Frank

Don't believe it does what you are thinking it does. Since it was made while hand pouring was the norm I think that is what it is made for. You see there seems to be a big gap in between the small injection molds and large production ones. While Bears system seems to be an option it too won't fill a production mold. I am working on an in between unit that should fill the gap a bit. Just been to busy to finish it. Frank

Did they put a small spout on for you? I just caped mine of today tired of cleaning it for nothing. I have an idea for heating the pipes if you post a pic. Maybe pm me the pic and I will let you know if I think it will work. Glad you like the pot they are real nice. Frank

You will have to find a sweet spot for shooting that mold. It may take a lot of trial and error. You will probably have to try different plastics too. I shoot mine with spike it injectasol medium and my success rate is much higher than yours. I have four of those mold and just use two c clamps on all four mold at once. Also use the Twinjector 80% of the time. This keep the plastic a little cooler. Frank

If people want exact copy's then let them buy the exact one from the name brand. If they are that anal then don't fuss with them. Sticks are the same way let them have the business then they will just complain about the price. If they want a special color then they have to deal with what you have. In my mind if it is color then having a name brand bait is not the key the color is. Market stuff to people that want it not the one who will never be happy. Frank

Could you cut the bad ones at the dent and see if it is air or just shrinkage?

It is the shrinkage of the plastic. The thin appendage solidifies and causes the dents. If they were thinker it would not have the same action. When ever you have a design like that it becomes an issue. It would not be as bad if he had just a rib on the outer edge but we know where that will get you. Not sure if the good one come from the same cavity or changes from shot to shot. Frank

You are right about that it is not worth fighting but what if they kept giving you letters on all of your molds. They would put you out of business. That is what they want. But did you feel that the mold maker was at fault? That is where this post was going. All of this is just a real pain.

What I am saying is that they can send those letters to all the small guys and you will get a ton of people on sites like this saying it is patented but unless you fight it you will never know. 95% of people will just fold because they don't want to fight. Lets say you (Mike) get a letter saying one of your baits you have been making is patented do you just fold up? And once you fold you will get another letter for another mold ,then another. It could never stop unless you stop it. And that means you have to fight. So I guess the answer is yes I would. Just on principal. Frank

The chigger craw mold is Dels is it not? Basstackle does not have one like that. Plus just to make a point there has been no suing just threats. So if you are going to fold over a letter then don't make any baits at all. What I mean by that is say you get the 702 from Basstackle and get a letter that says it is a bait that infringes on a patent and you just fold up then does that make it an infringement? If so then they can send letters to all the small guys and put them out of business. Until someone fights it. The 702 is one great bait and would be a bait that would be a plus in anybody's line up. Frank

Call clear bags they will help you and minimums are not to high. They are all printed overseas so it takes a bit. I thought at one time Johnson bags were printed here in the states but others have informed me that they to are printed overseas. Prices are higher and minimums are too. Clear bags west coast people are a real pleasure to work with. Frank

You kinda left out some of the details as far as what you are making. But can tell you a round about price you will be looking at. Plan on say 500 for a design fee. Which might get you a prototype mold. Then about 80 or so per cavity. If you choose a company that sells mold on a site they might have a fee to keep it off the site. This just a rough idea and prices might change from one company to another. You should pick a time of the year when most are not slammed with work. And remember one thing this is a great way to make a really nice impression of quality work. I have a lot of customers that really like the quality look of the baits I can produce. If you have a mold made make sure you get all the bells and whistles in the mold you may want in the future. Like the ability to make a laminate correctly and maybe a slide bar for different color tails or claws. Frank

When I read this post this stuff popped into my head. http://www.flockit.com/index.php/ Used it on other things but never on a bait. Might be worth a shot. Not to expensive. Frank

You can call D&J plastics but like Mike said be prepared to buy ALOT of one color. Don't believe there is anyone smaller that does what you are asking. A lot of guys have a machine but do there own work only. Not like there is a whole bunch of big guys either. Frank

If you go to YouTube and look up franksrooty2 it will be there. All of the ones I made are there. Frank

Yes it will. Will it be easy no. Doing it that way you must fill two injectors and fit them to the block then keep even pressure and inject. My advise would be to get the one for the Twinjector (the wider one) so when you buy the Twinjector later you will have a spare. Because it will not be as easy as it seems. Frank

If you are talking about the paint for soft plastics then I reduce about 10to20% with retarder. Some colors like black are more like 10 while others like blue are more like 20. Just to get the desired effect. Can't help you with air pressure all my brushes have an air control knob on the gun. I find it much easier to use if you could get a brush with a .5 needle or larger. This will aid in it being easier to get it flowing. Without retarder it dries way to fast and will cob web. My favorite brush has a .8 tip and really puts out the paint. Frank

Skeeter just so you know the block you are looking at is one that is used if you don't have the whole Twinjector. It works with two injectors and no cross bar. If you really want things to go smooth the Twinjector is the way to go. The design lets you fill both injectors at the same time and keeps even pressure as you inject. The only thing that becomes a real issue is getting the two colors close to the same temp or at least within ten degrees. But that is a must even without the whole unit. It comes apart and you can use them as individual injectors when doing single colors. I have a few videos in the tutorials section on this site showing the uses for the Twinjector and a few more on you tube look up franksrooty2 . Frank

It's not on the there site yet. Maybe I spilled the bean to soon. But I did ask Don if I could tell everyone and he said yes it would make him put it on the site sooner. They are real busy and working overtime to catch up so maybe it will be a bit longer. Not sure of the name but will find out. When I talked to Don this morning he has a lot of things in the works. He has a lot of new products that he asked if there was a market for and all I could say is yes. You all have to understand that it is way easier to sell to us the small guys than to sell to the big guys that don't want a big change. Frank

Basstackle has a great selection. Here is the link to one of three pages of lizards and close relatives. Frank http://www.basstackle.com/category_s/34.htm?searching=Y&sort=5&cat=34&show=10&page=1

There is one thing here that does not seem right. If anyone says the PAint from lure works does not work you are not using the right product. That is the bottom line. They make so many products people think they have the right stuff but can't be so. The original smells real bad and you know it is right because you need really good ventilation. The new stuff smells like latex from say house paint. Much easier on the nose but slow drying. Frank

I have been trying a new paint that is a water based paint that works on plastic but needs to be dipped after either in plastic or clear paint from Lureworks. BUT a new one is being shipped to me right now and does not need to be dipped. It can be shipped out of the country and smells way better than the one offered now. I really could not say anything before but now it is about to hit the market. AND it is from Lureworks. There has been a lot of work that has gone into this and I am sure it will have its growing pains. But being water based it can be used as a dotting paint or reduced to air brush it. There will be a clear that dry pearls can be added to. The best part about the clear is that it is a bonding agent too. In other words if you use laminate plates you can pour all the baits you want and coat the side that will be bonded so it will become one when poured again. You can coat Mylar and insert into a bait and it will become part of the bait. Need to play with it more like that but gives me plenty of ideas. Also for the dotting of eyes and spots I have been using a flow pen from passhe. It uses no air and is gravity feed. You can leave it in the brush all day and it never dries out. Don told me his children were playing with it all day and no smell. You cant do that with the other paint. You can get paint that becomes part of soft plastic baits and does not come off. Might be a challenge to paint an old bait but I don't do that. Lureworks is really working on some nice stuff for all of us. It should be out in the next few weeks so look for it. Frank

This may sound funny but I believe you could just get a Mylar balloon and cut it up just for starters. You might have issues with the plastic sticking to it but worth a try. Bruce is a good call too. Frank

Yes but i can keep the heat as low as needed so it stays up very well. But just before I inject just give it a couple of stirs. Frank

The heated spout that is the 150 upgrade does not work well for top pour molds as it is to big. The pot will work just fine for dipping blades and tubes. But they are real easy to talk to so you could ask for say a 1/4 valve and it might work but would not bet on it. For stirring I just stir by hand before each use. I really see no reason for constant stirring the way I use it. But on a presto pot there is because there is no heat on the sides and it will cool and get a skin. With the ritehete it has a heating element on the side of the pot.

I have two and love the way they work. Temp is steady. One is one gallon and the other is three gallons. It is what I use for single colors. Frank