Canga~

i use bait plastics for my plastisol and a few colorants, lureworks for most of my colorants and glitter. they are great, imo.

bugmolds has them in both stone and aluminum in several sizes and cavity counts.

there is 3 manufacturers of injectors worth getting IMO, basstackle, fat guys fishing and N2 manufacturing. i own 3 basstackle (10oz single, 6oz dual and 3oz triple) and a 6oz dual fgf injector and they have all been great. i dont own an n2 injector but i hear great things, so i wouldnt hesitate to go that way either. there are a few others that make a good injector, like lurecraft (i dont like the screw on nozzle, i have one and its tedious after a bit, very secure though!) and bait junkies (very limited availability, if at all).

once you get through the essential series you have move on to something better, the doit in my experience yellows much faster than many other plastics, and it was full of bubbles. there are several better plastics out there for less money than the ES plastic. try a soft(er) blend for senkos, but until then softener should help, might take a bit of trial and error to get the softness you want.

send them a message though facebook messenger, they have always gotten back to me using that media very quickly. they have said before in their lives that email isnt the best way to get ahold of them.

yeah a 9oz single or 6oz dual is plenty to fill 8 cavities, i can do 10 3.8" BA shads, 4 3.75" hammers, 8 3.5" rip shads and probably have some plastic left from a 6oz dual.

the fat guys fishing mold is awesome, i have the 3.5" rip shad and it shoots great and catches fish, they also have it in 4 and 8 cavity molds with the 4 cavity being around $140. its getting replaced in my mold lineup in favor of the 603 from BTS (another keitech style, with a top hook slot). FGF is having a great black friday sale all weekend with bigget sales at specific times on Friday and Monday (check their website for specific times). with the sale the 3.5" rip shad 8 cavity mold would come in around 150

yellowing can be mitigated by using a heat stabilizer, not sure if the plastic you have available has it added form the supplier, but it can help! if bubbles are your main problem i would get a vac chamber to start, it helps immensely. as for time saving, using larger amounts in the microwave can help keep it hotter longer, but there will still be reheating required, but it can work until you get the presto pot.

the hook up tackle makes a "whats new at the hook up tackle" video every sunday, they talk about the cover scat all the time, and sell the shit out of it. i personally havent bought any, but they seem to get good reviews and catch fish.

the video that Epic Bait Molds did of the bait plastics facility a while back had some interesting insights on the subject of Phthalates in the plastisol we use. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kbFc63ZnXwY

weird, i have used thousands of the matzuo sickles and very rarely had any issues with them (maybe 1-2 per 1000), i really wish they wouldnt have gone bankrupt, i loved those hooks. the victory sickles are ok, but they dont stay sharp as long as the matzuos, though my customers dont seem to mind, they love the sickle style

if spending $15 at a shop is too much, this isnt the hobby for you! i get most of my hooks from barlows so its never been an issue for me to spend 15, have been shopping with them for years now and never had any kind of issue, and will continue to do so!

yeah i now have a few molds from epic and they for sure wont be the last from them. they not only have great molds but their customer service is outstanding as well.

not sure what the price of plastic has to do with getting a vac chamber, but bait plastics is 126 for a 5 gallon bucket with free shipping (25.20 a gallon shipped), and IMO its great plastic. i never tried MF because they were so much more expensive than everyone else (other than lurecraft), but i have never heard a bad thing about it, just cant bring myself to spend 60 on a gallon of plastic (or 40 per for 5 gallons!)

IMO, get a 5 gallon pot, at a MINIMUM 3 gallons. the 5 gallon i have fits 2 4 cup anchor cups, 3 2 cups and 4 1 cup. i had a 3 gallon to start and it only fit 1 2 cup anchor or pyrex, it got annoying to try to degass 2 sperate cups to make a laminate!