Maine Tackle Posted December 11, 2015 Report Share Posted December 11, 2015 Hello fellow lure making community. I have been making spinnerbaits, jigs, soft plastics and big inline spinners for 5-6 years now with good results. I've carved a few big swim baits that I want to reproduce. I've done thorough research on the the mold making process, but am a bit overwhelmed with the different casting agents, resin, epoxy etc. I've read a little on the Smooth on Feather Lite, but was wondering if I could get some info on the difference between others agents. I'm looking to reproduce swimbaits in the 8" range, and am not sure what route to travel down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted December 11, 2015 Report Share Posted December 11, 2015 I don't cast resins, but I'd look at the Alumilite site if I were just stating. http://www.alumilite.com/ Also google Larry Dahlberg, and check out how he makes his resin baits. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maine Tackle Posted December 11, 2015 Author Report Share Posted December 11, 2015 Thanks. I've watched all his videos. Am basically looking for pros/cons on the different products. I've done a bunch of research but haven't found much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JRammit Posted December 11, 2015 Report Share Posted December 11, 2015 I just started using resin myself, not much experience yet, but ill share the little ive gained I asked around with this same question, and seemed like just personal preference... So i went with the Alumilite amazing white So far i can say ive had absolutely no problem with bubbles as ive read can be an issue.... But after trial and error, i found the ratio of micro balloons i need to get a buoyant bait, and it seems like ALOT to me I believe the more balloons added, the weaker the cast becomes.... I tested this by snapping the head off a failed crank bait with little effort The featherlite from smooth on is said to float on its own.. So might make a more durable cast.... But this may be what those fighting with bubbles are using?? I remember seeing something about the differences between urethane and polyester resins.. That may explain more but i cant seem to find it now... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maine Tackle Posted December 11, 2015 Author Report Share Posted December 11, 2015 I was hoping to find a post about that, but didn't. I did read a little on the alumalite white, seems like a good option. Seems like there is a big difference between products. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JRammit Posted December 11, 2015 Report Share Posted December 11, 2015 Im thinking it was a YouTube video, ill try to find it again when i get a chance The description for my Alumilite said "user friendly".. I can agree.. Ill probably stick with it for a while Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodieb8 Posted December 11, 2015 Report Share Posted December 11, 2015 we use 16lb foam. for swimbaits you would need to weight them . 16lb has density of maple ,floatation of cedars. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vodkaman Posted December 11, 2015 Report Share Posted December 11, 2015 When I played about with casting resin, I was using regular fiberglass resin. The density of regular resins is around 1.2gm/cm3 which is just heavier than water (1.0gm/cm3). The volume of micro-balloons (MB's) to get down to a density of even 0.7gm/cm3 is enormous and very thick for pouring. Featherlite (I have not used, but read the specs) is formulated with MB's at a density of just less than 0.7gm/cm3 and is pourable, and would be my choice if I could buy it locally. Resins are brittle to start off with, adding large amounts of MB's just makes the problem worse. Like JR, I too found that the casts were brittle, BUT hard as nails and very easy to work with, drilling, cutting, filling etc. Personally, I don't think the brittle thing is a big problem. A fresh cast will possibly snap if you drop it on a tiled floor, but once the lip, eyes and weights are glued in to the body and a top coat or two of epoxy is applied, the brittle problem goes away. When you throw a lure, it flies tail first and the flight is significantly slowed down by the trailing line. Even if you hit the rocks, the lure would survive (tested). The gnarliest musky will need a good dentist after chewing on a resin bait. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maine Tackle Posted December 12, 2015 Author Report Share Posted December 12, 2015 (edited) Thanks for the info guys. Who makes the 16 foam? Haven't seen that before. Sounds like it could be good stuff. Edited December 12, 2015 by Maine Tackle Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maine Tackle Posted December 12, 2015 Author Report Share Posted December 12, 2015 Just found it. How many 8" swim baits would that kit make? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bass100 Posted December 12, 2015 Report Share Posted December 12, 2015 I use the Alumilite Amazing White with absolutely no problems. The baits with a lot of microballoons are fairly easy to break the first 24 hours but after a couple of days of curing they become bulletproof and you can not break them by hand. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vodkaman Posted December 12, 2015 Report Share Posted December 12, 2015 Bass100 - good to know. I probably didn't allow the bodies to cure long enough. It was many years ago and such details have faded. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodieb8 Posted December 12, 2015 Report Share Posted December 12, 2015 16lb foam is cured within 2 hours. we wire thru every bait. wires inserted into mold,poured around. mico-balloons will weaken foam castings. we tried 26lb foam with bad results.. foams can have a learning curve. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vodkaman Posted December 12, 2015 Report Share Posted December 12, 2015 Woodieb8 - I would like to give foam another crack, as I didn't give it a fair shake at the time. All I succeeded in doing was gluing P0P molds together. I had not used RTV at that time and failed to try the foam again when I did start using RTV. 16Lb seems perfect at SG 0.25, the equivalent of a very dense balsa. 26Lb has an SG 0f 0.46 which would be about as heavy as I would go with timber. My ideal would be SG 0.35 which would be 22Lb. I haven't found a supplier of foam here in Indonesia yet, but the silicone RTV that I am using, I think would be a bit too soft for foam and will distort under the pressure build up during expansion. I guess the learning curve that you spoke of, is largely about dealing with this expansion, getting the proportions, mix, temperature, vent sizes etc, all correct. I have designs for small lipless swimbaits with molded in piano style hinges. A dense foam would be the ideal material for this venture. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JRammit Posted December 12, 2015 Report Share Posted December 12, 2015 I use the Alumilite Amazing White with absolutely no problems. The baits with a lot of microballoons are fairly easy to break the first 24 hours but after a couple of days of curing they become bulletproof and you can not break them by hand. Mine had cured for almost a week... Since it didnt work anyway, i was testing the bond between the lip and the mouth... The whole mouth broke off with the lip still inside To be fair, it was a rather thin bait... And my through line design leaves a hollow core, which could have weakened it more My mixture was: -1/4 fl oz A.. +1/2 tsp balloons -1/4 fl oz B.. +1/2 tsp balloons (So 1 tsp balloons to 1/2 fl oz resin) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bass100 Posted December 12, 2015 Report Share Posted December 12, 2015 My high floating baits I use 4 grams of microballoons to 28 grams of resin. This is a basic formula to start with as it changes for every bait for me. I mold all of my hardware in the baits so they are solid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
