SpoonMinnow

Thanks. The engine enamel is probably sold in automotive supply stores or maybe hardware. The only Elmer's I have is for wood. I want to make the 5" Kut tail and use the silica in the mix. Nice design for multi-species.

Why not spray some WD 40 down the barrel? BTW What is a good gloss coat for plaster molds?

Mark, I ordered the silica beads today from EBay. Hope they function as expected. If so, it would be fantastic for other lure designs besides the stick.

Thanks Mark. Seems like that's the stuff Gary Y uses. I've licked a few Senkos and don't taste salt.

It's not like they digest the sticks! Contact with the lure's surface is at most less than a minute , with most of my sticks a foot up the line after the hook set / fight ! I've never heard of silica being added. Does it weigh as much as salt or make the texture of the plastic seem like the original? Who sells it?

Will definitely try that mix! Thanks (but why (fine) pickling salt vs Diamond super fine salt? Is it that pickling salt contains anti-caking ingredients, which can turn pickling liquid cloudy, or additives like iodine. Plastic is not water and salt should stay intact, not dissolving.

Just happened to rig a 1/64 jig with #6 hook on a 2 1/4" soft stick and decided to use it to check the casting distance of a reel I changed line on. The stick wobbled all the way to the bottom! A 4" stick may benefit using a 1/16 oz jighead and show the same action. Fall rate of a certain speed is essential.

???

I used a heck of a lot of fine salt and the stick still falls at a very slow rate with no wiggle. Fine salt also make my lure colors pale.

I can see the logic of using coarse salt --- weight -- a key action component of the horizontal fall. Will try it in my super soft plastic stick. Thanks Dave, Frank

I've tried using a lot of softener and fine salt and the stick still isn't near the same. Any suggestions?

I'm both. One on some site, one on others. (Spoon minnow was derived from me accidentally discovering that I could make a paper thin tail after seeing hot plastic flow off a spoon I used for stirring. )

Kurt and I patched things up and now I'll consider which molds to buy from him and can't find anywhere else. He also has a nice forum and along with TU, I hope to post on. Amazing that I finally found designs on his site (Enforcer) he and I came up with - coincidentally - that are close to my hybrid plastics

It was the owner of the site that said I accused him of copying lure designs I came up with in the last six years, even though I used the word coincidence and the phrase, great minds think alike on his forum. Too bad, he had at least three molds I would have bought that were close to my designs, saving me the hassle of hand pouring vs injection. Again, I won't do business with someone anything like Del in attitude or arrogance. The site has been mentioned on TU and one I never heard of until a recent post suggesting it for a particular design.

One good thing about using what I make: fish don't seem to mind if similar hand made lures are a bit different from one another. Consistency when it comes to selling lures is all important to the customer, but I'm my own best customer that catches fish regardless. Being retired, I can make as many of my favorite lures as I want with full confidence in their ability to catch fish. (Over 100 caught today/ 4 species taken on slight modifications of the lures pictured.)

Besides, who would buy them? National companies have a lock on sales and no matter how superior my lure designs, still couldn't compete. The locals I sell to love them and that is satisfying in of itself.

For me to justify the cost of an injection mold with say eight or more cavities, I'd have to sell quite a few lures of one size and shape. Most customers want a variety of sizes which makes the cost go higher. I own a Mojo grub injection mold bought for under $70 new, not realizing the ad was wrong for body size accuracy. At least I've found uses for it. Paying $400 up front for lure molds of the lures only friends and I use can't justify the cost regardless the factors that contribute it. Even the most time consuming lures made still allow a usable quantity to be produced in less than 20 minutes depending on sizes and colors. Unlike many on TU that show 50 made at a time of one design, size and color to sell, a dozen lasts me for at least a season or two. Thanks for the replies.

Thanks. Sending the lure should be enough to program the machine - shouldn't it? Since the lures are 2" or less, I would think an injection mold with at least eight cavities could be made. One sided molds are easy to make and adequate for some lures, but not for grubs. I've made a few injection molds using POP and the resulting baits are adequate, but only because none of the parts were super thin.

Not hollow, but the plastic is of a medium soft grade so fall rate will be very slow. In my experience with finesse designs I came up with in the last two years, what you said applies perfectly: Bass anglers for decades have been indoctrinated to believe a jig & trailer is some kind of crawfish to fish never taking into consideration that those undulating skirt strands, whether flaring on bottom or pulsating on the swim, have the affect of catching and holding a fish's attention teasing the crap out of it to strike. Curl tail trailers (craw type) work just as well as pork frog copies (delta tails), but trailers mostly just add meat to the bone. I use curl tail and shad tail grubs less and less, whether worms or grubs, because straight or no-tail designs are more provocative by allowing he lure to do more things with reel handle and rod tip action combinations, again fishing for all fish species when using slower presentations. Maybe those legs give fish the creeps they must put an end to!

Other than the thick legged lure on the right, I tend to go finesse action whether for bass or pan fish. The grubs pictured have already caught five fish species even though jig hook size is small. Finesse usually means slow presentations and they are 95 % of what I cast along with lures that provoke what I usually assume are inactive fish just waiting to be ticked off by me. The surface lure with the thick legs I compare to the bulk and commotion of a Zara Spook - kind of like presenting bass with a big piece of steak versus a snack. Within a week I'll be trying the surface lures and jig & leggy trailer. I'll let you know how I do.

When I use my POP molds, I have to do the same thing - worm oil or baby oil (unscented) even though I've coated the cavities with polymer. I made an injection mold of a Sweet Beaver using POP, but the detail is not as sharp as the stone. Will give them a try anyway for micro-finesse baits as shown above.

One of the reasons I hadn't visited much was the crappy (no pun)design. This one easy to use and I don't have to log in every time, plus images are easy to add with different methods. Lure craft is as important to me as fishing and having a site dedicated to it is right up my alley, not only to get info, but to contribute. Good Job Frank (aka SenkoSam)

I might have to visit his site. Lurecraft is out so the more sources the better especially when it comes to plastic.

Great !!! The last time I looked, $400 or more was about right depending on lure complexity. Will give a full report with pictures after I visit the site. Thanks Again. Senkosam aka SpoonMinnow

I have lure designs I would like aluminum molds for, some of which require a hand injection process. Last time I checked, the price was too much for my taste. Any sources you know of that wouldn't break the bank? Here is an example: The thin tail grubs are still one of my best multi-species lures - especially for pan fish. The other designs look easy to mold with POP.