Worm oil, mineral oil bagging question

[owenbyc]

What does the big companys use for bagging their soft plastics. Everytime i see a pack of zooms they are pretty wet sometimes you can see liquid in the bottom the the bag. I can use worm oil say 7-8 drops per pack of baits. I put them in a bowl with 7-8 drops and squish them around. Bag them. 2-3 weeks later baits will be dry and bent from laying in the worm bag. I know they are absorbing the worm oil. Like the big guys most of their plastics aren't bent after opening them probably months after sitting in the bag. I let them cure hanging for weeks also. Anybody with insight?

[Bass-Boys]

What type of bags are you using ? 

[Tiderunner]

Your title reads mineral oil, but you post reads mineral oil. If you're using mineral oil that could be the problem. Mineral oil is not recommended.Although some bait makers use it without issue. In all the years I have been pouring baits, I have only had one batch of stick baits end up bent like that. And that was before I bagged them. I never quite figured out why. The only other time I ended up with bent baits was when I made swimbaits and the tails were bent because I didn't hang them. They weren't really bent only off center.

I do hang the majority of my baits while curing. And curing to me means whenever I get around to bagging them. I use zippered quart bags from Walmart, and when I bag I add worm oil,not mineral oil, mixed with whatever scent I want, right into the bag, and as you say I squish them around to make sure everybody is coated. Then sprinkle with whatever salt is close by. Could be powdered , could be table salt or kosher salt. And squish again. I have had literally hundred of bags made up this way, sometimes for a few years without issue.

I'm not saying my method is the best you'll ever use, it's just what works for me, and has for a long time.

Go back and shoot your baits again, making sure to mix the crap out of your plastic.  Be aware of variables like temps, Pressure on the injector, are you adding hardener? After shooting consider hanging your baits to cure.. Then try the oil in the bag method. If it still happens again, Consider using a different plastic. It may take trial and error to get it fixed.

[Judgie]

I have been using Mineral oil, for years never had a problem.

[Tiderunner]

21 hours ago, Judgie said:

I have been using Mineral oil, for years never had a problem.

As I mentioned in my post some folks haven't had a problem with mineral oil some have. I personally have only used a scented worm oil. 50/50 mix of scent to worm oil.

[mark poulson]

How is worm oil made?

[Tiderunner]

1 hour ago, mark poulson said:

How is worm oil made?

Worm oil is DINP (diisononyl phthalate) or DOP (dioctyl pthalate), both of which are a pthalate used as a plasticizr. it's not a liquid oil in the traditional sense but a chemical compound that is mixed with the plastic resin during manufacturing.

From what I understand it is basically the compound that is used to make the plastisol finished product softer ( more oil )or harder ( less oil ) Much as hardener is what we see as the hard pack in the bottom of the jugs our plastisol comes in. Is the white part a PVC compound?

Maybe this is right, maybe I oversimplified it?

[mark poulson]

2 hours ago, Tiderunner said:

Worm oil is DINP (diisononyl phthalate) or DOP (dioctyl pthalate), both of which are a pthalate used as a plasticizr. it's not a liquid oil in the traditional sense but a chemical compound that is mixed with the plastic resin during manufacturing.

From what I understand it is basically the compound that is used to make the plastisol finished product softer ( more oil )or harder ( less oil ) Much as hardener is what we see as the hard pack in the bottom of the jugs our plastisol comes in. Is the white part a PVC compound?

Maybe this is right, maybe I oversimplified it?

Thanks for the explanation.

[owenbyc]

Thank you for the replies. What im saying is zoom and other big bait companys lube their baits with something else besides worm oil because it doesnt absorb into the baits like home production baits. unless their baits react different to worm oil. I mix my plastic very well and they cure for weeks sometimes. I use say 7-8 drops of scented worm oil per bag for baits. I put the baits in a plastic container add the drops and shake the crap out of them. Then bag them. 2-3 days later all of the worm oil is pretty much gone absorbed in the baits.

[Tiderunner]

What brand of plastic are you using? I have baits bagged for years that have just as much oil in them as day one and hasn't been absorbed. Those baits come fishing with me on hot summer days, spend winters in a cold garage. I have some baits from 20 years ago that are still as soft and pliable as day one. The first place I would look is your plastic.

[Tiderunner]

and re-reading your OP I use a lot more than 7-8 drops of worm oil. I soak the living snot out of them, with added salt. But even then the bags are still as soaked as the day I packed them. I also mix a lot of salt right into the plastic before heating, so if anything my baits should be absorbing a lot of the oil.

[C0MRAD]

Baits that I made with MF plastic would usually have oil in the bottom of the bag, even if I didn't add scent.  They just seemed to leach out some oil as time passed.  Maybe Zoom uses MF?  Bait plastics and dead-on plastics stay dry and will absorb added scent.  As long as you use a strong scent and put it in a laminated worm bag with a zipper, it will hold its scent after it looks like it has dried out.  I've used clear bags for a long time but recently switched to a black and silver bag from wormbags.com.  They all work well.

Edited Monday at 07:34 AM by C0MRAD