Pouring you own plastics?

[Stickling]

what in the word? how do you pour your own plastics? and how do u get the machine to do it?is there a website anyone has about this?

[Glenn]

Here ya go!

http://bassresource.com/fishing/pouring_plastic.html

http://bassresource.com/fishing/pouring_plastic_worms_supplies.html

http://bassresource.com/fishing/pouring_plastic_worms.html

[Stickling]

Thanks glen  8) i might have to get a plastic pour thing.

[tritonman]

Thanks Glenn

That was great info

[LUNKER]

I spent $300 or more trying to make my own Senkos. Bought a cast iron mold. Considering GYBC gets me for about $500 a year on one color, I thought I would give it a shot. I paid $100 for a Alluminum mold that is 2 part and screws together.  I will be the first to admit, you need patience trying to do this.  DO NOT DO IT IN THE HOUSE!!! Overheating will cause a big fire of the plastics. The fumes will choke you to death.  You need a very steady hand and pour slowly. Then I finally got some baits made. Caught a pike on a few but most of them ended up having a hollow inner section which would make them float and not fall like I would have liked. I have given this idea up and am paying the pros. It was fun but be careful.  Good Luck.

[Stickling]

I just bought some senkos the other day, havent cought anything off them yet.

[pigpounder]

for some reason senko's don't work very well for me below 55degree's

[Stickling]

This is the first time ive used senkos and its been so cold here i dont think the waters been above 47 much.

[JT Bagwell]

LOL

Lunker,

That was a great story.

JT Bagwell

[Nick_Barr]

I have wanted to try and pour my own plastics but after that story id rather not. ;D

[LUNKER]

If you think thats funny, it gets better. I live in the Windy City. Once that plastic catches fire, be careful. I poured it out of the pan and on the ground. It spread worse than Back Draft the movie.

So with my brilliance and my white Nikes, I stepped on it plooooooop oozing everwhere with fire to boot. Those Black Nike's are pretty colorful, minus a inch of sole. Great fishing shoes. lol

Im not trying to disourage you. I didnt have a Garage back then with ventilation. If you can get the heat under control, use a steady hand. It can be a fun hobby. Thoughts of my own tackle empire really came crashing down though. The mold I bought was a pretty good mold. Pouring only 7 Senkos at a time and 3 - 4 being good after I mastered this trade was not a good average. I figure my time is worth something. To get a 10 bag of Senkos should be worth a half hour of time. Unless your using BPS Stickos, then you need to double that output to make it worthwhile. Im spending my cash in the store or on the internet. I just didnt have the patience for it. Ive seen some great California platic pourers. Its and art. Its fun but dont lose the house or the garage over it. Make sure you think safety. Also make sure mama's not home for a week if you try it in the house. You will never get the smell out in time.  

I am envisioning the pros using a Vat type Cooker to maintain exact temp controls on the plastic when you melt it. With a direct injection spout. If you find that at a reasonable price, I would certainly try it again.

Have a great day! Skip Senkos, dont Simmer them.  

[Nick_Barr]

I went to a show and bought some cheap homemade baits for $0.99 a bag and melted them together with 2 spoons and a lighter it totally worked but looked a little messy. i made a creature bait by melting ribbontail worms tail and melting 4 of them to a crawdad. it looked hilarious.

[ichigo]

just buy some molds at bearsbait.com

[zach t]

I have now made 20 "successful" swim baits. It wasn't hard to do...just have alot of patients and ventilation. My thread is a couple of threads down.

[Denea]

just buy some molds at bearsbait.com

Ditto. I currently have 7 molds, 1 medium injector, and the dual color injector from Bear (www.bearsbaits.com). Very easy to do, and a lot of fun. I would recommend eye wear, hot mill gloves, and a respirator. Bear also has a great community too, I have been there about two (2) weeks, and glad I got into it.

Good Luck!

[Pantera61]

About 20 years ago I bought one of those all in one kits for injection molding worms.  Hot worm plastic on the back of your hand is not fun.  Ended that real quick.

[Mike Z]

Go to bearsbaits.com as the others have said. You can order start kits and supplies for most anything. Perhaps the biggest resource on his site is the forums. Do yourself a favor and register because you get 4x the content by registering vs what you get just visiting. There are videos and tutorials on the best methods to use and from what I have read, his injectors and molds are among the best out there, if not the best.

A few things I have learned from watching the videos and reading... Bait making is addictive and you will buy more than one mold. if you have friends who also fish, they can offset some of your material cost and help you minimize investment if you work it right. Always wear heat resistant gloves. Never use an open flame around plastics. A presto pot or a glass Pyrex cup and a microwave work best, but be sure to use a thermometer. Always have ventilation and don't do it in the house if at all possible. And last, a gallon can get you around 300 or so Senko style worms, give or take. At 300 a gallon, if you were paying $6.99 for Senkos, you would have spent $210 for the amount that you can pour with a gallon. The savings is similar with other bait types. The expense is up front with the injector and molds.

Also, one of the biggest up sides to making your own bait is that you can mix your own colors and do a handful at a time if you want. Melt a little plastic and make a custom color with 5 or 10 worms for cheap rather than dropping $7 on a pack that you don't know will ever catch a thing. For someone like me who doesn't already have a huge box full of bait, this means some actual potential savings, though the up front cost is higher. This is primarily why I am looking at trying out the pour your own thing, the long term saving potential plus the ability to not have to buy bags if I only want to try a few.

Anyway, this is all info that I grabbed reading here and mostly from over there watching the videos and reading through many posts. Youtube is also a fantastic place to see some different methods if you use the right keywords.

Good luck.

PS, plastic doesn't just start on fire on its own unless you severely overheat it or you provide it with an open flame. I worked for a plastics factory for a year and not once was there any bit of fire, even though we had dryers, ovens, and machines operating in the 350+ degreee range almost at all times.

[BriBass]

just buy some molds at bearsbait.com

Ditto. I currently have 7 molds, 1 medium injector, and the dual color injector from Bear (www.bearsbaits.com). Very easy to do, and a lot of fun. I would recommend eye wear, hot mill gloves, and a respirator. Bear also has a great community too, I have been there about two (2) weeks, and glad I got into it.

Good Luck!

These are a must! and yes it may be frustrating but u get a thermo, and be patient its not to bad..read some of the articles about it and youll get a better idea, youll only burn the plastic like Lunker was saying if ur not paying attention or dont have the tools listed above. IMO steady hand, easy does it and the colors are endless