Hand Pouring Tight Spaces

[Bassinjunkie88]

I bought one of the hand pour swimbait molds from Lure Craft and I'm having a hard time with the tail section.  I over-pour it because it's very tight and sometimes the tail doesn't get filled in all the way.  Any suggestions, or has anyone used this mold before?

[Bassinfool]

I hand pour very rarely not but the molds I have that require a high deal of concentration when pouring are always tricky. One of the best things you can do is pour when the plastic is hotter so the stream is thinner and a little more controllable in those small spaces. Another thing I like to do is start at the head of the bait and pour a nice thin stream at the tip of the bait and after it builds up there it will begin pushing the plastic towards the tail under its own weight. Every few seconds you can move your stream a little closer towards the tail pushing that plastic into all the little corners and crevices without having to directly pour it into the small spaces themselves. A little over pour is no big deal, trimming up baits is a given generally with hand pours so its no big deal. Use the hotter plastic if you can and a smaller pouring spout and that should help you a lot.

[smallmouthaholic]

Move to hand injecting and enjoy yourself and the detailed results.

[gone2long]

Some will over pour then scrape with a straight edge, it won't eliminate the flashing but it will be very thin and removes easily. This not recommended for production that is the realm for injection.

[Bassinfool]

Not to be "that guy" but that answer of "just go injection" is a crappy and unhelpful answer to the question being asked. So often that seems to be the generic answer when it comes to people asking how to hand pour and not only is it not helpful in the least bit the person is still left with their question unanswered. Maybe injection isn't a feasible option for them or isn't a worthwhile investment or perhaps they want to do things the way they've been done for a long time. There's no reason a hand poured bait can't be every bit as effective as one that's injected and if that's the route they've chosen then we should help them become better at doing things this way, not telling them they need to invest X amount of money on an injectors and injection molds which is an extraneous and unwarranted expense when they've already spend Y amount just to be able to pour baits the way they are now.

I'm not trying to berate anyone or step on any toes, I just want to see this community continue to be here and be helpful to those who seek to get better in this hobby and telling someone they need to invest a bunch of money into injection simply isn't helpful for the average hobbyist who does this for their own enjoyment. Just my two cents, feel free to disagree with me if you'd like.

-Nick

[Bassinjunkie88]

I actually do a lot of injecting but wanted a cheap swimbait to play around with. I have some Pyrex glasses but the spout might be too big on those for pouring the tight space. I have heard of silicone cups, but what brand should I look into? Those would provide a way to make the spout smaller.

Thanks guys

[Slammingjack]

What Bassinfool said x2. I'll add that I have 2 fluke molds by LC, had the same trouble with the tail having voids in them. 8 baits and maybe 5 would come out sometimes less. I pour at 340f, very small stream, start at the head. I fill the whole body of the bait. Then push forward slowly to the tail. A lot of the time the plastic will run down hill from the tail back into the body of the bait. If the body is full it can't do that as easily.  Just takes time to learn how to fill them. With the small forked tail you need to get real good at trimming. lol But the fish love them flukes.

[Kajan]

   I don't have that mold, but I only pour one pc rtv molds. That tail seciton is not narrow, should be easy to pour if you use a Presto pot with a valve. Put you an alum bottom to the molds, and manipulate them under the valve of the presto pots, you will like the results.

[robalo01]

One suggestion I could offer is to use  500ml pyrex and only fill it half way. This makes pouring a thin stream much easier.

[bass100]

I have many of lurecraft's swimbait molds including this one.  It is not easy to pour detail out of a pyrex cup.  I use the little pouring pans from lurecraft http://www.lurecraft.com/catalog.cfm/materials-~and~-tools/tools/-special-pouring-pan:1784  I set the pans on a hot plate to keep them warm.  These little pans will allow you to pour a very fine stream and almost eliminate all flashing.  The nice thing about the hand poured swimbaits is the flat back.  The round back of the commercial baits and the injected baits allows the bait to roll over at high speeds but the flat back of the hand poured swimbaits allows you to reel the bait as fast as you want and it won't roll over.  The pictures below are of lurecraft's 885 and 916 molds which are copies of the skinny dipper.  I also have the injection molds for the skinny dipper and there is no comparison in action.  The hand poured swimbait's action is far better.

 

[bass100]

Also when using the little pans from lurecraft only fill them a third of the way.  If you fill them past that the stream of plastic will start to go down the side of the pan.  I have a cotton glove that I wrap electrical tape around the pointer finger and after each cavity I fill I wipe the hot plastic off of the spout so that there is no plastic build up from one cavity to the next.  I always pour 2 cups at a time and it takes longer to heat the plastic than it does to pour the baits.  If you get a small amount of flashing around the edge just run a lighter over it and it will be all gone.  Only use the bottom part of the flame.  If you use the top part of the flame it will leave a black carbon mark on your bait.  With a little practice you will never have a bait with flashing again.  Also a good bait to practice with is the brush hog.  When I first started hand pouring a friend told me that I wasn't any good until I could pour 100 brush hogs with out any flashing.  I poured every day on that one mold and after two and a half months I was able to do that.  Once you can do that there isn't a mold out there you can't pour.  I hope this all helps----Good Luck.

[Frank]

I made a mold like that before and had the same problem. I would start pouring the tail while opening the thin opening with my other hand. This give you a bigger target to pour to. Once it was more than half full moved to the body and let it fill the rest of the way. Sorta backwards but opening the thin part with my other hand really helped, plus when you let it go it pushed the plastic up toward the top. Only works on silicone molds. Make sure there is a glove on the second hand though. I poured from one cup Pyrex cups half full.

[toadfrog]

I use ceramic cups that have sharp spouts . Kinda like cream pitchers . Find them at yard sales ect . for 2 to 4 bits apiece . Why use ceramic ? It holds heat longer . As well as it does not blow all over hells half acre should you sit it on something cold . It will pop then split but it won't go off like a bomb.

[mark poulson]

I actually do a lot of injecting but wanted a cheap swimbait to play around with. I have some Pyrex glasses but the spout might be too big on those for pouring the tight space. I have heard of silicone cups, but what brand should I look into? Those would provide a way to make the spout smaller.

Thanks guys

I use the NorPor silicone cups, and pinch the cup with a large black paper clip to make a smaller pour spout.  I have that same mold, and it works great.

With hot plastic, I can start with the tail, because the smaller spout opening give me more control, and move forward once it's filled.

I bought the 2 cup/1 pint cups, but I have much better control if I only heat 1 cup for pouring detailed stuff.

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Norpro-Measure-Sir-Pour-2-cup-Silicone-Measuring-NEW-/280625234787?

[Bassinjunkie88]

I use the NorPor silicone cups, and pinch the cup with a large black paper clip to make a smaller pour spout.  I have that same mold, and it works great.

With hot plastic, I can start with the tail, because the smaller spout opening give me more control, and move forward once it's filled.

I bought the 2 cup/1 pint cups, but I have much better control if I only heat 1 cup for pouring detailed stuff.

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Norpro-Measure-Sir-Pour-2-cup-Silicone-Measuring-NEW-/280625234787?

Thanks Mark

[Paul Adams]

I take it this is a silicone mold, if not the next bit will make no sense.   

 

when i make my own paddletail molds from rtv i add a disc at the back of the tail about a .080" thick so i can easily pour the tails section having somewhere to pause while filling the deep tail so i do not have a narrow area to work in, this can be cut off cleanly when the lure is cooled.

 

I wondered if i could cut one of these discs in a mold after it had been poured, so i have just tried it with a craft knife in an old mold and it works well.

 

the video show the disc being cast in

 

Like you i do some injecting but i find open moulds are great for experimenting or pouring something quick to go fishing

[bass100]

Thanks for posting Paul.  It is a great video.

[Paul Adams]

Cheers bass 100, but really I am just trying to avoid going down to the workshop and making a step, for a boat that 

i should be fitting tomorrow

[mark poulson]

Thanks for posting Paul.  It is a great video.

 

X2