Hand Pour Senko Vs Injection Senko

[Ryan1995]

Hi guys,

 

I have been wanting a 4 cavity senko mold for a while now. Was about to order the injection senko until I saw they make a hand pour. I was wondering what the difference is? They cost exactly the same, make the same worm, and I already have an injector so what would you recommend?

[gone2long]

If you have the injector then go for the injection mold, not sure what one you have so can't tell you if laminates are in the cards which is why the injection would be nice. I have one of del's hand pour molds it works fine no problems at all and you can do swirls or laminates with it, guess you could do swirls if you’re an injector master because you will need to pulse the 2 injector's at different rates to achieve this.

[Ryan1995]

I have the 3oz injector off basstackle.com. Also, I am very new, so for a while, swirls are out of the picture.

[Senkosam]

Hand poured are usually cheaper and make a bait as good as injection molds. Laminates are only possible with hand pour molds unless there is an injector with double color pour capability. The only problem I've had with hand pour worm molds it the air pocket at the top. Bear sells an extender (his molds already have it built/carved into the mold), but for my older stick molds I use a socket (from a socket wrench kit) over the hole and produce solid baits every time.

Edited March 30, 2014 by Senkosam

[mark poulson]

Hand poured are usually cheaper and make a bait as good as injection molds. Laminates are only possible with hand pour molds unless there is an injector with double color pour capability. The only problem I've had with hand pour worm molds it the air pocket at the top. Bear sells an extender (his molds already have it built/carved into the mold), but for my older stick molds I use a socket (from a socket wrench kit) over the hole and produce solid baits every time.

 

That's a great idea!

[ipt]

i would recommend injection for stick baits that use a lot of salt. otherwise you have to pour at a very cool temperature so the salt doesnt sink to the tail.

 

also, glitter fall inward on vertical sticks. thats why injection side shot molds will produce you the best looking bait.

 

just my opinion, hand pours will work fine if you are just getting started.

[Lonestarbaitcompany]

I have two injection Senko molds, I hand pour them 90% of the time.

[curt k]

I make both injection and hand pour molds and when I need stick baits I pretty much always use my hand pours .I just find them easy to work with . Bubbles are never a problem because I've always made a point of leaving enough reservoir to not have to top off .

Edited April 6, 2014 by curt k

[smallmouthaholic]

Hand poured are usually cheaper and make a bait as good as injection molds. Laminates are only possible with hand pour molds unless there is an injector with double color pour capability. The only problem I've had with hand pour worm molds it the air pocket at the top. Bear sells an extender (his molds already have it built/carved into the mold), but for my older stick molds I use a socket (from a socket wrench kit) over the hole and produce solid baits every time.

Sir,

      Laminates are easy w/ a properly constructed ,multiple cavity CNC injection mold. I shoot 12 @ a time and they are perfect. I started w/ hand pour stick molds years ago and sold every last one  of them for the following reasons-

 

1- inconsistencies

2- poor laminates

3- slow production

 

Sorry but I'm laughing out loud a the false justification used to continue hand pouring w/ those outdated molds.  They're OK for hobby use.

[Senkosam]

If you sell and stock, the more expensive injection multi-cavity molds are a necessity. For the hobbyist that uses fewer baits because of the use of many other lure types, hand pours are fine. Laminates don't hold much interest for me and I see them as gimmick to sell more. I've done just as well on solid colors.

As far as salt settling, I got around that years ago when I ground salt in a coffee grinder making it finer. It stays suspended in molten plastic but as most of you know, extra softener is needed to offset firmness. The only difference between large grain salt and floured salt is the color is milky in clear plastic and a bit less in dark colored plastic. Senkos aren't much different.

Glitter I don't have a problem with when it comes to vertical pours. I always use a steel butter knife to mix everything (including salt) before every mold pour and my plastic rarely is heated beyond 290 degrees.

Edited April 6, 2014 by Senkosam

[Baitjunkys]

Sir,

      Laminates are easy w/ a properly constructed ,multiple cavity CNC injection mold. I shoot 12 @ a time and they are perfect. I started w/ hand pour stick molds years ago and sold every last one  of them for the following reasons-

 

1- inconsistencies

2- poor laminates

3- slow production

 

Sorry but I'm laughing out loud a the false justification used to continue hand pouring w/ those outdated molds.  They're OK for hobby use.

You sound like Obama more and more every post you make, Its getting old... You dont need know fancy hoopla to pour baits, Find out exactly what these guys are after before spreading your propoganda.. 

[Senkosam]

BaitJunky, I'm not sure what provoked the reply, but politics are dirty business whereas what we share here is because of enthusiasm and enjoyment of lure making and designing. He has his opinions, you and everyone else have their own.

 

A sarcastic comment expressed regarding my posts a few times, leads me to ignore the poster from that point on and encourage others to do the same. On two other forums, a clown named CheapHooker has been hounding me for months. The mods have warned him, he gets suspended temporarily and then starts up again. But life's too short to worry about insignificant unhappy people who find a hollow satisfaction verbally abusing people who disagree with them.

 

Besides, everyone has a right to their opinion as we have the right to agree or disagree openly.

 

BTW (What the H*** does the president have to do with his post and how does it pertain to the subject of lure making?) Just curious... But thanks for the support, if that's what it was....

Edited April 6, 2014 by Senkosam

[Baitjunkys]

Some people dont like to find out what the intent of the poster is, Only like to tell them they cant do it, or they have to spend thousands to do so... Your reply was spot on, you explained it very well... All smallmouth does is knock people down and try to make them feel stupid.. Its getting old, I sell all that stuff to make things easier, But i will never try to sell someone something they dont need. (Health Insurance) Wanting and needing are two seperate things. Ill show you hand pour guys that can pour far nicer looking baits than any injector or machine will ever do. 

[Bassinfool]

The condescending talk is getting old. If you want to turn people away from our community keep talking down to people like that and the only people left here will be jack offs just like you. I'm sick of it, grow up and start acting like the professionals you claim to be.

[smallmouthaholic]

. "All smallmouth does is knock people down and try to make them feel stupid.. Its getting old, I sell all that stuff to make things easier, But i will never try to sell someone something they dont need. (Health Insurance) Wanting and needing are two seperate things. Ill show you hand pour guys that can pour far nicer looking baits than any injector or machine will ever do."

 

Lenard,

            Jealousy seems to run rampant @ times on this board. The cold ,hard truth seems to arouses the self-appointed experts.I 've offered plenty of spot on advice in the soft-bait and lead forums. Kinda sounds like a personal; attack from you.I guess you don't like me since I do not like Calhoun's plastic- regular and/or d-aired- even though I offered to pay for your samples. Shame on you for generalizing w/ your statements towards me,

 

"ll show you hand pour guys that can pour far nicer looking baits than any injector or machine will ever do."

 

You really know very little about soft-baits manufacturing to make that statement- but I 'll just have to consider the source.

 

It's is humorous how you try to justify hand pour over injection. I'd love to see the results of your craw and creature molds after your hand pouring expertise- without trimming  

 

Edited for spelling

Edited April 6, 2014 by smallmouthaholic

[Baitjunkys]

You guys are funny. Look at the statistics and see whos running people off...

[Senkosam]

You may have a point s.m.aholic about injection pours being prettier and more professional looking than handpours, but that still begs the question - does pretty mean more apt to catch fish? For the inexperienced that have never used anything but manufactured lures and for those that sell to those anglers, slick looking baits are the only ones they will buy or make. But, those of us that started out using Lurecraft silicone molds when metal laser cut mold didn't exist, we were blown away by the coarse looking baits that those molds produced and that caught fish first time out. After that, my soft plastic and other lure type purchases decreased year after year because how cheap they were to make and how well they worked.

 

My validated belief that fish don't know pretty from ugly started when a fishing partner of mine heated some old lures to made a very ugly looking nothing of a bait and caught crappy on it. Another friend caught a three pound bass the first time we went fishing on a 4" Lurecraft stick in a weird ochre color in eary April.

 

I just posted a handpour in someone's topic looking for a crappie bait that is poured with no mold and it is one of the most versatile soft plastic baits I've ever fished!!! So when it comes to lure design and process of pouring, action speaks louder than 'pretty' anyday, the proof being whether an inexperienced angler can catch fish after fish the first time using it and thereafter. My grandkids 4-8 are proof since the day they caught fish in my pond immediately as well as anyone in my fish and game club who used it.

 

Lure design has nothing to do with how professional a bait appears to the buyer, but more to do with how and where the lure is used. IMO fish are easily provoked because irritation and the bully instinct make them strike, even from a neutral activity mood. Once one fish strikes, more in the area become interested and active. This assumes fish aren't actively feeding, which is a good way to target fish.

 

Anymore, to me finesse lures and presentations after each species spawn in warm water seems to do better for me after midday under a sunny sky, coarse looking sticks and my minnow as prime examples of effective baits.

 

The only concern I have about injection or handpoured lures is do they work for me? Apart from that, the rest is just a sales pitch to pay for pretty for a lot more $.

Edited April 6, 2014 by Senkosam

[curt k]

sticks are straight cavity so unless a guy is wanting to do laminates then they are easy to use unless they are simply trash molds ,

incosistancy ? Not with what I've been using !

Out dated ?  I've just packaged up an order of 5" stick molds for a baitshop back east who bought a bunch of the same last year , on average I sell over 50 5" stick pour molds per month alone , so they are still being well used .

It was my impression that this forum was for both hobby and professionals who share a similar core passion ,

[Richard Prager]

Geez......

[Baitjunkys]

Sorry fellas. I should have not said anything here. For the record I am the world worst hand pourer. I was referring to the many very skilled guys out there doing it. Sorry if anyone else took offense to my post. I like to help people not run them away.

[curt k]

i highly doubt anyone took offence to your reply

well , maybe one lol , oboma

Edited April 6, 2014 by curt k

[alsworms]

Nice to see cooler heads have prevailed. 

 

Personally, being an "old school" guy, it used to bother me when I would read where someone said he "shot" X amount of baits, rather than "poured" them.  But hey.......technology is technology.  Things keep getting easier for mass production, and let's face it.........many of these modern injection molds are just stunning, so I can see why so many choose this method.  Not knocking either choice.  I've seen some awesome looking baits on both sides (many from members here on this forum), and I've caught just as many fish with both as well. 

 

What bugs me most is this "my way or the highway" attitude.  Keep in mind that there are all ends of the spectrum here on this board, from those who pour a few baits for themselves on weekends to guys who produce several thousand in a week.  There really is no "right" way.  What works for you might not work for the next guy.  I believe the question was asked, "hand-pour vs injection?".  If you prefer to hand-pour, state your reason why, and lay off the guy who'd rather inject. 

 

Pretty simple, right? 

[patrick reif]

Before this gets shut down, I have a hand pour mold I inject. It just goes faster. There was a learning curve because of nose cavity hollows, but I have it down now to fit my needs.  I also shoot jerk baits while I'm at it.  I like salt and softener in both, and green pumpkin is my color of choice for both.  Dead sticking in rivers is the reason.  I need a place where drama isn't an issue.  I might as well spend my time looking for UFO's or pots of gold.

For the record, I'm not convinced laminates make a difference anymore than scents do. 

[aulrich]

Lots of stuff is designed to primarily catch fisherman and not fish.

[alsworms]

Lots of stuff is designed to primarily catch fisherman and not fish.

Good point.  We fished our river a couple years ago and my son was using a black with red flake senko.  I was throwing a red shad (red/black laminate).  We were both wacky rigging with a 3/0 EWG hook (no weight), and he killed me from the back of the boat.  Red Shad sure looks nicer than a plain ol' black - red flake, but it didn't matter to the fish that day!  Even though I used to pour a ton of laminates (like Patrick said), I'm not convinced they are more productive.  I am, however, convinced that scent works.  I wouldn't even think of throwing a soft plastic in our river without a crawfish or anise scent.  I guess, once again, it all depends on your confidence level.