longhorn

Watermelon with ..035 or .040 Black flake and .015 red flake

Yes you can...if you do a search there should be lots of stuff on two-part POP molds. For the first put the senko halfway in the POP, add a couple marbles halfway in for line-up. When the POP hardens leave everything as is and put a light coat of Vaseline on everything and pour another batch of POP on top when that sets up cure and coat the mold per the tutorial. Put the senko near the edge of the mold but not too close as you'll be cutting a sprue hole to pour or you can actually mold that in by using clay. There's lots of discussion on this. I've fished around Spokane a couple times..Newman, Liberty and Long Lake.

I cobbled this together last week after hearing all the stuff on FLW.

Another way to make a master for a POP mold is to carve it out of canning wax. I've done this successfully many times. The wax is melted in the oven and leaves no residue. The cavity can be coated as usual and you can then make as many duplicate master as you want.

There are some excellent video tutorials submitted by Frank that will show how it's done. They can be found on the Forum home page under the Knowledge base, member-submitted tutorials, soft plastic. Good luck.

I use Plaid brand gloss craft paint to put kill spots on my swimbaits. Takes a few more minutes to dry than the LC paint but works just as well for me.

What do you intend to do with the hard copy? I'm assuming to make another mold. It's much easier to clone an aluminum mold using soft plastic IMO.

Lurecraft has many that look like those.

I see the tutorial button on the home page but don't see this one and some others...I must be losing it. Could someone tell me how to find the old knowledge base and tutorials? Thanks

I pour with pans so it's much easier to control than pyrex and I've been doing this for 35 years. I think it's mostly a matter of experience. Probably the reason you think the bait in the pic looks so perfect is that it's been dipped in clear to about the back of the hook...if you look closely on the side you can see the dip line. Did that to seal the eye and kill spot. The concave top is not an issue to me. The high dollar commercial baits are like that too. The most common mistake is trying to pour with too much in the cup or pan, also brace your pouring hand with your other hand supported by your table or bench...make a big difference. With a little practice you'll soon be pouring without having to trim.

I've used both Oomoo 25 and 30 and have had great success. No release agent needed.

I think there are too many variables for a yes or no answer. I believe on certain type baits and water color an eye would increase the potential for a strike. I also believe at times it makes no difference. Good question!

Yes, for a smoother surface but more importantly for release of the plastic.

Barlow's has some barbell eyes...any fly tying supply place will have them. barbell eyes My only concern would be with them interfering with the hook. Good luck.

Thanks for all the kind words.

I actually had forgotten about these molds until I saw Bob La Londe's post and his amazing mold making capability. I made these around 1985. I was using Kalin grubs with great success back then and wanted to make my own. I used some scrap plexiglas. I "machined" the cavities with a hand held dremel tool and coated them with straight Elmer's Glue-All. I used the infamous plastic injectors and didn't have any accidents. I got the tail thin by "machining" only one half of the mold. I made hundreds of grubs with them and they still worked yesterday. That's the way I did it back in the day. My how things have changed!

Thanks for taking the time to make another great video!! I wondered how you held that cup so steady until (I think) I noticed you resting it on the edge of the mold. Those swims look great!

I use Calhoun's soft for everything with no additives except salt when making colors like salt and pepper. If I poured senkos I'd follow the standard recipe for salt and softener.

Sounds to me like the molds are not fully cured....just my two cents

I use Calhoun's soft for my swimbaits and beavers.

a photo of what you're trying to duplicate would help get you an answer. Good luck.

Thanks for the good info...I will put it to use. My post on inserts was inspired by your post but I didn't want to take it over. I had forgotten I had that mold but poured some for my upcoming Guntersville trip. I'm going to make some Poulson specials with the embedded hook now that I see how. Thanks again.

Since the wind is blowing 40 mph and I can't fish I put this together. Here is one way to make inserts that has worked well for me. I use standard 3/16 aluminum pop rivets and pop rivet washers. First glue the washers together with super glue as shown and then glue the rivets each halfway in one at a time. It makes a strong and light insert that will stay put. Some pop rivets are very smooth at the opening of the head. At any rate a light touch with a miniature file will smooth the opening. To secure in an RTV mold simply lay it in at the angle you want and insert a short piece of wire to keep it from slipping down when pouring. The image above shows how to secure the insert to make a swimbait with the treble hook on top. Use a piece of wire slightly longer than the insert and stick it in the mold cavity to secure. I add stainless weights (slingshot ammo) by dropping them into the bait after pouring. Make sure they are centered. With the hook on top I believe the hookup ratio is better and it comes through weeds very well. This is just one way of doing things that works for me.

I use Calhoun's soft for all my swimbaits...they swim well and are durable as well. I believe there are no set rules on what plastic to use and all softs and mediums are not equal.