Alien Lureworks Posted July 25, 2022 Report Share Posted July 25, 2022 I would greatly appreciate some help if possible. Figuring raw material cost for this pursuit is driving me nuts. In regards to AI's 4" open pour hook slotted swimbait mold, I figured a raw material cost of .07 % of 1 cup of plastic. Accounts for minimal waste and with low balling it I came up with around 240 lures per gallon. Is that close or am I crazy? I don't know anymore lol. I made 18 with 1 1/3 cups of plastic I believe. Any real help and I would love to return the favor and some..thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bass-Boys Posted July 25, 2022 Report Share Posted July 25, 2022 18 from 1-1/3 cups = 13.5 per cup x 16 cups in a gallon= 216 baits per gallon . That is just for Plastisol, add in color, glitter and eyes if used. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alsworms Posted July 25, 2022 Report Share Posted July 25, 2022 Need to see the swimbait you're talking about, but as for just basic straight tail worms, I believe I was able to get 750 to 800 small baits and around 600 6 inchers with a gallon of plastic. This is for a cavity that is very similar to Robo Worm. Also keep in mind that I took those figures once I knew a thing or 2 and didn't really over pour or make too many other mistakes at that point. Interesting topic, though. Currently my favorite swimbait is the 4 inch Megabass Spark Shad. I'd love to know how many of those can be made with a gallon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
basskat Posted July 25, 2022 Report Share Posted July 25, 2022 One of the first things I do with a new mold is shoot a cup of plastic through it to see how many baits it'll make. Once you know how many a cup makes your off to the races. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alien Lureworks Posted July 31, 2022 Author Report Share Posted July 31, 2022 Thank you for the information. All of that was very helpful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Painter1 Posted July 31, 2022 Report Share Posted July 31, 2022 I have done the math very recently to get an average cost across the variety baits I make, including Swim Baits, Craws, Centipedes, & Soft Stickbaits. That number is $.09 per bait, all in. Obviously smaller could be less and larger more, but colorant, salt, softener, glitter, hi-light powder, and other additives can also shorten that gap. To get true “total cost” one needs to capitalize & deprecate molds, heaters, injectors, scents/oils, packaging & labels, and energy costs. Determining these actual ancillary cost is tricky. For instance: it’s possible to get X number of baits per jar of glitter, or per injector. But you may not use those to their limit. I hope this is helpful, or at least, food for thought. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
