GB GONE

Randy from Hawg Pours told me about this stuff also. I think he uses a blend of regular and Strong cast. Have you poured a bait in the unsealed cavity yet? I am curious if the bait will release and if the finish will be shiny or dull? Good post!!!!!! Jim

The ice cream motor was a great suggestion!!! I was at the local Wally world over the weekend and they just got the ice cream makers in. Took mine to the counter and the lady said $6. WOW!! I told her that can't be right and she re-rang it.....$6... I told her hang on and I grabbed another one for a back up. Now I need to figure out how to attach a stirrer to the motor but for $6, I could not pass it up!!!! What did you do to connect yours weighinalimit?? Curious.... Jim

I still cannot recall a dent in a laminate stick bait. Wonder if anyone else remembers any. May be a clue as well. The voids usually are more from technique for me. Wish I was at the shop as I would go out and put some of this to the test! Jim

I will try pouring center and work outward on some sticks. I know my routine is to work left to right on the mold cavities. Lefties might work right to left. Doubt many pour the center first. I have never stopped to check which baits were actually dented and where the dents occurred. We may find a pattern with certain cavities always denting and changing the fill order could resolve that. Might be a simple fix to the stick "dent" problem. I doubt this is the issue with the flukes as the dent seems to relate to the flat portion of the mold, whether the mold is made from pop, aluminum or acrylic. Resolving one out of two would be good though! Jim

My thought was that the vacuum was pulling air from the cavity that was not filled yet. Could be the other as you say Del. Wonder if you poured the outside baits first (assuming the mold is 3 cavities??) and then the center last. If gas or air is being pushed into the other cavities, one of the outside baits should have a dent on the side facing the inside cavity. This could end up being a "dog chasing its tail" deal. Maybe Randy should just stop pouring that dang bait !!! Jim

Del, I believe Dave was referring to the vacuum that forms when hand pouring and the mold cavity fills. Perhaps a widening of the sprue on one of these clear molds is needed as it may allow the air to pull from the sprue vs the sides of the mold. May further the insight on this issue as you get a great visual on what is going on in the mold. Jim

Good question!!! I wonder if that is the inside cavity that produces the dented bait for you Richard? I am sure that the seal is not the only factor at play. The larger volume of plastic and the heat of the plastic are certainly variables as well as many other issues. I think if you look closely, you may be able to find the elusive dent in most baits that have either are produced in a large cavity mold or have a significant smooth area within the mold cavity. Many "dents" will be tiny but they are there if you look close. Del's point about the various mold styles causing issue is credible to me practically as I see a "dent" in the head of the larger frog I pour but never in the small frogs. Also, roll this around in your head. Make a laminate bait in the mold you get dents in commonly. My observation is that I never have a dent when I make a laminate bait in a 2 piece mold made from any material. In addition, I did make some fluke baits again in the acrylic molds again last night to further support the seal theory. I sealed around the outside of the mold again with parafilm wax but left a small area un-sealed to observe the results. As expected, the area left unsealed produced a pencil eraser sized dent. I am able to control where the dent will be produced based on where I seal/unseal the mold cavity. Final thought.... Who cares about a few dents!!!!?? I took out bags of injected plastics last night and could only find a few baits in 100 that were without physical flaw. Deformed baits are one thing but a few minor dents will probably only enhance the baits catch ability!! Jim

Cool...Thanks all!!! Jim

My thoughts were just built on Dave and others comments. I am not sure there will be a practical solution on our aluminum molds as adding and removing something on every mold for every pour would be tedious and tiresome. I wonder if the mold was built with some sort of seal built in. I have ideas of a seal like that of one on a door or window. I believe I can replicate the seal on a pop mold but adding one on an aluminum mold would probably be to cumbersome for the mold designers and builders. It might not even work when completed as physics can be tricky with all these variables. I will work on a pop version to further the testing on this theory. Jim

Actually, Javier (bass8baits) uses molds made by Bob from Bobstackleshack.com, Custom CNC Molds. The molds are similar. You will not see them on his site but drop him an email. Jim

I'm all about cheap!!!! What did you use for your stirrer? I have little access to tools at the new house or work. Trying to find something easy but will work... Jim

Parafilm is like a thin, stretchy sheet of wax! You can use it to seal almost any small area. In the hospital, we use it to re-seal a test tube or small opening to prevent liquid from evaporating. It comes on a roll and you can cut or tear off what you need. Jim

My acrylic molds from Janns may help some on this issue as I can watch the process of the cooling plastic as it happens. First a word on the fluke molds from Janns. Janns claims the mold can be hand poured but I am very skeptical as I tried very hard with maybe 1 out of 8 baits coming out correctly. The sprue holes are very tiny and the clamps are worthless at best. But, I digress..... I was able to learn something with these molds. The baits do get a dimple in them at various points in each bait. The dimple was definitely related to where the clamps were placed on the molds. The areas were there was not a clamp and air could be pulled in dimpled. I modified a couple molds opening the sprue to allow for a successful pour and found the dimples to persist in the areas that a clamp was not located. I then added some parafilm wax to all the sides of the mold and poured a bait. No dimples found. I will have to believe that air being pulled into the mold as the bait cools causes the dimpling effect. I have yet to experiment on some aluminum molds however I am re-stocking my parafilm supplies at work today. Jim

Guess I could go with one like this? Less rpms and a far better motor it appears. Had a friend refer me to this site as they get in different motors all the time. Burden Sales Surplus Center Item Detail Less rpms but the wiring is different. I am just looking for something inexpensive as I only use my pot once a month. Jim

Hey guys.... Do you think this motor will work for a presto pot stirrer? Burden Sales Surplus Center Item Detail Seems to have all the attributes needed and the price is right!!! Jim

Hey Gary.... What did you use for the inserts for the hook slot? I have been searching for something and have not found it yet. Looks like you found something just right! Mold looks super! Jim

Thanks Scott!!!!!!! Sure you will be booming with business as there are some seriously great baits made here. Guess you already knew that though when you came! Happy new year!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Jim

We see these type of posts every now and then here on TU. Nothing against you friend but how about completing your profile so we know what state/country your "county road" is located. Be nice to have a name associated with the post as well. Forgive me for the skepticism but the previous scams will make everyone a bit hesitant to reply to your post. More info will garner you more interest in your proposal. Jim

Jim, Did you coat the lower portion of the mold with anything? If not, there is your problem. A thin layer of vaseline is what I use. I usually de-mold within 30 minutes to 1 hour. 1 inch think is plenty for DWP. Jim

You are going to have to pour the stream of plastic directly into the hole without touching the side of the hole or else you will end up with more baits like the one pictured. Your sprue hole needs to be much larger as baits loaded with salt are tough to pour. The plastic is much thicker and will cool quick before it reaches the bottom of the cavity. You can try heating your plastic hotter but remember the salt and flake will fall faster so you will have to stir between each bait or every other one. Good luck!!! Jim

Yeah... When I look real close with my OLD eyes, I can make out the culprit logo on the worm. Its an old one though. I looked at the new ones and they look only slightly different. Still one of the best colors for clear water made IMHO. Jim

It will work as you described dude. Sometimes it happens by accident when a salted bait is poured in a 2 piece mold and an air bubble is trapped on one end. I have used bb's as well to get the same head weighted effect. Now I just use nails.... Jim

There is a LOT of blue on that top portion. The first cup I tried to use so much flake in the plastic that I could not pour it well. Not sure who the original manufacturer is on the worm. I did look at some Culprits yesterday in Wally World and noticed the baits have less blue that the worm pictured but there was more red flake in the top part of the bait also. I am going to bet that they all will work about the same. Hope to prove that today!!! Jim

The bait you attached was made in a 2 piece mold. You still can pour veins and core shots in 2 piece molds but I have had mixed results with many good but plenty not-so-good! I think the "best" way to pour plastics really is answered by what type of plastics you want to make. If you are looking to blast out 10,000 green pumpkin baits, go with injection or vacuum. If you want to make some Aaron's magic colored worms, get some cups/pots to start practicing. There may even be room for a mix of both as I have a presto pot for when I need to do a lot of sticks or frogs in a single color. Heck, you may even figure out how to make 3 colored baits or veins (or something completely new) even more efficiently or better. That is the beauty of TU, one idea fosters another and away we go!!! Jim