Time For My First "real'" Post

[kilrbil]

I figure it's time for my first real post after lurking and reading for so long. I just started pouring my own soft plastics after reading everything I could find about it. TU has so many tips and tricks but the advice you guys give is invaluable. My first pour was Watermelon red flake senko type worm using a 4" 2 pc mold given to me by my fishing partner and a 5" 2pc mold I bought from Dels. I followed all the steps I learned from everyone here and the finish product seemed near perfect. I was happy with the color and the salt seemed pretty evenly distributed. I figured before I went any further I should test the fall rate against an original to see if I needed to make any adjustments in the amount of salt. My son got a 10 gallon fish tank from a friend for me to use as a test. I dropped an original and my newly poured in the tank and the original fell about 1 1/2 times faster then mine. I tested a few more with pretty much the same results. One of mine fell straight up and down and and literally stood straight up in the tank. I noticed it had an air bubble trapped in the end of it. So now I will try to adjust the amount of salt in order to make my worms fall a little quicker and I will try to figure out how to not have air bubbles when pouring. once I get that down I will try experimenting with colors from the recipes everyone has posted here. I'd like to thank the guys on here for all their advice and hope to be able to contribute once I get better at this.

Edited December 19, 2010 by kilrbil

[TTDuckman]

kilrbil,

It appears that you are well on your way. A couple things to keep in mind with sticks. More salt=more weight (faster fall), however, more salt also=stiffer bait (unless softener is added)and a weeker bait (will tear more easily).

The classic senko recipe that you often read is 1 cup plastic, 1/4 cup softener and 1/2 cup salt.

Good luck with your quest, it is fun to try different things to get exactly what you want a bait to do.

Tim

[kilrbil]

TT,

I used the senko formula you posted and got my stik baits to fall exactly the same speed as the original...I did not use any softner because my baits felt pretty much like the original. I think mine even had a bit more "shimmy" to them which is even better! Thanks for the info...I use a lot of these during the year and I am really looking forward to see how they do.