will be readily available and isn't too difficult to use either. Plenty of other options with topcoats but I think the two above are about the easiest for starters with low numbers that will get you a good finished product.