millsryno

From my experience you are going to pay just about as much as you would for a new one. They don't lose too much value because they don't go bad. Plus, it is going to be a bear to find that one...

Hey Dave, I just wanted to let you know that you did an awesome job on your color chart. I really like it!

Was the 5% discount enough to do it?

Hey Jim, I have done some bulk work and here is how I priced it out. This was for 5.25" stickbaits, bulk packaging, all the same color. 25 pack = $11.88 (.475 per worm) 50 pack = $22.50 (.45 per worm) 100 pack = $42.50 (.425 per worm) 250 pack = $100 (.40 per worm) 500 pack = $187.50 (.375 per worm) 1000 pack = $350 (.35 per worm) Sounds like you are like me and have a "9 to 5". I'm sure if you were willing to make the leap and quit your "9 to 5" you could get more aggressive to keep the orders rolling in. That is a BIG step, though... If you were doing this as your only full time job, you could afford to make a very low profit margin. You would have enough time to do your regular, higher paying jobs and this one. In that situation it makes sense to keep the orders coming in to pay the utility payments. My advise, though, don't get over your head if you ain't going to be making enough PROFIT on it to be happy. It could potentially hurt your image if you were to one day reneg on the deal (and I know you have a terrific image). I know it might sound great to sell $8K worth of baits per year to these guys, but what are you really profiting on it and how much time are you puting into it? Got to also remember another thing, they came to you. They want your quality and your craftmanship. They did not come to you because you are the lowest price. You might have to remind them of this when it comes time to negotiating, but it's the truth. You can't have the best for nothin'.

Del, that is a great post and I think really puts it in perspective for many people. I, for one, have been to Del's shop and seen everything he is talking about. He is not lieing, lots of big equipment and I'm possitive it costs some $$ and lots of time. Del, I don't think anybody will take your post wrong and I hope you did not take mine, nor anybody else's the wrong way either. In fact, I look forward to reading more of your posts in the future that are this well thought out and informative. I'm sure you understand why people would discuss things like this. It is because we want things now. I even admitted, I am not patient enough to wait for a custom mold lol. That is just how us humans are. I know you are always running those machines, and no blame to you, but things do get backed up from time to time. It's not because you and April are slacking, it's just because you're running at full capacity. You do the right thing by puting your production molds first and custom work second. There is a market for those new designs and custom work, though, and it kind of gets put on the back burner and I think some people get frustrated. I know we talked about you getting that new machine. I hope it all works out for you and it can in turn help us impatient guys get some of the new and custom stuff People probably think you are getting rich off this and one day I truely hope you do. Your work is phenominal. Hey, I hope we all can get rich off this! I can tell people though, with the prices you charge (low) I honestly don't think you are getting rich. Guys, Del ain't driving a new Mercedes Benz. I think he does a lot of us a good service by keeping his prices low.

It really depends on the color you are using. I use mostly Del's but use some others as well. Some of Del's are stronger, some are weaker. I really like some of Del's colors, but beauty is in the eye of the beholder. M-F and Lurecraft make some nice colors as well. For me the decision boils down to the fact that I buy other things from Del, so it makes sense to get my dye from him as well to cut down on shipping charges. Shipping Charges = Sucks!

I believe those machines are $60K+. If somebody were to get in the business I strongly beleive they would have all the business they could handle. I know Del has those machines running all the time and can hardly keep up. I really believe somebody could make a killing if they would handle the custom molds that everybody wants. Of course, people need to realize that those come at a premium price over stock molds. For those guys that have purchased the custom molds from Del or Bob...what are we talking 2-3 times what a stock mold goes for?? I haven't even bothered with that because I am too impatient to wait that long.

I'm not sure there is a reason for it, but Yamamoto has certainly made it popular. I was trying to figure out their number system to see if I could figure it out. It looks pretty random to me. It would make a lot more sence if the numbers actually meant something.

You can trademark your name and logo just by puting the "TM" next to it. This is a legal way to stake your claim to something and it will hold up in court. You can register it through the governemnt to put the R with a circle around it. I am in the process of doing that, though I am not sure it is worth the expense.

That have some other cool videos on that website, too.

I found that you just lay off the porn on your work computer and it fixes itself. J/K

Will.... YOUR RAINING ON MY PARADE! j/k Boy, I sure am glad I did not buy a crap load of prepaid flat-rate envelopes last month...whew!!

Does anybody live in Southern California or Arizona that would let me see either their Sta-Warm or Wenesco pots in action? I am in the market for a couple of them and want to make sure I make the right investment. I just want to see how they work in person and how much more efficient they make things. There are also some differences between the 2 pots and I want to see which would work better for my needs. Please PM me if you wouldn't mind me taking a peek... I'd be more than happy to take you on a fishing trip to Diamond Valley Lake in return :-) Ryan

I only use USPS through Paypal. I even figured out how to do it if they don't pay with paypal. You get free delivery confirmation and insurance up to like $500. I even had to make a claim and they took care of it. Like Jim mentioned, the Flat Rate Envelope is the only way to go. $3.85 to anywhere in the US, no matter the weight.

Dry them out and them put some worm oil on them.

I'm wondering if anybody has knowledge of what the wholesale price is to retailers for GYCB Senkos. I'm looking for an accurate figure. Does that price include shipping or is there shipping charges on top? What are the shipping charges? Are there any price breaks on quantities? Are there price breaks in the terms? Is there a minimum order quantity? Maybe you own a shop or know somebody who owns a shop...

How would you qualify to file exempt on the excise tax? Is the excise tax calculated from the price you sell to the shops for?

Jim, those are the same ones I use. A 25 pack of sticks fit in there perfectly. That is by far the best deal I have found.

How are you handling shipping and excise tax? Is it all just priced into the product or does it have it's own line item on the invoice?

Maybe try to contact M-F about that. I bet the regular and super soft are pretty much the same thing only one has more softener in it.

Welcome to TU. You can easily remelt your plastic by melting in short intervals in the microwave. The key is to mix it A LOT and heat with short bursts. Once it begins to melt, you probably only want to heat in 15-20 second intervals. It will heat from the inside out in the microwave so make sure you mix it to help even it out. Your glitter will bleed if you overheat it. Proper mixing should prevent this. If you get some clumps when you pour, stop and reheat for another 15-20 seconds. Stir it good.

OK, here is my stupid question of the day... Does "seed" mean black flake? Like watermelonseed, green pumpkinseed and pumpkinseed...does that just mean watermelon w/ blake flake, green pumpkin w/ black flake and pumpkin w/ black flake?

Sounds like you are just in that learning curve to me. Nothing out of the ordinary for a new guy. Just keep practicing and you will get a good feel for it. You won't need that thermometer. Just remember, the plastic starts out a thin, white consistancy....then it goes through a chemical change and really gets thick...then it becomes a clear thinner consistancy. You should be heating in stages and mixing in between. If you are timing it right, you should see when the plastic goes through this chemical change. Once you are through the chemical change you want to heat it just enough to pour fluidly. Reheats should be 10-15 second bursts.

Sweet Jim, I will de indebted to you!

Thanks Chris. Actually he wants me to make a stick bait with the purple color and the blue powder mixed into it. So it would be a one color pour. I see M-F carries blue pearl powder. I'm not too familiar with pearl powder. Can I just match this purple up and then put some blue pearl powder in and it will work out like that? Basically I am just looking to copy the purple and see blue powder in it.