millsryno

Here are some available domain names I searched. It might make sense if our domain name has something to do with our association name. IMHO, a good domain name can't be too long, like www.worldlurecraftersassociation.com. But if the association name was World Lure Crafters Association, a domain such as www.lurecrafters.com would be an excellent choice. Here are some available domains, maybe somebody has searched some others and found some more that are available. By no means are these the answer for us. www.lurecrafters.com www.luremakers.com www.tacklemakers.com www.lurebuilders.com www.tacklebuilders.com www.customtacklecrafters.com www.customlurecrafters.com www.worldlurecrafters.com

Here is a mission statement I came up with. Maybe somoebody wants to help me tweak it or finish it... To support, promote and grow the custom lure crafting industry. - Support by helping, mentoring and teaching - Promote by advertising, educating and ... - Grow by ...

I'm just wondering, maybe some of you computer guys know... I DO know that it is impossible to get a 3 letter dot com address. Is it possible to get a 4 letter dot com? It would be awesome if our name, World Lure Crafters Association for example, could have a webaddress of www.wlca.com

I motion to: #1 - Nominate Nathan to take the lead on getting the ball rolling by delegating out tasks and forming committees to those that are willing and able. #2 - Vote on an association/union name and secure the web address. It would make sense to have a name that is easy to type in and use as the web address. #3 - Get a simple website developed to get the ball rolling on the other aspects of this. Honestly, I think this entire endevour would be better off if we did not do it on TU. Although I think it is important for some information and a link to the website to be here on TU. While those 3 things happen, it gives people time to brainstorm and come up with ideas that we can discuss on the other website. These 3 things are the foundation and the fundamental first steps to getting something going.

I would suggest first of all, maybe we move this post to another forum like the Docks? I think that was already asked. Poor lure builders are getting blasted with this topic. Secondly, with how many people are involved in this, it may be wisest to have people come up with different mission statements then have a vote on all of them. Some people may have different ideas or visions that they would want to incorporate into their mission statement. This way maybe we can look at several different ones, compile things we like and dislike about each, improve upon each others, until a good majority of people agree on one. With how many people are involved it will not be an easy task unless we organize this. It should not be something that one person decides either and should be a somewhat ongoing process so that people have a chance to read and evaluate each others. Mission statements are easy to do and anybody can write one. It is basically a sentence or two stating what your mission or objective is. Do a search on google for sample mission statements. You don't have to be a business wiz to do it. I also think that when you read emails, forums, etc. sometimes it is hard to get a good handle on somebody's tone. It is a lot different in person when you can see somebody's facial expressions, hand jestures and hear the tone of their voice. Everybody's style is a little different. If we are going to collectively come up with an association I think everybody has to remember this. If an idea is thrown out there, there is a good chance it may be debated longer than the poster originally intended. You may think you have a great idea and everybody else doesn't like it. On the other hand you may think an idea is stupid and everybody else likes it. You just have to come up with some sort of concensus on things. Not everybody will get everything just the way they want.

DJ, I sent emails to Waage, CES, Wenesco, Dip Seal, Sta-Warm and Rite Hete for more information on their pots. So far Wenesco and Dip Seal have responded. Wenesco has a model MPU2 (www.wenesco.com) that they claim will not rust. It is a 2 gallon unit with a digital thermostat. The valve has it's own thermostat as well. It is blanket heated and has a high heat shut off limit. I asked Brian down there a lot of questions about it and so far this is the pot I am leaning toward. The only thing I displike is that the he told me the bottom of the pot is flat and not slanted to help get all the plastic out. He says it will leave about 1/8 inch inside the pot. He has offered to add an elbow and 1/4" nozzle to help dispense it into the mold. The price was about $850 plus shipping which he quoted me $20. Dip Seal has a pot that runs about $710+ but it is only heated on the bottom. I got an email from Jeff over there and he was very informative. I am still unclear if their pot includes a high heat shutoff.

Thanks for the heads up, Nathan. I read it all and voiced my opinion.

Hi guys, I wanted to give my input on this. I have a lot of business experience, outside of soft plastics and after reading all of these posts I think there are some things people are overlooking or missing. Why form an association? Is it to rank ourselves against our fellow luremakers? Person A is ranked higher than Person B because they have met higher standards or their bait looks better or performs better? You are pitting everybody against each other and this is a MISTAKE. Let's remember that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Person A may produce a slightly nicer bait than Person B, but Person B has the bait delivered in less than a week and Person A is pushing a month or longer and his customers are angry. Does that mean that Person A should be ranked higher? Service counts for something in my book. A true story, I ordered some stuff from a TU member and it is taking longer than 2 months. I would have thought it would take 2 weeks, max. No matter how good the product is, I don't know if I would order again from that person. I think most customers would be mad and this could give lure makers a bad reputation jast as much as poor quality. I know a lot of guys would like to be known as MASTER in the lure making industry as would I. Would I not make the ranks because I have only been a TU memeber for a short period of time? I have 100% feedback on 3 different eBay accounts. I get many word of mouth customers and regular customers that fish nothing but my baits. I have had people email me from TU asking if my baits are injection molded because of how clean they are (a huge compliment to me!). If I specialize in only one type of bait does that not make me as good as the next guy who does 20 different baits? What if my sticks are better? There are just too many variables. Don't get me wrong here. I am in favor of an association and would volunteer to help get it going. To pit fellow lure makers against each other is wrong, however. This is where I think we're missing the most important element of this whole thing. People don't join unions at work so they can be pitted up against each other. They join because, together, they can have more of an impact vs. their employer and more of a say in their industry. If we want to form an association or a union, we need to come together. This is the only way we (the little man) have any power vs. companies like Rapala, Gary Yamamoto, Storm, Gamakatsu, etc. Imagine an association website with links to all the association member's websites. This website could have a ranking system, that our CUSTOMERS rank everybody on, similar to eBay. Imagine a requirement that anybody in the association has the association website address on their packaging or correspondance. Imagine, one day, the association coming together and sponsoring a big name pro. If we come together, we can have just as much impact as the big dogs. It should be set up to get all of us more business (if we are looking for more) and should be set up so that we are all proud to push the association as part of our company. If we come together, we may be able to negotiate better pricing. If we have 4 suppliers and go to all of them and say, "Our association is looking for one supplier for material X, what is the best price you can give us", we will get better pricing because they will get ALL of our business. As a group, we have much better buying power. Guys, please don't do this wrong. We need to unite, not pit each other against each other. This should bring us all together and help position ourselves against the big corporations. Sorry if I make anybody mad with my remarks, but I feel like this is a good idea and want to voice my opinion.

If you have one of these pots...do you do your cooking/pouring with the lid on? I am thinking it would help with cook times, but am worried about condensation and moisture getting into the plastic.

Did that include the printing??

Great info! This is some of the information we need! All of my baits are poured with salt so this will be something I want to look out for. What size tip does your sta-warm have? Do you have any problems with it getting clogged?

Hey guys. I am starting this post because I have researched all I can on the forum and online. There is a lot of tidbits of info here and there regarding pouring pots, but not one singular post with a lot of good info and comparisons. I know that most of us use pyrex cups in the microwave, but I know there is a handful of guys using pots. Please chime in if you have a pot, have used a pot, have seen one of these pots or whatever else. I got a sweet deal on a mixer like the one pictured on the MPU2 Wenesco pot on their website. $135 off ebay. It has 7.5 in/lb of torque. I am crossing my fingers this is powerful enough. If not, I got a good deal on this and will sell it to somebody else who can use it. Anybody know how this will perform with salted plastic? Now I want to get the pot. I mostly make stick baits (heavy salt) and have a few stores lined up that I can sell them in. I need to be able to pour as efficiently as possible. The pyrex glass in the microwave won't cut it. I have done all the online research I can to compare the difference between all the pots. These are the vendors I have looked at: Wenesco, Sta-Warm, Rite-Hete, Waage and C.E.S. Is there anybody else I should look at? I think I am going to go with a 2 gallon pot or smaller. I was also slightly thinking of going with a 5 gallon pot just incase one day I needed more production since I could always put less plastic in there. 5 gallons is a lot of plastic, though. What sizes are you guys using and how well does that size work for you? I am thinking of going with a 450 degree thermostat. I am leaning toward pots with blanket heating vs. those that only heat on the bottom. Any input on this? I think the Sta-Warm and Wenesco are blanket heated. I think Waage and C.E.S are bottom heated. I am not exactly sure on the Rite-Hete but I think they are blanket heated as well. Is it worth the extra money? I think I want a digital thermostat instead of a manual thermostat, preferably with the high heat temperature control. Can anybody vouch if this is worth the extra costs? How accurate are the digital controls with high heat limit? It looks like the Sta-Warm pots are elevated off the work bench and there is a nozzle on the bottom of it. It looks like you lift a handle to dispense. The unit looks similar to a REALLY nice Lee pot. The other units have a spigot sticking out of the side and some sort of ball valve. Does anybody know the advantages or disadvantages to either of these styles? Does the Sta-Warm have a heated nozzle? Does plastic tend to get caught in it? For those of you using the other pots with the spigot sticking out of the side, how well does this work? Most of the pictures I see just show the spigot sticking straight out. Do you have to get an elbow attatchment or something to make it point down? Most of the spigots seem to be heated. Is this essential? Does anybody know if any of these pots have a sloped bottom to help get all of the material out? How well does your unit dispense all of the plastic without leaving waste inside the pot? Can a mixer be installed to a Sta-Warm? The reason I ask is because the dispensing handle is at the top of the pot and there is probably an arm or something inside the pot. Will this get in the way of the mixer? Sorry, I know that is a lot of questions. I know there are a lot of guys probably wondering the same things I am or may be soon when they get ready to purchase a pouring pot. I appreciate any input you have. Thanks, Ryan

My concern with 55 gallon drums is mixing and dispensing. Is everybody transfering all the plastic for the drums into buckets immediately? Is there a spigot to do this?

dsmblack, Are you flouring your salt? If so this causes it to be opaque. If you are not flouring your salt, it could be because you have to any drops of dye in your mix. Ryan

I've heard mechanic's gloves are the way to go. I have not used them but hear they are similar to a baseball batting glove, but are heat resistant. Can anybody vouch for this?

Guys, I have been shipping through USPS as well. However, I only accept payments through PayPal and I print my shipping from PayPal. They do not charge a fee. I ship everything in a flat rate envelope for $3.85. Weight does not matter. I use regular paper and tape it to the envelope. I then go to USPS's website and schedule a free pickup. I never have to go to the post office. Another nice thing about shipping through PayPal is that you can track the package with the click of a button. you don't have to enter a tracking number or anything. Does anybody know of any advantages of NOT going through PayPal?

I looked at some of my baits and the only green pumkin I have is a Yum lizard. 5 drops of Del's green pumpkin per ounce of plastic is almost a perfect match.

Hey Guys, I was given some Lure Craft green pumpkin and decided to try it out. I have been using Del-Mart's green pumkin for a while now. I expected that they would be close to the same color. Boy was I wrong. The LC green pumkin is more green and the Del-Mart green pumpkin is more pumpkin. Have any of you guys seen this before? I know which one I prefer, but wanted to know what one you guys think of when you think of green pumpkin. More green colored like Lure Craft, or more Pumpkin colored like Del-Mart? What are your customers looking for? Is M-F green pumpkin more green or more pumpkin? Ryan

Your initial outlay of cash is high. For example, you can buy a Del-Mart kit for around $100. This gets you started with the basics and lets you pour one style of worm. You can buy a lot of worms at Wal-Mart for $100. However, over time, it is more cost effective to pour your own than purchase them. My honest opinion, I would not get into pouring just for cost savings. If you are potentially looking for a fun hobby or are intrigued about catching fish on worms YOU make, then it would be a wiser choice. There is nothing like landing a nice bass on your own creation. It makes fishing twice as much fun.

Were the worms sent via USPS Priority Mail? If so, I think $100 insurance is included in the price of the shipping.

For you guys stocking your baits in stores: Do you have a UPC code on your packages? Do you have to have one? Do you have a different UPC code for every color/style? Does it cost money to get a UPC code? How long does it take to get a UPC code? Where do you go to get a UPC code?

I've been doing a lot of searching on the web, looking at different melting pots. The sta-warm seems to be the one most guys are using. They offer a 2 quart model (Model # 2cn) that dispenses from the bottom for $532. A few questions for you guys using these pots. If anybody is using this particular sta-warm, how is the thermostat? I hear so many complaints about the lee pots that I am not even going to waste my time with one of them. Temperature control is essential to me. How is the dispensing system (spigot, does it get all the plastic out of the pot, etc.) Has anybody found a good mixer to use with this pot? This is also an important issue to me as most of my baits are salted. They refered me to www.indco.com but the mixers cost more than the pot. Maybe somebody has tried a drill press, food mixer, etc. How has it worked for you and what were the costs involved. What RPM and torque rating are needed? Has anybody tried a different manufacturer? I have also looked at C.E.S., Wenesco and Waage. Why did you go with one of these other manufacturers, what did you get, what was the cost, how is it performing, etc.... I'm also wondering if you guys are just using the pots to keep the plastic melted, then dispensing it into a cup and adding flake and coloring, then pouring from a cup into molds or are you dispensing directly from the pot into your molds. Has anybody timed their production with ,say, 5" stick baits? How many can you produce an hour with a pot? Any other info, tips, suggestions you guys have would be greatly appreciated. This is a one shot deal for me and I want to make sure I do it right. Oh yeah, has anybody purchased one of those new pots from Wenesco? The one for $2200+ that has a mounted mixer, it is pressurized, etc. How has it been doing for you? Was it worth the extra money? Thanks, Ryan

Maybe some of you are a scientist or something....but what is it about salt that makes the worms sink? Is it the weight or the specific gravity? I'm thinking it is the specific gravity. That is just an educated guess though. The reason I ask is I wonder if different tyes of salt have different specific gravity ratings. If this is what causes it to sink, and there is a difference in specific gravity among different types of salt, then ... if we were to use the salt with the highest specific gravity it would require less quantity resulting in a softer, more transparent bait. Has anybody ever looked into this?

Whitley, please post your findings. Thanks.