Table salt for baits?

[Judgie]

If you live in an area that has some mold shops, after stress relief they usually have the mold glass beaded.

The shops that glass bead throw out the used glass bead its very fine but they would most likely let you have it for free, because they pay to get rid of it.

I know this because I worked in one for years. 

[2marshall8]

I'm doing some experiments with morton sun salt. It's super cheap $11.49 on instacart for a 50lb bag. I powderized it and this was a no go as has been said here, so I'll see if I can make it a littler finer than it is and see if this works.

[Tiderunner]

I started out some time back using the salt from MF. I was plenty satisfied with it. But the price for it and from other sellers has risen to a point where I needed to find alternatives.

Took kosher salt ran it through an electric coffee grinder, and turned it into a fine powder. Works fine in baits, for my use at least.

But for those who grind their own, how do you keep it from caking? My bought brands of salt never caked. Is there something they add to keep it from caking?

[Apdriver]

Certainly some anti caking agents out there. 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anticaking_agent

 

[Travis]

13 hours ago, Tiderunner said:

I started out some time back using the salt from MF. I was plenty satisfied with it. But the price for it and from other sellers has risen to a point where I needed to find alternatives.

Took kosher salt ran it through an electric coffee grinder, and turned it into a fine powder. Works fine in baits, for my use at least.

But for those who grind their own, how do you keep it from caking? My bought brands of salt never caked. Is there something they add to keep it from caking?

Humidity is your enemy.  You simply have to store it under dry conditions. 

Anticaking agents are added as they combat and slow down the rate at which the NaCl and will absorb water, liquify at the surface and recrystallize during the process of aggregation.    You can try the old restaurant method used in table top salt shakers and keep the salt sealed in a container with rice.  Dump the salt in small cloth bag and tie and keep with your salt.  Can also use charcoal (used by some transportation departments to help avoid/reduce salt clumping but messy for our application) or other commercial moisture control products (more expensive).    For best results heat the rice in the oven at a low temperature prior to using.

You should also avoid grinding your salt until ready to use it as will further minimize issues.  When you grind the salt you exponentially increase the overall surface area and further exasperate the issue .  I have encountered problems where clients micronize product and upon storage  set up almost like concrete versus being a free flowing product prior for months on end when exposed to the same humidity condition.     

Other methods that will work but will be more expensive than just buying a MF salt initially.

[bryanmc]

Best way I've found to store salt was posted by Del on here a long time ago.   Quaker oatmeal container with cut up squares of cardboard box mixed in with the salt.

[Elf]

On 7/11/2019 at 11:24 AM, Troutfishing303 said:

Thanks everyone for responding.  I guess I will have to experiment with all the different kinds of additives out there.  Kosher salt, ground salt, glass beads, sinking formula, etc.  I'm making stick baits so I wanted them to cast far and sink faster than they are now.  Just like the original senkos. 

Kosher salt just means it's ok for preparation of Jewish foods, it's also a large flake salt that makes it easy to pick up with your fingers to spread over your food.

You want a fine flake salt, the brand doesn't matter as long as it's fine flake.

Grinding salt in a coffee grinder makes the salt so fine it tends wash out the colors if you use much more than a tablespoon per cup of plastisol. Fine flake salt suspends better and doesn't wash out the colors like a fine granular salt will. (I know this from personal experience.)

Baitjunkys suggestion to use a better quality plasitsol is wise also. 

[basskat]

I throw one of those rice bags in my salt container.

[wallyc14]

Heat plays a roll in suspension as we’ll . Example plastic at 350 the salt will settle out fast. I usually shoot at around 310-320 when making stick baits to keep the settling at bay. Over the years I have gotten to the point I use worm salt and glass media. Some where around here MonteSS posted some pics along time ago of clear plastic with just glass media in it. 

[RiverSmallieGuy]

The only thing I would say about this is just keep the salt off the bottom of your Pyrex measuring cup... I have tried not worrying about that, and the cup was a disaster. Clean your cups...

 

Braden

[agronomist_at_ia]

Anybody use popcorn salt? 

[alsworms]

13 hours ago, agronomist_at_ia said:

Anybody use popcorn salt? 

I used it exclusively with great results! 

[DaveMc1]

On 6/10/2021 at 11:03 AM, Elf said:

Kosher salt just means it's ok for preparation of Jewish foods, it's also a large flake salt that makes it easy to pick up with your fingers to spread over your food.

You want a fine flake salt, the brand doesn't matter as long as it's fine flake.

Grinding salt in a coffee grinder makes the salt so fine it tends wash out the colors if you use much more than a tablespoon per cup of plastisol. Fine flake salt suspends better and doesn't wash out the colors like a fine granular salt will. (I know this from personal experience.)

Baitjunkys suggestion to use a better quality plasitsol is wise also. 

I've been preaching this for years, glad to see I'm not the only one that found this lol.