Teamdiarrhea Posted December 8, 2004 Report Share Posted December 8, 2004 Great board(s) here guys, don't do much posting, just like to get on every now and then and catch up on the latest. Winter is here and it's time to restock on plastics.... I've "experimented" with resin, Durham's, and blue RTV for several years. I lean toward Durham's now, there are advantages/disadvantages to all. RTV is the best because it won't break and you don't have to oil the mold prior to pouring, but the downside is that if you mess up a mold you just threw away a $10 or $20 bill - stuff is expensive. The biggest downsides for Resin and Durham's are 1) they don't take kindly to being dropped on a concrete floor, and 2) you pretty much have to oil up before every pour or your plastic sticks. Am curious - are the durham molds you guys are coating with devcon still "oil free"? The best thing I've come up with is to coat your Durham's mold with the blue RTV. Go very thin with 1 or 2 coats. Problem is the wait for it to dry out - I usually give it a day per coat. First coat soaks in and is usually enough - put on a real light second coat for more shine on your baits, but be careful and wipe off excess a few times or it will pool in the bottom of your mold cavity, distorting the bait shape and taking away any detail. Am curious to try the devcon coating on my next go-round. Hope you're all enjoying winter - took the day off to fish but it's 40 deg with 20-30mph winds right now in WA. Guess I'll have to clean the garage so I can get the pouring station fired up again..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GB GONE Posted December 8, 2004 Report Share Posted December 8, 2004 I use Devcon 2 ton on my POP and Durham's exclusively. I've poured hundreds of baits in them and they are shiny every time...no oil need!!! If you do coat them with Devcon, you can use acetone (fingernail polish remover) or rubbing alcohol to thin it a little. A tip I was given was to also add some red food coloring dye. That way after you coat, you know if you missed any spots or not. Jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teamdiarrhea Posted December 8, 2004 Author Report Share Posted December 8, 2004 That's good news, thanks a bunch Jim! The sweetie is leaving to her sister's for the weekend - I'll pick up some 2-ton today for this weekend's moldmaking and pour-athon with the fishing buddies (or what she refers to as beer drinking buddies)..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GB GONE Posted December 8, 2004 Report Share Posted December 8, 2004 Oh yeah..winter has arrived in South GA...71 "frigid" degrees !! Someone has to do it!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teamdiarrhea Posted December 9, 2004 Author Report Share Posted December 9, 2004 I know, I know, you must be freezing. Have Devcon on hand now, will put to use this weekend. Thanks again - Matt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MagicBob Posted December 10, 2004 Report Share Posted December 10, 2004 I use Envirotex Lite on Durhams and it works great. Since I am making my own originals and they are mostly big with no fine details I like the way straight Etex smoothes things out. If you want to preserve detail whatever epoxy you use it needs to be thinned and multiple coated. The weather's just fine here in CA. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teamdiarrhea Posted December 10, 2004 Author Report Share Posted December 10, 2004 Envirotex Lite, thanks MagicBob. I can see TU is going to get expensive for me - running out to buy new and different goodies to try out all the time - usually goes something like, "Sweetie, you need me to run to the store and pick up milk or bread or anything? No-no-no, you go ahead and stay here, I'll be RIGHT BACK!" I'm not worried about real fine detail in my baits either, mostly pour grubs, lizards, creatures, Sink-Os and dropshot baits for my friends and self. Whenever I get to it (which isn't often enough) I like to pour enough of one pattern/color so they last the better part of a season if not longer. Don't want to have to oil molds and pry out sticking baits - I'd rather "waste" my time on the water than in the garage pouring. Although both contribute greatly to my remaining somewhat sane.... Temps are good today in the 50s but that $%&$# wind is howling again - too much work to go out and fight the white caps at this time of the year. Hopefully this weekend things will get back to normal fishing conditions (a balmy 30 degrees and no wind) so I can go out and drag up a few winter smallies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teamdiarrhea Posted December 15, 2004 Author Report Share Posted December 15, 2004 Thanks Lurehead03. I tried some high heat type paint on Durham's a few years back and it didn't work well, the paint kept sticking to the plastic and pulling out of the blank. I probably got impatient and tried pouring too early, 48 hours is a long time to wait to try out that new mold Is "High Heat" the brand name of the paint you're using? Thx - Matt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MagicBob Posted December 16, 2004 Report Share Posted December 16, 2004 TD, I had the same problem with "high heat paints" so I'd be curious as to the brand myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charkins Posted December 20, 2004 Report Share Posted December 20, 2004 Where can you get Envirotex Lite? I may want to try that. Thanks Cal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fish_N_Fool Posted December 28, 2004 Report Share Posted December 28, 2004 I use fiberglass resin thinned with asetone and it works fine for me. It does about the same as the devcon but is a little cheaper. If your making 2 piece molds ONLY coat the bait cavity and your pour holes with any sealer or your molds will not fit together tight anymore and you'll get flashing that you'll have to trim off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siebler_custom_baits Posted December 28, 2004 Report Share Posted December 28, 2004 DO yall recomend water putty over plaster? And if so Why? ISnt plaster cheaper and stuff? Whats advantages with putty? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fish_N_Fool Posted December 28, 2004 Report Share Posted December 28, 2004 There are 2 main advantages to Durhams over Plaster, First it picks up much greater detail then plaster to repreduce a higher quality more detail bait, and 2nd it is about 10 times harder and stronger then plaster. You can drop a mold sometimes and it will NOT brake. They aren't bullet proof though as they do brake, but I just get out my superglue and glue it back together. Other then you get a little line in your baits where the brake was it's as good as new. Durhams is great for 2 piece molds as it has no shrinkage. Only coat the mold cavity with sealer though or the molds will not fit tight together and you'll get some flashing. PS you MUST bake it at low temps for about 8 hours to get it free of mosture before you seal the mold, but be sure to cut any pour holes or runners before you bake it. After baking it is as hard as bone. You can take it out of the pan you poured it in in about 2 hours, then do you cutting as required and then bake. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siebler_custom_baits Posted December 28, 2004 Report Share Posted December 28, 2004 thanks for the info fnf. I really never have problems loosing details because i mix a little thiner and work realy fast (20 seconds mixing and pouring total). Ive never droped a mold however this seems to be nice. Ill try it for lead since it is stronger and wont break as easy when clamped. Thanks for the info. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
