Will Posted September 21, 2005 Report Share Posted September 21, 2005 When using a two-piece mold such a the stick mold, have you guys notice that some of the baits upon opening the mold look dented as if someone touched them during the cooling process even before you put your fingers on them? Why is this? It does not matter how long I wait until they cool off, some of them just have a dent. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trackerpt175 Posted September 21, 2005 Report Share Posted September 21, 2005 i am new but i think they are small air pockets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delw Posted September 21, 2005 Report Share Posted September 21, 2005 Will, there are a few things that cause dents. it could be cold spots in the plastic or mold not usually, but it does happen could also be trapped air try pouring slower. sometimes people oil there molds and it tends to leave a spot like a dent. one other thing to look into is if the salt is not mixed good enough it will basically pop ( like an air bubble) in the side Its been a long time since I have gotten air bubbles when pouring the stik molds. Ive poured my 2 piece worm molds and not had the problem. there are some posts on this site that guys have found there problem for the dents. Delw Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigZ Posted September 22, 2005 Report Share Posted September 22, 2005 THe only time I have had problems like this is when the molds have been real cold (i.e. sitting in the garage in winter). If the temp difference is too high, the mold will cool faster than the plastic and leave a void. You can rule out an air bubble because that would leave a visible defect in the finished bait. I don't claim to be an expert on aluminum molds, but that's my 2?... Make sure you're filling the reservoirs on top of the mold completely (crowing over) so there is a sufficient supply of plastic to fill the plastic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harley-cowboy Posted September 22, 2005 Report Share Posted September 22, 2005 I used to have the same problem with the first few stix pours. I now heat my molds to around 130 degrees... NO MORE DENTS. Try heating your molds a little bit. See if that helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will Posted September 22, 2005 Author Report Share Posted September 22, 2005 Thank you Guys for your replies. I have to say that I am still trying to figure this one out... The kind of dent I refer to are not due to trapped-air inside the bait itself which usually occurs when pouring too fast or, the plastic was not hot enough to pour an uninterrupted stream of hot plastic per cavity, or because the cavity just did not get filled enough. The one I'm talking about is on the outside, no air bubbles inside the bait. Del, I use no oil on my molds or salt in my sticks, but like you suggested, I will pour slower and see what happens. harley-cowboy, BigZ, The funny thing is that this does not happen when I start pouring on cold aluminum molds. The dents on the sticks appear more often as the molds get hotter. The molds I have are 2 of 8 cavities each, so they take a long time to cool down. No need to heat them up prior to pouring. At this point I am wondering if it could be the plastic. I was testing a "super-soft plastic" and it could be that it just does not have the strength to hold it together when it probably becomes too hot and especially when it is poured in hot molds too (most of the times I make about 85-100 sticks from one Pyrex container of plastic at a time) so this would get those molds really hot. What do you guys think? Am I onto something here? Thanks everyone! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wannabefishing Posted September 22, 2005 Report Share Posted September 22, 2005 I had the same problem as you.... i started flouring the salt adding less of it and then pouring slower and it went away... again like you was fine when it was cold it was when it got hot that it happened Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jm Posted September 22, 2005 Report Share Posted September 22, 2005 Will, What plastic are you using, and how much of what additives are you adding to it? jm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will Posted September 22, 2005 Author Report Share Posted September 22, 2005 jm, I've seen this happen with other plastics too, I had just never used the "super soft" from any plastisol manufacturer. No additives, just color and flakes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
borderbasser Posted September 23, 2005 Report Share Posted September 23, 2005 No additives? Does that mean no salt? I've had the exact same problem as you, but I put salt in my plastic at 2:1 (eg..4oz plastic to 2 oz salt). I used Calhoun's regular plastic, and I was pouring in a homemade plaster mold with pam as a release agent. The funny thing is that the "dent" ended up in almost the exact same spot on every bait regardless of which cavity they came from. Then dent on a 5" stick was always about 1.5" from the top. I hope you are able to figure this one out for the rest of us, 'cause I haven't yet :!: :oops: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james bradshaw Posted September 23, 2005 Report Share Posted September 23, 2005 I have noticed the same sunken spots on my stick worms. I have noticed it mostly when the plastic is too hot. I think it is caused by shrinkage. If you turn the heat down a little they seem to go away. I try to pour the salted sticks a little cooler any way, just so that the salt suspends in the plastic better, without stirring as much. If the plastic is too cool, or the plastic touches the sides of the mold cavity, when pouring, then you will get big air bubbles in the center of the worm. Just my two cents, good luck! James Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
earthworm77 Posted October 3, 2005 Report Share Posted October 3, 2005 I'm with James on this. When I have a little extra plastic at the end of a pot and I re-heat it, This is when the problem occurs for me. Ther is no doubt the plastic is much hotter than when I began pouring. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
