GB GONE Posted May 12, 2006 Report Share Posted May 12, 2006 Kim & Shawn from Lurecraft gave me the tip after a new RTV mold of mine gave me the "non-shiny" baits.... WD-40 worked great on one of the molds and the baits shine like aluminum molded baits. The other mold did not respond to the WD-40... Jim BTW.... WD-40 is a fish attractant also..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigZ Posted May 12, 2006 Report Share Posted May 12, 2006 WD-40 has rapeseed oil in it, which is supposedly what the fish are attracted to. If F&G catches you spraying that stuff on your bait here, you're in BIG trouble. In the long run, the oil will cause your mold to dull, but it does work to bring back old molds. Hell, I still use RTV for some baits. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glider Posted May 17, 2006 Report Share Posted May 17, 2006 I used WD40 on my RTV molds, just make sure you don’t use too much otherwise it can pool at the bottom of the mold and make small pin holes in the bait. Another thing I always do with RTV molds is to warm them up first. I have a few gallons of old plastic that I heat up and pour in the molds, I do this 3 times to get the mold up to temperature, I have found that if I don’t do this, the first couple of baits come out with a mat finish and small bubbles in them. I have also discovered that by cleaning the molds with kitchen paper towel can also damage the molds, paper towel is quiet abrasive and will remove the shinny finish on a mold if rubbed to hard with paper towel. So now I clean all my molds with WD40 and cotton towel before I heat them up for pouring. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIGUN Posted May 17, 2006 Report Share Posted May 17, 2006 Hey guys. Just some more thoughts on RTV (if they're silicone and not urethane) molds. Silicones, Inc. sells a product that is specifcally designed to extend the life of both Platinum-based and Tin-based silicones. It doesn't have solvents in it like WD-40- it is just basically silicone oil. It also makes the castings glossy. We don't really use it in our shop (decoys) because we don't want glossy parts plus it makes it hard to clean them enough to make paint stick but it is an AWESOME product. I would avoid putting solvents on any silicone mold and also you are way better off to keep the mold at a fairly constant temp than to heat it up and let it cool over and over- even though, in our laziness, this is what we do most of the time- he he. If you want bubble-free parts, you need to relieve the surface tention on the mold surface. Talc is the ultimate way but it sounds like you guys want a glossy finish? So the silicone oil will help with that. You can get it from Stephenson Pattern Supply (503-228-1222) probably alot of other places if anyone is interested. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GB GONE Posted May 17, 2006 Author Report Share Posted May 17, 2006 Thanks for the great info guys!!!!!!!! I am going to get some silicone oil to try out but the WD-40 worked pretty good! Jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
