Best All around plastic

[Anglinarcher]

1 hour ago, goldenshinner said:

Ive noticed when polyester glitter melts on remelt,the new blend is harder and tougher than original...anyone else notice this or have a trick to add some craft polyester to improve the plastics characteristics..

You normally add softener in those cases, and I also add some heat stabilizer.

[Anglinarcher]

1 hour ago, mark poulson said:

For me, a great example of how density works is seeing steel hooks floating on top of molten lead.  The lead is heavier/more dense, so the steel is forced up as the heavier molten lead moves down past it,  and the steel then floats on top of the molten lead.

Nailed it Mark.

[bryanmc]

2 hours ago, Anglinarcher said:

Viscosity is simply the ability of a liquid to flow.

 

 

According to Webster viscosity is the property of resistance to flow in any material with fluid properties, so too much viscosity and you can't fill small appendages and too little and everything settles out. 

[fshng2]

On 5/17/2017 at 11:56 AM, Anglinarcher said:

Same question as 'is a redhed, a blond or a brunette better'.  Because I married a brunette does not mean that was the best choice for everyone.  LOL

You will need to determine what you prefer, and there are a lot of people that will tell you that the plastisol they use IS THE BEST.  I am not convinced, but it might be the best for how they use it.

I have settled on Alumilite Alumisol and use softener or hardener as needed, and a heat stabilizer on re-melts.  I believe I get the best results for most of what I do and it will do all of what you are listing just fine.

Still, I have several others I have used with great success. 

As for colors, Alumilite makes a few but I find that I end up going with a lot of other makers.  Yes, some colors do bleed, but the bleeding colors also tend to be the brightest and the most transparent.  Some are sold as Non-Bleed, and they do not migrate to other colors or out of the lure, but they are also less transparent, usually less bright, but serve a great and useful purpose.

Don't get overwhelmed by the number of brands, and I suggest if you are new that you resist the instructions by some to by 5 gallons of it.  You will be asking us why your pours are sticky, how to mix your old plastic, etc., like so many others have.  By small amounts and try several until you find the one YOU like, then, if you really need 5 gallons of it, then buy bulk.

 

I like Redheads!

(I couldn't resist)

Edited May 19, 2017 by fshng2

[Anglinarcher]

3 hours ago, bryanmc said:

 

According to Webster viscosity is the property of resistance to flow in any material with fluid properties, so too much viscosity and you can't fill small appendages and too little and everything settles out. 

I guess I over simplified, or maybe Webster did.  Not sure.  LOL

[Anglinarcher]

1 hour ago, fshng2 said:

 

I like Redheads!

(I couldn't resist)

So did my dad, Mom is a readhead.  Do you know how hard it was growing up with a redheaded Irish mom, murder, simply murder, I was always in trouble.  LOL

[fshng2]

16 hours ago, Anglinarcher said:

So did my dad, Mom is a readhead.  Do you know how hard it was growing up with a redheaded Irish mom, murder, simply murder, I was always in trouble.  LOL

 

Too funny.

[POV_Fishin]

On 5/18/2017 at 1:59 PM, Anglinarcher said:

When emailing the company today, they still tell me that the inject temperature they suggest is 310 to 320.

I am curious if there is a thermometer issue and you are actually injecting at a higher temperature or if the company is just hedging their bet?

Looks like I might need to request a sample soon to try.

I've honestly played around quite a bit with PolySol. I've tried to burn it (learning the limits) and I didn't notice any signs before I gave up at around 395° F. I've reheated and reheated with no scorching. When it comes to shooting I honestly found it more forgiving on temp range. If your tip is hot it'll shoot certain molds at 300 maybe lower.  The things that PolySol gives you in terms of performance are amazing. But those attributes do sacrifice in a few places.

Cleaning up PolySol isn't as fast as for example Do-it Essential clear. It leaves a greasy film on Pyrex. If you stir too fast you'll have issues with bubbles (that's a problem with everything). Baits require some curing time with PolySol. What I've found to be the best route is lay the baits out flat in a bag with a light coating of your favorite scented worm, then lay them in the freezer for about an hour. Then keep them at room temperature for a couple of days before you fish them.

Other plastisols require a cure time but I find it extremely crucial on PolySol. There's a lot of offerings out there. I use PolySol because they're close, well priced and the quality is hard to beat. There may be better available, but PolySol gives me attributes I find important in my baits. Regardless of brand you need to know what you want from your plastisol before you get too brand concerned. Buy a qt of regular or medium from a bunch of manufacturer's. Make the same color and test.

[BHLures]

You can have all the viscosity and attributes you want, but if it's crap on a hook when it hits the water, none of that matters. I can adjust to any plastic. Use any plastic for any application, tweak this and that and you can work with just about anything available. What I need is a plastic that can withstand what it was intended to do, catch fish without constantly replacing and re hooking to keep fishing. There is not one single plastic available to us to my knowledge that can stand up to speckled trout and redfish in the Louisiana marsh. I've tried everything but polysol. Can't imagine it b in any more durable. Plenty of big manufacturers are producing better plastics.

Too many products designed to make pretty baits for the shelf. Not enough thought put into what happens after all the money changes hands. 

[Anglinarcher]

11 minutes ago, BHLures said:

There is not one single plastic available to us to my knowledge that can stand up to speckled trout and redfish in the Louisiana marsh. .....................................

Too many products designed to make pretty baits for the shelf. Not enough thought put into what happens after all the money changes hands. 

I use to fish Calcasieu in Louisiana, loved the Specs and Reds; they do tear up baits.

Here is the rub, Plastisol products made soft swim better and I caught more specs and reds.  Medium swam well enough, but fewer fish.  Hard swam poor, caught a lot fewer fish, but lasted a long time.

Given a choice, most fishermen would be more willing to adjust or replace soft plastics and catch the most fish rather then fish all day with a super durable lure but not catch fish.  Still..........

I remember talking with a friend in the know about the material in the legs of the Larry Dahlberg Diver Frog.  They are super tough, stretch much better, but they are not a Plastisol product and are not available to most of us for "pouring".  Perhaps someday it will be.  I do know that at least one other company has that super stretchy plastic, but ......... it does not hold up to teeth all that well either.

In my experience, a lot of the "salt water" baits sold are hard plastic and designed not to swim, like the fake shrimp.  I caught more specs and reds on a slug-go then anything else, and rather it was the factory or my own pour, I don't mind changing plastics when I am catching fish.

[BHLures]

26 minutes ago, Anglinarcher said:

I use to fish Calcasieu in Louisiana, loved the Specs and Reds; they do tear up baits.

Here is the rub, Plastisol products made soft swim better and I caught more specs and reds.  Medium swam well enough, but fewer fish.  Hard swam poor, caught a lot fewer fish, but lasted a long time.

Given a choice, most fishermen would be more willing to adjust or replace soft plastics and catch the most fish rather then fish all day with a super durable lure but not catch fish.  Still..........

I remember talking with a friend in the know about the material in the legs of the Larry Dahlberg Diver Frog.  They are super tough, stretch much better, but they are not a Plastisol product and are not available to most of us for "pouring".  Perhaps someday it will be.  I do know that at least one other company has that super stretchy plastic, but ......... it does not hold up to teeth all that well either.

In my experience, a lot of the "salt water" baits sold are hard plastic and designed not to swim, like the fake shrimp.  I caught more specs and reds on a slug-go then anything else, and rather it was the factory or my own pour, I don't mind changing plastics when I am catching fish.

I went last Saturday morning with wife and kids and caught 98 specks on my custom minnow. (wife caught 2 on shrimp). Had our  limit by 10:00am. All poured in hard. They swim great in hard plastic. Tail action is designed to do so. Averaged about 3 fish per lure. That's not good enough here. I can get closer to 10 on a H&H soft plastic. That's what it boils down to here. It's the first thing I get asked when talking to potential customers. "How many fish per lure?" 

A "fish-per-lure" works for bass, all day. Might work inshore around Texas or Florida too, but here that doesn't fly. I need something better.

[xpress]

I can get 10 to 20 in the MF easy stretch medium firm with trout and reds in the cocodrie area.

[BHLures]

9 hours ago, xpress said:

I can get 10 to 20 in the MF easy stretch medium firm with trout and reds in the cocodrie area.

So it's not plastisol? They don't have this on their website. Do you mean "easy BOUNCE"? 

10 to 20 specks per lure is very hard to believe.

Planning to call MF today.

[Anglinarcher]

I'll tell ya BH, you must have some awesome reds and specs.  The ones I fished for did not tear up my baits that fast, not even close.  I was using just Alumisol with softener or some MF medium.

Not sure why the fish in Western Louisiana seem to be less damaging.  Hummmmmm

Still, once you get your problem figured out, I am sure you will be able to sell a bunch of it.  Good luck.

[rixon529]

12 hours ago, BHLures said:

So it's not plastisol? They don't have this on their website. Do you mean "easy BOUNCE"? 

10 to 20 specks per lure is very hard to believe.

Planning to call MF today.

BHL:

I just visited MF website (haven't been there in a while).  Saw the "bounce" plastic but there's no description other than "super float".

Were you able to contact them for more info? 

Rick

Edited May 23, 2017 by rixon529

[xpress]

Bounce is a floating plastic and is pretty tough but the specks can shred it if the bait has any thin areas near the tail.  This plastic is great for everything else and is so far easy to work with.  The easy stretch is yet to be placed on the site but is much tougher.  In the winter when the specks are less aggressive it was easily catching 25 to 30 fish per bait.  THis spring those numbers have reduced down to 10 to 20.  It does still give you great action however.  The original looking swim baits last longer than the new boot tail baits with extremely thin tails.  The easy stretch is also a sinking plastic. It is 4 gallons for 100 plus shipping, slightly harder to work than bounce.     

[Anglinarcher]

It will be easy to see how the easy stretch works out.

[BHLures]

Thanks for the info. Left a msg with MF but no call back yet. 

My biggest problem is that it only takes one speck to hit it just right and the lure gets cut by the hook. Some lures got me close to 8 or 10, others just one. Average was too low imho. They stay on the jig collars just fine. No problem with losing tails. But once they're cut bad enough it's done. I went through about 30 lures Saturday to catch 100. On that trip I used MF saltwater, Calhoun hard, and LW hard. All performed about the same. LW feels better, tougher to the touch but cuts just as easily. I'll post pics of the lures when I get home.

Maybe it's just my custom minnow brings out the inner shark in those specks. It could happen.

[BHLures]

17 hours ago, Anglinarcher said:

I'll tell ya BH, you must have some awesome reds and specs.  The ones I fished for did not tear up my baits that fast, not even close.  I was using just Alumisol with softener or some MF medium.

Not sure why the fish in Western Louisiana seem to be less damaging.  Hummmmmm

Still, once you get your problem figured out, I am sure you will be able to sell a bunch of it.  Good luck.

Fall and winter they're much less aggressive. I'm sure you understand this, and that spring and summer is much different. We also had a weak winter which is why they're already on the beaches in numbers and hitting hard. A 16" speck feels like a 2 or 3 pounder at first. Sometimes they'll hit it for a kill shot, then let it fall before they hit it again, so your lure gets smacked twice at times. Some hit it as soon as it hits the water. They were as aggressive as they get. We had sharks biting some in half on the way in. It was that kind of day. Usually we're we'll into June when that happens. But it happens every year regardless. Perfect conditions to test what these plastisols can or can't do. So far they can't.

[BHLures]

This one took a beating before being cut but I have some at home that were nearly cut in half with no teeth marks because they were only hit once or twice. 

Hopefully once I get in touch with MF I'll get some samples of the stretch and the bounce formula. Will test them and post my results.

I'll have to stay away from anglingarcher's spots though. Those are some girly fish over there.

[mark poulson]

2 hours ago, BHLures said:

Thanks for the info. Left a msg with MF but no call back yet. 

My biggest problem is that it only takes one speck to hit it just right and the lure gets cut by the hook. Some lures got me close to 8 or 10, others just one. Average was too low imho. They stay on the jig collars just fine. No problem with losing tails. But once they're cut bad enough it's done. I went through about 30 lures Saturday to catch 100. On that trip I used MF saltwater, Calhoun hard, and LW hard. All performed about the same. LW feels better, tougher to the touch but cuts just as easily. I'll post pics of the lures when I get home.

Maybe it's just my custom minnow brings out the inner shark in those specks. It could happen.

Have you tried a worm welder?

[Slammingjack]

If blues are around your lucky to get one per bait. Blues 101 first bite the tail off... 

[smallmouthaholic]

Speckled trout( call weakfish up north )have teeth .Be happy you're catching  all those Reds and Trout. 5-10 fish per bait can't be that expensive if you're making your own baits- 10-20 per  soft-bait  is a bit greedy. Enjoy the action!

[Anglinarcher]

4 hours ago, BHLures said:

 

I'll have to stay away from anglingarcher's spots though. Those are some girly fish over there.

 

Ya, apparently so.  I actually found the specs great eating but a little less then a challenge for sport fishing.  Easy fishing, easy to subdue.  Spring, winter, summer or fall, if my wife did not enjoy them I would not have even messed with them.  The teeth seemed to me to be more for show, not for go.  LOL

Reds, ok, they were fun.  Got my wife into one that my scales showed was just over 30# on 8 pound mono.  It about killed her, but she almost forgives me for not taking the rod.  I still preferred to go for them top water but soft plastics were more productive.

Guess those fish you have must be super fish, or.......... Na, you would not be overstating your case.  ;).

[BHLures]

1 hour ago, Anglinarcher said:

Ya, apparently so.  I actually found the specs great eating but a little less then a challenge for sport fishing.  Easy fishing, easy to subdue.  Spring, winter, summer or fall, if my wife did not enjoy them I would not have even messed with them.  The teeth seemed to me to be more for show, not for go.  LOL

Reds, ok, they were fun.  Got my wife into one that my scales showed was just over 30# on 8 pound mono.  It about killed her, but she almost forgives me for not taking the rod.  I still preferred to go for them top water but soft plastics were more productive.

Guess those fish you have must be super fish, or.......... Na, you would not be overstating your case.  ;).

Wow ok. I get the feeling no mater what I say about this issue, you'll chime in with more smart comments and more clues to your lack of knowledge concerning our fishery here. Meanwhile, I still have a real issue to work on. Thanks for playing.