Anglinarcher

Check out the the following link: http://www.solarez.com/MSDS/MSDS%20Solarez.pdf

Other then Termite, I don't think you understand. At one time, in the old days, when I was a little kid, we got hackle from either China or India. They were small necks, but if you got the right size, got lucky and got a good neck, you could tie down to a size 20 for a few feathers. We were happy to ties down to size 14 most of the time. Nothing grown in the US or Europe was good enough. You need stiff fibers, soft quil, web free, long and narrow, and good colors. It was not uncommon for the India or China hackle necks to come in 50 gallon barrels and you might find a dozen quality necks in it. Yes, the species were different in India and China, but it was not like they were growing everywhere. Then some crazy guy got the idea of taking the very best chickens and breading them with the very best chickens. It was color to color, quality to quality. The best results went into the next generation of breading, the worst results went "into the frying pan". For years, a grizzly was the only "genetic" hackle available, black and white sucked, and other colors just did not exist. Over time, others started to do this also. This is what they call "genetic" hackle, and it is the same thing they do with race horses, flowers, crops, etc. I cannot even remember the names of the companies right now, other the Metz. This is something that took years of selecting the best in color and quality, tossing out the worst, breading the best. If you want any old chicken, it will tie flies, but not good dry flies. If you want quality birds that will tie professional quality dry flies, the you had better get ready for 20 years of your own breading, or you had better find a supplier that has already done the work. PS, why would I sell you something that took me 20 years to develop for $50 a dozen, knowing that you will then compete with me????

Maybe...... Loon makes a soft fly tying gel that would look like that. I think it is a UV Cure, so I expect that Solarez has something like it too. You would make your shape, insert your mylar, then cure it with UV, etc. Like I said, maybe.....

There is really no way to know for sure. If the entire mold had soft spots, then mixing may have been it. Yours was not a mixing problem. If it was all soft and sticky, I would say your RTV settled in the container and you needed to stir it before you measured out the correct amount, but your problem did not fit that either. What I suspect is that the factory plastic had a layer of material on it that contained sulphur. OR, maybe they are learning that if they add sulphur it will give the home moder fits. RTV silicones do not set up with Sulphur, watch out for that. carolinamike gave the easiest solution to the problem that I know of.

Of course we cannot see the design, but a harder plastic might help, as well as altering the mold to beaf up the thickness just before the paddle. If you already have the mold done, then harder plastic is the easy thing to test.

Really, do our Bass desire a pick-up first thing in the morning?????? I won't say that as a cover scent it won't work, but I don't believe it works as an attractant. Still, I am not a Bass and this seems to be the new scent on the block.

I agree with Mike. I have done a lot of molds from soft plastics, but if it had been used, or perhaps a paint, or ........... I would not have tossed the mold away so fast. Sometimes it just takes a couple of extra days if the material reacted with something on the master. Also, sometimes if you take the catalyst and mist some extra on the gooey surface it will set it correctly.

So far, no bleading , seep or distortations under or by Solarez for me. I have heard that it does not like "Sharpie" though, so keep that in mind.

The Alumilite Platt 55 does require degassing, and it is a Platinum cure. It is not really soft enough for major undercuts either, but I hear it will last a long time. The Quick Set, HS2 and HS3 are tin cure, and are not thick enough to trap bubbles if you pour them correctly. Alumilite also has some "thinner" mixes as well that are designed to paint on, but I have not tried them. Again, I do not have experience with "Smooth-on", so I cannot comment on it. The following is the link to all of the Alumilite products, not just their "fishing lure" stuff. http://www.alumilite.com/

Brown, you have me soooo confused. There is no Alumilite HS1. There is a Quick Set, a HS2, and a HS3. They also have a Platt 55, but that is for those that have the ability to degass it with a vacuum. Additionally, Alumilite White, Alumilite Regular, Alumilite Clear and Water Clear, and, well, all except for their foams, do NOT expand upon setting. Adding microballons does not cause them to expand either. MIcroballons simply is like adding rocks to cement to make concrete - it changes the mix and the density but it does not shrink or expand upon curing. On old trick to get a less dense Alumilite resin (White, Regular, etc.,) was to add a drop of water to the resin after it was mixed, quick stir it in, then pour. This did expand, but it was never designed as a recommended technique. The only way your baits would not be consistent due to this expansion is if you had contaminated the products with water. I am not a pro with this stuff, but I do have a lot of experience with it. Here is what I suggest. Call Mike Faupal at Alumilite and talk to him. He is the owner, a great resource, and he IS A PRO with this stuff. Mike can be reached at 800 447 9344. He has a ton of products and I have only used a few of them. When I have problems, he helps me out over the phone all the time.

How dangerous is anything? You know, water can kill you and it is found in every cancer cell ever found. OK, is the water the cause of cancer, or .......... don't answer that, I already know. But, what about solvent based paints. The advantages are noted and can't be argued. I love the smell of the solvent, which means it is probably a very bad thing. My wife will tell you how bad it is.... Here is my thoughts on it. If you use a paint booth, with adaquate air flow, then you probably will suffer from lack of paint control. If you use a paint booth and an approved mask, then vent the fumes outside, then you will never have a problem. If you are like me, and you can limit the amount of solvent based paint you use, then a simple fan in the window will probably be enough for the few times you use it a month. The problem is simple, we live in the land of lawyers. We are stuck with over reactive people who need to find ways to keep the lawyers busy with law suits. Because of this, I will tell you you must wear an approved NIOSH mask, with a paint booth, with air flow. I will also tell you that you MUST do as I say, and NOT AS I DO.

Read Vodkaman's signature and you will see why so many of us got into this hoby. Oh ya, and it is fun. LOL

Over pour your existing molds and have a silicone sharp edged spatula ready. Scrape the top of the mold smooth and your filled legs remain. You can also do it with a metal scraper but I need to keep it heated in a toaster oven and treat it with an oil between scrapes.

It will smoke some and could catch on fire, but yes, you can use it. Is there a reason you need to clean your Aluminum mold with it?

A tiny bit of this works well when mixed into the base color. It takes a lot more of the ProTec to do the same thing. Still, it is a bit expensive.

Yes, some silicone will work, but not for production molds for the big boys. Silicone has a normal melting point around the same temperature as lead, so you need to use the higher melting Silicones and consider that it will not last for a long time. I also suggest using spray PAM, a mold release, or silicone oil on the silicone mold to increase the life span. If you do it, I suggest that you use the Silicone Mold Putty to do your mold. That is what I did. I wanted a specific jig shape with a connection for putting a stinger hook on it. I could hot find it in a pre-produced product or in a Do-It mold, so I get some Alumilite Amazing Mold Putty from Hobby Lobby. I took my desired jig and drilled a hole in the spot I wanted the stinger hook. I then glued the wire loop to the spot. I mixed the Mold Putty, formed it around the jig, and 15 minutes I carefully cut the jig out from the top. This left an envelope that I could insert the hook into and carefully pour hot lead (welder's gloves keep you safe). I treat my mold with silicone oil after each dozen of so pours I do so it works very well and the mold is still working. You can also form your shape using Sculpy Clay or Femo Clay and heat curing the clay. Once it is formed and heat treated, it is perfect for molding in mold putty.

I did to, and I see no reason not to. I had some ETEC bait that needed some repair so I touched them up and did the Soleraz and it we great.

Thanks Mike, I have the lureworks and spike-it on my radar now.

Hey, sorry for pointing out the political side of this. The fact is that if we allow political views to creep in, then democrats will oppose republicans, who will oppose ........ I frankly want to unite people regarding this issue - politics has never united. We still need a Third Party that can actually win. Oo ops, did I say that? I live in Washington State. We have a fishing reports site, (www.washingtonlakes.com) with various forums for this type of stuff. A couple of years ago we had issues with otherwise respected and experienced fisher (people) wondering about Power Bait. The question was is it digestible, what happens, will it hurt the fish, etc...? Power Bait then degenerated to the plastic bait type of power bait products, and then all soft plastics. After a great deal of discussion, aka argument, the subject finally died. Here are some facts that I know from experience. Yes, fish will on occasion eat soft plastic baits. I have caught trout, Lake Trout, perch and bass with plastics inside them. NEVER has the health of the fish been compromised. I have also caught each of these fish with Rocks in them (I assume from missed attempts at catching Crayfish, snails, etc.) and again, NEVER has the health of the fish been compromised. I know that trout eat the paste version of Power Bait, something that I have observed passes right through them. I know the same happens with Catfish. I know that is not part of this subject, but it is part of the overall concerns some fishermen have. Experienced fishermen have observed over and over that the digestive system of a fish is simple and durable. What they eat is either digested or it passes through them. If they cannot pass it through them, then it is so big they cannot get it in their mouths. I have actually seen hooks hanging out of the anal vent of fish with sinkers or swivels still inside, awaiting ejection. Unfortunately, we, the experienced fishermen, are not considered authorities to those that would make assumptions and then make laws. Joy to the day when laws are made for a legitimate reason, not as a result of knee jerks. I have signed the petition, have you?

If you are painting it first, then I see no problem with the Solarez adhearing to it. But, flat black would not be flat after you are done with Solarez. IF, and I do mean IF, I did this, I would do several light coats over the paint. You would also need to set up some type of lights, like the tanning bed lights. Are you really sure you want to go this route??????

Nope, not unless you can turn the boat upside down. UV is line of sight so you would never get repeatable results from the sun.

Hey, this is no place for politics............................. But as for a third party, I agree. Garthsnooks for president??????

I am not pushing Alumilite, I just think they are doing a great job of getting the begining lure maker (hobbist like me) started. Check out their starter kit. You can make a lot of lures with this kit and then you can move any direction you wish. http://www.makelure.com/ProductCats.cfm?Category=StarterKits

They use clear two piece baits that they glue together. I suspect they do a light paint on the inside before they adhear the parts together, thus creating the "ghost" appearance. For us, using pre-assembled baits, what Jay Bee and bassguy said.