Where should I start for soft plastics?

[The Budget Angler]

I should probably open this post by saying I'm in college so I don't have a bunch of money to throw at this.

 

That's the main reason I want to start making senkos, I spend way too much money on them after bass inevitably mangle them (or I cast them directly into a tree and break them off).  I know up front that it would cost a lot of money, but what are the things I have to have to pour my own plastics, just so I can budget and see if it's worth it?

 

Any help is appreciated

[Happybeerbuzz]

Just buy Yum until you graduate.  

[Jig Man]

Needed:

 

mold… $50 to $100

heat source…$30-$100

containers…$20

plastisol….$40/gallon

colorant…$5/color

glitter….$5/color

You will also need eye protection and some kind of heavy duty gloves.

My advice is to wait until later because it becomes an expensive hobby.

 

My suggestion is to get some Elaztech worms and give them a try.  They are virtually indestructible.

 

[The Budget Angler]

1 minute ago, Jig Man said:

Needed:

 

mold… $50 to $100

heat source…$30-$100

containers…$20

plastisol….$40/gallon

colorant…$5/color

glitter….$5/color

You will also need eye protection and some kind of heavy duty gloves.

My advice is to wait until later because it becomes an expensive hobby.

 

My suggestion is to get some Elaztech worms and give them a try.  They are virtually indestructible.

 

d**n.

 

That's expensive.

[PourMyOwn]

I've been pouring for a long time too, it's not a money saving endeavor. 

 

Your best bet is to buy them from someone who pours them.  I've seen 100 count bags on FB groups for less than 15 bucks. 

[roadwarrior]

1 hour ago, PourMyOwn said:

I've been pouring for a long time too, it's not a money saving endeavor. 

Stick with GYCB Senkos.

 

 

[Munkin]

Buy BPS Stick-0's during one of their sales. Or go to any fishing flea market shows in your area. Because of the shows I don't even know how much senkos cost retail? Bought 28 packs of 5" Senkos last year for $40 so I am set for now.

 

 

Allen

[PaulVE64]

I made a hand pour mold from a slab of hardwood and bondo.

Just melt my own scraps from fishing. Thankfully I only use a few colours in soft plastic.

[ChrisD46]

On 4/2/2024 at 10:07 AM, Happybeerbuzz said:

Just buy Yum until you graduate.  

^^This^^ Use Yum 5" stick worm with VMC Drop Dead weighted EWG Hook (3/0 or 4/0 3/32nd oz. ).

For wacky rig use VMC wacky weedless jig head in 1/16th oz or 1/8th oz. *Yum 4" and 5" stick worms are lighter weight with less action than a Yamamoto senko - thus work better with weighted hook options I listed above which helps the Yum stick worms "come alive" !

[David A]

 

Posted Friday at 06:13 PM

what is an average of how many 6'' stick baits you can make with 2oz of 15 size glitter and also how many of the same baits you can make with 4oz of colorant.

[Drawdown]

Start using other plastics that either a) come in larger quantities or b) are more durable.

 

The aforementioned Elastec addresses point B, but you can still lose them to a snag.

 

That’s why until somewhat recently I was very much using Zoom plastics + Eagle Claw terminal tackle almost exclusively. Cost per rigged bait was very low, but still very effective even in pressured water.

 

The added benefit will be you get comfortable fishing something other than Senkos. I’d strongly recommend the Trick Worm and whatever creature/craw bait strikes your fancy when you look at the package.

[txchaser]

A bottle of mend-it will probably double the life of your senkos. 

As will owner CPS hooks if you are fishing them texas rigged. 

And silicon tubing or something like that for wacky. 

Worth trying before you switch. 

And, all of the above will do the same for yum dingers (their senko knockoff). 

 

 

[The Jig Is Up]

Absolute bare minimum, you can get a mold and use it to recycle any soft baits that get torn up. I'd look into a budget open pour mold, those don't require an injector so there's a little bit less cost to get started up.

If I were in your shoes, I'd get a cheap $20 microwave from a thrift store, a $5 Pyrex cup, a $40 open pour worm mold (lots of tackle making stores online have affordable open pour molds), and simply recycle your used up baits.

[WRB]

As a hobby hand pours work OK. Not a fan of recycling used soft plastics= ugly colors and stiff baits.

Tom

[Jig Man]

36 minutes ago, WRB said:

As a hobby hand pours work OK. Not a fan of recycling used soft plastics= ugly colors and stiff baits.

Tom

Ugly colors yes because they will wind up brown.  With softner added they won’t be stiff.