Plastic worm preserver/lube

[bigone5500]

I have recently acquired my dad's fishing gear/tackle. He did not fish for many years before he passed away. Much of the tackle consists of plastic worms. The worms were my grandparent's. They were very avid fishermen and kept their stuff in very good condition. The worms were in plastic bags and most (90%?) still had the lube on them. Some of the bags, however, were decaying. I transferred them to new zipper bags and recently, into a great Bass Pro Shops tackle bag (thanks @buzzed bait). I want to add more lube/preservant to the worms to keep them in good condition. 

Now, my question is what in the world do artificial worm manufacturers put in the bags with the worms? I have read that they use oil of anise for attractant but surely that's not all it is...right? Would a small amount of cooking oil of some kind work? I don't want to add anything that would cause them to become gummy.

Thanks!!!

[Cgolf]

I actually rinse the overly oily baits in the sink and dry them. After that I store them in plano boxes laying them in neatly so they don't take a funky bend if they sit in there for years. I actually like plastics that aren't as oily because they hold scent longer when it is applied. I have many plastics stored this way that have to be over 15 years old and they are like new.

[davecon]

Might try a very small bit of  high quality vegetable oil, for example Wesson Oil. I would only do that on those that are dried out. Oddly, there is one small river that I fish where anise oil is almost a necessity. It helps in a lot of places but in this one river anise oil out fishes plain worms with no scent by 10 to 1. Have never understood that but I just go with it. It's been that way for almost 35 years now.

[SJex]

I use a dab of Megastrike as a lube, it has the added bonus of scenting the worms.

[Bass Turd]

I don't know the answer but I wouldn't use vegetable oil. It will turn rancid at some point. 

[blckshirt98]

If you had to use a oil I'd using something like a neutral/scentless mineral oil. Or you could grab some of the GULP Re-Charge juice and keep the worms stored in there.

[WRB]

Don't add anything that will become rancid like vegetable oil. 

I have used glycerin as a lubricant for decades. Adding about 1/2 teaspoon per gallon zip lock bags, place the soft plastics in the bag and shake to mix the worms with the glycerin. If you want to add scent then add a few drops of pure anise oil to each bag.

Tom 

[frosty]

Why not just wipe some vasoline on them? Seems like it would protect them better than just oil. 

[Jeff H]

On 10/28/2016 at 0:34 PM, blckshirt98 said:

 mineral oil.

Right there.  This is what I've used for 25 yrs....or I used Berkley Strike.  It takes very little to lube a 20 ct bag, don't over-do it!

[bigone5500]

Thanks for the replies folks! Helps a lot. I thought a dry worm was trash. 

[Maxximus Redneckus]

I have manns augertails and jelly worms still in bags from 25 yrs ago they are fine they used to put fs 454 in them as long as they are  not crooked they will be  fine.BTW i use olive oil in my bags so they lay straight. 

[bigone5500]

I wonder if mineral oil will do the trick??? I suppose it's basically scentless so that along with some anise might do it.

[bigone5500]

On 10/28/2016 at 0:34 PM, blckshirt98 said:

If you had to use a oil I'd using something like a neutral/scentless mineral oil. Or you could grab some of the GULP Re-Charge juice and keep the worms stored in there.

HAHA!!! I re-read this thread and forgot about this reply. 

So I will assume it's ok for them to be in contact with mineral oil???

[Catt]

I mix 1/2 oz pure anise oil with Baitmate, before that it was Fish Formula.

I've used this for 40+ years & it still works

[blckshirt98]

I've never used mineral oil so don't start dunking your plastics in mineral oil without testing it first lol.  I only mentioned that because someone said vegetable oils might go rancid, so I just figured mineral oil might be a possible alternative since it can't really go rancid.

[lo n slo]

17 hours ago, Catt said:

 Fish Formula.

i miss my Fish Formula. Crawfish was the best.

[Jeff H]

I've also used this...works well and smells nice.

http://www.productolure.com/proddetail.php?prod=LL1

[FrankW]

I have worms from 1970/1972 stored in anise oil and they are good as new. 

Frank

[bigone5500]

Thanks for the replies. This is good information.

[primetime]

I still have boxes of soft baits that were manufactured in 2008 and I make sure they stay covered in plastic and not exposed to the sun. If you keep them cool, they last for years.

I have bags of Mister Twister Exude Sluggo's in the 4" size that are over 20 years old both in and out of packs. I recently had a bag that I opened and they were stiff, I just sprayed some Reel Magic in the bag, put them on my dashboard for the drive, and they were perfect by the time I reached my location.

Temperature matters, also if they are swimbaits, you have to keep the tails stored straight. That is why the clam shell packaging is worth the extra money if you buy extra stuff on sale. Swimbaits bend easily and it is hard to get them right again. Same with any worm etc...Just store them straight and in a cool spot and you can keep them a long time.

[KDW96]

Couple of squirts of Bang or Hog Tonic works for me .