baj435

Thanks everyone for all the help. For the record this is what i found out with some trial and error and alot of help from you all. I will no longer use softner when i am pouring with ozark plastic. I have gone through a quart first and now i have a gallon. Both achive the same results. Del's salt is heaver than popcorn salt don't need as much volume, but the kind of salt used is strickly a personal prefrence. I have found that most of you were right in some form or fashion. I was using to much sofner. The salt makes everthing go slower including the cure time and the mold time. I think with a little less salt, no softner, longer mold times, and longer cure times i have the problem licked. Thanks again guy for all of you help on this.

It may be the plastic. when this gallon is gone i will try a different plastic. they are still fishable and catch fish.(which what counts i quess) The squishing is me wanting to try and make the best bait i can not just get by if you no what i mean. Don't have to worry about anyone complaining exept me. Well and the wife, but nothing helps that.

i have been waiting over night, but it does not mater i can pick up baits i made a week ago and get the same result. don't know if they are to soft if they are suposed to act like they are acting or if i am doing something a little different or what.

ok guys back on the original subject. I want out and bought a few small containers of mortins popcorn salt. Made baits last night and this is the update. Popcorn salt seems to be a little finer then Del's salt so i had to use a little more to achive the same sink rate, but the out come is the same press on sticks and they stay that way for quite some time. Any other sugestion besides the salt issue? thanks Brent

if i had to pick one bait to fish texas riged (with a weight) and could not fish any thing else it would have to be a worm. But if i had to pick just one soft plastic bait to fish it would be a sinko type stick bait. Just to many ways to fish them.

If you are talking about for storing and not pourning than yes. i use a few of the diferant oil based sents in my storage bags. ie bang, fish formula etc. The non oil based products such as power bait and others like it dry and leave a readue on you baits. I have never used YUM before and do not know much about it.

Sock i am not into manufacturing or selling baits. I was just tired of paying 60 and 70 cents per bait. this fishing habit i have ( which resembles a drug habit according to the wife) is expensive enough as it is with gas at 3 dollors a gallon and all the maint. that goes into your boat. since the Senko came out i have found that it is real hard for me to put it down and go back to the old faithfulls. on the lake i fish the most 20 to 30 fish turned into 50 to 60 with the stick. this is my motovation. i started this to try and save money, but never thought this stuff would be this much fun. with that said, i read threads for about five days before i purchased any thing. i have colors from three diferant manufacures, plastic from one, glitter from two, and salt from one (so far this may change depending on the outcome of this thread). I saw where folks had tried this and that before me and i tried to not repeat those mistakes.

i think i am cooking long enough. They are not sticky when i pull them out. I did have the sticky problem when i firdt started and i looked up some past threads on that sub. The two answers were mix the plastic longer and make shure it was cooked long enough. turns out the mixing was the trick in my case. i only have one mold and it takes me a while to pour baits. i leave the baits in the mold usely for at least a min or two. i also pour plastic into the mold real slow. don't know if any of that helps or not Brent

The true verdict after 9 and half hours is in and same results squeeze and the bait does not spring back. Nova i use Del's salt. I tried some reheats with some non salted factory plastic and added my 3 table spoons for sinkers and got the same result as well. it is funny that it is the salt others use Del's salt and i have not heard of any complaints, but yawl may be right. i quess i could have got a bad batch if there is such a thing. Sock you say popcorn salt. do you buy it localy or do you order it. next question do you grind it or use as is. Thanks again guys for helping me try and solve this problem. I am open to any thing. P.S Sock i think you need to start a swerly school of pouring Brent

Ok guys, just got through with the test. Belive it or not i get the about the same result with all the pours with original formula, with 1/16, and with no sofner. True Nova i have not let these sit over night yet, but some have been setting for thirty min or so now. I do not have this problem when i pour with very little or no salt just when i am pouring sinkers. When i pour with no salt i don't add any thing but stabalizer and sticks turn out perfect. I will let this batch sit over night and update in the morning as to how they really turned out, but i have a strange feeling the result will be about the same. Thanks for the help guys, lord knows i need all of it that i can get. talk to you in the morning Brent

Thanks Del i will go put anouther batch on righ now with out any softner and and then with 1/16 as you sugessted. Will update the results. thanks again, Brent

Guys i have been pourin sticks about a 6 weeks now, and i have a texture question. When i pour my baits with salt they have memory. By this i mean if you squeeze the bait flat it stays that way. I must be doing something wrong or not adding enough of something don't exactly know. Hope somebody can tell me why. Below is what i am doing. Making black sticks with glitter this is my reciept: 12 cup Ozark plastic 18 cup Del's softner 1 Cap of Del's Stabalizer 3 table spoons Del's Salt 100 drops Del's Black 1 teaspoon Ozark glitter Ingediants are add in that order. I am pouring from about 330 to 360 degrees. Try to pour mostly at around 330 to keep the glitter suspended longer. Color comes out great but the texture is a little off.

Sock i use del's salt. I don't think it matters a whole lot what kind of salt it is. I am new to pouring but i have read ten thousond threads on this subject from here, and have came up with a couple of conclusions. If you add salt to baits color gets lighter, heat the salt before adding, buy fine salt or grind it (debateable), Salt makes your baits sink, may have to raise the temperture of you mix inorder to pour, and Stir Stir Stir Stir. BJ

Del posted this responce on thread 8148 it may help. There are a few other recipes on that thread as well. you may want to check it out. Del said, depending on how much salt you add you will have to add softener as the salt will make teh bait harder. usually pour a few then wait 10-12 hours and check the softness. on mf supersoft if you add 1/2 salt to 1 cup plastic you will need to add just a tad over a 1/8 of a cup to match the senko. on the regular mf plastic with same salt and plastic ratio you will need to add about a 1/3 cup of softener. My ratio for calhoun plastic is 1 cup plastic 1/2 cup salt and 1/4 cup softener and I get the same sink ratios as the senkos lurecraft 536 you use about 1/8 cup of softener to 1.2 cup salt and 1 cup plastic. with the above ratios you will get the same feel and the same sink rate or pretty damn close. if you grind your salt up then you need to go by weight not a measuring cup. differnt salts have different sizes. These are all based off table salt size, you will get the hang of it shortly though. one thing dont go by weight as the finished product is a tad different in bulk then the senko and will sink a little slower if you use the same weight as a senko. now you need to stir it ever 2 cavities and stir it well.

Thanks, Guys. It sounds like the Brown grape is what I need. I feel stupid that i did not look around more, and wasted alot of plastic trying to do it myself. I should have ask the experts a month ago. Do yawl have a recomended Dose of color for about a cup plastic? Thanks again.